July 2010

I’ve noticed lots of traffic on my blog of late, likely because I just posted a bunch of new cards 🙂 Readers, I’d like you to know that this blog houses much more than New Zealand cards, which seem to take up the first several pages since my sister now lives there and since I’ve visited twice.

If you take time to explore beyond the most recent postings, you’ll find many postcard treasures, including a few of my favorites:

1. Finnish handcrafted dishware

2. A funny-faced fountain in Italy

3. Busy street scene in Hong Kong

4. Women dancing in Iran

5. Official card from the People’s Republic of China for the 2008 Olympics

Enjoy!

Since I’ve stuck out my postcard hobby for many years now, and since I’m so tired of the L-O-N-G, complicated process of putting each card into a flatbed scanner, scanning it, cropping it, and then navigating over and over again to the right folder to save it, I finally gave in and purchased this Epson Workforce Pro Scanner.

It’s awesome! I scanned 45 postcards in about five minutes–a HUGE improvement! Now, we can scan in those albums of old photos we’ve been holding onto, plus our own photos as well. And I can easily scan in all of my postcards — I usually just pick the best because it’s such a long, tiresome process!

If you’re looking for a good scanner, this one is so far proving to be an awesome investment. If you’re reading this many months after the fact and are curious about its performance since, send me a note. I’ll let you know how it’s measured and held up over time!

White Island, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

“A volcanic island about 60km off the Bay of Plenty coast, White Island was once the site of an unsuccessful sulphur and gypsum mining experiment. This island is now an official sanctuary, harbouring many varieties of native birds in its pohutukawa forest.” The card does not mention, but this is New Zealand’s only active marine volcano! You can actually take a tour out to the volcano, during which you must wear hardhats and masks and ride aboard an inflatable dinghy to get there! We considered it, but only briefly, as my foot problem would likely have made it difficult to make the trek.

McDonald’s, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

My son Matthew received this card at the counter in a mall in New Zealand. We later saw “Ronald” dancing and singing in the mall for lots of smaller children 🙂

Bubbling Mud, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

Saw lots of these in Rotorua!

Kuirau Park, Rotorua, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

This is a public park in Rotorua with lots of bubbling pools and mudholes, showing you that the area is truly alive geothermally! It also has a geothermal footbath for all, as well as a really cool playground for kids big and small! My kids thought it was one of the highlights of their trip!

Geothermal Bathhouse, Rotorua, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

What? We thought this was the visitor’s center so we never stopped in because we had already stopped in a smaller one! The back of the card says, “Built in 1908 in Rotorua’s Government Gardens as a spa and health centre, this magnificent tudor building now houses the Rotorua Museum of Art and History.” Maybe this wasn’t the building we saw after all…. 🙂

Lake Ngakoro at Wai-O-Tapu, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

“Fast flowing water spills this green lake with steaming ground on its eastern shore.” This is at Wai-o-Tapu, just outside Rotorua. It is billed as a “Thermal Wonderland” and it really is just that! Fantastic!

Champagne Pool, Rotorua, New Zealand, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

“Aerial view of the Champagne Pool, Artists Palette and Sinter Terraces at Wai-o-Tapu Thermal Wonderland.” This truly was amazing to see in person! I am so glad we went!

The Skyline Rotorua, originally uploaded by CarolinaRen.

You are seeing the lift that returns luge riders to the top of the hill after exciting luge rides down. We rode the luge, although my daughter did not like it as it was VERY rough riding and hard on the hands. My boys and husband loved it though and rode several times! From the back: “A view from the top with Lake Rotorua in the distance. The Skyline is a hugely popular gondola ride with a restaurant at the top and other amusements, such as the Luge ride. The lift closest is bringing people back from the bottom of the Luge.”