steb

I started Postcrossing in Uppsala, Sweden, and pursued it in Montpellier, France. I am originally from Quebec City and live in Montreal when I'm not in Europe.

My first language is French, que je vous encourage à utiliser si vous pouvez l'écrire—otherwise English is perfectly fine, of course. If you write in Spanish or Swedish that will allow me to practice a little bit. You can also write something in your own language.

I find that there are four elements to be enjoyed in a postcard: the origin, the message, the picture and the stamp.

Receiving postcards from different places in the world is great, but obviously you do not have a lot of control on that.

The message is, to me, the most important part of the postcard. I personally try to come up with something different to say in every postcard I send; often I write a story inspired by the picture, for instance, or a poem. I encourage you to do the same! If you write something unique, I will notice and be very pleased. (I recently sent 10 postcards that each contain one tenth of a single story. I wonder how the recipients will react.)

As for the picture, I like surprises! But also:
- works of art;
- anything related to museums, history, literature, science, classical music or jazz;
- maps, especially old maps;
- flags;
- vintage posters, such as Soviet propaganda;
- gay things;
- anything typical of the location you are sending the card from.

Finally, I like stamps. If you feel like sending nice stamps, or more stamps than just what is required for the postage, that will make me happy. If not, I'll be happy as well. (While I'm at it, I also like to collect coins, if you feel like taping a small coin to your postcard. Don't bother, though, if your currency is CAD, USD, EUR, SEK or RUB.)

I prefer when postcards have stamps on them, and when they are not in an envelope.

I look forward to receive your postcard!