I learned, long ago, that bringing home useless tchotchkes from a vacation is a waste of money, and just contributes to my house’s clutter. So I figured, why not buy nice utilitarian things that I’ll use all the time, that’ll remind me of my travels. So far, I’ve bought:
A violin from Vienna
Watches from London, Paris and Vienna
Ties from London, Paris and Rome
A belt from Venice
A calculator from Paris
A jacket from Amsterdam
Shoes from Rome
A Klimt-designed silk pillow case from Vienna
Stationery from Giverney
A vase from Chartres
A Van Gogh sunflowers mouse pad from Amsterdam
A pocket watch from the Greenwich Observatory
Art supplies from Paris
Shirts from Hawaii
A backpack from Rome
Sandals from Martinique
A cable paperweight from San Francisco
A Murano glass ashtray from Venice
Kitchen utensils from Paris
A back scratcher from San Francisco
Socks from London
A vase from Montreal
A hair brush from Niagara Falls
Clogs from Amsterdam
A Native American flute from Utah
Stationery from Guadeloupe
A petrified wood paperweight from Arizona
Small musical instruments from Vienna
A hat from Florence
Cat toys from Paris
A rain stick from Guadeloupe
Native American jewelry from Arizona
A backpack from Montreal
Books and calendars from everywhere
I use these things all the time, and it’s such a joy to be reminded of the places I’ve visited. I’ll be going to Spain in a few months, and have no idea what I’ll be bringing back.
Yarn for knitting … beads … or other things I can use in my hobbies. better not go to Italy, glass is HEAVY.
Oh, and down comforters and huge down pillows (with associated linens) from Germany. So warm and comfy, and they don’t leak feathers all the *%#@ time.
I buy a Christmas ornament in each city I visit, so that every Christmas I can remember all my wonderful trips while I’m decorating my tree. Sometimes I get something and make it into an ornament, like the shell from Ocean City, or the rock from the Alps, and sometimes I find a real ornament in a gift shop.
I buy musical instruments. Nothing expensive, often not even functional, but I’ve got quite a few wooden flutes and small drums, and odd things like a kalimba, a tiny xylophone and my favourite, a nice-sounding “talking drum”. All of these were collected on various holidays (vacations), mainly abroad, and most have little, if anything, to do with the place I was at.
I try to find antique postcards and stereographic cards. I’m a sucker for unique reefer magnets and stickers. A lot of my best travel ephemera, I get for free: travel booklets and brochures, and tons of promotional material collected at visitor’s centers, county fairs, and the like.
Rocks, stones, and sand are among my favorites, but that’s not really what you had in mind, I suspect.
Truth is though, I’m a pushover for street trinkets. Y’know some shiny or goofy or clever little thing being hawked on the boulevard, that serves no actual purpose. And usually they only cost a pittance.
And, of course, certain things a just a much better deal in certain places and I can’t resist a great deal. My first trip to Indonesia I came home laden with baskets, wood carvings, stone carvings and sun dresses to die for.
Then I went through phase where my coming home bags were filled with food products and condiments. But multiculturalism has lead to a lot of those things now being available right where I live.
Fundamentally though, I’m all about trinkets and baubles!
Oh, you just reminded me of my last vacation! Mr. SCL and I had traveled to central Florida, where my mom’s family is from, to visit relatives and swim with the dolphins at Discovery Cove. During the visit, we went walking in downtown Leesburg and found a wonderful old used book store.
I can’t resist used book stores.
I was sitting on the floor in the science fiction section trying to separate my stack into “have to have” and “really want” when the owner of the store walks by. She looks in and says “Oh, that section is so crowded - you can have anything in there for half of the marked price.”
I heard my husband groan. “Oh, no, you didn’t just tell her that!”
I think I narrowed it down to about 30 books.
Antigen, you have given me the most wonderful idea!
Usually used books. They needn’t be about the place I’m in, but I like to be able to look at a book on our shelf and say, “I found that in _____.”
I’ll also look for a tobacconist. I enjoy smoking a pipe, and I like to see what’s available in terms of pipes. I have a few beautiful, hand-carved pipes from past trips; and while I don’t tend to splurge on myself at home, I will on vacation. So my pipe rack has some fine, expensive, and unique specimens from all over the world, most of which are not available in stores here.
Other than that, I look for things that are either unavalable anywhere else, or difficult to find locally. I wear my Mickey Mouse watch from Disneyland, play a set of teak spoons from a music store in San Francisco, and don my favourite hat, which is from Australia.
I buy postcards from museums. They’re cheap and lightweight and far better quality than any photos I could take (esp. since many museums don’t allow picture-taking). I’m still struggling through college, so I’m too poor to buy real art. When I get home, I pick up frames from thrift stores and frame and hang the postcards. I try to make sure I get cards of pictures and statues that I actually saw in the museum, as opposed to the generic Mona Lisa-Monet selection every museum gift store seems to carry. This is actually how I found out about the two Artemisia Gentileschi paintings in the St. Louis Art Museum. We only had about an hour there, and I spent all my time with the ceramics and the Modern & Contemporary Art. I had about ten minutes before my group left when I saw the Danae postcard in the giftshop. Just enough time to run through the museum to get to see it. And so happy I did - it’s my dream to see every Artemisia painting before I die.
Books, new or used. Same as Spoons said, the books don’t have to be related to the place - it’s just nice to pick each one up occasionally and say ‘Oh yeah. Cyprus’ or ‘Amsterdam. That was a good trip’.
Bookmarks. Cheap, they have pictures of the place, and I use them.
When I was in Martinique, I bought a French cut bathing suit, which I actually had the nerve to wear once or twice outside. I was a lot younger then.
Overseas I buy books hard to get here, but not so much in the US unless I’m driving - no room. Though I did fill up a suitcase in SF when I visited on business when I lived in NJ.
I went to London. I stayed in a nice hotel. And lived on sandwiches and pot noodle from Sainsbury’s.
But I bought books. I bought the biography of John Hunter from his museum (The Knife Man is a great read). I bought the book of the catalogue of the British Museum. I bought books and books.
I also bought a gorgeous red-and-white polka dot dress that I almost left in the dressing room because I felt really fat and depressed when I tried it on. (And honestly, I generally don’t feel “fat” so it was a bad day.)
I used to buy a pair of earrings, but I’ve got a lot of earrings now, so not anymore. But if I see a pair I like, I buy them. They’re something small and it’s the only piece of jewelry I wear.
In Prague I bought two vases: one from c. 1920, black with tiny flowers inlaid in mother-of-pearl; the other very blue and very modern. I was looking at some vases and Mom said “oh, not one of those horrible modern ones, they don’t go with you at all.” I got a look like this more or less :eek: only with my mouth closed and Lilbro said “you know Mom, one day you’ll think before you talk :p” “Uh?” “Well, Mom, I was trying to decide between the red one and the blue one, actually.” “Oh!”
In Switzerland (which isn’t really vacation) I’ve bought this milk soap that’s aparently Verrrry Typicoll, it has a picture that goes all the way through the soap so you still get the picture when you use the soap. I got another piece for SiL and one for Mom; Mom and Lilbro took those and some other presents with them when they came visit. I’ve also bought two wallets which I liked; I don’t need a new wallet right now but there’s been times when I did and couldn’t find a decent one for months, so now I prefer to have one in reserve. Plus atm I need two: one for CHF and one for EUR! I’m sooooooo happy the Euro got invented, saves me from needing four wallets! And I had a great time ransacking the stalls at the Christmas Fair, only I didn’t ransack them as much as I would have liked to
