The afternoon I spent hanging out in the Vatican was nothing short of spectacular. From Michaelangelo’s Pieta which was unbelievably stunning to the majesty of St. Peter’s and the grandiose atmosphere of St. Peter’s Square out front. I didn’t particularly want to love the Vatican City, but it honestly was amazing. And as I was exiting, things got even more…cool.
There was a post office!
The thought never once crossed my mind that the Vatican is its own country (well city-state). And as I walked down the steps of St. Peter’s and noticed the giant yellow post boxes, it hit me! I was in another country! Of course, I’d already been in Italy for over a week…and I walked past plenty of post offices. But this was the Vatican! So in I went, and four euro fifty later, I had two postcards ready to send to America.
I used to regularly send postcards home but that’s happened a lot less. With the ability to do your own postcard printing (with your own images) through companies such as UPrinting, or even “digital postcards” through apps like Postagram, sending postcards while traveling is less and less popular. Social media is no doubt the best way to stay in touch while abroad, but there’s no souvenir quite like a paper postcard.
Love this!
St. Peteres Square, in the shade, on a sunny summer afternoon is my favorite place in the world… And Vatican city is probably the ONLY place I have ever managed to actually send a postcard from (I buy postcards– and sometimes even stamps– to send, but never end up sending them). I’ve never tried postagram, but it sounds like a nice alternative :)
I buy postcards all the time too but end up forgetting about them. The Vatican made it really easy and almost impossible to resist.
And shade in St Peter’s is an absolute must!
Wish we had sent one from the Vatican as I am sure my grandma’s would have appreciated it!
Yep! I sent one to my Grandma from here – thought it was appropriate!
[…] Travels of Adam – Sending a postcard from the […]
There is nothing like the real Postcard in my mind. I like sending them to my Grandma as she has collected them and it’s important to have the postage match the postcard. I’ve now started my own little collection too! One day I’ll figure out what to do with all of them!