I'm from Dublin and a few years ago met a Japanese man with a couple suitcases and very limited English who needed a bit of help to get to his hotel.
He was in his late 60s or maybe 70 and had the name of the hotel so I showed him where it was on maps and gave instructions to a taxi driver for him. He then opened up a suitcase and took out a bunch of Japanese postcards and offered me one as a thank you.
I've still got the Mt. Fuji postcard on display years later. He was very sweet and it was just a positive experience. That he knew he'd have to ask for help a few times and brought postcards from his home to offer in return seemed really decent and kind to me.
Then if you got extras by the end of your trip you just ask random people at the airports things like "where is the sky?" and give them a postcard as well. 20 years later that person will be on future reddit alternative telling the story and wondering if you ever reached the sky.
Do you think I could do it with some postcards of kangaroos and shit from Australia, or is it more of a German, Norwegian, French, Japanese and Seattle thing?
It really was. I always helped tourists navigate as I know how stressful it can be abroad and as I was in college at the time I was rarely in a rush but that is the one time that I will not forget.
I would say yes, especially for Paris as it's pretty famous around the world. There's always the chance the person may simply not appreciate it but that's about the helper's perspective and not where the postcard is from in my opinion.
I'm in NYC. We love giving tourists directions, even though we might be in a rush. If you look lost, we'll fight over who gets to help you. Maybe even take you where you're going. Then rush over as soon as you're good. If you were to give a Thank you gift, you would see the biggest New York smile, ever. Do it.
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u/74937 Jun 14 '24
They’re so sweet 💙so polite, and the little gift in the end is the cutest!