Best Travel Memento

"Original oil painting" of boats in a bay bought from an artist at Piazza Navona back when the exchange rate was 600 lira per dollar. 35 years later it still brings back memories of that trip.

Not exactly a purchase - ex-husband, also acquired in Piazza Navona.

A sweater from the Ashford Castle Falconry School in Ireland. We took the falconry class one morning and it was the highlight of our trip to Ireland. The sweater is made locally from merino wool in Cong Ireland and I treasure it because I rarely bring back memento's from my travels.

We do buy items when we travel, but we also pick up small rocks from where we have traveled as well. When I get home, I write with a permanent marker (Sharpie) on the rock the country (or area) and the year. For example, I'll pick up a rock near the Eiffel Tower, or in London I'll pick up a rock on the route where the Guards walked during a Changing of the Guards ceremony in London. I have a small pottery bowl on my bookshelf with all the rocks I have collected from my travels. It's nice to view the rocks and it's a reminder of the area and the year from which we traveled. And best of all - they're FREE :D

On every trip, I purchase a small ceramic or wood snail or slug. I don't know how I started this but I'm keeping with it at this point. They live on my kitchen window sill. It's amazing to me that I always manage to find one as I walk around. Ljubljana, Istanbul, Amsterdam...I always come across one somehow. Once, in Puerta Vallarta, I struck out so there's one small wooden cow sitting amongst the snails and slugs.

Wow, I've brought back some wonderful souvenirs from my trips that it's hard to pick a favorite so I can only narrow it down to a 3-way tie. 1) A hand-knit Aran sweater that I purchased in Ireland; 2) A silk comforter and cover that I purchased in China; and 3) A hand-made batik print of a harbor that I purchased from the artist on the Greek island of Hydra.

All three of them are still being used/displayed and bringing back memories many years later and I treasure all of them.

Great thread by the way!

While I've gotten a lot of tchotchkes/mementos on all my travels, nothing is as memorable as the photos, which really help me re-live a trip. I love photography (it has been a serious hobby ever since I was very young), so I can take about 300-500 photos a day easily. It's not fun culling through them all and then organizing my albums online (and making backups), but they are my most treasured memento by far. I haven't found any single item that makes me as happy when I look at it again, or that triggers more memories.

Hi,

Every trip I pick up some sort of jewelry (costume). My silver ring from Corfu in Greece is probably my favorite and I get tons of compliments on it. Every time it brings me back to the little shop I bought it at in 2000. I've also picked up earrings, rings, pendants, etc from each trip I've been on since: murano glass pendants, Celtic cross earrings,etc. Each time I put them on, I think of a particular trip. Those are my favorite. I also usually pick up a calendar for the following year, so I can "re- visit" a country for the next 12 months. Third, I try to pick up some sort of Christmas tree ornament, although this was fairly recent - I wish I had started this tradition long ago.

:)

A cuckoo clock from the Black Forest. Every day it reminds us of our trip to Germany.

Pilgrim, I collect rocks too! I try to take enough to make a small inukshuk from each place. ☺

I purchase a charm for my bracelet every where I go. I wear it everyday and can look at it to remember all the wonderful places I have been. I only have 2 spots left and am thinking about where to go next. My husband likes to buy a small piece of art work. We have them hanging around our first floor. They are great conversation starters when we entertain.

Zoe's response is just too good - and especially following as it did on Laura's post regarding an acquisition from Piazza Navona!!

For me, too, probably the photographs.

I, too, collect charms for a charm bracelet, although I more frequently will wear one on a chain at my neck. I have one from every country I have visited and I can recall each purchase with pleasure. Most of them were bought when gold was much cheaper ...
I also have a number of dish towels or napkins from my trips, but these are wearing out. (Time to go back to France and Italy!)
All of these are pretty small, light weight, and easy to fit in the carry-on bag.
I like things that are useful (and yes, jewelry is always useful!)

Socks! My feet are large for a woman and it's not easy to find nice socks that fit here in the US. For some reason, I've had great luck finding nice stripes or argyles on my travels - at Printemps in Paris, or local markets in Hasselt, or a kiosk outside the subway stop in Budapest...

