Postcrossing Blog

A week ago, Paulo and I were in Prague for a special Postcrossing meetup, and we took the Little Mail Carriers with us, so they could tell you all about it! Here they are:

Ahoj from Prague! It’s sunny and lovely – perfect for adventures!

Ever since we saw a picture of Prague’s main post office on this post from February, we’ve been demanding to be taken there, so that we could see it for ourselves. And what do you know – six months later, the perfect opportunity presented itself: we were invited to attend the yearly Sběratel/Collector’s fair! :)

The fair, which takes place in Prague, welcomes collectors from all over Europe, who come to peruse the stands and enrich their collections. But this year, the fair had a special event taking place: a Postcrossing meetup!

The organizers invited us to come and meet the local postcrossers – we were honored and very happy to do so! Lots of people turned up and we got to meet many new postcrossers, shake their hands, answer many questions and sign a ton of postcards too. A computer and volunteers were at hand to explain Postcrossing to newcomers, and guide them through the signup process. There was even a special postcard and cancellation mark, designed just for the occasion!

We oversaw the stamping process and made sure everything was shipshape!

Meanwhile, the exhibition hall was buzzing with excitement. There were many people walking between the stands, perusing and scanning boxes and folders — it felt like a huge treasure hunt!

Afterwards, we came back to the city center, to finally visit Prague’s gorgeous post office! Ladies and gentlemen, look at that:

The walls are exquisitely painted with themes related to communications and post: in a corner, a young lady seems to be reading a love letter, on another, people call each other on the telephone, while postmen do their rounds. It’s just stunning!

Mr. Kostka from the Czech Post told us the building used to be an old monastery — the central hall is now where the old inner courtyard used to be. This is why there are so many vines and natural elements surrounding the figures on the walls.

Just before leaving, we still had time to meet some very old Czech postmen and peek at the overflowing philatelic counter.

It might well be one of the nicest post offices we’ve ever seen! Plus, it’s open every single day, from 2am to midnight! Wow… can you believe that?!

We really enjoyed our short stay in Prague, but soon it was time to go back to our envelopes and start the journey towards another exciting location… Goodbye Prague and see you soon everyone! :)

Here are the Little Mail Carriers again, to tell you all about the second part of their adventures in Belgium (here’s part one in Dinant, in case you missed it). This time, they went to Brussels – Europe’s comic art capital! Here is their report of the exciting trip:

Hi everyone! We were invited by Ghislaine and Sylvie (aka Sylor) to visit Brussels, the capital of Belgium… how could we pass the opportunity?!

We started the day with meeting the local mail carrier, or as they say around here, “Le facteur”. He’s really nice and brings Sylvie and Ghislaine lots of postcards.

Our first stop in Brussels was the Atomium, which we had only seen in photos and in stamps. It was built in 1958 for the World’s Fair (Expo 58) and has the shape of the cell of an iron crystal… only 165 billion times bigger! :D

On our way to the city, we noticed this statue of a policeman, whose leg is being held by a boy climbing out of the sewer, causing him to trip! What a fun sculpture to put in the middle of the square! Ghislaine told us it is called “the Vaartkapoen”, and it is inspired in “l’Agent 15” from comic strip “Quick & Flupke”. The boy holding his leg represents the rebel spirit which shakes the authority.

The city is filled with this kind of funny sculptures from Tom Frantzen, who describes them as “zwanze”: “a unique form of humour which he thinks is characterized by the absurdity and surrealism that stem from the mixture of languages so typical of Brussels”. Oh, look, there’s another one:

It’s the “Zinneke”, peeing on a street post! Zinneke means someone of mixed origins in Brussels dialect, and it symbolizes the mixture of people living in Brussels. Doesn’t he look cute?

Well, enough of culture! It’s time to have a break and try some local specialties! The chocolate and waffles were fantastic, but our favorite were the belgian frites! Yummy!

