Fridge magnets my favorite souvenirs |
From my grand trip to Italy not only I remember the grandeur of the Basilicas but also remember- a family who were with me in the package tour for 12 days. Two sisters and their two teen age daughters. As much as I enjoyed the art and architecture in Italy I enjoyed watching this family shop! Pasta, sun dried tomatoes, olive oil, red wine in Tuscany. Very expensive Murano glass wine serving set, Murano glass bead jewelry and a women's top embellished with fine Murano glass beads in Venice. An exquisite dining table set and few other living room furniture in Sorrento. And what more god only knows! Well, everything was shipped to USA for them. While another retired teacher, who was part of the same package tour with his wife, bought a map of medieval Italy printed on white cloth for 3 euros and was happy that the map had names of all the places he visited. There was another mother-daughter duo who bought whatever looked very cheap as gifts for family and friends back home.
Most of us buy souvenirs during our travel some are happy with their pictures. Why buy souvenirs? because souvenirs are objects that represent an experience. These souvenirs kind of extend the excitement of the trip. They help reliving the experience. And so they become a collection of memories through which we could document our traveling life. They might be tacky, cheap or expensive but, they have a sentimental value which is priceless. Browsing souvenir is one of my favorite things to do when traveling and that doesn't mean I really buy much!
Most of us buy souvenirs during our travel some are happy with their pictures. Why buy souvenirs? because souvenirs are objects that represent an experience. These souvenirs kind of extend the excitement of the trip. They help reliving the experience. And so they become a collection of memories through which we could document our traveling life. They might be tacky, cheap or expensive but, they have a sentimental value which is priceless. Browsing souvenir is one of my favorite things to do when traveling and that doesn't mean I really buy much!
I am a backpacker and I think many times before buying anything. That is because these little things together become a burden in long term, consume a fair amount of money from the budget and also I have to be careful not to damage them during my journeys. But, I do make sure to buy something that fits in my pack without cutting my pocket deep. So, fridge magnets seem very interesting to me. I do not buy something on compulsion. For me, a souvenir is something that authentically represents the place and also reflects my awesome experience in that place. Not only the space in the backpack or weight, I think about legal and environmental implications too.
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Scrapbook- A Travel Blog by Kusum Sanu is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Lovely magnets! I enjoy collecting key chains, usually, but, to be honest, I don't get the chance to travel, so I enjoy seeing photos of others who can and do!
ReplyDeleteYes! I have few key chains too! And it is a good way of seeing the world from other's pics!
DeleteI value my photos and travel journals. I always make sure I print off a selection of photos to put in an album and just love looking through them on a dull day.
ReplyDeletePictures are priceless huh? They make any dull day positive!
DeleteLovely collection, Kusum. I too love buying souvenirs. It brings back a lot of memories of that wonderful trip.
ReplyDeleteThanks Niranjan! Yes, souvenirs are extension of the trip itself huh?
DeleteA wonderful and superb blog on the travel show.Thanks for the wonderful information display on the blog.
ReplyDeletefor a while i collected those i heart t-shirts, but they can be very expensive. i still buy them for presents for family and friends back home. magnets are a must, bec we collect them. now i have found another collectible souvenir. it's more expensive than magnets. in malta i bought a silver maltese cross (bought the silver necklace in mexico to wear with it), bought a silver earring in turkey, new orleans and i've collected earrings from different places too. they're small and not too cumbersome to carry while traveling. i think my first earring souvenir was a kokopelli earring from my trip to the grand canyon in 2004.
ReplyDeleteThat is a good idea if you have a liking for jewelry. I do not have those I heart t-shirts. I want to buy one from NYC :)
DeleteA great splendid and magnificent blog on the travel.Thanks.
ReplyDelete