Don't you have more than two POP3 servers (in the same location), Google?

What happened to all the "dark fiber" and datacenters you have? Or the plans of becoming an ISP? </sarcasm>

  8    93 ms    96 ms    91 ms  p16-0-2-0.r21.tokyjp01.jp.bb.gin.ntt.net [129.250.12.241]
  9   202 ms   202 ms   201 ms  p64-2-1-0.r21.sttlwa01.us.bb.gin.ntt.net [129.250.4.185]
 10   200 ms   202 ms   197 ms  if-1-0.core1.SEP-Seattle.Teleglobe.net [207.45.196.33]
 11   202 ms   210 ms   199 ms  if-7-0.core2.SEP-Seattle.Teleglobe.net [207.45.196.37]
 12   209 ms   207 ms   213 ms  66.110.64.6
 13   257 ms   256 ms   255 ms  if-7-0.core1.CT8-Chicago.teleglobe.net [66.110.27.5]
 14   495 ms   436 ms     *     ix-8-1.core1.CT8-Chicago.teleglobe.net [66.110.27.26]
 15   405 ms   406 ms     *     66.249.95.249
 16   442 ms     *        *     66.249.94.127
 17   429 ms   422 ms   423 ms  216.239.43.118
 18   417 ms   435 ms   430 ms  nz-in-f111.google.com [64.233.163.111]

Or perhaps I should be thankful that it even works in the first place, and grumble at people who send 11 MB emails use the equally slow web interface wait for it to sort itself out.

Edit: proof that the web interface is just as slow:

 8   107 ms    94 ms    94 ms  p16-0-2-0.r21.tokyjp01.jp.bb.gin.ntt.net [129.250.12.241]
 9   203 ms   208 ms   208 ms  p64-2-1-0.r21.sttlwa01.us.bb.gin.ntt.net [129.250.4.185]
10   198 ms   197 ms   200 ms  if-1-0.core1.SEP-Seattle.Teleglobe.net [207.45.196.33]
11   204 ms   204 ms   206 ms  if-12-0.core1.SQN-SanJose.teleglobe.net [66.198.97.21]
12   207 ms   203 ms   205 ms  Vlan3.msfc1.SQN-SanJose.Teleglobe.net [64.86.82.194]
13   442 ms     *      378 ms  Vlan154.msfc1.SQN-SanJose.teleglobe.net [209.58.3.6]
14     *      380 ms     *     66.249.94.2
15     *      378 ms   367 ms  66.249.94.226
16   386 ms   371 ms   376 ms  216.239.49.2
17   381 ms   367 ms     *     cw-in-f83.google.com [216.239.57.83]
18   376 ms   365 ms   379 ms  cw-in-f83.google.com [216.239.57.83]