10th Anniversary of the Indian Ocean Tsunami Marked

Today marks the 10th anniversary of the Indian Ocean Tsunami that happened on December 26, 2004 and devastated Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, India and other countries around the Pacific Rim as one of worst natural disasters in modern history.

Banda Aceh in Indonesia's Aceh province was among the hardest hit areas. More than 160,000 people died in Indonesia, accounting for more than 50% of the total 230,000 victims killed from all affected countries. Indonesia's Vice President Jusuf Kalla attended a ceremony in Banda Aceh today where many ambassadors of countries that assisted in the massive recovery effort 10 years ago were also present.

The stamped card was purchased at the Banda Aceh Post Office in early 2005 when I was volunteering in the recover effort. It has two of the four birds stamps issued on January 7, 1992: a 100 Rp White-crested Laughingthrush (Garrulax leucolophus) and a 200 Rp. Common Flameback (Dinopium javanense) with a remark "Dijamin Asli" (guaranteed authentic) on the bottom of the card.

View image | gettyimages.com

International Volunteer Day

International Volunteer Day is observed each year on December 5th since 1985. It offers an opportunity for both volunteer organizations and individuals to make their contributions visible; thus raise awareness for volunteering and encourage others to get involved. #IVD2013 

Postcard US-1834687 to Canada shows a volunteer's T-Shirt flying high over Banda Aceh in early 2005 during my volunteering trip to Indonesia to assist in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami relief efforts. The accompany poem from a friend reads:

The world is sadden by the tragic news;
Everything is destroyed by the giant waves on their paths;
Ruins are the all you can see and cries are the all you can hear;
Bodies are scatted on the beach covered with seaweeds from the deep sea;

The only thing left are our loving hearts that will last like the Sun and the Moon;
As well as our determinations like the thunders;
Crossing the suffering islands to lend a helping hand until exhausting our last energy;
While it adds nothing to our ages, the story will be with us for the rest of our life.

International Day for Disaster Reduction

The United Nations General Assembly designated the 1990s as the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction on December 22, 1989. As part of its proclamation, it also designated the second Wednesday of October as the International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction. The objective was to promote the awareness in order to decrease the loss of life, property destruction and social and economic disruption caused by natural disasters, such as earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, landslides, volcanic eruptions, droughts, locust infestations, and other disasters of natural origin.

In 2009, the United Nations General Assembly decided to designate October 13 as the official date and changed the name to the International Day for Disaster Reduction. The 2013 Theme is Living with Disability and Disasters.

Postcard US-2217252 to Portugal shows a postcard I bought in Banda Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia when I was there to volunteer for tsunami relief effort in February, 2005.

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.