Germany

Krynica Morska, Poland

Krynica Morska is a town and coextensive municipality on the Vistula Spit in northern Poland. It has been a part of Nowy Dwór Gdański County in Pomeranian Voivodeship since 1999; previously it was in Elbląg Voivodeship (1975–1998).

Krynica Morska is the main tourist destination on the Vistula Spit. The administrative area of the town extends along most of the Polish part of the spit, up to the Russian border, also including a number of other localities such as Przebrno and Piaski (the latter being about 4 kilometres from the border, which is not crossable at present).

It has the smallest population of any urban commune in Poland. Because of the inclusion of mainly rural areas of the spit within its boundaries, it has the lowest population density of any town in Poland.

Wörthersee, Austria

Wörthersee is a lake in the southern Austrian state of Carinthia. The popular bathing lake is a main tourist destination in summer.

Up to tofay, the Mediterranean climate and the clean, warm waters make Lake Wörth a popular tourist destination in summer. Although the region around the lake has been termed "Austria's Monte Carlo", in recent decades tourism around Lake Wörthersee has suffered from tough competition from package holidays to cheaper overseas destinations. As a response a number of local businesses have tried to focus on niches such as high quality tourism, family tourism or golf and horse-riding vacations.

Sardinia, Italy

Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea (after Sicily and before Cyprus) and an autonomous region of Italy, which goes by the official name of Regione Autonoma della Sardegna / Regione Autònoma de Sardigna (Autonomous Region of Sardinia).

The nearest land masses are (clockwise from north) the island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia, the Balearic Islands, and Provence. The Tyrrhenian Sea portion of the Mediterranean Sea is directly to the east of Sardinia between the Sardinian east coast and the west coast of the Italian mainland peninsula. The Strait of Bonifacio is directly north of Sardinia and separates Sardinia from the French island of Corsica.

The region has its capital in its largest city, Cagliari, and is divided into eight provinces. Its indigenous language and the other minority languages (Sassarese, Corsican Gallurese, Catalan Algherese and Ligurian Tabarchino) spoken by the Sardinians enjoy "equal dignity" with Italian each in the concerned territory by a regional law.

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Ulaanbaatar or Ulan Bator is the capital and the largest city of Mongolia. A municipality, the city is not part of any aimag (province).

Located in north central Mongolia, the municipality lies at an elevation of about 1,310 metres in a valley on the Tuul River. It is the cultural, industrial and financial heart of the country, the centre of Mongolia's road network and connected by rail to both the Trans-Siberian Railway in Russia and the Chinese railway system.

The city was founded in 1639 as a nomadic Buddhist monastic centre. In 1778, it settled permanently at its present location, the junction of the Tuul and Selbe rivers. Before that, it changed location twenty-eight times, with each location being chosen ceremonially. In the twentieth century, Ulaanbaatar grew into a major manufacturing centre.

Portugal

Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula, in Southwestern Europe. It is the westernmost country of mainland Europe, being bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east. The republic also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira, both autonomous regions with their own regional governments.

Portugal is a developed country with a high-income advanced economy and high living standards. It is the 5th most peaceful country in the world, maintaining a unitary semi-presidential republican form of government. It has the 18th highest Social Progress in the world, putting it ahead of other Western European countries like France, Spain and Italy. It is a member of numerous international organizations, including the United Nations, the European Union, the eurozone, OECD, NATO and the Community of Portuguese Language Countries. Portugal is also known for having decriminalized the usage of all common drugs in 2001, the first country in the world to do so. However, the sale and distribution of these drugs is still illegal in Portugal.

[Postcard came from Finland]

Herrenchiemsee Castle, Germany

Herrenchiemsee Castle, Germany

Herrenchiemsee is a complex of royal buildings on Herreninsel, an island in the Chiemsee, Bavaria's largest lake, 60 km south east of Munich. Together with the neighbouring island of Frauenchiemsee and the uninhabited Krautinsel it forms the municipality of Chiemsee.

After being purchased by King Ludwig II of Bavaria the former Herrenchiemsee monastery was converted into a royal residence known as the Old Palace (Altes Schloss), while the king built Herrenchiemsee Palace also known as the New Palace (Neues Schloss), the largest of his palaces.

Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany

Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany

Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a mountain resort town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in the Oberbayern region, and the district is on the border with Austria. Nearby is Germany's highest mountain, Zugspitze, at 2,962 m (9,718 ft.).

Salzburg, Austria

Salzburg is the fourth-largest city in Austria and the capital of the federal state of Salzburg.

Salzburg's "Old Town" (Altstadt) is internationally renowned for its baroque architecture and is one of the best-preserved city centers north of the Alps. It was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. The city has three universities and a large population of students. Tourists also frequent the city to tour the city's historic center and the scenic Alpine surroundings.

Salzburg was the birthplace of 18th-century composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. In the mid‑20th century, the city was the setting for the musical play and film The Sound of Music.

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