I also like to get a scenic placemat [those plastic laminated ones] on every trip. At dinnertime, we enjoy looking at the beautiful images and talking about the next trip.

The hand painted soap dish I got in Paris in 1972. Survived moves from CA to Washington state, then onto Nebraska and back to California. One corner is now chipped but its still in use in my kitchen. My other favorite and practical find was a small Italian leather coin purse. Take it with me on every trip. Durable as hell. Otherwise my photography and travel journals help me recall my journeys.

First , I love to look in small antique shops " not expensive high end ones ". Quality made vintage jewelry from the 30's , 40's , 50's ect is small , and so easily brought home. Now vintage is all the rage even with the younger generation. I enjoy seeing my granddaughter wear pieces that are special to her. It's nice to see these little treasures not discarded.
Second , thousands of photographs which helps to relive a vacation over and over again. I have albums to no end , and 6 boxes of negatives , plus digital photo's now . You certainly get more bang for the buck with this hobby. Plus looking through a lens you see details that are missed by just looking at a church , buildings or people, when your done you see what everyone else is seeing. I have collected rocks too "now I need to mark them forgot where I brought one from "... will do again in Rome in April

As a few people mentioned, photos are my number one. I do several things with them so they are a great reminder. The others are difficult to sort through. Some of it is art I have purchased and I also love refrigerator magnets (I know, stop..... don't say it.) While not my favorite in terms of reminding me of trips, I love hats and shirts with images or words from the country where I bought them. They don't do much for me, but I sure enjoy how they help strike up conversations.... often in very unexpected situations. So I like them too!

These are some wonderful mementos. I think pictures have the ability to transport you back to those special places. We also try to buy a piece of artwork on each trip. We have paintings from Keswick England, Mt McKinley, Venice and lots more. Also blown glass from Venice and Bath. It's wonderful to look at these every day. The Rocks are also great ideas! Have you ever had a customs agent ask about them? :)

My husband also brings back stones, which are for the aquarium fish.

My souvenir purchasing has evolved to jewelry (small, and lightweight). Better than costume, but not diamonds. For instance, I love my Skye Silver purchases.

We also try to find something to frame, maybe a mass produced item, or in some cases, something better.

For more kitschy stuff, we buy fridge magnets and DH gets a t-shirt or two.

I am another who collects charms and wears them on a bracelet -- last tour Best of Europe in 21 days -- I collected 28 charms! It took a bit of work to fit them all on one bracelet. I actually have 6 bracelets that are full from our travels. I buy sterling - but sometimes there is not a sterling option -- so I buy the silver metal charm if it is special enough.

Rocks are also great ideas! Have you ever had a customs agent ask about them? :)

Hi, Janet. No, so far I have never had anyone in Customs ask me about the rocks. They are small though - just large enough to write the place and year. I only bring back one from each area, so it's not that much. On the return home, I usually check my luggage as well. I love displaying them in a bowl on the living room bookcase. It strikes up a conversation when people visit my home, and it also reminds me what year I visited a particular area. I like to find "unique" rocks if possible - different colors or shapes. And best of all - they only need to be dusted a few times a year - just rinse them off in the sink and let them air dry. :D

The most obvious in my home is an extremely colorful Murano chandelier. When installing it, my electrician said he figured gaudy was back in.

My favorite, though, is a small bottle cork with a photo of St. Anthony's Basilica on top. I bought a bottle of wine in a small shop across from the basilica and asked the shop owner to open it. After she did, we realized the cork would not fit in again for me to take back to my hotel. I bought the smaller cork with the basilica photo to do the trick. I travel with it always. And it always makes me smile.

I, too, buy a piece of jewelry or two. I get lots of comments/compliments on them, and I am always reminded of where and when I bought them. I also buy fridge magnets.

My favorite mementos usually end up being ordinary everyday consumables. Things like Italian stationary that I use for shopping lists, a 2L bottle of Scottish spring water from Tesco for scotch (bought right before we leave so I didn't have to lug it around), my non-mint flavored Turkish toothpaste, Bio-Mülleimer Beuteln, etc. This way I'm reminded of my travels while doing my mundane everyday chores.

