Postcrossing Blog

Few projects connect people from so many random contexts as the Postcrossing project. It’s amazing how diverse our users are and we are always eager to learn more from them. Thus, we decided to start the Postcrossing spotlight – interviews done with members of this project that we will publish every two weeks here on the Postcrossing Blog. We want to share with all of you how diverse our community is and we hope you all enjoy it.

We know that many of you would like to know a bit more about the project founder. So, to start the Postcrossing spotlight interviews, here’s what Paulo himself has to say as our first interviewee. See you in two weeks!

How did you come across Postcrossing? What got you hooked?

I always enjoyed sending and receiving mail, specially postcards. Friends and family frequently received postcards from me, but I wanted to exchange even more, specially with more far away places.

So, I have put that together with my IT background, the initial concept started to develop and a few months later, Postcrossing was ready.

I’m both proud and happy that this project has touched and connected so many different people around the world, ignoring age, gender, location, religion and even belief. And it’s not just about postcards any more, it’s also about the connections created. I hope it continues to do so for a very long time.

Do you have any other interesting hobbies?

Recently I have been doing Geocaching – for the ones who don’t know it, Geocaching are mini treasure hunts done with the help of a GPS device. It’s a lot of fun plus I get to visit interesting places I would never get to if it wasn’t for it.

Besides that, I enjoy travelling across the world and live in different places to experience other cultures and different people. I’m originally from Portugal and in the past I have lived in the Netherlands, U.S.A. and for the last 2 years in China. I’ve just returned to Europe and soon I’ll be heading somewhere else. I guess I can be called a nomad!

Show us your mailbox, your mailman/mailwoman, your postoffice or the place where you post or keep your postcards!

Personally I don’t enjoy keeping the postcards in albums because I like to have them handy in a way I can pick them all up and flip through them whenever I want to.

We always wanted to have one of those postcard racks that you see in small stores to display the postcards. However, we couldn’t find one so Ana came up with a great alternative: using Ikea pot lids holders instead, the effect is the same plus our postcards are always displayed and ready to be picked up. It even has different slot sizes so that any postcard size has it’s own place – it’s perfect!

Show & tell us about your favorite received postcard to date, and what makes it special.

I honestly lost count to the number of postcards I have received to date and it’s almost impossible to pick just one favourite. I like pretty much any type of postcard since they are always special in their own way. However, there’s one that is particularly special to me: PT-1 was the first Postcrossing postcard and it’s only fair I pick it as my favourite. And yes, I like lighthouses! :)

On July 14th 2005 the Postcrossing project was open to the world with a goal: to connect people across the world through postcards, independent of their location, age, gender, race or beliefs. Any mailbox could be turned into a surprise box.

But what started as a small pet project quickly turned into a fast growing community spread through out many different countries. And today, 4 years later, over 2 million smiles have connected more than 100.000 members across the globe making this project surpass all its best dreams and hopes.

Over 4 years Postcrossing has evolved considerably and this last year was a specially busy one. It’s been a long path in many milestones along the way and to share them with you, we have put together a Postcrossing History page. If you ever wondered how it all started, we hope you’ll find your answers in this page.

We hope to continue to connect the world through smiles and postcards. A big thank you to everyone who make this possible!

Happy birthday Postcrossing!

We know many Postcrossers take their yearly break in the upcoming weeks to relax and visit new places. If you are one of those and you’ll be away from your home address for a while, we recommend you to switch your account to the Inactive state – you can do that easily just by editing your Postcrossing account. When you are back, all you need to do is to switch it back to Active and you’ll be back in business again! This will tell Postcrossing to not give your address to any other member while you are away. Rest assured that when you’re back, they will be sent your way.

Oh, and don’t forget to re-stock with postcards from the place where you’ll be spending your days away!

Bon voyage!

In a partnership with Japan Post, Nestlé Kit Kat and advertising agency JWT have come up with a clever and innovative concept: the Kit Kat postcards!

As the name suggests, these are small boxes of Kit Kat, that can be mailed as if they were a postcard. The product launch was timed with the university exams season, so that friends and relatives could wish students good luck in their studies with a chocolate break :)

Here’s the product presentation:

The Kit Kat postcards won the Media Grand Prix this year at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival, so we wonder… how long until it is available at other postal services around the world? *hint hint* :)

Have you been in a Postcrossing meetup before? How about an International Postcrossing meetup? If not, here’s your chance!

Like all Postcrossing meetups, this one is also organized by the users themselves and it’s been in the works for quite some time. Now that the details are pretty much decided, it’s time to spread the word. This International Postcrossing meetup is going to be in Helsinki (Finland) in the 28th, 29th and 30th of August.

If you are interested, here’s a summary of what’s currently planned:

Friday, 28th August:

A small pre-meeting in the afternoon for chat and coffee in a cafeteria.

Saturday, 29th August – the official meeting day

The official meeting day starts at 10am with a guided tour around city center and a trip to the Suomenlinna Island, an UNESCO World Heritage place. On the Island it’s possible to do a small picnic or have a cup of coffee. Of course, the city tour will have plenty of stops in many postcard shops!
Later in the day everyone can enjoy a meal together in a restaurant followed by plenty of time to write some more postcards.

Sunday, 30th August

A visit to the biggest flea market in Helsinki, Valtterin Kirpputori, and continue to the amusement park Linnanmäki which has an unique atmosphere. The last stop on Sunday will be the Olympic Stadium Tower in Helsinki.

Many users are already arranging to go, some from abroad with plans to visit the country for the first time!

To know more details about this meetup, just check the Postcrossing Forum where you can find more updated information about it.