Before and After

I really enjoy looking at old photos and postcards of locations and then comparing them to current images. There are many great books on this same subject. One of my favorites shows before and after scenes of my hometown of Portland. I recently found a fantastic photo postcard of a small town in New Zealand, and then happened upon a photo of the same view today. Ohakune is a small ski town of a little over 1,000 inhabitants located at the southern end of the Tongariro National Park. It is close to the southern slope of an active volcano, Mount Ruapehuo.

Beirut

The city of Beirut has a rich history going back centuries. After a long period of Ottoman rule, the city passed to French control after World War One, and continued its role as one of the financial and trade centers of the Middle East. After Lebanon achieved its independence in 1943, it seemed Beirut would always continue being called the "Paris of the Middle East." Unfortunately, the Lebanese Civil War in 1975 devastated the city, and so vintage postcard views are highly collectible.

Thankfully, since the end of the war in 1990, the city has undergone reconstruction, and has regained its famed status as a tourist destination.

Foreign Postcards

Foreign postcards are not as collectible as their American counterparts, probably because they generally aren't as valuable, and often require translation. Early in my collecting, I threw my foreign cards aside. Lately, however, I have warmed to the images of faraway lands. I have a decent collection of Japanese and European cards, and am especially drawn to cards showing places in the Middle East. (Stay tuned for a Middle East postcard post soon.) The photo and print quality on these cards is typically great, as most of the best printers in the world were in Europe in the early 1900s, especially Germany. As a bonus, many old foreign cards have interesting stamps and postmarks!