Relics from another century, postcards were long ago dethroned by social networks and instant messaging. However, these little pieces of cardboard blackened with anecdotes or affectionate words remain popular with many travellers, who refuse to let this dying tradition die.
“I must have sent around 400 postcards in five months. To tell the truth, I stopped counting at 372 two weeks ago, ”says Julie Roberge, live from London, where she was enjoying her last days of travel in Europe.
From Iceland to Scotland via Estonia and Italy, the 57-year-old Montrealer has made a point of stopping in the souvenir shops of each of her destinations to find the most beautiful cards. letters to send to loved ones. She writes them while waiting for a meal, drinking coffee, or on a train.
“I’m really a postcard fanatic,” she says, laughing. It costs a small fortune, but it’s part of my travel budget. »
This passion was born from a simple challenge launched by a friend in 1988. Julie Roberge had to send him a card a day during his three weeks of travel in Australia. She took the bet and got hooked. From now on, every time she leaves Montreal, even if it’s just to go to Quebec, she sends these little pieces of illustrated cardboard as a souvenir.
And she is far from the only one to indulge in this ritual, yet perceived as “archaic” by some at a time when technology has invaded our lives.
Catherine Marineau-Dufresne, 37, never goes on a trip without her little list of addresses to write to her loved ones. In fact, as far back as she can remember, postcards have always been part of her life. “When my mother was pregnant with me, my uncle was living in Paris and he was already writing me cards,” she says. His parents always sent him a card when they were on a trip or every Valentine’s Day, a way for them to express their love.
But why waste time — and money — sending postcards when today you can post travel photos on your social networks or even write and instantly call your loved ones on your cell phone?
The two women agree that it’s warmer and more intimate to send a postcard. “It’s a mark of attention. You take the time to choose the card for a particular person, to write it, to find a stamp, to mail it. It’s really more personal as a gesture, ”notes Julie Roberge.
By posting a photo on your social networks, you suddenly give the same news to everyone around you, which depersonalizes the message. “It’s easy to fall into copy-paste with instant messaging,” adds Catherine Marineau-Dufresne.
She also sees a “romantic” side to the fact of maintaining these epistolary exchanges which take time, in a daily life which is always going faster and faster thanks to technology. “I like the fact that there is a delay between when you write and when the person receives your card. It creates an expectation to which we are no longer used, ”underlines the one who has also” courted “a former lover with postcards and letters.
This is without speaking, of course, of the nostalgic side which is attached to it. “Before, postcards were the only way to give news while travelling. There was this expectation, this excitement of opening his mailbox in the hope of finding a card in his name,” recalls Catherine Marineau-Dufresne.
Finding it unfortunate that the younger generations who grow up with technology escape this experience, she now makes a point of writing postcards to the children of her friends, nourishing the hope that they will maintain this tradition.
A relic of the past century?
Still coveted by many, the postcard is still neglected by a large segment of the population. Difficult to measure the phenomenon in the country, because Canada Post does not collect any data on the subject. A quick tour of Montreal’s souvenir shops still gives an idea of the situation.
The majority of places visited by The duty recognize that we are far from the golden age of postcards. In addition to a decline in sales since the early 2000s, with the arrival of technologies, the COVID-19 pandemic has also hit the industry hard.
“Without tourists, it is difficult to sell postcards. They are the main customers. But this year, we see a difference with the resumption of tourism, ”says François Duval, owner of the Souvenirs L’Ours blanc shop, on Sainte-Catherine street, in Montreal.
“It’s the Europeans who buy the most,” says Daniel Gabrian, manager of the Souvenirs Bonjour Québec shop, on the same street. “I really thought it was going to go away a few years ago, with the internet and phones. But no, postcards are here to stay. It’s still a nice souvenir to take away, a nice gift to send. »
Continuing the tradition
Julie Roberge abounds: by its tangible nature, the postcard is a gift that we keep preciously. “You don’t throw that away!” she exclaims. You don’t have to display it at home, but at least keep it in a drawer or box. And when you stumble upon it, you dive back into the memories shared there. »
For her part, Catherine Marineau-Dufresne collects them and uses them as decorative objects. She is also part of a group of postcrossing, an online network that connects complete strangers around the world to write postcards to each other. And the more you send, the more you receive.
“No matter what you write to me, you can send me a cookie recipe, tell me about the weather or write me a poem, as long as I get a card, I’ll be happy. »