International Shipping

Had a new experience in Argentina today - International Shipping.  : )

I have mailed "Care Packages" to missionary friends in Africa, the Dominican Republic, Mexico & Russia before, but that was from the US.  Two of the things we quickly learned were:
1.  It is very expensive - even going snail mail verse faster shipping can run you well over $100 depending on the size, weight and contents of the packet.  (And even more important, it can be very expensive for them to pick up.  They have to get it out of customs and I have heard stores of where they had to pay more than the contents of the package were valued.  - Not a good deal.)
2. It is very insecure - theft is very common.  One of the things we started doing was shipping things in Rubbermaid totes that had a wide lip.  I would drill holes through the lip (through the lid and siding and secure them with Zip-ties.  If was very difficult to open them up and pilfer something quickly and discretely.

Well, doing that from your home culture, home language, etc is one thing.  Doing it in a foreign land, foreign language is something entirely different.

We have great friends who are Argentine Missionaries to Ethiopia, Africa.  The live in Addis Ababa and love ministry there, but it is a very foreign land.  They stand out as much there among a black population as we do here among a Hispanic population.  : )  There are so many things you miss from home when you are gone for months and years at a time and they cannot be found there.

We had them e-mail us a wish list of things they would love to be able to get ahold of from home - Argentina. They were mostly different candies, in part because they have 3 little girls.  : )  We started shopping and put together a box to send to them.

This morning I went down to the main Post Office in Jujuy to mail it to them.  (I have not seen any private Curriers here - Fex Ed, DHL, etc.)  There is a Customs Office in the Post Office.  I waited in line for a bit only to find out that I needed to got down the street and buy a specific type of brown paper to cover up the box with, and to another place to find get a copy of my passport.

I went to the store to get the paper, but they did not have it.  They directed me another block down to an office supply store.  Thankfully, after a little waiting there, they found some and I bought it.  I headed out to find a store to make a photocopy of my passport.  I was directed around the corner and down the block to a small store where they could do it.  ...But, there was a huge line coming out the door and going down the block.  Not sure what they were all there for, but I did not have the time to find out.  The Customs Office is only open in the mornings.  God blessed me though.  I went into a photo printing shop to ask for directions to another place, and they let me know I could do it there.

I returned to the post office as fast as I could.  Noon was approaching.  When I got back though, there was another line.  I had to wait about an hour to get back to where I had been earlier.  Finally I got to the counter and started filling out paperwork, then more paperwork, then showing them the copy of my passport (they never took it, so I don't know why I had to make a copy of it) wrapping up the box, sealing the box, weighing the box, describing the contents and value of the contents, etc, etc.  Finally I was done!...at least for the Customs Office.  Now I had to go stand in line at the Post Office Counter.  : )

Thankfully the line was not long.  I filled out more papers, answered more questions and then came the doosy - it was going to cost me almost $80 to ship it!  That was more than 2 x's the value of what was in it!

Well, at least I got it shipped and know the routine now.  That is one more life experience down.  Every day this place becomes a little more like home.  I just hope that when the package gets to Ethiopia:
1.  It does not get stuff stolen out of it.
2.  It does not cost an arm and a let for our friends to pick up.
It is amazing how much we are willing to pay to taste a little bit of home.  : )

It's been a long day & there is still a lot to do.  I'll catch you all later.
God bless you all & keep on praying for what God is doing - all around the world.

Paz y gracia -