ESO 1 students have done a spectacular job of writing and decorating Christmas cards which have been posted today. The cards are going to Katerin in Khavarovsk, a Russian city located in the most eastern part of the country, 30 km from the Chinese border (and 9,284km from Ourense).
We have received a gorgeous postcard from Istra,
Russia!
Thank you Yulia for having chosen such a wondrous view
of Istra's best-known landmark, the impressive Voskresensky
Monastery (New Jerusalem Monastery).
If you want to find out more about
this Russian town, 3,509 km from Ourense, visit our section EXPLORING PLACES!
WHERE IS ISTRA? Istra is a town and the capital of Istrinsky District in Moscow
Oblast, in Russia located by the Istra River, 40 kilometers west of Moscow, on the Moscow–Riga railway.
The New Jerusalem Monastery was
founded in 1656 as a patriarchal residence on the outskirts of Moscow. The monastery took its name from the New Jerusalem. This site was chosen for its resemblance to the Holy Land.
The River Istra represents the Jordan, and the buildings represent the 'sacred space' or holy
places of Jerusalem.
The New Jerusalem Museum is a
modern, state-of-the-art museum, located across the river from the eponymous
monastery. Exhibits draw on the hundreds of thousands of items in the monastery
collections, including weapons, icons and artwork from the 17th century to
modern times. Highlights include personal items belonging to Patriarch Nikon,
as well as 20th-century drawings and handicrafts from around the Moscow region.
Watch this video to take a look at
some of Istra's landmarks:
…
being the capital of the World Cossacks. They have had a rich military
tradition, playing an important part in the historical development of the
Russian Empire and participating in most of its major wars.
…the
Novocherkassk massacre or Bloody Saturday. It refers to events tied to the
labor strike of a locomotive building plant in Novocherkassk, a city in the
Russian SFSR, Soviet Union. The events eventually culminated in riots of June
1–2, 1962 when reportedly 26 protesters were killed by Soviet Army troops, and
87 were wounded.
PLACES TO VISIT
Ascension Cathedral
Novocherkassk Museum of Don Cossacks History
Alexander Garden
Yermak Statue
Monument to Reconciliation and Agreement
Have
a look at the video below to find out more about the city of Novocherkassk.
Postcard 55 features a wonderful
digital illustration by an artist we all admire, Rafael Cachaldora. As you may
remember, last year we sent 5 postcards by Cachaldora which represented various
places of Ourense's old town. This time, however, the spot represented is not
located in Ourense; card 55 constitutes a vibrant and captivating
representation of the well-known cathedral of Santiago de Compostela from
Obradoiro Square (Square of the Stonecutters).
Santiago's Cathedral is the
final destination of the Camiño de Santiago and the centre point for the
celebration of the Feast of Saint James on July, 25th. ESO 2 students have written the
postcard in Spanish upon its recipent's request and sent it to one of the most
amazing cities in the world, Saint Petersburg, the origin of the 18th postcard
received in this project.
Click here to read about Russia's cultural capital.
Thalia Vega, our
student teacher from Grand Valley University in the USA has also sent a
postcard! Thalia has been with us for a month and before leaving Ourense she
wanted to participate in our Postcrossing project, which she describes as
"motivating, engaging and fun".
The card she’s
chosen shows a cute cat right in the middle of Ribadavia’s medieval quarter,
the most important Jewish quarter in Galicia given its size and its fine state
of repair.
If you want to read about this gem of a place, visit DISCOVEROURENSE.
The card has
already been sent to Chelyabinsk, a Russian city which was the origin of the
18th postcard received.
Thanks a million
Thalia for taking part in this project!
Postcard 37 is on its way to Bratsk, a city located in the region of Irkutsk, Russia. It is
located in Eastern Siberia, on the banks of the Angara River, 5,200km east of
Moscow and 7,200 km from Ourense!
Our Very Young Postcrossers have chosen a card featuring As Termas de Outariz, the well-known spas in Ourense where we can enjoy open-air geothermal baths all year round!
If you want to find out more about this natural wonder in Ourense, click here. Visit EXLORING PLACES to learn about the faraway Russian city of Bratsk.
Bratsk is a
Russian city located in the north-west of Irkutsk oblast, in the center of
Angarsky mountain-ridge. It stands on the shores of the Bratsk and Ust-Ilim
reservoirs formed on the Angara River.
...its reservoir and its power station. Bratsk Reservoir has a surface area of 5,470 square kilometres (2,110 sq mi) and a maximum volume of 169.27 × 1012 litres.
Unfortunately, Bratsk stands among the
Blacksmith Institute's "Dirty Thirty", the thirty most polluted
places in the world. Bratsk has been declared an ecological disaster zone. The
Bratsk Aluminum Plant has been polluting its surroundings to such great degree
that Chikanovsky was evacuated in 2001 due to repeated health emergencies.
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