We accept undeliverable letters as your "temporary recipient" – Japan’s Drifting Post Office

▲ Japan’s unique Drifting Post Office has become an emotional anchor for many. (Photo / Courtesy ofDrifting Post Office official website)

Travel Center / General Report

Have you ever wanted to write a letter to your future self or a beloved pet that has passed away, to convey emotions buried deep inside, but didn’t know how to send it? Located on Awashima Island in Japan’s Seto Inland Sea, the “Drifting Post Office” specializes in collecting letters with no recipient. Any mail that can’t be delivered or received can be sent here.

▲ Exterior of the Drifting Post Office. (Photo / Courtesy of Drifting Post Office official website)

The “Drifting Post Office” is not related to a regular post office—it is actually a piece of art. Created in 2013 by Japanese artist Sayaka Kubota, it repurposes the wooden building of the former Awashima Post Office and was renamed the Drifting Post Office. It was exhibited during that year’s Setouchi Triennale international art festival.

▲ Information board at the Drifting Post Office. (Photo / Courtesy of Drifting Post Office official website)

The Drifting Post Office is not just a work of art, but also an emotional sanctuary for many. If you want to write to a cherished loved one, a pet, or even future descendants, but have nowhere to send it, the Drifting Post Office becomes your “temporary recipient.” You don’t need to write a recipient address—just include the Drifting Post Office’s address, mark it as 留め (meaning “held at the Drifting Post Office”), and add the recipient’s name, then you can send it here.

▲ Mailbox preserving letters from all over. (Photo / Courtesy of Drifting Post Office official website)

To preserve these drifting letters, the Drifting Post Office has installed 100 iron mailboxes strung together with piano wire and suspended in the air. Letters from around the world are stored in these mailboxes and also serve as part of the exhibit, allowing visitors to freely browse them.

As of the end of 2015, the Drifting Post Office had preserved over 10,000 letters. If you’d like to visit, the Drifting Post Office is currently open to the public on the second and fourth Saturdays of each month, from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM. With the annual Setouchi Triennale international art festival coming up this year, while island-hopping to see various artworks, why not take the opportunity to visit this unique post office?

Drifting Post Office
Address: 1317-2 Awashima, Tashima-cho, Sanuki City, Kagawa Prefecture, Japan, Drifting Post Office