Mailing

From a current volunteer:

Some tips if you do choose to use the mail:

Never list the value as more than a few dollars. If it higher than that, the workers’ imaginations start to invent wonderful possibilities of what could be inside that box with your name on it. You might get the box eventually, but sans that new iPod or nice pair of jeans.

It sounds crazy, but a few religious stickers seem to work wonders. Paraguay is very Catholic, and putting some tape on the package with Jesus or a Christian cross might make the package handler feel bad about opening it if they think you are a missionary. An ethically-questionable tactic, so it’s up to you. The one time someone back home tried this, I got my package without it being opened.

Address

For those of you who want to send me things my address during training (3 months) will be:

Casey Carney PCT

Cuerpo de Paz

162 Chaco Boreal c/Mcal. López

Asunción 1580, Paraguay

South America

My welcome book says mail is relatively dependable, but slow.  Packages and other correspondence are being delayed for weeks or even months at intermediate points...

BUT Another option for sending packages to Paraguay is by courier services such as DHL, FEDEX, and UPS. Although these services are more expensive, packages do arrive here in three to five days. Another advantage is that packages sent through courier services do NOT go through the Paraguayan post office. U.S. Express Mail works in the same way.