18 July, 2009

Honey, I'll get the mail on the way home....

Yes, we have a post office box here. I shared once before about getting mail in Russia so maybe I have an issue that way I don't know. Thursday I was walking home and decided to stop in the post office and check to see if any mail had found us yet. We have been doing this since we returned from The US in early June but until now only "air mail" in our empty box.

The postal locks here are sorta neat they look like Philips #2 screw driver tips. They file off the sides like the notches on a key to make the key. There are 4 sets of tumblers that way. If it is made well that is probably a nearly pick proof lock, at least they want you to think that they are.

The down side is that the key fits any of 4 ways so getting it right on the first try is addressed with a mark on the key and lock that you match up when you insert the key. Well, on all the others you do that, on ours you insert it 180 degrees off. More pick proof I guess.

Ya too much info I know but Thursday we had mail. Well, sort of mail, we had two slips of paper saying we had mail. So I thought probably international mail requires you to pay for delivery or something so I went to the window to ask. The lady who works there is really nice and she took a great deal of time and words I didn't know telling me that I had to go to another post office to claim my mail. OK so I asked my friends where they pick up mail from the US. Of course it comes to there PO box next to mine. But boxes come to another post office a few blocks away in the general direction of where she had indicated.

Diana and I set off with our papers and knowledge of where to go. We went to that post office and were told that where we needed to go was near the train station. We went to the train station and asked for the post office. We were told it was on down the street a few blocks. We wandered on down the street and we found a sign that had the address of the post office we wanted on it. So we followed it and asked for the post office. Nope not here back the way you came.

We asked another guy yes further on the way you came from. And another, "it is on the train station" Russian prepositions sometimes translate funny. Ok back to the train station, and wow the address is the same as the one on our paper. So we go in and ask about the post office. No it is not here but go out the door and to the right 25 steps and there it is. So out the door and 25 steps to the right and there is a door. It is locked and inside is a desk pushed up against the door so it can't open. Ok so another 15 steps to the next door. It is a restaurant, but they know where the post office is. Great they point to a dilapidated building about 100 yards up the track in a industrial area that looks a bit spooky. So with Diana watching my back we venture into the unknown. When we arrive at the building in an area where people don't seem to pick up after there dogs or maybe it just smells like that, we get to the building and the only door on the front says Post Office Store. Inside we can see a small grocery store. We think well Aunt Bee got the mail in a dry goods store on Maybery RFD so maybe the same here. We enter and ask. A guy without shoes sits by the door selling seeds, there is a lady behind a counter with a postal scales so I approach her and show her the papers. She tells me "yes this is our house" no wait I bet she said "yes this is the right building" Hard to tell as Russian may not have been either of our first languages. But the guy with no shoes takes us back out side and points to the end of the building and to the right. Again with Diana guarding my back we set off in search of the post office.

We turn right and walk past the old truck blocking the parking lot and to the back corner of the lot and building and down a couple steps into a lower floor of the same building into a dark room with a few boxes and desks and a guy working at one under a bare light bulb. I show him my papers. Then I hear him say my name and then he produces my two letters. He then ask's me to write on the back of the papers from the registered letters that I received them to sign them and put the date.

So I have my letters and it only took two hours to pick it up, I got a couple miles walking in and learned how to say international post office in Russian so some people understand.

But next time I can do this in a hour or less. Cool

So what was your major acomplishment today?
ST

2 comments:

Rita Loca said...

Only 2 hours, huh? LOL

Siberia Tom said...

And get this it was over lunch as well. Shhh they have not heard of siesta here yet. Shocking no?