BRISBANE – Australia Post has apologised after a postcard mailed in Tahiti was delivered 50 years late to an Adelaide home.
According to the details, the postcard, depicting a scene of Papeete, capital of French Polynesia, was dispatched in 1966 from ‘Chris’ to ‘Robert Giorgio Esq’.
Having been unexpectedly rediscovered, the card was sent on to Tim Duffy, the current resident of the address at which Mr Giorgio once lived, the Adelaide Advertiser reported.
Chris wrote: “Enjoying myself greatly. The weather is very humid. I’ll try and drop you a note in England.”
The original sender of the card has now been identified as law professor Chris Reynolds, who was childhood friends with Mr Giorgio.
The pair had not seen each other for over 30 years but reconnected after the story made waves in local press.
“I thought, ‘God, that’s my handwriting’,” Mr Reynolds told The Advertiser.
“I confess I can’t remember writing it but we were in Tahiti at the time. I was 15 and was on my way to England for 12 months with my parents and brother and sister. Robert was a school friend. We stayed friends for quite a while, though eventually we lost contact
Australia post spokesman felt sorry for the negligence.
“It is clear something went wrong 50 years ago after the postcard was posted in French Polynesia, and we apologise for the inconvenience” he said.
