Some 150 years ago, post offices around the world received the first picture postcards. Designed to be mailed without envelopes and kept as souvenirs, the photos themselves brought news. They were decorated with the images of the day – the newly constructed Eiffel Tower perhaps or the happenings at the Chicago World’s Fair.
These days, when I travel, I still like the tradition of picking up a few postcards from the hotel gift shop; to me, they represent a snapshot in time of places seen, people met, and things accomplished.