I remember seeing an insert on TV about stamp collecting when I was around 7. I immediately became a philatelist and soaked off the stamps from all the envelopes I could find in the house. That lasted for about two hours. I've also attempted to collect bottle caps, magnets, pens, all of the usual, but lost interest within a day on average. My repository of other hobbies doesn't read much better: I've tried out ice skating, sculpting, ballet, playing the violin, karate, photography and tap dance to name a few. The one thing that I have managed to accumulate a respectable collection of is postcards, thanks to a website called Postcrossing. Nowadays whenever we travel, I drive my boyfriend crazy by demanding to enter every store that happens to sell postcards.

What exactly is it that brings me more than just bills and ads by good old-fashioned snail mail? Postcrossing was founded in 2005 by Paulo Magalhães, a Portuguese student who loves receiving mail not of the electronic form. The idea was to offer a platform for people who also enjoy physical mail to find each other and exchange postcards. Postcrossing is based around a complicated algorithm that ensures that for every card you send you receive one back, and that no two accounts are connected more than once. The mark for 22 million postcards sent was reached in February 2014, and there are currently over 400,000 users from over 200 countries registered. At the moment of writing, 502,122 postcards were on their way to the mailboxes of eager Postcrossers. Perhaps not surprisingly, countries such as Russia, the United States and Germany lead the statistics in both members and sent cards. Finland, however, stands in fifth place in sent cards, which is not a small feat for a country of this size.

As it happens, I am not the only English student with a passion for postcards. I talked to fellow SUBer and veteran postcrosser Katariina about her experiences in this community. Kata has been postcrossing for the past 7,5 years and so far has both sent and received around 300 cards. At the moment, however, due to an intensive study period she only sends out one or two cards a month. This is one of Postcrossing's perks – there is no real commitment. It is perfectly acceptable to be far less active at times or even take a complete break by setting your account to inactive when you know you won't have enough time or interest to participate for a while. For Kata, myself, and probably numerous other Postcrossers, the appeal of Postcrossing lies in the suspense and opportunities. It is a great way to meet people and get to know cultures from around the world. Whenever you request an address, you have no idea where your card will be going – or where the next card you receive will come from. One of my most memorable Postcrossing experiences personally was receiving the address of a teacher from New Zealand who collected postcards for her 3^rd grade class as a way to teach geography and different cultures. What an awesome teaching method! There are no prerequisites for Postcrossing, people of all ages and nationalities are allowed to join in. The only real downside is when you start calculating the money spent on those hundreds of cards and stamps that you have bought along the way, but then again, not many hobbies are free nowadays. The reward is a happy mailbox, and Kata recalls one of her favorite pieces so far: a participant from the Netherlands sent her a card made from the cover of an X-Men VHS accompanied by tea and chocolates.

If you feel your heart beating a little faster with nostalgia for real mail, you can join the Postcrossing community at www.postcrossing.com. Some of my go-to places for postcards in Helsinki are Ideaforum in the Forum shopping center, museum shops such as the ones in Kiasma and Ateneum as well as several book shops. Happy Postcrossing!