Monthly Archives: January 2014

Preparing for Chinese New Year

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We’ve focused on some traditional events taking place in January all over the world this week and we’re concluding with our build up to Chinese New Year. The oldest festival in China is just two weeks away now, with the celebrations of the year of the horse taking place on the 31st January. If you’re gearing up for Chinese New Year or know someone in China who will be celebrating in two weeks time, choose RAND as your logistics company to send parcels to China.

On the eve of Chinese New Year, families will spring clean their homes in preparation for a new beginning. Once cleaning is over, everything used to clean is put away to symbolise the idea that good luck will not be brushed away. Once New Year s Eve arrives, families will host a large dinner with all sorts of traditional Chinese food. The theme of good luck is maintained as phrases wishing happiness and wealth are present across the household.

The night is filled with huge fireworks displays that are meant to scare away any evil spirits along with dragon costumes and red clothing. Children are given red envelopes by their parents and grandparents that contain treats and money, a further sign of prosperity and good luck. The festival continues for 15 days, concluding with a lantern procession at night.

Make sure you check out RAND Logistics range of services this Chinese New Year or contact us for more information about how we can get your parcels from A to B on a worldwide scale.

January – The Birth of the Prophet Muhammad

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Earlier this week, Muslims across the world celebrated the birthday of the prophet Muhammad. Mawlid an-Nabi or “Birth of the Prophet” is an annual celebration that takes place in most countries with an Islamic population or culture. It is only observed by Muslims. The term Mawlid is used in countries such as Egypt to symbolise the birthday of many other religious and historical figures. Countries such as Egypt, Dubai and Morocco regularly observe Mawlid on January 14th as these countries host a large Islamic population.

Muslims observe this date by treating it as a national holiday. The celebrations are similar to that of “Eid”, with large firework displays, decorated crowds and prayers all dominating the schedule of the day. Friends and family will meet and share a meal together after gathering at a mosque for prayers. Many countries will show programmes that commemorate the event, especially in places like Egypt and the U.A.E. Interestingly, Saudi Arabians tend not to celebrate the birth of the prophet as it is not a significant date registered in the Qur’an.

Are you planning on sending something to a family member or friend to commemorate Mawlid an-Nabi? RAND Logistics provide an international delivery service to the U.A.E and other countries that celebrate the event.  Take a look at our range of services or you can contact us for more information regarding your shipment.

The Australian Open and Australia Day

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January is a very important month for those living in Australia with the Australian Open tennis tournament currently being held and Australia Day approaching on the 26th. Andy Murray will be hoping to build on a successful 2013 by winning the Australian Open after returning from injury, though the sweltering heat in Australia is something all the players are having to deal with at the moment.

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The tournament is held in Melbourne during the last fortnight of January. The current champion, Novak Djokovic, is one of many world class tennis players that take part in the tournament, making it an excellent destination for tourists in January.

The national day of Australia marks the anniversary of the first arrival of British Ships to the shores of Australia. There are various community events to behold on the 26th of January whilst families often make the most of the special day by organising gatherings.  You may well have a relative staying in Australia who is preparing for Australia Day, in which case you can make the most of our international parcel delivery to Australia.

Need to get some forgotten sandals to a loved one in Australia this month? Maybe you need a postal service that’s a bit more local? Either way, makes the most of our services here at RAND Logistics, which includes both a collection and delivery service.

 

Coming of Age Day in Japan

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Yesterday was Coming of Age Day in Japan, a national event that has been celebrated for over a thousand years. The ceremony surrounds a young prince’s passage into adulthood by wearing glamorous robes and being given a new hairstyle. Most of the young adults who attend Coming of Age Day in Japan are 20 years old, except for some who are actually 19 and have birthdays that are between April of last year and April of this year.

Coming of Age Day is a big thing in Japan, with government officials attending local offices to give out presents to the new adults. The women that celebrate the event are generally dressed in a style of kimono, though they will usually visit a beauty salon to look their best for the day. Many of these kimonos are passed down through generations as the traditional Coming of Age dress is particularly expensive. In most cases, the young adults will finish the day by heading out to parties or bars for the evening.

Do you need to ship a parcel to Japan? RAND Logistics offer a global service that includes both collection and delivery. If you know someone who is celebrating their coming of age today and you need to send a gift to Japan, you require our services here at RAND!

It’s OFFICIALLY 2014

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Its January 13th so Happy New Year! Whilst it may seem a bit late to offer best wishes to 2014 in actual fact, this is the day that the old Gregorian calendar would celebrate the coming of the New Year. Many religions still treat today as the official turn of the year, so there’s an excuse to consider opening a bottle of champagne this evening! If you’re one of the few who may be celebrating New Year’s today instead, make sure you ship your gifts internationally using RAND!

Speaking of gifts, there may be many of you out there who have sorted your Christmas gifts and decided that a few of them just aren’t worth keeping. They might not be your thing or maybe you’ve got two of them already. Either way, you probably don’t want to let the person who gave it to you to know you’re selling them online. Take advantage of RAND Logistics services if your gift was something a bit more heavy-duty. We can pick items up from you and send them on their way, so you don’t have to sneak off to the post office!

