In every issue of AFAR Magazine we feature a different spread of delightful collectibles from around the world, from international hats and textiles to passports and matchbooks. Inevitably, with each new issue, the Mix spread is the first thing I flip to because I have a collection obsession of my own: I love postcards. I mail myself a postcard from every country I visit, and you’d better believe that a good chunk of my souvenir budget goes to postcards and stamps for friends and family. So as a true supporter of international mail, I couldn’t be more thrilled about Belize’s new pro-postcard initiative.
Belize, much like me, is mourning the decline of the postcard. (For you numbers people out there, that decline is measurable to the tune of 72 percent fewer postcards sent by Americans since 1997—that’s in less than 20 years.) So in honor of World Post Day this Sunday, October 9, the country is launching a campaign to bring back the postcard. Here’s how it works: between October 9 and November 9, 2016, mail a postcard to the Belize Tourism Board (address below) about anything you’d like—your hometown, your favorite trips, whether or not you like long walks on the beach, etc. Just be sure to include your address and Belize will mail you one back.
But never fear, fellow letter lovers, you won’t open your mailbox to find some cheesy, preprinted missive. Each response will be handwritten from a local Belizean and feature facts and tips about visiting the small country. And as a bonus, one lucky correspondent will win a trip to Belize, so those trip-planning tips might really come in handy! (We hear from Beth Ann Fennelly that a spontaneous trip to Belize is . . .un-Belize-able.)
And they say letter writing is dead. So what are you waiting for? Grab your favorite pen (or quill, if you want to go really retro) and celebrate the Universal Postal Union (founded in 1874). Mail your postcards to:
Belize Tourism Board
Attn: World Post Day
P.O. Box 325
Belize City, Belize
