Celle is an ancient German city first mentioned in 985 as Kiellu (fishing bay). Today it is a city of 71 000 people. It is a part of the German Timber-Frame Road, a German tourist route leading from the River Elbe to the Black Forest and Lake Constance in the south. There are 400 examples of timber-framed houses in Celle. 

What a great card I received from Gabi. It is a children's drawing of Strekov Castle. It was built in 1316 as a gift to King John of Luxembourg, who was the father of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV, and was meant to be a guard tower for an important trade route to Germany.  Today it is a well preserved ruined castle atop a cliff overlooking the River Elbe near Ústí nad Labem. The amazing views from the top have attracted visiting artists such as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Richard Wagner, and Karel Hynek Mácha . Ludwig Richter painted  Überfahrt am Schreckenstein (Passing the Schreckenstein), one of the most famous paitings of Strekov Castle.