DJ

As others have shared, photographs are my best memento. Also, a couple of things I use frequently; we bought a set of coffee and espresso cups from Annascaul Pottery down the road from Dingle, and I use it every morning for coffee. In Les Baux I walked into a cutlery shop and wound up buying a really good wine bottle opener, which I don't use every day-but I'm working on it!

For many years I would purchase a dish or bowl to use for special events/holidays. But over the years my collection has grown, I know "Poor Me", but 24-years in the military allowed me to travel. So now I look for a small print from a local artist & or a christmas decoration if I can find one. I too am a fan of the photos, after my return I turn my photos into a hard covered album to share with family and friends when they visit as well as reminisce on my travels. This May I will be returning to Paris, so a small painting will be my choice this time.

Re: rocks

I'm a rockhound and have made many trips within the US to go to active and retired mines. Usually weight is the only problem; I once sat on the floor of an airport repacking suitcases, because one of them was 81 lb. But on one occasion I did get extra attention from the TSA. I had been to a mine whose dump evidently had a lot of metal ore of some kind. I realized later that some of my rocks probably looked a lot like hand grenades on the X-ray machine.

As for souvenirs, my favorites are inexpensive jewelry (something I virtually never buy at home), art, and pottery.

re: rocks and TSA

Several decades ago, before TSA was created, a geologist friend of mine was returning from Hawaii where he had collected some rocks ejected from volcanoes - often called volcanic bombs - to study back in the lab. You can probably see where this story is going... He was chatting enthusiastically with his companions about the great bombs he was bringing back in his suitcase, when suddenly the airport security folks descended for an urgent discussion. Eventually he was able to clarify the kind of bombs he was talking about, and convince them that he was not joking or trying to cause trouble.

This is a fun thread! Photos are number one. I took 2,500 on my last three week trip to France. My second favorite is a kitchen utensil rack I bought in Arles, France. It was hanging on a wall in a gift shop and the owner unscrewed it and sold it to me. Now it's hanging on my kitchen wall and I love it. Third, are my Starbucks mugs from various countries. I use them every day and they remind me of my travels.

DJ's response reminded me: We found the best tissues in Italy a few years ago. I bought as many packets as I could fit into my backpack to bring home. I don't remember the name (when I do, I'll edit this post), but the picture on the packet was a little boy with hair like the leaves on a tree. I used those tissues for years! When we were back in Italy last year, I looked for them, but couldn't find them. However, the tissues I did find were still better than the ones we get here at home.

When I first posted my response it was based on "the best travel memento or souvenir that you purchased". After reading the other responses I have to agree that my best travel mementos are my photos. I just didn't think of them as being purchased. I take hundreds of photos a day when traveling and I have many of them enlarged and framed and hanging all over my house - they are the best memory makers. I currently have a slideshow of 850 of my photos running as desktop background on my pc so I can see some of my favorites as I work or play on it daily. Not to mention the hard-copy photo albums from before digital cameras. I think I'd give up a body part before giving up my photos.

What a fun topic!

I agree that, in the end, photos are the best memento. I find them especially wonderful for recollecting the first day of a trip, when I'm usually so jet-lagged that details escape me. In terms of purchases, there's a leather-covered journal that I got in Florence when I was a teenager (technically, my mother bought it for me). More recently is the enormously cute, high-quality woolen hat I bought in Bergen. I was really torn, as it wasn't cheap, and for a couple of days I fretted over the purchase. But I am SO glad I did. Up until about a week ago, I think I wore it every day for two months!

Caroline

My credit card bill !

I think my best travel mementos are the fridge magnets, Christmas ornaments and the photos that I have taken!

I managed to buy one brick of the compressed peat used in Ireland to heat the house. It sits by my fireplace and is a great conversation piece. I will never burn it as it was a real struggle to get in the first place. Most stores sold them in 10 brick bundles, more than I wanted to haul onto an airplane.