Aaaaah… so good! We noticed there were many brands of beer available – they really take it seriously here!

And some shopping, we arrived at the Grand Place, a Unesco World Heritage site. It’s very imposing and features the Brussel’s Town Hall, the Maison du Roi and several buildings from the Middle Ages named guildhalls.

Once a year, they make a huge flower carpet here in the Grand Place – we’ve seen it in photos, the whole square gets filled with colorful flowers… it’s really impressive!

Brussels lace is also very special… and expensive!

Belgian people have a great relation with la bande dessinée (comic art), so we had to meet some of their famous characters. Tintin, is probably the most popular of them all, so it was a big honor to shake his hand! Created by Hergé in 1929, he’s a reporter who goes on risky adventures around the world with his dog Snowy (or Milou, in French). Together, they always manage to save the day!

Another of our favorite BD heroes are the The Smurfs (les Schtroumpfs) by Peyo. Their language was a bit hard to learn, but I think we’ve smurfed it! :D

Oh look there… isn’t that the Manneken-Pis? They say the statue of the little man peeing is a must-see in Brussels, and represents the legend of the young boy who was awoken by a fire and proceeded to stamp it out by peeing on it! Now it’s just a funny fountain.

He was naked on the day we visited, but we were told he has a really nice wardrobe, with hundreds of costumes! On special days, they dress him up to celebrate a certain date or occasion.

That was a great visit! Sadly it was time to wave bye-bye to Sylvie and Ghislaine as they gently dropped us on the postbox… who knows where we’ll go next? :)

That was great! Thank you so much Ghislaine and Sylvie for this lovely report! Safe trips, little ones, see you soon!

After traveling around the world, the Little Mail Carriers just wanted a bit of a rest… They found the perfect place for it in Dinant, an idyllic city in Belgium gracefully posed on the margins of the Meuse.

Jo (aka juytters) was their host on this trip, and welcomed them with arms wide open! Here’s their report:

Salut everyone! Welcome to Dinant!

This charming Walloon city of around 14,000 inhabitants is squeezed between the Meuse river and the steep cliffs above it. Dinant’s impressive and strategic positioning along the narrow shore exposed it to a lot of battles and tragedies throughout the centuries.

But Dinant’s claim to fame is a happy one, something that brings joy to a lot of music lovers worldwide! Doesn’t ring a bell? Think Kenny G…

… no, not the man himself, but the saxophone he plays, which was invented by Dinant’s most famous citizen: Adolphe Sax! Mr. Sax was born in Dinant in 1814 and followed in the footsteps of his father as an instrument designer, making several improvements to the clarinet before finally inventing the saxophone in 1840.

The city is proud of its heritage and decorated the Charles de Gaulle bridge across the Meuse in colorful saxophones – one for each country in the EU. We zoomed past them in direction of another of Dinant’s highlights: the church of Notre-Dame of Dinant.

The original church was destroyed in 1227 when a big chunk of cliff fell down on it, and again in 1914 during the Battle of Dinant. But the resilient people of the city rebuilt the church to its former glory, using local limestone. Perched high on the cliff in the background, you can see the impressive Citadel fortress, overlooking the city.

A few days later, we got invited to a Postcrossing meetup in Gent, how exciting! We toured the town, bought lots of postcards and met some very nice postcrossers!

That was really lovely! But a trip to Belgium would not be complete without a detour to Brussels… so stay tuned for the next episode, we’ll tell you all about that! :)

À bientôt!

A big thank you to Jo for hosting the little guys and showing them around! Come back in a few days for the second part of the Little Mail Carrier’s adventures in Belgium! :)

Once again, we give the Little Mail Carriers’ cousin center stage, so that he can finish telling you about his adventures in Indonesia (here’s part one in Jakarta, if you missed it)!

The Yogyakarta meetup was slightly different because it was not just for Postcrossing members but for all mail lovers… even Indonesian Post attended!

