Where to send me nice things

Here is my mailing address in Guinea:

Hunter Dreidame, PCT
Corps de la Paix
BP 1927, Conakry
Guinée (West Africa)

The mail system in Guinea is somewhat corrupt, so it's not uncommon for packages or letters to go missing. Here are some tips to help stuff get to me in one piece:

- In red ink, draw large crosses and things like "DIEU REGARDE" (God is watching you) on the box - they are very superstitious
- Write 'LIVRES" on boxes; it means books and the postal people won't have any interest in stealing books.
- Men in Guinea are terrified of tampons, so if you send something in a tampon box they won't touch it. That said, I don't really want a lot of tampon boxes lying around my hut either... I'm just sayin'.
- If you're sending a postcard, send it inside of an envelope because people handling it will see the nice picture, take it home, and hang it on their wall.
- When sending letters, number them (July 10, Letter 1; July 14, Letter 2; etc.), so that if I get letters 1 and 3 but not 2 (because it's been lost or stolen), I can acknowledge such in my reply and you won't think I was just ignoring your last letter.

My e-mail address in Guinea will be the same one I've been using the last few years:

hunter.dreidame@gmail.com

Once I am sworn in and dropped off in my village, I most likely will only have internet access once a month. During that time, I'll try to update this blog as best as I can in a most entertaining fashion, so that my life will sound really exciting and you will keep coming back for more. If you e-mail me, I will do my best to e-mail you back, but given that I may only be on the internet one or two hours a month, it's not a guarantee I will get back to you right away. HOWEVER, if you send me snail mail, I promise I will write you back my next free moment.

Ok, now for the most important part - my birthday!! My birthday is July 27th, about two and a half weeks after I get there. For those of you planning me a surprise party, now would be a good time to start looking at airfares, hotels, etc. ;-)