Known as La Poste, French post offices are easy to find, just look for the bright yellow sign or signs on the outside. Mailboxes are also a bright yellow. Post offices can be found by following sings marked Bureau de Poste.

Most post offices are open from 8 am to 5 pm; in smaller towns and villages some might be closed for lunch - 12 pm to 2 pm.

One nice thing about post offices in France is that most have automated stamp machines marked Affranchissment that allow you to buy your postage without having to stand in line or mumble through in French - these machines let you chose your language, weigh your letter or package and then print out a stamp - but they only accept coins.

Most post offices will also have signs in the entranceway that tell you when their busiest time is.

A first class stamp in France costs 0.50 €. The price to mail a first class letter or postcard to the US is 0.90 €, with delivery time being from 7 to 10 days. You can also buy envelops with postage already on them for 0.76 € apiece, good only within France.

The web site for the French postal system is http://www.laposte.fr, parts of the site are in English.