Kampar was once a thriving mining town, rich in tin reserves. Its fortunes began to decline after World War I as demand and production shifted. In recent decades, freshwater fishing has become an important driver of the local economy. Many of the abandoned tin mines have filled with water, creating lakes that now support fish populations. These former mining sites have been repurposed into fish farms, duck farms, and other forms of horticultural production.

Ivanovo ( Иваново)  is located about 250 kilometres northeast of Moscow.  It lies on the Uvod River and has a population of 360 000 people. It became a major player in the textile industry, but that decreased dramatically after the fall of the Soviet Union. 

This is a photo of the Hackfort  Waterwheel in Vor den, Netherlands.  

Visalia is home to the Visalia Rawhide , a minor league baseball team that competes in the California League . They are currently the Single-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball . Single-A represents one of the lower levels of professional baseball in the United States and Canada. The Rawhide were founded in 1946 and were originally affiliated with the Chicago Cubs . Since then, they have had multiple affiliations and have changed their team name several times. They have won the California League championship three times: 1971, 1978, and 2019. Two former Visalia players— Randy Johnson and Kirby Puckett —have been inducted into the National Baseba ll Hall of Fame and Museum .

This is a great reproduction card of a vintage Chicago postcard from the 1930s–1940s. The sender is a supporter of the Chicago Blackhawks , who are currently celebrating their centennial season. The team joined the National Hockey League in 1926 and is considered one of the “Original Six” franchises. Frederic McLaughlin became the team’s third owner before it took to the ice. A coffee tycoon and veteran of World War I , he served with the 333rd Machine Gun Battalion of the 86th Infantry Division. The division was nicknamed the “Blackhawk Division,” after Black Hawk , a prominent Indigenous leader in the history of Illinois. The team was known as the “Black Hawks” until 1986, when the name was officially changed to “Blackhawks.” The Black Hawks began play in the 1926–27 season alongside fellow expansion teams such as the Detroit Red Wings (then the Cougars) and the New York Rangers . In Chicago, they also faced local competition from the American Hockey Association ’s Chicago Car...

This is a stunning photograph of Io , one of Jupiter ’s moons. At first glance, Io looks almost unreal—its surface is splashed with bright yellows, oranges, and reds, resembling a giant pizza or a world covered in molten paint. These striking colours come from sulphur and volcanic deposits constantly reshaping its surface. Io is the innermost and third-largest of the four Galilean moons . It is slightly larger than Moon and is the fourth-largest moon in the Solar System. It is also the most volcanically active body in the Solar System, with more than 400 active volcanoes that release sulphur and sulphur dioxide. Io was discovered in 1610 by Galileo Galilei , along with the other Galilean moons: Ganymede , Callisto , and Europa . These moons are named after figures from Greek mythology associated with Zeus , whom he seduced or abducted. Io, for example, was a priestess of Hera and one of Zeus’s lovers.

A typical multiview postcard showcasing the sights of Freiberg . In the lower right corner is Freudenstein Castle . The current version of the castle was completed in 1577 and formed part of the town’s defensive system during the Thirty Years' War . During the Seven Years' War , the castle’s interior was heavily damaged. In 1784, the military took over the building and converted it into a magazine (an ammunition storage facility). In 1813, it was used as a hospital for 1,500 wounded soldiers. The town of Freiberg assumed ownership in 1957, and the castle served as a granary until 1979. In 1973, a youth club even operated in the basement. From 1980 to 1990, a heritage organization was based at the castle and worked to rest ore it to its 1577 appearance.

I think this is my favourite Postcrossing meet-up card! This one took place in Bergamofil in September 2025. 

Suzhou (苏州市) is the most populous city in Jiangsu province, with a population of about 12.8 million people. Located in eastern China , it was historically an important economic, cultural, and scholarly centre, particularly during the Song dynasty and Qing dynasty . Suzhou is also famous for the Classical Gardens of Suzhou (苏州园林), a collection of historic gardens recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site . These gardens have been developed over nearly a thousand years and showcase traditional Chinese garden design. They feature carefully constructed landscapes that mimic natural scenery—rocks, hills, and waterways—along with strategically placed pavilions and pagodas. Today, there are 69 preserved gardens in Suzhou. According to UNESCO, these gardens “represent the development of Chinese landscape garden design over more than two thousand years” and are considered the “most refined form” of this art.

