Did you ever have a penpal in elementary school, through school or otherwise? I made penpals in many ways, including through schools (in middle school, my teacher connected us to a group of students in South Korea to keep in touch with) and my adoption agency (there was a directory of adoptees interested in meeting and becoming penpals with other adoptees around the nation). I still keep in contact with two of mine; it was a great experience that I would never give up.

Now that I'm older, I can see that there can be much more to being a penpal than just sending letters back and forth. E-pals may not send snail mail, but they can experience many benefits of meeting others on the Internet.

• Meet new people - This is the obvious one. If you just moved to a new area, you can perhaps find a network of locals who are like you. Maybe you don't like anyone where you live, so you can talk with people online who share your interests and match your personality. Singles of course try to find love online, and sometimes do. There is no such thing as a geographical barrier with the Internet. You can make friends from across the world from the comfort of home.
• Learn about a different culture - With so many Internet users around the world, there are infinite opportunities to contact people in places where life is completely different than anything you know. Of course, inhabitants know all about it, and would often be happy to expound upon the way of life they are familiar with. You can ask questions and find out things you wanted to know but couldn't find in books.
• Learn and practice a new language - I'm trying to improve my German skills, so I created a profile on PenPal Friends, a site where people from around the world can join and meet other people for whatever reasons. Thousands of people have joined from Germany, so it's a great opportunity for them to practice English while I practice German. Using the language, of course, is the best way to learn it.
• Make connections - Perhaps you will be traveling to a different country. Meeting people from that country can be helpful so you can know of a good place to start touring, the best things to do, and so on.
• Get academic benefits - You might need to write a report about a certain country or culture, and you might be required to interview someone firsthand. Foreign penpals are great for this.

I have to say I really enjoy PenPal Friends so far. The network features potential penpals from numerous countries (pages worth of them), and their profiles can show a picture, age, nation, interests, what they are looking for, and a short bio. Others I have looked at are listed in the Additional Resources below.