This is a great read. Thank you for the post. Like many others my favorite is photos. I am usually looking for the perfect Christmas card shot during our travels. Yes we still send cards. I have some great cards from our travels throughout the years. I frame them and use them as decoration during the holidays. It is fun to bring them out every year and see how big the kids have gotten and remember our past trips.

I love the rock idea and will try to remember to do that on our upcoming trip.

I (Stewart's wife Vicki) look for distinctive buttons & beads in little shops, & make cuff bracelets at home - sew them onto wide elastic. So there's a Morocco bracelet, a Sicily, a Maine (sea glass buttons, wow, they were a find), on&on. The experiences with the shop owners are great, & the bracelets are vivid conjurers. I take zillions of photos, too, natch, & they & the cuffs are my best mementos (plus all are small, lightweight, & unbreakable, my souvenir requirements).

Vicki, I love that idea! I am a complete craft klutz, but I bow in admiration.

Not really a typical physical momento, but for me it was the interesting, funny and insightful conversations that I had with Europeans and my tour mates.

Scarves. I bring back beautiful scarves, mostly inexpensive ones. I wear them often at home, and it's fun to think of where each piece came from, or who sold it to me.

I brought back some nice measuring spoons from my last trip to Paris that remind me of France every time I use them. Perhaps I'll add slowly to my souvenir collection of small, everyday kitchen objects.

A small silver scallop shell, bought in Santiago, that I wear on a thin silver chain to remind me of my Camino walk. Christmas ornaments bought in various countries are fun for the memories.

I have a small gold filigree egg pendant that I bought in Mykonos; I wear it every day and am always getting compliments on it. Also, my wonderful Claddagh ring from Brian deStaic in Dingle. Interesting since I'm not a big collector of jewelry; yet my two favorite travel keepsakes are both jewelry!!

Great topic! I collect scarves and wear them a lot. Some cost more, some inexpensive; they take me back to Europe when I wear them. I also take many photos and enjoy them at home. Rarely do I buy jewellry but I have a pinky ring from Scotland from many years ago that I wear all the time.

Love this topic, Janet!

Pictures are a given as a favorite, along with my online scrapbook of the trip. I also adore my cuckoo clock from St Goar, Germany. I bought so many great souvenirs on my 21BOE, fun spoons in Orvietto and Beaune, a glass swan in Venice, a 5X7 ink on silk drawing of Rothenburg that I bought for about $15...

But the best of all is the pencil drawing of a Rothenburg, Germany tower- drawn by an 8 year old boy in Rothenburg whose grandmother owns an art shop there. He drew 3 pictures, asking for 1E for each picture. He wanted to earn money to buy ice cream, ha ha! He signed his drawing and had 1E written in the corner, with the euro sign drawn backwards. It's odd sized, so it won't fit in a standard frame. I have it tucked away so I can custom frame it. It's truly a one of a kind, European souvenir. Jakob will grow up and never know that the drawing he made when he was 8- to earn ice cream money- is custom framed and hanging on the walls of a woman in Nebraska! I feel such joy whenever I look at it!
Lisa

Rankster
I love this story. We were in Rothenburg this past September and we bought a print from an older lady at a shop that wasn't far from the fountain. It was probably the same lady. I'm jealous of your print. You will always have a special story to talk about. (We also bought a cuckoo clock at Montags in St Goar. We love it!)

I'll bet you're right, Janet. Her shop was near the fountain. I wish I could post the picture here, but I did put in my online scrapbook if you want to peek at it.

I love my cuckoo too! It was so much fun to pick it out! It only got assembled and put on my wall two months ago. My husband (who is an engineer) loves the mechanics of it and insists on being the chief "weight winder", lol!

I bring back lotions and soaps. Each time using them reminds me of where I was when I got them. Scottish soap and French Nuxe lotion are particularly sumptuous.

The US customs declaration card asks if someone is bringing back soil . . . do unwashed rocks count?

We bought a water color for €8 in Florence very small about the size of a postcard. Paid a fortune to have it framed because it was an odd size but every time I look at it I smile.

We decided to buy a small painting from a local artist every time we travel -- but try to gravitate to a standard size in the future!

