Writing postcards is one of my favorite ways to pass the time while on a long layover and has turned into an essential part of every trip I've made so far. It's short, sweet, and an affordable way to show someone you care while you’re out gallivanting.

Postcards also make for a great travel collection, as they take less space and can be repurposed in many ways.

I seldom wrote and received postcards back home in Manila, but got hooked when I started traveling around Europe. I think that sense of faraway-ness made connecting a more pressing need.

Here are some ways you can spice up your postcard writing habit. I tried them out myself and they're definitely tons of fun!

Nerd it out.

Who says that travel postcards should always feature a photograph? Literary figures and artsy illustrations by your favourite artist can work just as well.

If you’re into a certain author, a TV series, or a literary character, and you happen to be in a place that turns out to be significantly related to whatever it is your obsessing on, send them to a friend or a family member who'd love them. Alternatively, you can keep them as collectibles for when the nerdiness strikes!

When I was living in England, going on a trip to Oxford was on top of my must-do’s. It’s the closest I could possibly get to JRR Tolkien, who lived here and taught at Merton College at the University of Oxford. Being a huge Tolkien fan, I made it a point to drop by Oxford University’s souvenir shop and pick these babies up, and getting them exactly where my favorite author once lived made the experience extra special.

Be on the lookout for wonderfully designed postboxes.

While in Santorini, Greece, we passed by some of these lovely looking postboxes. The Hellenic Post’s characteristic pop of yellow did catch our attention and made us look forward all the more to slip that card in. You might already know that the UK also has its characteristic red pillar boxes. Sometimes, these little things can surprise you and could become an interesting detail in your trip.

Mail your postcard through a fancy post office.

In some countries in Europe, you need not go to the post office to buy the stamps. There are stalls and tobacco shops where they sell them with the postcards. During a trip to Prague though, I found it easier to go to the post office than find a tobacco shop for my postcard stamps. It worked out pretty well because I ended up in this intricately decorated building.

If you’re looking for a list of beautiful, travel-worthy post offices in the world, you may want to check out this post by Travel and Leisure.

Mail your postcard using the best postal service in the world.

According to the Telegraph UK, the Vatican Postal Service is the best in the world and the choice for many Romans for sending their most valuable documents. I tried it myself during my trip to the Vatican in January 2015, and the post got received by the intended recipient, safe and sound. And don't you think it's way too cool to be able to send a postcard from the smallest country in the world?

Write a postcard al fresco.

I can still recall the bustle of tourists, the variety of languages I was hearing everywhere, and the charming Venetian buildings around me when I wrote postcards on a lovely piazza in Venice. The message just flowed wonderfully while I immersed myself in what's probably one of the most beautiful places on earth.

Send a postcard to yourself.

Some may find this outrageous, but being in a foreign place can sometimes make us do crazy things. I think it’s even called for if you’re having a really wonderful/crazy/terrible time that you may one day want to revisit what you did and how you felt at that time. It’s like writing it down in a journal, only that it can turn into a collection and into a truly unique way to tell your story. Upon your return, there’s also the added excitement of waiting until it arrives in your mailbox.

There you have it! I hope you got some ideas on how to spice up your postcard writing habit. Safe travels and I'd love to know your postcard stories in the comments section below.

Talk soon,

Icy