{"id":23466,"date":"2016-06-08T15:18:09","date_gmt":"2016-06-08T13:18:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/?p=23466"},"modified":"2018-02-28T13:54:28","modified_gmt":"2018-02-28T12:54:28","slug":"la-poste-sending-snail-mail-in-french","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/la-poste-sending-snail-mail-in-french\/","title":{"rendered":"La Poste – Sending Snail Mail In France"},"content":{"rendered":"

Before I had trouble figuring out how to send un mail<\/strong><\/a>, I had trouble figuring out how to send le courrier<\/strong> (the mail). La Poste<\/strong> (the French postal service) isn\u2019t very different from other postal services around the world, but it is somewhat unique in that it is also une banque et un op\u00e9rateur de t\u00e9l\u00e9phonie mobile<\/strong> (a bank and a mobile phone operator)!<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll see several different queues<\/strong> (lines) at La Poste<\/strong> for these different services, and along with les enveloppes et les colis<\/strong> (envelopes and packages), you\u2019ll also see cell phones for sale. All that in the same bureau de poste<\/strong> (poste office)!<\/p>\n

When sending une lettre<\/strong> (a letter), first you need to buy les timbres<\/strong> (stamps), and they\u2019re sold at le bureau de poste<\/strong>, which is easy to guess. However les timbres<\/strong> can aslo be bought at un tabac<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

C’est quoi un tabac ?<\/strong>
\nWhat is un tabac?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Un tabac<\/strong> is a caf\u00e9<\/a>\/bar combination that also sells cigarettes and stamps. They’re something like a convenient store combined with a caf\u00e9\/bar.<\/p>\n

Ensuite<\/strong> (next), don\u2019t put your mail in a mailbox and stick up the little flag to send your letter! You have to go to un bureau de poste<\/strong> or find a yellow bo\u00eete aux lettres<\/strong> (mailbox) to envoyer le courrier<\/strong> (to send mail). There are many bo\u00eetes aux lettres<\/strong> everywhere in France, making it easy to find one wherever you are.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Once you\u2019ve found une bo\u00eete aux lettres<\/strong> you\u2019re greeted with a rather intimidating decision:<\/p>\n

The left will have a list of des d\u00e9partements<\/strong><\/a> nearby, but the right will look the same. This is meant to help sorting long distance mail easier, but can be intimidating if you see a list of numbers representing des d\u00e9partements<\/strong> that you’re not familiar with!<\/p>\n

It’s also possible to see des bo\u00eetes aux lettres<\/strong> with just a single slot for\u00a0le courrier<\/strong>, but just remember if you’re trying to send something to a country other than France it’ll always go in the \u00c9tranger <\/strong>(Foreign) slot.<\/p>\n

Don’t worry, witing a letter<\/a> and sending it can be difficult for French people as well. Norman<\/a> made a funny video about the common issues people have with writing by hand<\/a> and La Poste<\/strong> in France.<\/p>\n

La vid\u00e9o<\/strong> is in French, but try to watch it to practice your French!<\/p>\n