Remember letters?! Most people will be excited to see a hand-written letter when it's not a bill. It's a nice touch to send someone a letter and it won't be forgotten in a hurry. The only problem is that it wont get there in a hurry either.

It's the bridge between pace and patience. You can fire an email to anyone in the world free of charge and you'll be leaving a note for them to pick up. We all know emails well, and we know there are pitfalls. Try not to find that spam filter!

The internet's answer to cup-and-string. If two of you have an account (which is free to sign up too) you can talk for free. You can even make international calls direct to phones - this isn't free - but who can say no to cheap calls? Perfect for travellers.

Although you're looking at a few committed weeks/months of training and a singular delivery destination these guys will happily take your "I'll be late for dinner!" messages without judging you.

These are phones that are placed in windowed booths in and around any civilian area - many people are unclear as to what these phones are for because of mobile phones and laptops - but let me tell you: if you're stuck in a rut and you need contact it's definitely worth braving the smell of urine and accepting that you'll never see your change again. Emergencies only.