Welcome to Postcrossing and thanks for reaching out here!! I agree with others that you should jump right into the Forum - as you have already done, so good job!
Try the round robins and lotteries and your mailbox will never be empty again!
Also, it’s been my experience that many parts of Western Europe – and also Japan and some of the Pacific islands – can be REALLY quick! Like within a week!
I’ve been receiving USA to USA mail in about 4-5 days.
Germany, Netherlands, and Czech Republic have taken about 2 weeks
3 of my first cards sent (I’m fairly new) are still traveling - Poland 36 days thus far, Japan 35 days thus far, and China 32 days thus far.
Interesting regarding Japan - one of my first cards sent was sent to Japan, still traveling 35 days later. I hope it isn’t lost in the mail.
Question - I’m fairly new - so we can receive mail from Russia but we can’t send mail to Russia? I figured if we couldn’t send we couldn’t recieve. very interesting.
I hear ya girl! I too was pretty sad when I realized patience was a virtue. I’ve only been with postcrossing for less than 2 months - some of my first cards (China, Japan, and Poland) are still traveling. I have started receiving cards and it’s fun to see them in my Informed Delivery email and then wait excitedly for the actual cards that day
I’ve also gotten busy in the forums as others have suggested. I’ve won a couple lotteries and I’ve been hosting a lottery a week. (Might be two this week, I’m getting the itch to give some cards away).
I’d be happy to send you a card from Florida if you are excited to get your mailbox going! Just PM me your address! Happy Mailbox, Happy Home!
Correct - there is no direct air service between the countries at present; Russia sends outgoing USA mail via Turkey (I believe).
Right, from the postal stamps I know that the longest part of the journey for my cards is from the post office to my mail box ))))
I am, by nature, an impatient person. So when I first joined Postcrossing in December 2021, I thought I was going to go out of my mind waiting for the cards. It is slow going at first, and it really can try your patience in the beginning waiting for people to receive & register their cards. But I’ve learned to be patient, and the rewards are great. I’ve received some amazing and unique postcards from wonderful people around the world. Hang in there. It takes time to build momentum. By the way, distance doesn’t make a difference. I live in the U.S, I sent a card to Canada, which took 3 weeks to arrive; whereas, I sent a card to Germany, which only took 5 days to arrive. You never know when your card is going to arrive, and you never know who you’re going to get mail from, which is part of the fun.
Thank you for the offer. My first card was registered last night! I was semi patiently waiting but still think it would be a good change to have the first couple cards go within the same country 
I’m excited to get mail (Im guessing that’s the motivation for most people) as well as send. Take care <3
Always a bad feeling worrying that might happen. The person may just be busy and hasnt registered yet? My first card was recieved in Germany yesterday and she registered 4 other cards same day so I think some people take a minute to register them. You can see if your person has registered any lately?
My first card was registered last night! I think part of it isnt just waiting for the person to receive it but also register it. I have ADHD so my personal rule is to do it as soon as I see it, no matter what. Otherwise Im scared Ill forget or lose it and someone wont get their credit.
My first card was registered last night (sent US to Germany) so I feel better. I was worried too I did something wrong (used regular stamps instead of international stamp for that one lol).
Yay! That’s great that you got your first card registered. Wonderful.
Here is a hint: try to avoid the single International stamp if possible ($1.45). Two Forever and two tens is $1.46 right now, going up to $1.52 when the rate goes to $1.50 in July. Some people buy stamp assortments for other combinations.
A while ago I had a German member take three months to register the card, apologizing that she had been ill.
I hadn’t thought to look before. Just checked and the people from Poland and Japan have both recently logged receipts. The person from China hadn’t logged since March. Could 3 of my first 5 postcards really have gotten list in the mail? That would be a bummer.
It happens that in occasion your card arrives after ones sent afterwards from your country. In my experience few cards are permanently lost. Mis-delivered, recipient forgets or loses interest, yes.
I use a single international stamp when there isn’t alot of writing space on my card and an assortment on all the others. There’s no rhyme or reason to the delivery times. I had 3 received in Germany within the past 9 days and one to Italy in 6 days and yet 22 days to U.K and another to Germany in 26 days 
I remember when I first joined though how antsy I was for my cards to be received. Welcome and happy Post-crossing!
It’s very unlikely. Every now and then a card may get eaten by sorting machines or sent to a wrong address but three at once would have to be something remarkable.
Having said that, a batch of five cards I once posted on holiday never made it. To this day I wonder where I put them, I’ve got a clear memory of inserting them in a postbox but maybe it wasn’t one? Who knows. Maybe it was a bin?
Hi @MissWired
Welcome to Postcrossing!
Just a note of caution about people who register multiple cards at a time - please don’t assume that they are delaying the registration. I do see this a lot as a comment in the forum, but I am convinced that it is rarely true.
My overseas mail often arrives in batches, despite having deliveries 6 days a week, and in some countries deliveries occur only every other day. Of course too, many people use a P O box, and can’t collect mail every day.
I hope that your cards arrive soon at their destination and that you begin receiving cards soon. Meantime, enjoy the forum and getting to know everything that Postcrossing has to offer.
@MissWired , the recipient of your first card has over 5’000 cards sent - with that amount, it’s perfectly normal to receive several cards every day.
They can have many cards travelling at the same time and many of their cards can get registered every day, so many people send cards to them in return