This Guide will show you that collecting stamps from Overseas/Australia can be:

• easy to start,
• inexpensive,
• fun,
• great way to meet people who have like interests,
• and a learning experience.

EASY TO START:

• best source for stamps, at first, will be family and friends
• employer mail room
• your local radio station
• your local doctor's surgery
• anywhere that receives a great deal of mail.

INEXPENSIVE:

• All options mentioned above won't cost you anything

FUN:

• All time spent will allow you some stress free enjoyment.

GREAT WAY TO MEET PEOPLE WITH LIKE INTERESTS:

• Classmates
• Fellow employees
• members from your local suburbs stamp club (see note below)

A GREAT LEARNING EXPERIENCE:

• Travel to different lands
• Learn to read different languages
• See exquisite overseas landscapes
• Use stamps to enhance school projects

STAMP CLUBS: I recommend that you join your local stamp club at your earliest convenience. The cost to join is minimal and often free for junior members. You will find the nearest stamp club by logging into  ( use your favorite search engine) your State's Stamp Association:

• in New South Wales, it is Philas (Philatelic Association of New South Wales)
• .......... click on the .. NSW clubs page for times and dates when the clubs neet
• in Victoria, to find the web page with the names of clubs and times listed
• ......... simply do a search by " stamp club Victoria ".
• in Queensland, it is the Queensland Philatelic Council website
• ......... which carries all the times and dates
• in South Australia and Northern Territory, search by South Australia Stamp Club 
• ......... which notes days of the month when the members meet
• in Western Australia, search by Western Australia Stamp Club.
• ........ and then click on the icone " WA Clubs"
• in Tasmania, search by Tasmania Stamp Club,
• ...........and you will see the list of names, times and dates of the local clubs

Conclusion: Ebay is a great source of stamps and every day new material is listed, both locally and overseas. However, my strongest recomemndation is that you JOIN your local stamp club, where you will find a great wealth of knowledge about stamps. You will find many interesting collectors. You will make friendships that will last a lifetime ( if you move, you correspond and get more stamps). It is a win win situation.

Suggestion: After joining your local Stamp Club, exchange and trade with your fellow members. You will soon see that the number of different stamps that you possess will increase. You can then use eBay to help you fill in the missing gaps.  But the major source of knowledge and friendship will always come from the times that you spend at the clubs. Meetings are usually held once a month.

WHAT TO COLLECT: THAT'S UP TO YOU!!!!