Veldegem is part of a municipality called Zedelgem. Zedelgem has 23 000 people and also includes the villages of Aartrijke, Loppem, and Zedelgem.  This card is signed by a family of four who like to go for walks and pick up any rubbish they encounter. 

Lake Worth Beach is a part of Palm Beach County and about 100 kilometres north of Miami.  Lake Worth Beach hosts the Lake Worth Beach Street Painting Festival which attracts about 100 000 people to the downtown area. Around 600 artists create works on the asphalt

Chennai is home to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), a professional Twenty20 cricket team that competes in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The team was one of the original eight franchises when the league was established in 2008 and plays its home matches at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium . CSK has won five IPL titles, making it one of the most successful teams in the league’s history, and has appeared in 10 finals. The team was suspended for two seasons following its involvement in the 2013 IPL spot-fixing and betting case . In January 2022, CSK became the first unicorn sports enterprise—meaning a startup valued at over US$1 billion. Today, the franchise is valued at approximately US$1.15 billion. The M. A. Chidambaram Stadium is one of the oldest cricket venues in India. Established in 1916, it has undergone several renovations and upgrades over the years and now has a seating capacity of around 38 200 spectators.

This is a photo of Saint Vitas Chapel located in Markgraflerland. Saint Vitas (c290-c303) was a Christian martyr from Sicily. He died during the Dioclentianic Persecution in 303. The Dioclentianic Persecution was the last and most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire.

A very cool vintage card featuring Hiptenea Osceola and her baby brother, Conapatchee. They are Seminole, and the photo was taken in the Florida Everglades , near Miami . It was likely originally a black-and-white photograph that was later hand-coloured. The sender is from Stuart , a small town in southern Virginia with a population of about 1,400 people. It was first known as Taylorsville in 1792, named in honour of an early settler. In 1884, it was renamed Stuart to honour J. E. B. Stuart , a Confederate major general who was born nearby.

The sender has two hobbies—photography and making his own postcards. This card features one of his own photographs, which he turned into a postcard. Dietzenbach was once a small farming town of about 4000 people before World War II . After the war, the population grew rapidly as refugees began settling in the area. Today, the town has around 35 000 residents, and roughly one-third have roots in more than 100 countries outside of Germany. Dietzenbach also has an Ausländerbeirat , or foreigners’ advisory council. Nineteen representatives from various nationalities meet ahead of town council sessions to provide input on i ssues affecting the community.

A cool card of a couple of cats having tea and snacks. The sender says the Mandarin on the front says "Slow down and savour your food." Good advice. 

The sender says this photo was taken by a local artist at the downtown arts district.  She is also happy as the Las Vegas Aces, of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) won their third WNBA title in four years.  The Las Vegas Aces are one of the original WNBA teams, but not in Las Vegas. They began in 1997 as the Utah Starzz; moved to San Antonio in 2003 to become the San Antonio Silver Stars; made a name tweak to just the San Antonio Stars in 2014; and moved to Law Vegas to become the Aces in 2014. They play out of Michelob Ultra Arena in Paradise, Nevada. Mark Davis, the owner of the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League, owns the Aces. 

Neu-Isenburg is part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area and has a population of nearly 40 000 people. The town is home to Autokino Gravenbruch , the oldest drive-in movie theatre in Europe. Neu-Isenburg is also well known in the region for its annual Open Doors Festival (formerly known as Musikspektakel). Over three days, around 40 bands and artists from a wide range of musical genres perform. The free event attracts approximately 15 000 visitors and takes place across several stages throughout the town.

This is a Postcrossing meetup card that took place in Stow, Ohio in October 2025. It looks like about 16 people attended.  The photo on the front if is the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. It runs through the Cuyahoga Valley National Park (Ohio's only national park) and it located 16 kilometres from Stow, Ohio

This is a nice tourist card from Prague . The sender, from Kutná Hora —located about 52 kilometres east of Prague—also nicely decorated the back of the card with washi tape and stickers. Kutná Hora is an ancient city, first mentioned in written records in 1289. However, archaeological evidence suggests that settlements existed in the area several centuries earlier. Since 1961, the historic town centre has been protected as an urban monument reservation. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995 due to its outstanding architecture and its influence on later architectural developments in other Central European cities. Notable landmarks include the Church of Saint Barbara and the Italian Court , both recognized as national cultural monuments. In total, the city is home to around 300 protected cultural sites. The Church of Saint Barbara alone attracted about 250,000 visitors in 2023. The Italian Court is the oldest monument in Kutná Hora, constructed between 1260 and 1300...

