Post Cards--Then and Now

Decades ago, when I was a student in Grenoble, the "study abroad experience" was quite different from what students experience today.  Over the past couple of weeks, I've been thinking about how much that experience has changed--in very profound ways.  The evolution of the post card provides one illustration of that transformation.

When I go to the Marche aux Puces at Saint Ouen (the flea market), I invariably find myself sorting through the antique post card bin.  I bought a couple of post cards a few years ago (similar to the one above) and had them framed since they represented views of old Grenoble and the bridge over the Isere River, both recalling my year at the University of Grenoble in the late '60's.  These post cards pre-dated the '60's by several decades and were truly antiques.  On the reverse, I noted the brief and predictable message--the French equivalent of "Having a wonderful time.  Wish you were here!"  Such post cards served a number of purposes.  They were the least expensive way to keep in touch with loved ones who could not make the trip.  They chronicled the trip for both friends and family.  And they also served as reminders of special places the traveler had visited.   They first appeared in the mid-1800's when more and more people began to venture farther and farther from home.

When I left a small town in the Midwest and traveled to Europe for the first time, I bought dozens of post cards during the year and religiously sent them to friends and family so that they would know where I was traveling and what I was seeing along the way.  I knew that they were interested in vicariously sharing in the experience, so I felt this was something I could not neglect.  It generally took a couple of weeks for these post cards to reach their destination, and they were always greeted with much excitement.  A post card all the way from London!  From Paris!  From Rome!  It was something very special that appeared in the mailboxes of loved ones in that small town from time to time, and each card was passed around the neighborhood, to co-workers, and to friends after church on Sunday.  

The same was true of letters.  Written on light blue "onion skin" paper that was so light and thin you could literally see through it, all letters to the US had to be labeled "AIR MAIL/PAR AVION" both front and back lest they join the sacks of mail going by boat.  It meant the difference between a two week delivery time and three months!  Postage was determined by weight, and my budget was severely limited, so I learned to write in exceedingly small script, using both sides of the tissue-thin paper.  The time required for a letter to be received on the other side of the Atlantic and the time required to get a response contributed to a real sense of isolation and distance, and that had a lot to do with learning to become independent and self sufficient very quickly.

Trans-Atlantic telephone calls in those days were ridiculously expensive and most of us made only one during that entire year....on Christmas Day.  Most French families and most student apartments had no land lines (and there certainly were no cell phones), so one had to go to the post office, stand in line, fill out a form for placing an overseas call, proceed to a designated booth, and await the connection to be  accomplished by various "international operators" both here and abroad.  All of this required functioning 100% in French which in itself presented a real challenge.  In contrast, today's study abroad student can call home whenever he/she feels the urge, either on a cell phone or via Skype.  Voila!  Instantaneous connection with friends and family, so no real sense of distance is ever really established, and there is certainly no need for the laborious and now comparatively expensive post card!

When I arrived home at the end of that year abroad, my mother gave me a box on my 21st birthday.  It contained every letter and postcard that I had written to my family and grandparents during my year abroad, organized in chronological order with the letters in their original envelopes.  There must have been nearly 100 items that chronicled every detail of that year in France.  After all these years, those letters and post cards are among my most treasured possessions because they are irreplaceable.  About every five years or so, I'll sit down and read through them on a rainy day and marvel at all the details that I have forgotten and how much that year meant to me.

The changes since those days are obvious.  If I buy a post card today, it is only as a remembrance of a place I've visited.  They are often bought in lieu of taking photographs myself.  I confess that I haven't actually sent a post card to anyone in decades.  Yet I must admit, an e-mail message seems a poor substitute for something one can hold in one's hands.  An item purchased by a loved one, addressed in his/her own hand, and that actually made the physical journey from continent to continent seems more of a "gift" than an electronic message ever could.

So to all my friends and family, I apologize for merely posting  "JoAnn's Post Cards from Paris" on a blog--the 21st century version of the post card.  It's a strange thing that I don't even have mailing addresses for most of you anymore...only e-mail addresses (having abandoned the Christmas card tradition long ago).  Nonetheless, the ease of communicating this way ensures that there will be more frequent exchanges and that all of you who are interested in following this adventure can do so at your convenience.  Hopefully it is a fair trade-off!

Oh...and by the way, I AM having a wonderful time, and I DO wish you were here!

Love,

JoAnn