Panorama of Cairo from Mokkatam Egypt signed by A Z Franke litho postcard.  Available on eBay http://ebay.to/28Vr6CZ    

See also Artist signed postcards - A Z Franke  

Steamer landing Rue de l'appontement Ismailia Egypt 1903 postcard
Available on eBay http://ebay.to/28WMZ3Q

French Consulate Shanghai China 1913 - New York Public Library - postcard

The Bull Ring Open Air Market Birmingham England UK 1910c postcard -- perhaps a little cleaner & more vibrant & colorful than the real market might have been in 1910.

More details can be found at http://bit.ly/1BhYBH9

What could be nicer than a visit to Nice, France for a vacation at Le Grand Hotel.

Wind the clock back 100 years before you leave home...

Click link for more details:  http://bit.ly/1863JEs

The Panama Canal was one of the man-made Wonders of the World in the early 1900s. After a French project had failed the United States took over construction between 1904 and 1914, with the canal opening to shipping in August 1914.  

In the early 1900s, people were impressed by the way the Industrial Revolution had made possible the transformation of the natural landscape and thus many industrial and engineering achievements appeared as postcard views to record the ways in which this transformation was occurring. The Panama Canal was just such an accomplishment of engi_neering and sheer hard work of tens of thousands of workers. In all, some 200 million cubic yards of material had to be moved by both the French and American projects over a 30 year plus period.  Machinery on a large scale made it possible - steam shovels, railroad trains, cement works, dredges and more - were essential to the task.

Click on images for more detailed information about individual cards.

Steam shovels, concrete mixers, and dredges were all part of the mix in creating one of the man-made Wonders of the World.

Slide show of some of the Norwegian folk costumes by the artist Eckersberg published in 1925 as postcards. 

Ethnic Folk Costume Sunnfjord Norway 1925c postcard

The term folk costumes is applied to the particular clothes worn by the rural farm population in pre-industrial Norway, according to the Norwegian Institute of Bunad and Folk Costume.  These clothes were the "result of tradition, external influence, local creativity and individual taste, and differed from the clothing habits in urban areas" where city-dwellers were more influenced by broader European fashions.

By the mid 19th century, the wearing of folk costumes was declining but Norwegian nationalism embraced folk culture of the countryside and folk costumes regained popularity. In modern times, folk costumes have become expressions of national pride and are worn particularly on Constitution Day, May 17, as the images at this site indicate. 

Laplander Ethnic Folk Costume Finnmark Norway 1925 postcard

Lapland is a region largely within the Arctic that spans parts of Finland, Sweden, Norway and Russia. The Sami people, earlier referred to as Lapps or Laplanders, are the historical inhabitants of this area. This postcard captures the traditional dress of Sami living in the Norwegian region of Finnmark. While Norwegians form the majority of the population on the outer islands, the population is mixed in the fjord settlements, with Sami forming the bulk of the population in the interior.  A reversal of Norwegianization policy in the 1980s has seen an official apology from the King of Norway, reparations being made to Sami, the introduction of Sami language in schools, and a revitalization of their culture.

                       Pan American China Clipper Plane Flying Boat San Francisco California postcard
                                                             click on the image for more details

The China Clipper (NC14716), a four engine Martin M 130 flying boat, flew the inaugural flight for Pan American Airlines' trans Pacific service between San Francisco and Manila in The Philippines.  Taking off from Alameda CA on November 22, 1935 it island-hopped its way to Manila reaching its destination on November 29, delivering 110,000 pieces of mail along the way. 

The China Clipper service opened up a new era of travel in the Pacific, permitting faster travel both for people and mail. The British were also opening up air routes across the Pacific in the mid 1930s with flying boat service to Australia and New Zealand in the South Pacific.