This card was created by modern-day Dutch artist Ferdy Remijn. The sender says they often vacation is Remijn's hometown in the Netherlands. She also says that he only draws animals. 

The sender is from Padua , a city of about 210,000 people located roughly 40 kilometres west of Venice . However, the postcard itself is from Zaragoza , and features a street view of the Cathedral-Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar (Catedral-Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Pilar). Construction of the basilica began in 1681 and continued over several centuries, with completion finally achieved in 1961. The basilica contains nine chapels: Chapel of the Rosary Chapel of Joachim Chapel of Saint Lawrence (Lorenzo) Chapel of Saint Pedro de Arbués Chapel of Saint Braulio Chapel of Saint Anthony Chapel of Saint Joseph Chapel of Saint Anne Chapel of Saint John

The sender is from Zossen , just south of Berlin , but was vacationing on Rügen , the largest island in northeastern Germany . Rügen is a popular tourist destination, known for its distinctive resort architecture, diverse landscapes, and long sandy beaches. It attracts many outdoor enthusiasts, particularly windsurfers, kite surfers , and surfers. Cycling is also very popular, with a circular path that runs around the entire island. Even local buses are equipped with bicycle carriers, making it easy to explore the island on two wheels.

This card was sent from Milan, but features three communes in Piedmont, the region in northwest Italy.  Bollengo is a commune about 50 kilometres northeast of Turin. There are about 2200 people who live here. Shown in the photo is Bollengo's ancient castle.  Piverone is also about 80 kilometres northeast of Turin. There are about 1400 residents.  Burolo is also about 50 kilometres northeast of Turin. 1100 people call Burolo home.  

A card from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park featured black bears. On the back it reads, Great Smoky Mountains National Park is one of the few remaining places in the eastern United States where black bears live in wild, natural surroundings. Approximately 1500 bears live in the Smokies, and inhabit all elevations of the park. 

Almost 40 000 people call Sneek home. It is located in northern Netherlands. They have their own dialect of Dutch called Snekers. One of the popular tourist sites is the Waterpoort, or Hoogendster Pijp. It is a water gate and a defensive wall that connect the city to the harbour. The Waterpoor in Sneek was built as part of a defensive wall being built around Sneek. Most of the defensive walls were demolished in the 18th century but the Waterpoort was left intact. 

The sender is a hockey fan who is especially passionate about KalPa (Kalevan Pallo). The team competes in the Liiga and plays its home games at Olvi Areena . KalPa was founded in 1929 as Sortavalan Palloseura in Sortavala and relocated to Kuopio in 1945 after the area was annexed by the Soviet Union . Originally, the club focused on sports such as football, bandy, and Pesäpallo . Ice hockey was introduced later, with the team beginning competition in 1947. Former National Hockey League players Sami Kapanen (50.5%) and Kimmo Timonen (8%) are majority owners, with Scott Hartnell holding a 5% stake. KalPa won the Liiga championship (the Kanada-malja) in the 2024–25 season. They were runners-up in 1990–91 and 2016–17, and finished third in 2008–09. The club also won the Mestis (Finland’s second-highest professional league) in 2003–04 and 2004–05, and captured the Spengler Cup in 2018. Their U20 team has also found success, winning the Liiga A-juniors championship in 2007–08 and ...

There have been Neanderthal artifacts found at Lüneburg. During the building of an autobahn in the 1990s, 56 axes that were carbon dated at 150 000 years old were found. It is felt the site was probably a hunting location where Neanderthal skinned and butchered the animals they had caught.  The sender says she is 18 and is going to college to be a veterinarian's assistant. She shares one story, and I'm not sure if it just a bad joke, or it is actually a situation she has encountered at a vet's office, where she says "we had a dog that had a fishing hook in his chest. The owner simply caught his dog fishing." There is a smiley face so I think this might be a bad joke, :)

A Hallowe'en Postcrossing meetup card. It looks like about 20 people attended this meet up!

I'm going to copy out what the sender wrote: Greeting from Taiwan. In the Chinese zodiac, the snake represents wisdom, intuition, and transformation. People often see it as a symbol of elegance and insight, guiding us to make thoughtful decisions and embrace new opportunities. As we step into the Year of the Snake, I wish you a smooth journey, good health, and success in everything you do. May this year bring you wisdom to overcome challenges and good fortune in all aspects of life. 

