Historic Centre of Oporto

Card # 90

Another UNESCO postcard from postcrossing

Porto, also known as Oporto, is the second largest city of Portugal, with a population of 220,000. The city of Porto comprises 15 civil parishes. The historic centre of Porto was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996. One of Portugal's most internationally famous products, Port wine, is named after the city because it is produced in, and shipped from the area or, more precisely, from Vila Nova de Gaia, a city just across the river which belongs to the same conurbation. Read more

Porto as seen from Vila Nova de Gaia

Information and Image Obtained From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Porticoes of Bologna

Card # 2

The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is one of the most developed cities in Italy. Bologna often ranks as one of the top cities, in terms of quality of life in Italy: it was ranked 5th in 2006, and 12th in 2007, out of 103 Italian cities.
The Sanctuary of the Madonna of San Luca is a basilica church in Bologna, central Italy, sited atop Colle or Monte della Guardia, in a forested hill some 300 meters above the plain, just south-west of the historical center of the city. The Sanctuary was meant to house a miraculous icon of the virgin. A church or chapel existed atop the hill for about a thousand years. Read more

Old Town of Lijiang

Card # 88

Another UNESCO postcard by my postcrossing

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

Card # 87

Another UNESCO postcard by my postcrossing

National Park is UNESCO World Heritage-listed in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located 1431 kilometres south of Darwin by road and 440 kilometres south-west of Alice Springs along the Stuart and Lasseter Highways. The park covers 2010 square kilometres and includes the features it is named after - Uluru / Ayers Rock and, 40 kilometres to its west, Kata Tjuta / Mount Olga and is serviced by flights from most Australian capital cities. Read more

Information Obtained From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Agra Fort

Card # 86

Many thanks to my FB friend Santanu Saha

The fort is also known as Lal Qila, Fort Rouge and Red Fort of Agra. It is the most important fort in India. The great Mugals, Humayun, Akbar, Jehangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb lived here, and the country was governed from here. It contained the largest state treasury and mint. It was visited by foreign ambassadors, travelers and the highest dignitaries who participated in the making of history in India. This was originally a brick fort and the Sikarwar held it. It was mentioned for the first time in 1080 AD when a Ghaznavide force captured it. Sikandar Lodi (1487-1517) was the first Sultan of Delhi who shifted to Agra and lived in the fort. He governed the country from here and Agra assumed the importance of the second capital. He died in the fort in 1517 and his son, Ibrahim Lodi, held it for nine years until he was defeated and killed at Panipat in 1526. Read more

WH News & Events

World Heritage Committee inscribes three new cultural sites, three natural sites and one extension on World Heritage List.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
The World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia has today has inscribed three new cultural sites, including two in Mexico and one in Brazil. It also inscribed three natural sites in China, Kiribati, Reunion Island (France) and extended a site already on the World Heritage List in Bulgaria....Read more


World Heritage Committee also approves three extensions to World Heritage properties in Austria, Romania and Spain
Sunday, August 1, 2010
The World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia has today approved extensions to three cultural sites in Austria, Romania and Spain....Read more

World Heritage Committee inscribes five new cultural sites on World Heritage List and approves two extensions to existing properties.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Imperial Citadel of Thang Long-Hanoi (Viet Nam) becomes 900th site on UNESCO World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia has inscribed new cultural sites in Viet Nam, China, Tajikistan, France, the Netherlands, on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The Committee also agreed to the extension of two cultural properties in Germany, Norway....Read more

World Heritage Committee inscribes seven cultural sites on World Heritage List
Saturday, July 31, 2010
The World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia has inscribed sites in Saudi Arabia, Australia, India, Islamic Republic of Iran and, for the first time, a site in the Marshall Islands, as well as the Republic of Korea on the UNESCO World Heritage List....Read more

World Heritage Committee inscribes Ngorongoro Conservation Area (Tanzania) as Cultural World Heritage Site...Read more

Source: whc.unesco.org