Long-Distance Caring

Why do you suppose it costs so much to send something overseas? I just mailed a package to my lawyer son who is teaching English in Hamburg, Germany, and realized the postage was not much less than the cost of the contents.

I figured it was about time he received something from home, having been gone since late September. I can imagine he is just a little lonely for things American at this point.

So what was in the package? A terry cloth bathrobe – handy when you are living with other people and sharing a bathroom. A watch he had left at home – handy when you are trying to get to the class you are teaching on time. And 10 miscellaneous candy bars, jelly beans, gum, etc. from Trader Joe’s.

The biggest surprise was a postal employee who came up to me in line to advise me how to send these things the cheapest way and then proceeded to help me assemble the box, cram everything inside, and put on layers of tape. He claimed to be an injured mail carrier who had nothing better to do, but what a nice service in a place that usually makes me scream in frustration!

So how much did it cost to send the care package? $37. I’ll bet the same package would have cost $12 to send to my daughter in California. What is it about leaving the US borders that triples the price for the same weight and distance?

It’s money well spent. He’ll now have a warm bathrobe and maybe even have candy for Valentine’s Day. The delivery time – 6-10 days. It’s even trackable with a 1-800 number.