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Postcards from strangers
One of the coolest things about having lots of friends who travel is getting postcards from around the world. Sadly, letter and postcard writing don't seem to be as common as they used to be. Much of the stuff coming through the mailbox these days is either bills or junk mail. Going to the mailbox has gotten to be a drag.An organization called Postcrossing is trying to change that. This free group allows members to trade cards with strangers. You log in and request to send a card, and someone's address is sent to you, along with a unique country-coded number. You pick a card, write a nice message with the code included, and pop it in the mail. Once the recipient gets the card and registers it on the site by using the number, you're put next in line to get a card from a different stranger. There's also a forum where people can arrange "private swaps" for particular countries or images.
With more than 100,000 members in 196 countries, the idea is catching on. I'm a member, as is former Gadling blogger Abha Malpani. Earlier this year Postcrossing reached the milestone of two million postcards received and one active member has racked up a thousand just by himself.
Various Postcrossers have created interesting spinoff blogs about their obsession, such as Wild Postcards and A Postcard a Day. Warning: Wild Postcards is occasionally not work safe, as the blogger likes old pin-up cards. Nude women with mom hair. Yipe!
Postcrossing is a great way to get cards from around the world and set up trading exchanges with people you may never meet. Consider it a form of staycation. It's fun for kids too. My three-year-old son is learning a lot about the world. He specifically wants postcards of cars and trains and about half the cards I get are meant for him!
Filed under: Arts and Culture, Blogs
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Shawn Jul 6th 2009 12:36PM
I like it! I'm going to sign up.
Do you send your postcards from where you are living? Or wait until you are on a trip someplace?
Thanks!
Sean McLachlan Jul 6th 2009 12:42PM
You don't have to be travelling to send the cards, you can send them from where you are living. Of course nobody will mind if you send cards while you're on the road, but they will register in the system as coming from your home country. If you are going somewhere exotic you can post on the forum and you'll probably get lots of people asking for a private swap.
Sheila Jul 7th 2009 6:09AM
Thank you very much for mentioning my blog, A Postcard a Day! I do feel honoured. I will be out and about tomorrow and see if I can find something for your son. Or for you, come to that. Any excuse for a good rummage.
I do endorse your recommendation of Postcrossing. I have "met" so many people through exchanging postcards and I maintain contact with several. The arrival of the postman has become a welcome occasion again.
Sean McLachlan Jul 7th 2009 6:11AM
Looks like someone uses google alerts! :-) Are you a writer? All writers search for themselves incessantly. Keep up the good work with the blog!
nzm Jul 7th 2009 11:02AM
If Sheila is using a tracker on her site (such StatCounter for example), she can see that there is a lot of traffic coming from one particular source - like this article's URL. It's not a hard thing to do.
Sean McLachlan Jul 7th 2009 11:04AM
Despite being a professional blogger and full-time cybercommuter, I'm actually a bit of a technophobe. I only got a mobile 18 months ago, when my wife bought me one for Christmas. I think she was sick of me being stuck in the late 20th century!