Multicolor chandelier from Baden Baden in Germany. Its beautiful and reminds me of the great GAS trip and the town.

My husband is a fantastic amateur photographer and we've had a couple of his photos enlarged and printed on canvas. They look like paintings of our favorite places. The best thing about this travel memento is we didn't have to carry it with us (well, okay, he did have to carry the camera).

I collect fridge magnets. I sometimes look at some of them (my fridge is completely covered in them), but mostly I hope my guests will look at them with admiration and a tinge of envy. If I celebrated Christmas, I think I would collect tree ornaments. It would be lovely to take them out once a year and hang them on the tree. Handling each one would bring back memories. Somehow taking the magnets off the fridge once a year to clean them is just a chore, since they are in front of me all the time (and mostly ignored).

I have a few scarves from Turkey, Paris, and Italy which I love but don't bring really back memories. I bought a gold bracelet in Hong Kong, links of Chinese symbols for good things that I wear all the time. I guess my best purchase, and certainly the most expensive, was at the carpet factory tour on the RS Best of Turkey tour. I found the carpet that was just the right size, design and colors for my living room. Though I see it all the time, I find myself admiring it at least once a week, and being very self-satisfied at making that decision. (The carpet cost almost as much as the tour).

But what brings back memories are my photos and being on this forum - reliving great times both from advising others and reading reports and advice from others who've been to the places I have.

Scarves, scarves, scarves. Light and easy to pack and love when I get compliments. When I wear them it takes me back to that country.

Chani, I've known non-Christians, and many non-practicing Christians, who put up Christmas trees just so they can display and enjoy their souvenir ornaments. We've accumulated (not really collected) Christmas ornaments over the years; it started when we were flat broke, camping in state or county parks, sleeping on the ground. (We still do, but at least now we have a tent!) But we could almost always find a cheap little ornament to remind us of our trip.

Wow, I'm excited! I got a reply from Chani. I think you must have the record for most posts on this site. I love reading your advice and learning from your knowledge. I'm sure your rug is beautiful! What a great investment! I think of traveling as a great investment in myself. We love to shop and bring home things that remind us of our trips. I've been fascinated with the different responses that have been posted. I think photos are the number 1 thing, followed by artwork, scarves and jewelry. I also collect Christmas ornaments. I have them from most of the vacations I've taken over the last 15-20 years. I've only been on 3 RS tours, but I'm hoping to do another next year. This year we're touring several US and Canadian national parks. So many places to go, not enough time or $$$...

I also collect Christmas ornaments. I like to write the year on them so I can remember what year I traveled to that particular area ;)

No way, there are a goodly number of contributors more active (and been on longer) than me, but thanks for the compliments. I hope some day you get to visit Israel. When you do, you're more than welcome to come see my carpet.

Now, which parks? I bet I've been to some of them and would love to hear your plans.

What is smaller than a scarf or an ornament and hardly weighs anything, and yet can still be a memento of the country visited? Well, we tend to buy the country's stamps, yes, for those who still write postcards and letters. We find that foreign stamps are often very artistic and beautiful. Some like the Vatican stamps are commemorative. Also think of the recent UK QE 90th birthday specialty stamps, those with Prince William and Prince George, which are coming out soon. The only problem in getting these souvenirs is finding a post office that is near and open. During our Istanbul trip it was very hard to find a post office near the hotel the tour group was staying. Oftentimes they were closed during lunchtime when we had the spare time to go there. It took us 3 attempts, at 2 different p.o. locations plus some very long treks to get these souvenirs, but they are lovely to look at. Still worth the trouble. In Paris, it was much easier, since we went directly to their philatelic shop. They not only had French stamps, but also stamps from their territories, and what a huge display. Bringing these home hardly took any space in our carryons.

