WiFi’s ever-extended reach has changed the way we travel–we upload photos and videos to our Facebook pages while we’re on vacation, or tweet our way through a day at the beach. One unfortunate side effect to all this connectivity is the dropoff in my postcard-writing. Yes, I still love jotting down these short notes, but I find that they typically arrive so far after I’ve returned that it’s anti-climactic in a way. So I loved the sentiments behind a recent article in the Washington Post about a unique mailbox in the Galapagos. Despite not using postage, a fair share of its postcards actually beat their travelers home, in part because they’re hand delivered. It turns out that this barrel, located in Post Office Bay on Floreana Island , has relied on kindhearted strangers to be its mail carriers for centuries; it was first used by English whalers who were hoping to get correspondence back to their families. Today people drop off their well-intended missives in the box, and travelers rifle through them, looking for one that’s addressed within delivery distance from their home. Upon returning, they will seek out the recipient, and explain the story behind the barrel, and ensure that card is delivered by hand. Have you sent or received a post card from Floreana Island? What was your story? [ Washington Post ] Photo: Andrea Sachs/ Washington Post Facebook - Wi-Fi - Post office - Recreation - WiFi

Read the original here A Galapagos Post Office (Without Stamps)