Pen pal

Pen pals (or penpals or pen friends) are people who regularly write to each other, in particular in the case of snail mail. A penpal relationship is often used to practice writing and reading in a foreign language, improving literacy, to learn more about other countries and life-styles, and just to reach out and communicate with a fellow human being. Some people remain penpals for only a short time, while others continue to exchange letters and presents life-long. Some penpals eventually arrange to meet in 'real-life'.

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Penpals come in all ages, nationalities and cultures. Being part of a penpal network can be a way to gain a valuable understanding of the world, and an appreciation for cultures and lifestyles very different to your own.

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Many people writing to a penpal are not using their native language in their letters.

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A modern variation on the traditional penpal arrangement is to have a keypal and exchange email addresses as well as or instead of paper letters. This has the advantage of saving money, but also the disadvantage that the communication is very ephemeral. Many people prefer to receive paper letters, gaining the satisfaction of seeing their name carefully printed on a thick envelope in the letterbox. Using snail mail, it is possible to trade postcards, stamps and anything else light and flat enough to fit inside an envelope.

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Penpal clubs can be found on the Internet, in magazine columns, newspapers, and sometimes through clubs or special interest groups. Some people are looking for romantic interests, while others just want to find friends. Penpals also make and pass around friendship books. There is also a non-profit humanitarian penpal organisation, Human Writes http://www.humanwrites.org through which people all over the world correspond with prisoners on US death row.

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The Australian author Geraldine Brooks wrote a memoir Foreign Correspondence (1997) about her childhood which was enriched by her exchanges of letters with other children both in Australia and overseas and her travels as an adult in search of the people they had become.

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Snail mail: Snail mail or Surat Siput is a derogatory retronym—named after the snail with its proverbially slow speed—used to refer to letters and missives carried by conventional postal delivery services. The phrase refers to the lag-time between dispatch of a letter and its receipt, versus the v...

Literacy: Literacy is the ability to read and write. In modern context, the word means reading and writing in a level adequate for written communication and generally a level that enables one to successfully function at certain levels of a society....

Email: redirect E-mail...

Pen pal related Images and Photos (experimental)

Pen Spy Cam	Pen Spy Cam	Maze Pen	Inka Pen Travel Pen
George Pal	Shocking Pen	Pesa Pen-Duick	Pen-type IR Thermometer
My Own Pal	Quill Pen and Ink Well	CNBC Wood Pen	Dead Fred Pen Holder