The sender of this card is 87 and typed his message, as his handwriting is no longer legible. He also amusingly points out that he doesn’t have any tattoos! He works in ceramics and creates all of his pieces at a local community college—likely Harper College . If you’re interested in seeing his work, you can check out his Instagram page, trd_stuff . Hoffman Estates is a village and suburb of Chicago , with a population of about 53,000 people. Hoffman Estates is also home to the Windy City Bulls , a minor league basketball team in the NBA G League that is owned by the Chicago Bulls . They play their home games at NOW Arena .

I love cards that come from schools or English as a second language programmes. This one comes from a German high school, I think, they are a grade 8 level (14-15 year old). The student who sent it writes very well. 

Potsdam is home to the Glienicke Bridge . The current bridge is the fourth built on this site, completed in 1907, and later required major reconstruction due to damage sustained during World War II . During the Cold War , the Havel River formed part of the border between East Germany and West Berlin. The bridge became famous as a site for exchanging captured spies, earning the nickname “Bridge of Spies.” The first such exchange took place on February 10, 1962. The United States released Rudolf Abel , who had been convicted of espionage in 1957, in exchange for Gary Powers , the pilot of a U-2 spy plane shot down over Soviet territory in 1960. In 1985, a major exchange saw 23 American agents swapped for Marian Zacharski and three other Soviet agents after three years of negotiations. The final and most public exchange occurred in 1986, when Natan Sharansky , a Soviet human rights activist and political prisoner, along with three Western agents, was exchanged for Karl Koecher and...

The sender found this old, used card in a thrift shop and re-used it. They covered up the original address with a label, but I can make out Amsterdam and Nederland on it. They even covered the old postage stamps with new, Germany stamps. This card is coming from Germany, originally sent to the Netherlands, and is of a Belgian scene. Cool!

Mahón looks like a Spanish paradise! It is located in the Balearic Islands , off the east coast of Spain in the Mediterranean Sea. The photo shows Cala Galdana , a coastal resort on Menorca , one of the Balearic Islands. The area remained largely undeveloped until th e 1960s.

The German on the front translates to "Did you sense nature, Susanne?" :)

I never expected to receive a Hallowe’en card from Japan ! It’s a 3D card, and the sender decorated the back with a lovely orange border, Hallowe’en-themed stickers, and even matching stamps. She also has beautiful penmanship. The sender is involved in many sports and mentions karate as her favourite. Sapporo was the host city for the 1972 Winter Olympics —the first Winter Games held outside North America and Europe. I hadn’t realized that Sapporo had also beaten out Banff and Calgary in the bidding process. Calgary would later go on to host the 1988 Winter Olympics . The 1972 Sapporo Games featured 35 National Olympic Committees, with just over 1,000 athletes competing in 35 events across six sports and 10 disciplines. By comparison, the recent 2026 Winter Olympics will include around 92 committees, nearly 2,900 athletes, and 116 events in eight sports and 16 disciplines. The Soviet Union topped the medal table with 16 medals (8 gold, 5 silver, and 3 bronze), followed by East Ger...

This is a beautiful card that I think is issued by Swiss Post - like a first day cover, or a max card. The image on the front matches one of the two stamps on the back. The image on the front is called Swiss Attractions - Bonn. There are about 2200 people in Felben-Wellhausen. The town lies along the Thur River in north east Switzerland. Felben and Wellhausen were actually separate communities until they merged in 1983. 

Another card from a “rare country”—my first and only one so far from Armenia . The photo shows Yerevan , the capital city, with Mount Ararat in the background. Yerevan (Երևան) is one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities. It was founded in 782 BCE by Argishti I of the Kingdom of Urartu . The “birth certificate” of Yerevan comes from a cuneiform inscription discovered on a basalt stone slab at the Erebuni Fortress . Today, Yerevan has a population of about 1.1 million people and serves as the capital of Armenia. It is the centre of Armenian arts, culture, sports, and religion. Mount Ararat, an important symbol for Armenians, is a dormant compound volcano located in eastern Turkey. Although it lies outside modern Armenia, it holds deep cultural and national significance. It is also associated with the biblical story of Noah’s Ark, which is traditionally believed to have come to rest on its slopes after the flood—although the Bible itself does not specifically name Moun...

