Disney Adds Signs Warning of Alligators and Snakes

A private swap to Pennsylvania shows a card produced by SFWMD. It reads on the back: "The broad-snouted American alligator navigates freely through rivers and lakes in southern Florida. Remnants of a prehistoric ear, alligators are a protected species that continues to flourish." The number of alligators living in Florida is estimated at 1.3 million. Central to state's identity, it was featured on  a 32-cent commemorative stamp, issued in Tallahassee, Florida on March 3, 1995, to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Florida Statehood.

Although alligator attacks are rare, properties at Walt Disney World are adding signs warning "Alligators and snakes in area" at their beaches after an alligator dragged a 2-year-old boy from Nebraska to his death in a lagoon near the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa on June 14, 2016. At the time of incident, only "No Swimming" signs were posted without any specific reference to alligators.

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Taiwan Inaugurates First Female President

Today's featured postcard was a private swap from Taiwan showing the Office of the President, Republic of China in Taipei with a ROCUPEX '13 TAIPEI commemorative postage label from the 2013 National Stamp Exhibition of R.O.C. and International Invitational Stamp Exhibition, and a matching pictorial postmark on August 23, 2013. The Office of the President is the site of the inauguration ceremony this Friday, May 20, 2016 where Tsai Ing-wen took oath of office to become the first female president of Taiwan.

Tsai Ing Wen (R) replaces former President Ma Ying Jeou (L) after a landslide election victory on January 16, 2016. She faces immediate challenges to revitalize the economy, and to balance the demands of the her electorate for greater independence and the pressure of One-Country from China.

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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.

IC 2177: Seagull Nebula

Today's featured postcard was a private swap from Taiwan. It shows IC 2177 (海鷗星雲), a region of nebulosity that lies along the border between the constellations Monoceros (麒麟座) and Canis Major (大犬座). Combined with the neighboring regions of star clusters, dust clouds and reflection nebulae that contain NGC 2335 and NGC 2343, it looks like a soaring seagull in the eyes of amateur astronomers. Photograph by Giant Liou (劉志安) on October 23, 2011.

Again, today coincides the 4th death anniversary of AstroPhysicist and Professor Fang Lizhi (方励之) who passed away in Tucson, Arizona on April 6, 2012 at age 76.

Chung-cheng Lake in Meinong, Taiwan

This postcard from a private swap shows the Chung-cheng Lake (中正湖) in Meinong District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Republic of China (ROC). A man-made lake originally built in 1748 known as Jhongjun Pi (中圳埤), it was renovated into a reservoir between 1916 and 1920 during the Japanese occupation. With an area of 21 hectares or 52 acres, the lake had a capacity to furnish water for irrigation of over 130 hectares or 321 acres of farmland. It was also used for fish farming. After World War II, the lake was renamed to Chung-cheng Lake in 1956, after Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石: October 31, 1887 – April 5, 1975), also known as Chiang Chung-cheng (蔣中正) who was the leader of the Republic of China between 1928 and 1975. A pavilion was also built in the lake in honor of Chiang. However, there have been petitions to change the name of the lake to Meinong Lake (美濃湖) since 1996, in protest of Chiang's role in the 228 Massacre. On a side note, many statues of former president Chiang Kai-shek have been vandalized across the island around the 68th anniversary of the 228 Incident on Saturday, February 28, 2015.

While the lake capacity for water supply has been diminishing due to sediment built-up since the 1957 Meinong flood, it becomes part of the largest wetland ecosystem in the area that hosts a large number of migratory birds during the winter months from October to March next year. More than 60 bird species have been spotted around the lake. A wooden boardwalk around the lake was completed last November to accommodate nature lovers.

Giant Rubber Duck in Taoyuan, Taiwan

The yellow duck came from Taiwan as a private swap. It was one of those world's largest rubber ducks, created by Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman, usually at 16.5 × 20 × 32 meters in dimension and over 600 kg in weight. Since 2007, several ducks in various sizes licensed by Hofman have toured several countries and territories such as Amsterdam in Netherlands, Lommel in Belgium, and most recently Taoyuan in Taiwan.

Hofman created the giant rubber duck for a tour named "Spreading Joy Around the World" in 2007 by bringing back people's childhood memories. After the display at the Glory Pier in Kaohsiung went off without a hitch from September 19 to October 20, 2013, the Land Art Festival (桃園地景藝術節) in Xiwu Township, Taoyuan had its own debut of the 18-meter-tall, 18-meter-wide and 25-meter-long yellow duck on October 26, 2013. However, it became a high-profile victim of a 6.3-magnitude earthquake when an air pump went out of service on November 1 during a power outage triggered by earthquake. As a result, it deflated before exploding during an attempt to re-inflate it in high wind.

Organizers at the Taoyuan County Cultural Affairs Bureau borrowed the duck commissioned by Kaohsiung city government that drew 4 million visitors. Yet the strong winds kept the alternative duck on dry ground for another few days, which made it the first Hofman's duck displayed on land. You can watch a video clip "Giant rubber duck pops in Taoyuan following earthquake" on Youtube.

Las Vegas Rock 'n' Roll Marathon

In just a few hours, more than 30,000 runners will cross the start line near the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino in the Fifth Annual Las Vegas Rock 'n' Roll Marathon and Half Marathon at 4:30 pm. Runners will have a unique experience, passing by faux pyramid and volcano, replicas of the Statue of Liberty and Eiffel Tower, dancing water fountains in front of Bellagio, and Venice-themed canals. The finishing line is in front of the Mirage Hotel and Casino in the middle of the Las Vegas Strip.

Another 2,500 runners will run 6.5-mile "half of the half" Marathon, beginning at 3:30 p.m. They will finish at downtown, where following marathoners will pass twice beneath the Fremont Street Experience canopy. 

The race was pushed up from the first weekend in December in the past races. The postcard to a private swap shows gondolas and an ice skating rink over the canals at the Venetian Casino and Hotel, with the Marathon runners in the background on December 4, 2011.

Update: Collage photo from the races today. From left to right and top to bottom: runners pass 1) Eiffel Tower at Paris Las Vegas, 2) Crystals at CityCenter, 3) Volcano at Mirage, 4) Statue of Caesar and Colosseum at Caesars Palace, 5) Fashion Show Mall, 6) Forum Shops, 7) Band stage with laser beams near the finish line, 8) Montgolfier balloon and Arc de Triomphe at Paris Las Vegas, 9) Music Fountains at Bellagio.

A Collage of Texas Icons

I received this postcard today as a private swap from Texas, showing a collage of Texas icons. There are a lot of chili peppers, Tex-Mex food, cowboy hat and boots, Texas map and flag, and a rattle snake! The author is Mark Miselnicky, a local Dallas artist.

For more Texas icons, check out Ways to be Texan.

Love and Green for Earth Day

April 22nd

Let's mark the Earth Day with some love and green. This postcard was a private swap. It reads: Love means your heart is the end of the World as I couldn't go any further. Born with the color of cactus green, you are a  hard worker full of determination. I happened to find this song on Youtube; I think it's sweet.

There is actually an "Earth" in Texas, a small town with population of 1,109 people as of the 2000 Census. It even has a post office!

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