The effort involved in sending a postcard has changed its status. Nowadays, when your loved ones receive a postcard, they know you’ve gone to a lot of effort.
I first learnt his name many years ago as I was travelling around Poland to update a Lonely Planet guidebook. Strolling through a scrappy park in the Pomeranian city of Slupsk , I stumbled across a sign marking the birthplace of this 19th century Prussian postmaster. His greatest reputed achievement? Inventing the concept of the postcard.That was enough to raise von Stephan to my pantheon of heroes because I love postcards.
Back in 1990, when my wife Narrelle and I took our first overseas trip together, postcards were a routine element of travel. Travellers made their way through whatever country they were visiting, and in their quieter moments jotted greetings to friends and family on the back of cards depicting the places they had visited.
We went a bit overboard on that month-long trip to Britain and France, sending forth a flood of postcards. Nowadays, the equivalent would be over-sharing holiday photos on Facebook. Still, it was fun and a way to connect with home because in those days you really were out of touch on the road due to the absence of email or social media.
I’ve maintained my postcard habit across the years, somewhat against the odds. The more universal smartphones have become, the more the utility of the postcard has waned. Why, after all, go to the trouble of buying a card, writing on it, then finding a place to buy a stamp and post it, when you can instead upload some holiday snaps to inspire FOMO?However, the sheer effort involved in sending a postcard has wrought a curious transformation in its status.
I like that. And I like making the effort to find a selection of good postcards from each trip and sending them off to family members and friends. One of those friends includes Magda, a former colleague from time spent teaching English in Poland. She has a wall covered in my cards, creating a slightly cheesy though colourful montage of the world.
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