Singapore became an independent country in 1965 following the Independence of Singapore Agreement . Prior to this, Singapore had been part of Malaysia . Singapore first attained internal self-government from the United Kingdom in 1959, although Britain retained control over external affairs and defence. In 1963, the Proclamation of Malaysia created a new federation comprising the Federation of Malaya, North Borneo (Sabah), Sarawak, and Singapore. At that time, Singapore became an autonomous state within Malaysia. Under the arrangement, Singapore was allowed a high degree of self-governance, while the federal government in Malaysia controlled defence and foreign policy. However, the relationship was strained. Financial disagreements, political tensions, and questions over representation in the Malaysian Parliament created conflict. Critics also argued that the terms limited Singapore’s autonomy too heavily. As tensions escalated, Singapore separated from Malaysia in 1965. The Inde...

My first—and so far only—card from Georgia ! It’s always exciting to receive a postcard from a “rare country.” There are only about 119 Postcrossers in Georgia. The sender is from Ozurgeti (ოზურგეთი), the capital of the Guria ( გურია)  region. Around 14,000 people live there. The town is situated on a slope that has been levelled into three broad terraces: the lower level contains the market district, public buildings occupy the second terrace, and the highest level is mostly residential. During Soviet times, the city was renamed Makharadze in honour of Filipp Makharadze . It reverted to its original name in May 1989. The postcard itself features Batumi ( ბათუმი) , the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara ( აჭარის ავტონომიური რესპუბლიკა) . With a population of around 235,000, Batumi serves as a major seaport, commercial hub, and cultural gateway between Europe and Asia. Since the early 2000s, Batumi has undergone rapid modernization, with large-scale investments in tou...

Wellsboro is a town in northern Pennsylvania of 3500 people. The card the sender sent is from Minnehaha Falls in Watkins Glen State Park in New York.  Watkins Glen State Park is in the village of Watkins Glen. The main attraction of the park is a 120 metre deep narrow gorge cut through rock by Glen Creek.

The sender suggests checking out some of the main tourist attractions in Hangzhou , such as West Lake , the Six Harmonies Pagoda , and Lingyin Temple . The Six Harmonies Pagoda, also known as the Liuhe Pagoda (六和塔), is a multi-storey Chinese pagoda located in southern Hangzhou. The pagoda was originally constructed in 970 by the ruler of the Wuyue Kingdom , whose capital was Hangzhou. However, this original structure was destroyed in 1121 during a war. The current pagoda was rebuilt using wood and brick during the Southern Song dynasty , with further additions made during the Ming dynasty and the Qing dynasty . The pagoda stands just under 60 metres tall and appears to have 13 storeys, although it actually contains only seven interior levels. Inside, spiral staircases lead to the top floor. The ceilings of each level are decorated with carved and painted figures, including animals, flowers, birds, and human characters. Each floor consists of four main elements: the exterior walls,...

Alhambra is a city of about 83,000 people located in Los Angeles County, approximately 13 kilometres east of Los Angeles . The sender mentions that it is his and his wife’s goal to visit all the national parks in the United States, and they have visited 23 of the 63 so far. Theodore Roosevelt National Park is one of the parks they have explored. Theodore Roosevelt National Park is located in western North Dakota and consists of three geographically separate areas: the North Unit, the South Unit, and the Elkhorn Ranch Unit. The Little Missouri River flows through all three units. The Maah Daah Hey Trail connects them, stretching 232 kilometres as a non-motorized single-track trail. Theodore Roosevelt lived in the area following the deaths of his wife and mother, who died just hours apart on February 14, 1884. He had first visited the region the year before to hunt bison and later described it as offering “perfect freedom.” He invested in the Maltese Cross Ranch, where he lived brief...

The sender lives in the Northridge neighbourhood in Los Angeles. It's had a few names over the years, starting with Zelzah in 1908. In 1929 it was renamed North Hollywood until 1938, when civic leader Carl S Dentzel renamed it to Northridge Village, which was eventually shortened to Northridge.  Northridge is home to about 62 000 people and has one of the lowest population densities in Los Angeles.  Northridge is home to the US Metric Association. It is a non-profit organization that advocates for total conversion of the United States to the International System of Units (SI). It was founded in 1916 at Columbia University in New York City, where it was called the American Metric Association. The United States is the only country that still mostly uses the Imperial System of measurement, although I think the US military uses metric. Canada and the United Kingdom use a mixture of both systems.