Postal hell update

Still dealing with postal hell here. To recap, the piece I sent to a gallery in Barcelona is still stuck in customs. This is the second attempt to send something to this gallery. It's really not the fault of the gallery, but of customs. It was supposed to be guaranteed delivery by Oct 4, but it has been stuck in Spanish customs since Oct 2. Obviously, now it is way past the date of delivery, and I'm annoyed because I spent extra money to send it express mail with confirmation and tracking etc. (something I did not do on the first attempt). Why the hell should I pay for that if the exact same thing is going to happen the second time?? I've been in communication with USPS and they claim to be "investigating" the problem and will get back to me. I am doubtful. I called them again today to see how it is going, and they said there have been no new developments. Great. I am supposed to call them in a few days if I don't hear anything. The first piece I sent to the gallery came back to me after being rejected at customs. It went on a month long trip back to me and arrived battered and bruised. The artwork was only slightly damaged. The date of the gallery show looms nearer and I'm running out of patience.