Our kitchen cupboard is lined with Starbucks tumblers from different cities. But those are not mine. They belong to my roommate. I know of at least three other friends who have the same souvenir collection. I won’t follow their example because it takes up too much space.
Still, I think their collection is less difficult to store than my friend Gay’s, which is composed of snow globes. It must be a nightmare to cart those around.
I have decided that I do not want to go to the trouble of storing these items. Not only do they take up space that I can use for other things but also, what if I needed to move? Then I would either have to take extra effort to pack and move them, too, or just throw them all away, which makes them a waste of money.
When I first started to travel, I used to collect souvenir shirts, because I thought they were useful, at least.
I realized later that I did not really get to use them a lot since I am not a huge tee wearer.
Then I moved to Singapore and had to get rid of half my stuff so they all had to go. That was when I decided not to collect souvenirs that only take up space.
My friend Zenie has a less bulky collection – flag pins. They are so tiny that she can just tack them all onto a backpack. I think it’s pretty clever, actually. But I am still not following her example. Why?
I have decided that I do not want to go to the trouble of looking for stores just so I could buy a souvenir for my collection. I would rather use my limited precious travel time for other activities.
So what do I collect this time? Currency. I keep small paper bills from each new country I visit. They all fit snugly in a small wallet. Not only are they easy to store, but I do not have to go to any additional effort in searching for them, too, because having them is really part of the trip!
But aside from these, I also collect pictures, blog posts, and memories. These can be stored digitally so I can easily take them with me wherever I go. I believe these are the best travel souvenirs anyone can have.
Of course, that’s just me. I know lots of people prefer other souvenirs and I admire that because I know how much effort that takes. Are you one of those people? What do you collect?
Doing the travel link up with Adventures of a London Kiwi.
I want to be one of those people, but i’m just not. I’m so not!
I did start collecting postcards from our travels around Thailand but there were a few that I couldn’t find and it has RUINED my collection so i gave up haha xo
When I started traveling I used to collect snow globes, gold or sterling charms for my bracelet or a necklace, and I saved the brochures from places I visited. The snow globes turned out to be a pain because they take up so much space, lose water over time because of evaporation, and then later on you could no longer take them on the planes.
My best investment that I’ve been collecting is a charm from each city or country I visit. They are always small and gold or silver both hold the value. Plus, I can wear them and when I move they just come with me. I still collect brochures from places I visit and tuck them away in my scrapbook.
You’re right about the Starbuck’s mugs – everyone seems to have them.
We have a few of those Starbucks mugs and what sucks is that they changed the style so the ones from Europe are one way and the ones from California another!
My husband does much the same – he’s not happy unless there’s at least one American Dollar bill in his wallet…!
I used to collect currency and pin it into my scrap books – nowadays we just have a massive box of the stuff that we have to rifle through before any trip to see what money we have to spend!
A cousin of mine collects coins of the lowest country’s currency, which I thought was pretty neat. Plus we have those coins albums and whatsnot, but that might be bulky for you. Heh.
I used to collect currency and pin it into my scrap books – nowadays we just have a massive box of the stuff that we have to rifle through before any trip to see what money we have to spend!
My husband does much the same – he’s not happy unless there’s at least one American Dollar bill in his wallet…!
I want to be one of those people, but i’m just not. I’m so not!
I did start collecting postcards from our travels around Thailand but there were a few that I couldn’t find and it has RUINED my collection so i gave up haha xo
We have a few of those Starbucks mugs and what sucks is that they changed the style so the ones from Europe are one way and the ones from California another!
When I started traveling I used to collect snow globes, gold or sterling charms for my bracelet or a necklace, and I saved the brochures from places I visited. The snow globes turned out to be a pain because they take up so much space, lose water over time because of evaporation, and then later on you could no longer take them on the planes.
My best investment that I’ve been collecting is a charm from each city or country I visit. They are always small and gold or silver both hold the value. Plus, I can wear them and when I move they just come with me. I still collect brochures from places I visit and tuck them away in my scrapbook.
You’re right about the Starbuck’s mugs – everyone seems to have them.
A cousin of mine collects coins of the lowest country’s currency, which I thought was pretty neat. Plus we have those coins albums and whatsnot, but that might be bulky for you. Heh.