Simple ideas are always brilliant, and the idea behind Postcrossing may be the most brilliant yet. Members of Postcrossing follow a simple process:
- Request an address from the website.
- Mail a postcard to the address.
- Wait to receive a postcard in return.
- Register the received postcard in the system. This makes you the next person whose address will be given out.
By participating, members can receive postcards from all over the world and transform their mailbox — which usually only sees boring old refinance requests and bills — into a little surprise box. The really proactive members scan or photograph the postcards and upload the images to Flickr. With over half a million postcards already sent, there are currently 30,000+ postcards in transit.
I just signed up! If I’m lucky, maybe I’ll receive a postcard sent from an underwater mailbox!
[Via Vagabondish]