Postcrossing
So a few weeks ago, I joined this really neat thing: Postcrossing.
The goal of this project is to allow people to receive postcards from all over the world, for free. Well, almost. The main line is: if you send a postcard, you’ll receive at least one back, from a random postcrosser somewhere in the world.
After registering, you can request up to three addresses at a time. They are emailed to you. You send off postcards and when they are recieved the other person enters in the ID into the website. It notifies you that they were sent.
Anyway, point is, I received my first one today, from Kat in Holland, thanks :)
Now the question is - do any of you turn your photos into postcards? I’d like to do that instead of buying them of my silly little town. Do you know of a trustworthy place to order them, or what kind of supplies do you have for printing your own?
So far I have sent six of them (to Australia, Germany, Brazil, French Guiana, & Portugal) and in doing this, I have learned some interesting things about international mail services and restrictions… and especially prohibitions… Most of these are “duh” items, but some are pretty funny. I’m italicizing the ones that I think are funny. :cute:
Austrailia:
Money, traveler’s checks; platinum, gold, and silver, precious stones; jewelry; and “other valuable articles”
Fruit cartons (used or new)
Goods bearing the name “Anzac” (I had to look this one up, it stands for Australia and New Zeland Army Corps)
Goods produced wholly or partly in prisons or by convict labor
Perishable infectious biological substances
Radioactive materials
Registered philatelic articles with fictitious addresses
Seditious literature
Silencers for firearms
Used bedding
Brazil
Money, traveler’s checks; platinum, gold, and silver; precious stones; jewels; expensive jewelry; and other valuable articles
Commercial samples that promote tobacco products or smoking-related merchandise
Commercial shipments that contain cigarettes, cigarillos, cigars, loose and packaged tobacco, pipes, and other smoking devices
Medicines whose formulas are not listed in the official pharmacopeias or not licensed by the Brazilian Department of Public Health
Perishable infectious biological substances
Perishable noninfectious biological substances
Poniards, stilettos, poniard blades; canes, umbrellas, or any other articles containing swords, daggers, or guns; handcuffs, and blackjacks
Primary educational books not written in Portuguese
Radioactive materials
Regulation arms and munitions of Brazil and parts. Air guns. Reducing tubes and silencers for firearms
Salted or smoked meat, and other foodstuffs of animal origin
Seeds and seedlings of coffee, shrubs
Used consumer goods other than those sent to charitable organizations that are recognized by the Brazilian government as being entities which serve the public interest
French Guiana
Perishable infectious biological substances
Perishable noninfectious biological substances
Radioactive materials
Otherwise, same as for France… which is:
Arms, ammunition
Cigarette lighters using butane gas
Feeding bottles
Funeral urns… but why this one is funny I don’t know…
Goods bearing false marks of French manufacture or origin
Human remains
Imitation pearls containing lead salts and any articles of jewelry made with pearls of this type
Live plants and animals
Measuring instruments marked in units not complying with French law
Saccharine in tablets or packets
Germany
Absinthe (aka common wormwood)
Arms and weapons
Articles bearing political or religious notations on the address side
Human remains
Live plants and animals
Melatonin
Perishable infectious biological substances
Playing cards, except in complete decks properly wrapped
Pulverized coca beans
Radioactive materials
Portugal
Arms and weapons
Cigarette lighters and refills containing butane gas
Money, traveler’s checks; platinum, gold, or silver; precious stones; jewelry; and other valuable articles.
Human remains
Live plants and animals
Lottery tickets and advertisements concerning lotteries
Tobacco
See any recurring themes here? The moral of the story is, children, don’t try and mail human remains unless you’re sending them to Australia or Brazil!
