Wellington Cable Car at Sunrise, New Zealand

Postcard NZ-146552 from New Zealand shows a stunning sunrise with the Wellington Cable Car in the forefront. Established in 1902, Wellington’s historic Cable Car is the only cable railway currently in operation in New Zealand.

For visitors, no trip to Wellington is complete without a ride on the famous cable car; for locals, it's more than a commute. A good way to spend a morning is to get to the top of the Botanic Gardens early to watch the sunrise and view the cityscape. You will need to check the local sunrise time and the cable car timetable to plan the trip. Stop at the Cable Car Museum that was the original winding house. Then walk down to the city's central business district through the beautiful gardens and old houses.

The Cable Car is currently closed from June 7 to July 31, 2016 for upgrade.

Campus Map of Peking University

In celebration of the Homecoming Day for Peking University's alumni, and the 118th university's anniversary, today's featured postcard was a private swap from China, showing a hand-painted campus map of Peking University (北京大学) on a shaped card. Found in 1898, it is a major Chinese research university located near the Summer Palace in Beijing.

The university moved to the current site in 1952, the former campus of Yenching University, It was the site of royal imperial gardens in the Qing Dynasty. On the map, you can see many historical structures such as the West Gate, beautiful natural landscape such as the Weiming Lake, as well as the academic buildings such as the library.

Hexagonal Pavilion

Postcard DE-2409177 from Germany shows a hexagonal pavilion in a Japanese garden. It was attributed to the Japanese Tea Garden in the Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, California. However, I couldn't find similar photos from Google Image Search or Flickr Photo Search; and it didn't show up on Nata Metlukh's excellent drawing of the Tea Garden. So, I am not sure. If you know where the pavilion is, please leave your comment below.

West Lake Cultural Landscape of Hangzhou

Postcard CN-1291364 from China shows West Lake (西湖), a freshwater lake in Hangzhou, eastern China, that has inspired famous poets, scholars and artists since the 9th century. There are numerous temples, pagodas, pavilions, gardens and ornamental trees, as well as causeways and artificial islands.

It was inscribed on the UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 2011 as the West Lake Cultural Landscape of Hangzhou, comprising the West Lake and the hills surrounding its three sides, described as having "influenced garden design in the rest of China as well as Japan and Korea over the centuries" and reflecting "an idealized fusion between humans and nature."

Tongli, China

Postcard CN-1076001 from China shows Tongli (同里), a historical town in Wujiang county, Jiangsu Province, China. It has been given the nickname "Venice of the East" for a system of canals. The town, on the outskirts of Suzhou, retains many of the features of an ancient Wu region town.

One of most notable attractions in Tongli is the Retreat and Reflection Garden (退思园). It is a private garden built in 1885-1887 by designer Yuan Long. The concept of design was adopted from a famous quote "Step forward to do your job loyally; step back to think about how to make up your mistakes (進思盡忠，退思補過)" in Zuo Zhuan (左傳) or sometimes translated as the Chronicle of Zuo that is among the earliest Chinese works of narrative history, covering the period from 722 B.C. to 468 B.C.

Through an extension in 2000, the Retreat and Reflection Garden,  along with the Canglang Pavilion, the Lion Forest Garden, the Garden of Cultivation, the Couple's Garden Retreat, was included in the property of the Classical Gardens of Suzhou, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that was originally recognized in 1997.

International Rose Test Garden in Portland, Oregon

Postcard US-1830375 to Taiwan shows a variety of roses in the International Rose Test Garden in Portland, Oregon which I visited on September 29, 2010 during my JetBlue AYCJ trip. There are over 7,000 rose plants of approximately 550 varieties in this 18,200 square meter or 4.5 acre garden, where you can see downtown Portland and Mount Hood in a distance.It was mostly cloudy with light rains in the morning I visited so I couldn't see Mount Hood. Nonetheless, the view of roses was not disappointing even it was near the end of their April through October blossom season.

The garden was established in 1917 to serve as a safe haven for hybrid roses grown in Europe during World War I. Today new roses are continually sent to the garden from around the world for testing of their colors, fragrance, disease resistance and other attributes. It is the oldest continuously operating public rose test garden in the United States. It exemplifies Portland's nickname of the "City of Roses" and the volunteering efforts from Portland citizens who contribute about 500 hours every year in tending the garden.

It was also listed in the Ten Things to Do in Portland by the Time magazine.

Lake Como at Bellagio

Postcard IT-238410 came from Italy today. It shows Villa Melzi d'Eril by Lake Como at Bellagio in Italy. The villa features English style gardens built in harmony with the lake's banks, surrounded by high mountains. In Las Vegas, the design of Bellagio Hotel and Casino was infleunced by the Lake Como town of Bellagio in Italy, highlighted by the famous dancing water fountain synced with music on a man-made lake at its front gate.