If you’ve got any unwanted Christmas gifts lying around, get a quote from RAND today and ship your unwanted gifts internationally with us!

Did You Know? Postal Facts Final Day

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The first pillar boxes designed by the Royal Mail were in fact green, not red, to blend in with the landscape so as not to be an eyesore. However they blended in a little too well and the Royal Mail office was flooded with complaints from people who couldn’t actually find their local post box. The decision was then made to paint them red in 1874, which took around ten years for the repainting of all the post boxes to actually take place, so the iconic red post box was not actually fully recognised until the late 19th century. Although their design has not changed one iota since.

It is actually possible to send dead animals as well as live ones, so long as the packaging or animal itself does not violate local postal laws about shipping biohazard materials. If the animal has been cleaned and preserved properly, and is kept in an air tight container then it is perfectly legal to be allowed to ship it.

If you absolutely have to ship your brothers dead hamster to his home address by sending a parcel to Peru, find out how RAND Logistics can provide you with excellent service by using our Quick Quote function.

Did You Know? Postal Facts Day 4

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There are over 7500 different courier companies listed in the yellow pages for the UK alone. The US Postal service is thought to be the largest in the world, and every day it sorts through and attempts to deliver over 700 million packages of varying size and shape. In comparison to that, the Australian postal service delivers up to 94 million items a week, which is an intense difference. However it comes as no surprise as the entire population of Australia could fit within the densely populated city of Tokyo.

When sending parcels to America, although the direct delivery of mail to people’s homes was present from 1863, the actual mailbox or mail slot was not used until 1923 when it became commonplace. Plus, although the red pillar post box has become an iconic representation of Britain, it was not the first country to store letters in pillar boxes. In the early 50’s of the 19th century, Anthony Trollope saw such pillar boxes in France and Belgium and proposed them to the UK Postal Service in 1852.

Make sure your package gets to where it needs to go by using RAND Logistics. Our rates are second to none for international shipping.

Did You Know? Postal Facts Day 3

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Just fewer than 6000 postmen were bitten by dogs in the USA alone in 2012, the highest rates city being Los Angeles, which suffered 69 separate incidents of letter carriers being attacked. Surprisingly, this was a decrease from 83 attacks in the previous year, which is a little bit of good news, albeit still making it the worst city in the continent.

In 2001, the Postal Service in Germany decided to take decisive action and taught courses on dog psychology to couriers to decrease the number of attacks, as there were around 3000 letter carriers a year attacked in Germany, leading up to around £8 million worth of medical bills.

Some dog bites have been so severe that they can lead to fatalities, or if the courier is an elderly citizen, can lead to heart attacks, although this is rarely the case. On the 15th July 2013 the Royal Mail launched its first Dog Awareness Week, as dog attacks have resulted in the loss of over 4500 working says since April 2011.

Take care when sending a parcel to Los Angeles for your friend or relative, as dog attacks tend to increase during school holidays. To find out our excellent rates for international shipping, use RAND Logistics quick quote form.

Did You Know? Postal Facts Day 2

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On the 10th September 2003, 25 year old Charles McKinley managed to ship himself from New York to his parents’ home in Texas as air cargo. He was trying to save on plane fares by both mailing himself and by sending the shipping fees to his employer, as he was previously a Shipping Clerk. He’d gotten the idea from a friend, who suggested that simply mailing himself as a parcel to Texas,would be cheaper than purchasing train tickets.

As there was no history of it happening previously, the Transportation Security Administration interviewed McKinley to better understand how he had bypassed security, in order to ensure it never happened again. Considering these events happened only a few years after the disastrous 9/11, it was surprising that a man managed to post himself by air mail at all. It turned out to be more expensive in the end regardless, as he could have flown first class for the price he paid to post himself.

We at RAND Logistics would not recommend that you post yourself, and instead send your friend abroad or relative a thoughtful present, at extremely competitive rates. Use our quick quote service to find out how much you can save with RAND Logistics.

Did You Know? Postal Facts Day 1

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Children used to be posted in parcels across the USA, to save on rail fares. Often rail fares were more expensive than posting children, and normally the limit to one package is 50 pounds, so younger children were ideal to send to visit relatives via post – luckily not often packaged, just with postal stamps attached to their clothing.

It was a rare occurrence, but before it was outlawed in June 1920, several children were posted across America so that their parents or guardians did not have to pay the extra rail fare. Post able livestock at the time was included as ‘bees and bugs’ and children were not legally considered to be either of those (surprise?). On the 13th June 1920, the U.S Post Office ruled that it was illegal to send children via parcel post. Hopefully those few children that were packaged up and delivered had enough snacks to last them the journey!

Be sure to check that everything you are posting is able to be delivered in your recipient country, or you may find yourself facing some harsh fines. RAND Logistics can give you an idea of the types of things that are illegal to send via post.