The Galápagos—remote islands off Ecuador’s coast—was a stop for 18th-century whalers traversing the oceans. Today, its unique stampless system of sending mail, setup by those whalers more than 200 years ago, continues.
After months at sea, homesick seamen came up with an ingenious system of getting letters to their families. They erected a barrel & left mail for other sailors on passing ships to deliver. Every ship stopped there to get a supply of giant sea tortoises for food.
Today, thousands of letters pass through Post Office Bay. Tour groups stop at the island to explore ancient lava caves and to pick up and drop off postcards. Visitors sift through the mail & collect letters going to an address near their final destination. Tour guides say that slapping a stamp on the letter & dropping it in a mailbox is cheating!
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After months at sea, homesick seamen came up with an ingenious system of getting letters to their families. They erected a barrel & left mail for other sailors on passing ships to deliver. Every ship stopped there to get a supply of giant sea tortoises for food.
Today, thousands of letters pass through Post Office Bay. Tour groups stop at the island to explore ancient lava caves and to pick up and drop off postcards. Visitors sift through the mail & collect letters going to an address near their final destination. Tour guides say that slapping a stamp on the letter & dropping it in a mailbox is cheating!
Go here to read the rest of the article.