Send us mail!

Okay, so I was wrong when I said I wouldn't be posting again, because here it is one day later and I have something else to write. I just wanted to let you all know that you can start sending us letters NOW!!! Peace Corps has told us that mail service from the U.S. to Mauritania can take up to 3-4 weeks, and seeing that we will be there in less than two, I want to encourage you to start writing ASAP. We've heard the first few weeks can be a difficult adjustment, so any encouraging letters from home would be greatly appreciated!

Our address will always remain on the right hand margin of this blog but here it is again:

Katie & Mike Yunghans, PCTs
Corps de la Paix
B.P. 222
Nouakchott, Mauritania
West Africa
Par Avion (Air Mail)

Here are some other helpful hints about sending mail:
1. Address the envelope in red ink.
2. Draw religious symbols (any religion is okay) on the outside of the envelope.
3. Don't include anything valuable inside like checks or cash.
4. Number your letters so we know if they arrive out of order or if one is missing.
5. If sending a postcard, put it in an envelope, as they tend to get lost or stolen.

A number of you have mentioned wanting to send care packages, but for now just focus on letters. They will arrive much faster and give us a good boost in morale, which is what we'll be needing most. Hopefully if we pack well enough, we should have all the supplies we need for a while, and care packages will be much more useful down the road a bit.

I'm not sure how much postage is required on a letter to Mauritania, but make sure to send by AIR MAIL because I've heard that ground mail takes months to arrive instead of weeks. We look forward to hearing from all of you!