[Dx-qsl] EX8MLE

[Ed Callaway]

Al,

Sergey suffers from severe mail theft problems.  However, I have had 100% success with Sergey over the years, including one received just last month.  I send my QSLs via registered mail, return receipt requested, *and* I reorganize his QRZ.com address according to "Frank's Compulsive Guide to Postal Addresses" (http://www.columbia.edu/~fdc/postal/ ).

As written in QRZ.com, Sergey's address is:

Sergey A. Tkachenko
720017
Bishkek, P.O. Box 742
Kyrgyzstan

As Frank says, "In the 20th Century, most of these countries [i.e., the former Soviet states] wrote addresses backwards from how we write them, e.g. with country name on top, the city line as the second line, the street line next, and finally the company or person, and the postcode was on the right."  I think Sergey's QRZ.com address is as it is because of trying to force this inverted order into the QRZ.com form.

Frank continues, "Reportedly, this form fell into disuse about 2000, at least in Russia and Ukraine, which have switched to the same minor-to-major top-to-bottom presentation used in most other places. In any case, when addressing mail to these countries, write addresses in the normal USA order, because the USPS looks at the bottom of the address, not the top, for the City line and Country name, and of course write at least the City and Country lines in Roman letters."

On my registered letters, I have always had success writing Sergey's address in this form (note that the city and country are in all caps, something the USPS recommends):

Sergey A. Tkachenko
P.O. Box 742
720017 BISHKEK
KYRGYZSTAN

Frank recommends going the extra mile, and writing the first lines in Cyrillic script (to aid local delivery), while keeping the last in Roman letters (as the USPS requires).  This requires a duplication of the city name:

Сергей А. Ткаченко
а/я 742
720017 Бишкек
BISHKEK
KYRGYZSTAN

I have never found this necessary (but you never know!), and have worried about possible errors in an automated translation (the only access I have to Russian translation services -- even the above may have errors).

Of course, all the usual rules apply; don't put call signs on the envelope, be sure to include sufficient return postage with your SAE, etc.

Good luck!

Ed N4II

-----Original Message-----

Message: 2
Date: Mon, 8 Jun 2015 04:18:33 +0000 (UTC)
From: "Al, N6TA via DX-QSL" <dx-qsl at mailman.qth.net>
To: "dx-qsl at mailman.qth.net" <dx-qsl at mailman.qth.net>
Subject: [Dx-qsl] EX8MLE route?
Message-ID:
	<1372097025.6892046.1433737113264.JavaMail.yahoo at mail.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8

 Anybody had luck with any route to Sergey?? I have sent two direct requests to the Bishkek address.? First not received.? Sergey told me by email to try again. Another sent 4 months ago and not reply.??? Now, his email address as in QRZ.com bounces as undeliverable.He has a different physical address for EX9T.? Anyone used it successfully?
Tnx for ideas.73,Al-N6TA

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