Sometimes, we still marvel at the power a tiny piece of paper has to connect people. From weddings to tales of adventure and unexpected friendships… the stories we hear are always awe-inspiring. Today, Maybrit from Spain tells the story of how she and Anna from Ireland connected over postcards!
On the 29th of June 2012 was the first time I sent annuc1s a private swap request.
At the time, I was on holiday in Germany, bored in the little hotel room I was sharing with my family. It was raining and there was nothing to do, so I thought… “Wouldn’t it be cool to receive a card from the places where your favorite artists come from?” Immediately I started looking for different users, and that’s when I came across Anna’s profile for the first time. We agreed on a private swap, me sending her a card from Germany and her sending me a card from Mullingar, where she lives.
Pretty soon, one card turned into two, which turned into four, eight… before long we were penpalling as well as chatting daily via Skype and Facebook. Our friendship had been formed… and it was only a matter of time until we decided we wanted to meet in real life. Our parents were very supportive of that idea and soon enough I found myself in Ireland for two weeks during my school holidays in August 2013.
During my stay at her house we had lots of fun and she also showed me many places all over Ireland. Everywhere we went we bought cards! On our first trip to Dublin we scattered our postcards around the little table in the train, receiving many weird looks from other passengers. The pile grew bigger after trips to the Cliffs of Moher, Aillwee Cave and Galway (where we went to a very fun funfair). Together with her family we also went to Northern Ireland, visiting the Giant’s Causeway, Carrick-a-Rede Bridge and Belfast, where we decided to take a look at the Titanic Belfast Museum. Many stores, receipts and a lot of money spent later it was soon the end of my vacation and I had bought over 500 cards from more than 20 different places!
The stay was an amazing experience and I am so glad to have met her. I never thought a small postcard could form such a wonderful and strong friendship. It shows that Postcrossing is not just a hobby where you send random cards all over the world. It’s a place where new friendships can be formed just like ours. We are so glad that we get the chance to share this experience with all of you. Maybe you have had a similar one. All in all, Anna and I wanna say thank you to Postcrossing for letting us connect and find a friend in a different part of the world. :)
Got a Postcrossing story? Do share in the comments, we’d love to hear it!
53 comments so far
What a great story...
What a lovely story!! Postcrossing is much more than just sending and receiving postcards, this story is a beautiful example
How happy to read such a wonderful story! :D
Oh this is really wonderful. I have a new friend in Russia - the connection otherwise so very unlikely but possible through Postcrossing.
nice story!! me, too, got several good friends in diff. countries, met them via meetups or even visite them or they visited me!! yeah, postcrossing is an absolute great idea with (if you like!!) unlimited opportunities!!!!
What a wonderful beginning of friendship :)
Yes, this is a great story and as the mother of Maybrit I am really happy about this beautiful relationship!
And the good news is that Anna will visit Maybrit in the easter holidays when both of them are in between finishing their final school exams.
So their friendship will be continued.....
Thank you Postcrossing for this little piece of happiness and luck, the world will be a better place to live!
PS: Anna, we are waiting for you :)
so happy to read this story!
Very heart warming...
A very nice story. I also was lucky to meet some really nice people through postcrossing. Such friendships seem to last forever :)
Yes. That's it. That's the spirit of postcrossing.
Great story! :-)
O Yes, I found 3 wonderful friends through postcrossing as well! Lucky me!
Awwww...What a fantastic story (and pictures!). Wishing you many years of friendship!!
This is why Postcrossing exists : people connecting over a simple postcard, sometimes turning into a deep friendship. Thanks for sharing this story. I hope to read much more...
Wonderful story of friendship - yes Prostcrossing connects and I met some great people here!
I love this story and I can only agree! I also found some wonderful friends here and meeting them in differnt parts of the world is so special!
Lovely story - amazingly I was at a wedding in Mullingar last Saturday and bought some postcards in Easons on Pearse Street
Does anyone else have a story like this? I am from Australia and was in Chicago, March 2012. We went to dinner and were served by a lovely young waitress. 2 months later, when back home, I started swapping postcard through facebook, on the Postcrossing page. It turned out that I was swapping postcards with our Chicago waitress, after we had swapped several postcards.
i´m realy happy for get to know karen from the netherlands here. maybe it could become a friendship.
Such a beautiful story.
Dreams come true :)
What an amazing story!
An amazing story of a great friendship! :) I also have made wonderful friendships with some Postcrossers, and I have met with one of them when he spent some time in Bulgaria last year.
niclo71 Your story is awesome! :) World is such a small place! :) I have a story, not exactly the same, but similar in a way. I started exchanging covers and stamps with a guy from Italy 2 years ago through Facebook. And to my biggest surprise one day I got a letter from him..with a Postcrossing ID :) Imagine the chance! There are many users from Bulgaria, after all, and many more from Italy! :) :)
it is just what i want to gain by postcrossing.
i hope i will have a lovely story like this soon:)
A very nice story. I read it with great interest. I am very happy that you found yourself, cool...