Chani, you asked which national parks I'm visiting. We are driving up from Central Texas and starting at Rocky Mountain national park in Colorado. Then we're heading over to Grand Tetons and Yellowstone. Then Glacier and Waterton national parks. In Canada we will also see Banff and Jasper national parks. We'll drive back through Eastern Washington and Oregon to Crater Lake (along with Painted Hills nad Smith Rock state parks). In California we'll visit Lassen Volcano national park and then to Great Basin NP in Nevada. Our final stop is Bryce Canyon NP in Utah. So we will be putting several thousand miles on our car.! We have visited most of them before, but you can never get enough of the beauty and drama of these places. I love Europe travel, but hate flying 8-10 hours to get there. Im trying to decide which Rick Steves trip to take in 2017.

We have at the end of our trips sent postcards home. I have had our kids write their favorite moments on the cards. It is fun to get them sometimes weeks after we have returned. I have used these cards in my scrapbooks of our trips. This is a great post and I have lots of ideas for our upcoming trip.

I've taken to purchasing "better quality" prints or artwork. Something flat that I can pack in my bag and get home safely.

cheesy tea towels at those tacky souvenir shops from the countries that I have visited! LOL, plus something special from their country. IE: Home from rs Belgium/Holland this past Monday. Delicious Belgium chocolate, lace towels, and delft pottery.

Memories! Ready for my next RS tour.

Kim

I still take a lot of photos, but I get better momentos by doing my own sketching. Sketching makes me slow down and really see and think about what I'm looking at. The sketches need not be fancy; I've gained serious insight by making half-inch thumbnails. Sometimes local folks will engage me in conversation when they see me sketching - and then I make a side note about the conversation, which strengthens my recall of the experience.

A tacky little three-inch tall model of the Eifel Tower covered in red, blue and white rhinestones. It sits under my monitor and I look at it every single day.

Food. I know it doesn't last, but I love bringing back treats to enjoy for the weeks and months after the trip. During the trip back from Switzerland and Italy last year, I was pretty worried about our bags the whole time, we had wine, olive oil, vinegar, pesto, lemon drops, chocolates and more! Luckily nothing broke or was confiscated; sweaters, jeans and tennis shoes make for great packaging. I just ran out of my special balsamic from Peck's Deli in Milan and it was a sad day indeed. I wash and keep the bottles as keepsakes.

I still have the bottle of Absinthe that I purchased at Prague's very own absinthe shop back in 2007, it has a Mucha drawing on the label and is a beautiful reminder of my first European adventure.

We like to buy spices for ourselves and as gifts. It's a fun and inexpensive reminder of our trip, and we love going into markets in other countries. I cannot wait to see the look on my teenager's face when she walks into a typical European market for the first time!

In Vienna last summer, I went into a small shop that sold hand crafts made in Austria, not a tacky souvenir place, and bought a small change purse made from wool felt. It has the word "Klumpert" embroidered on it and the shop owner told me what it meant but I cannot recall what she said. I googled the word with no luck. I believe it was a colloquialism but I expected that to come up on google. We chatted a bit about life in Vienna when I admired her city and charming shop. A very nice exchange. To the point of this thread, I use that change purse almost everyday and it always reminds me of that delightful city.

Also, last summer on the same trip, I was in the gift shop in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin, and spied a beautiful eyeglass case which I desperately needed and immediately bought it. I carry it in my purse everyday and it too brings me back to my time in Berlin.

I once purchased coasters in Paris that have various scenes of the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre, etc., on them, and they also remind me of times spent there.
Great topic!
Judy B

My best, and sometimes my only, souvenir is my journal, plus my photos. I always make a Shutterfly album with my best pictures and that, plus the journal, make for great reminiscing when I need a lift.

I'm still laughing about Zoe's response......!!

Hmmmm, Judy B, I just googled your word "Klumpert" and found this translation: "junk"

When I first started traveling, 30+ years ago, I would come home loaded with souvenirs and gifts for myself, family and friends. I've cut back on my souvenir spending alot! I love magnets, so I always pick up a magnet or two from the places I visit, and coffee mugs as well. I limit my "gift" purchasing to finding birthday or Christmas gifts.

My wife was my best travel memento.

James E, We need more information about this souvenir! What's the story!

Met her when i was a tourist in her country late one April and we were married that September after a few more week long visits ...... nearly 30 years and 4 children ago.