The meetup was held in Indonesia Education Museum (Museum Pendidikan Indonesia) at Yogyakarta State University (Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta), and was opened by Vice-Regent of Sleman Regency, who symbolically signed a postcard.

It was really exciting for me to attend what was the largest meeting in Yogyakarta so far. Everyone was really friendly and took the time to introduce themselves and exchange gifts! :)

After that, we went straight to the post office, to have a look and mail some cards! Did you know that pillar boxes are orange in Indonesia? Neat!

The next day we visited Vredeburg Fort (which means Peace Fort). It used to be a military fortress, but these days it’s been restored and turned into a museum. Inside of the former barracks there is a collection of historical photographs, historical objects and replicas.

Street food in Indonesia is unbelievably delicious, I couldn’t get enough of it! This is mendoan, which is basically soy bean that has been yeast fermented for around to 2 days. When it’s sticky enough, flour and spices are sprinkled on it, and then it’s fried. Nom nom nom!

I also visited the souvenir heaven in the corner of Malioboro street, one of Yogyakarta’s main shopping streets. There were a lot of miniatures there that were just the right size for me, yay!

We got the chance to watch a lady painting batik, a traditional art in Indonesia which UNESCO has classified as a Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Wax must be applied to the cloth before it is dipped in color, so that the design can be unveiled once the wax is removed. It was wonderful to see, such attention to detail! The lady explained to me that batik must be painted diligently, neatly, and patiently.

I had gudeg for my last meal in Indonesia. It’s a jack fruit stew, served with rice and chicken, and it’s also the signature dish of Yogyakarta. I must have gained at least 20 grams here… I can’t seem to stop myself! :)

And that’s a wrap! Indonesia is so huge and diverse… I regret not having more time to properly explore it, but at the same time, I’m grateful for the amazing opportunity! :) A big thank you to Yanita, Aisha, Tintin, Ari, Dewi, Tascha, Dhani, Maya, Fathia, Sekar, and Fatima who welcome me warmly and took some very nice pictures for me!

Earlier this year, the Little Mail Carrier’s cousin was invited to attend some Postcrossing meetings in Indonesia. He begged us to go, so we packed him on a comfy envelope and off he went, towards the Java sea! Yanita (aka YanitaDC) kindly hosted the little man and showed him around her home country. Here’s his report of the trip:

Halo, Apa Kabar?

I just visited Indonesia, the biggest archipelago country in the Equator. I came here to attend the Postcrossing meetup In Jakarta, capital city of Indonesia… and stayed a bit longer with my host Yanita, to see the sights.

But first things first! The meetup was held in early March in Jakarta, at the Kantor Filateli Jakarta (Jakarta Philatelic Office), where a postcard exhibition of member’s collections was also taking place.

People came from all over Indonesia for this meeting, so I got to meet lots of new friends… I felt like a movie star having a fans meeting! They thought of everything and even made special postcards for everyone to sign!

That was really exciting! Can you believe how many people were there? There was even a news report made about the Indonesian Postcrossing community at this meetup, which was later played on the bigger post offices of Indonesia for a month! Have a look:

In a word… awesome! :D

Next on my tour of Indonesia, I visited Taman Mini Indonesia Indah (which means 'Beautiful Indonesia Miniature Park’). It was brilliant! I could see as much of Indonesia as I wanted… all in one place!

Aaaah, so many things to see… Indonesia is huge! After so much sightseeing, I was feeling a bit hungry, so Yanita gave me some kerak telor. It’s a sort of spicy omelet with sticky rice inside, topped with fried shredded coconut, fried shallots and dried shrimp. That was amazing and really hit the spot!

While I was in Jakarta, another meetup was being planned, this time in Yogyakarta, about 500km west from Indonesia’s capital. The organizing committee kindly invited me to join them, so I eagerly hopped on my envelope and took the plane over!

Stay tuned for my next update – there’s a lot more I want to show you from this lovely country scattered in the sea! :)