Postcards #2: Holy Kaa'ba in Al-Masjid Al-Haraam, Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Here is another postcard from my collection. I have kept this post card since I was a child. This piece of collection was sent to my father by one of his friends Mr Shahid Naseem more than 20 years ago. The card was sent as a greeting card on the Eid day.

It is a 3-D sort of a card. I do not know exactly what such cards are called and I would appreciate if some of you can help me. Basically the card shows TWO different views of Holy Kaa'ba - A closed photo and a distant one. Both can be viewed by slightly moving or tilting the postcard's front side. (It was difficult to scan both images separately but one can clearly make out both the photos from the uploaded image). While a distant image is clearer in the picture, a closer look of the Kaa'ba's building can be observed towards left side of the postcard.

Although the card features the photos of Holy Kaa'ba which is located in Saudi Arabia, interestingly the postcard is "Made in Japan". On the back of the postcard, it states "Wonder Co., Tokyo, Made in Japan". I would also be grateful for some friends who can clear whether this postcard should be counted in postcard collection from Saudi Arabia or from Japan. Its manufactured in Japan but posted from Saudi Arabia.

I can also send a postcard from Afghanistan(Made in Afghanistan with landscapes or pictures of Afghanistan) to interested collectors with Pakistani Stamps for swap. Anyone interested?

Best Regards

Postcard #1: Al-Masjid Al-Haram (Holy Mosque), Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Hello and Assalam-o-Alaikum!
Here is my first post card for the blog.
I chose this nice piece from my little postcard collection as my first here. The postcard features the World's largest mosque and the holiest place for the Muslim World. It is also the prime destination of the Hajj pilgrimage.

The mosque complex covers an area of 356,800 square meters and can accommodate up to 820,000 worshipers during the Hajj.

The Haram was built in the 7th century and has been modified, rebuilt, and expanded on a regular basis ever since. Major expansions took place in the 1980s and further work is going on today.

The mosque is built around Holy Kaa'ba or qibla which is considered to be the home of Allah (Almighty God) on Earth. So all Muslims around the globe say their prayers facing towards Holy Kaa'ba. The Holy Mosque is the only mosque that has no qibla direction, since Muslims pray facing the Kaa'ba in the central courtyard. I mean to say that the direction like West, East or North are not specified like in any other mosque but the worshippers face the qibla for their prayers.

I planned to start posting post cards a little later but I am posting my first postcardon the request of a fellow collector Marie who is organizing an event on her blog by the name of 'Postcard Friendship Friday'. So today on Friday, 30th of January 2009, I post this postcard as my first on the blog.

I hope that all of you will like it.
Best Regards

FDC#1 from Pakistan: SAF Games Islamabad 2004

My Dear Friends!
Hello again!
I have been missing my blog for a while now. Finally I have got a scanner and I am good to go with my posts. So here is the first FDC to show you from my collection. It is one of my favorite ones.

The FDC was issued on the event of 9th SAF Games held in Islamabad, Pakistan on 29 Mar to 7 Apr 2004. For those of you who do not know the details, SAF Games stand for South Asian Federation Games. The countries included in SAARC (South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation) participate in these games. There are in fact 7 members of the organization including Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives and Bhutan. In April 2007, Afghanistan also joined the organization as the 8th member.

The stamp sheet issued on the occasion contained 16 stamps of value PKR2 each. On the stamps the players are featured in different sporting styles while on the border of the sheet, a bear named Baloo which was the mascot of the event is featured with the SAF Games Torch. Baloo can also be seen on each stamp in the background in different sporting postures.

I also attended the opening and the closing ceremonies held in the Jinnah Stadium Islamabad and it was some real great time. Especially the fire works performed by a teamof specialists from China was brilliant.

I am missing my BLOG

My Dear Friends!
Hello!
I hope and pray that all of you are fine and happy.
Sorry for a slight delay in uploading new posts to my blog. I shall soon be doing it. Thanks a lot for praying for my father as well. By the grace of Almighty Allah, he is quite well now.
Best Regards

Please pray for my dad!!!

My dear friends!
Hello!
I hope and pray that you all are fine and happy.
I have been away from my blog for quite sometime now.
My dad had a heart attack about ten days back, so I was at home with my family. He remained admitted in the hospital for some days before undergoing angiography followed by an angioplasty procedure.
By the grace of God, everything is fine now.
I would request all my collector friends to please pray for his health and happiness.
May God bless you all and we can continue swapping everything from stamps, phonecards, FDCs, coins to any item imaginable.
If you need any collectible from Pakistan, please feel free to contact me on faisalcheema44@gmail.com
Best Regards