I like your story, Postcrossing is really amazing.
A very touching story :) Wish you all the best girls !
I think that postcrossing is a very interesting way to meet good people... just because All the postcrossers are nice ! We can't be member of this project without being a good person :)
Wow, great story! :)
I met a friend on Postcrossing as well, Hrvojebj from Croatia. He sent me a private-swap invite two Aprils ago and then it never stopped! We even met in-real-life in Zagreb last September :)
Thank goodness for Postcrossing! :)
Greetings from Ohio USA,
Marica
What a wonderful story!! :)
Beautifull!!
I agree with all the comments here - great story and wonderful to read it. Like many, I have made some wonderful people through Postcrossing. To quote a famous Irish Poet, William Butler Yeats “There are no strangers, only friends you have not met yet.”
I love this! Happy story!!!
Friendship brought by postcrossing.... wonderful story...:-)
I contacted Sreisaat from Cambodia before my first and only visit to the country. We met in Pnom Penh a few weeks later - she surprised me with some lovely presents and showed me around... it was a real Postcrossing gift.
A wonderful story! :)
Awsome story !!
Just close your eyes and keep your mind wide open that everything will be possible!
Many pretty stories can be told after Postcrossing. :) I've met wonderful people from different countries and this constant experience has changed my life and the way I see the world. Long live Postcrossing! :)
|that is pefect story for a newspaper, and to tell your future grandchildren, over a campfire!
I had to laugh! What parent would be happy about their daughter buying 500 cards on holiday? One who is a postcrosser as well! :-)
aberline, you are soooo right!
And I got a small part of the 500 postcards :D
Funny - in the appartement-house I live in lives a man from Berlin, who turned out to be another postcrosser ... The world is small!
Wonderful story. So uplifting. Thanks for sharing! I would love to meet other postcrossers traveling in my neck of the woods.
@aberline My parents are both postcorssers... and my mother is lying ;) she didnt get a small part hehe she got 130 :p rather big too :D
such a wonderful story. It made me smile about your comment, you mother getting a big chunk of your loot! I'm sure she will be glad to send you to another holiday to shop more cards!
Very sweet story of friendly. Hahaha! Okay, now I feel better for all the postcards I buy when I travel. I thought I bought a lot but 500??? Wow, that's amazing!
I was recently able to meet a Postcrossing penpal in Portland while I was on a cross country roadtrip. The amazing Tara (apurplerat on P/C). Check out her fun mail-related blog!
http://apurplerat.blogspot.ca/
I've met some really wonderful people through Postcrossing. One good friend in particular I met after I requested a swap with her to help me learn Italian, and our friendship grew from there! We plan to meet up someday when one of us visits the others' country (I def plan to go to Italy someday for a holiday)! I am thankful to Postcrossing for introducing us!
Thanks for the story, inspiring and touching!
Talking about postcrossing friendships - I experience that a lot too, also through my children, who are both postcrossers.
@ sprinkledonut: I am pumpin's mum, and am always amazed at the lovely letters and parcels she gets from you... thank you so much for that while having the chance to meet you here.
You are very special to us!
And another story from me: I am with PC since one year only. Just a few weeks after starting I had a pen-pal request from HongKong. We've been writing ever since - and this Christmas we will have her with us for some weeks and are totally delighted. Can't wait for Christmas.
Now this was from 9100 km distance - but in spring we hope to have our Dutch pen-friend stay with us - and even though she only travels 250 kms we are just as elated.
Considering that my children and I have over 50 penpals together, there is no end in the delight that awaits us - is there?
Wishing you all many more wonderful friendships....
Hi @Chrissy,
Nice to *meet* you. : )
Laura sends me great surprises in the mail, too! I laughed so much when I saw the cute figurine with pink hair. She has a prized spot on my dresser.
Sounds like you will have a fun time meeting some other P/C friends soon. Happy hosting!
Hugs,
Andie
Postcrossing is amazing!!! And postcrossers too!! Because of this, so many beautiful friendships begin with a postcard ;)
Great story, girls!
Besides the brazilians postcrossers, I've already met Nestor and his family in Cuba, Jetske and his mother in Belgium, Vale and Marta in Italy, all the guys (toda a malta!) em Portugal - Luis, Graça, José, Marta, Susana, Ana, Joana, Vitoria, Rita, Helena... - and also Trupti and Sue in Canada.
I had amazing experiences with my friends from Postcrossing and I'm pretty sure I will always try to met a postcrosser in my trips :D
what a wonderful friendship is build
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