Post and packages with no fixed address

When I was moving around I used a trusted friend's address in the country where I was registered, plus a mail scanning service for letters. The friend held anything important until I passed through. It only works if the friend is very organised and very patient, and I bought her dinner a lot.

netherlands has parcel lockers everywhere. i send everything there, even when i do have an address

Bank cards were my nightmare. My bank would only send them to my registered address, so I ended up getting a friend to fly one over in her hand luggage. Check the bank's rules before your card expires, not after.

A PO box solved it for me in the UAE. Some countries have that option for residents, some don't, but where it exists it's the calmest solution I've found. Nothing important has gone missing since.

Ireland introduced postcodes not that long ago, and couriers still sometimes rely on the house name. I write the postcode and a description of the gate on everything.

The parcel from mum that goes back home after three weeks is painfully familiar. Mine went back twice.

Pick-up points in the local supermarket saved me when I lived in short-term flats.

i use a friend's address and bribe her with pastries