I like the Mexican postal system.
Before I moved down here, I heard all of the usual horror stories. Don't drink the water. Don't drive at night. And, most important, don't rely on the Mexican mail service.
It turned out all three were wrong -- to some degree.
There is plenty of water to drink in Mexico. Driving at night is not wise, but also not deadly. And the Mexican mail is every bit as reliable as the United States Postal Service. (And that is not praising with faint damns.)
There is plenty of water to drink in Mexico. Driving at night is not wise, but also not deadly. And the Mexican mail is every bit as reliable as the United States Postal Service. (And that is not praising with faint damns.)
It took me some time to come to that last conclusion.
One of the first things I did when I moved to Melaque was open a box at Mailboxes, Etc. in Manzanillo. But, after listening to my neighbors and two fellow bloggers, I decided I was wasting a lot of money. So, I closed the box and opened one at the local post office in San Patricio (posting my life).
One of the first things I did when I moved to Melaque was open a box at Mailboxes, Etc. in Manzanillo. But, after listening to my neighbors and two fellow bloggers, I decided I was wasting a lot of money. So, I closed the box and opened one at the local post office in San Patricio (posting my life).
It has been over a year now. And I have no complaints.
I have one correspondent in The States who does not have access to a computer. Our letters take about ten days to arrive. And they have all shown up.
Even my magazines arrive timely. My June editions are already here. National Geographic two days ago. The American Spectator this morning. (National Review and my newspaper, The Oregonian, show up on my Kindle. No mail required.)
The one exception is The Economist. In March (two flings and a funeral), I crowed about resolving my problems with my subscription. The print editions had finally started showing up in my mail box.
And they continued to show up -- until I left on my six-week jaunt away from Mexico. I thought I was going to find six magazines waiting for me when I returned. There were two. And none has arrived during the three weeks I have been back.
The Mexican mail system does not appear to be at fault. After all, my other magazines arrive on time. (I just noticed that The American Spectator comes with a Deutsche Post stamp and a Mexico City return address.)
With the absence of a print edition, I have been relying on The Economist web site. That may turn out to be a better option for me.
The news is timely. All of the articles are included. And it is quite a snazzy format. Color photographs and all.
So put me down as a very happy user of the Mexican mail system.
And a happier internet user.
And they continued to show up -- until I left on my six-week jaunt away from Mexico. I thought I was going to find six magazines waiting for me when I returned. There were two. And none has arrived during the three weeks I have been back.
The Mexican mail system does not appear to be at fault. After all, my other magazines arrive on time. (I just noticed that The American Spectator comes with a Deutsche Post stamp and a Mexico City return address.)
With the absence of a print edition, I have been relying on The Economist web site. That may turn out to be a better option for me.
The news is timely. All of the articles are included. And it is quite a snazzy format. Color photographs and all.
So put me down as a very happy user of the Mexican mail system.
And a happier internet user.
