Keila

I see that shopping when traveling is a part of each trip for many posters. I do not enjoy going to souvenirs shops and I only buy post cards and t-shirts in some more exotic locations. Further, I buy some small stuff when one of my friends has a specific request. Are there other people like me or I am all alone here? Should I change my habit of not shoping?

boring

no,you are alone.yes you should start shopping.

sue

Keila, you are not alone. I figure I hate to shop at home, so why would I want to shop abroad? I spend so much of my life trying to rid my home of knick-knacks, I can't imagine wanting to bring more home to dust.<BR><BR>My sister, however, lives to look at markets--any kind. She's baffled that we shared a room for 17 years and don't share the same must-do list in cities.<BR><BR>To each his own. If you peruse the site, you'll see that some of the posters hate art museums as much as I hate shopping. I have a friend who was appalled that I didn't buy leather in Florence; I was appalled that she didn't tour the Uffizzi.

David

I'm with you all the way. I never shop abroad. I can't understand people shopping for things that you can't possible return once you get home. Or the hassle of lugging all the stuff too.<BR><BR>My only idea of a souvenir is a refrigerator magnet. (Just make sure they never get near a credit card.) When I go to get milk in the mornings I always glance at one and am instantly reminded of someplace I'd rather be.

xxx

No, you are not alone! We don't shop when we travel either. Sure, we occasionally go through a store if it piques our interest, but that's about it. Sure, we see items we admire, but I then wake up and realize that I have no place to display or put it (That's because we've chosen to have an "average" house so we can spend our $$ on travel But to each their own.

Dina

I think you should do what you enjoy. For some people shopping is recreational---for others it's a chore.<BR>If you prefer photographs rather than trinkets and clothing as souvenirs, then take lots of pictures. <BR>If you prefer to spend disposible cash on fancy meals or extra day trips or concerts, then do that. <BR>At home, I won't set foot in a mall, fancy department store, or expensive boutique. But drop me off at a flea market, secondhand store, used book shop, or fabric shop, and I'll be happily browsing for unique bargains. That goes double in Europe.

Patrick

I don't enjoy shopping either, but usually attempt to buy one fairly major thing to bring back. I used to search out the best source of Tuscan pottery or French table linens, but then come home, go to market (as a designer) and find the exact same thing for a whole lot less (of course, that was buying it wholesale). Or I'd walk into a nice store at home and see the exact same thing for less money, or certainly very little more money and no aggravation of hauling it or shipping it. The days of finding unique items that aren't available in the States are pretty well over -- if it's worth bringing home, then it's worth it for somebody to import and wholesale it.<BR>On the other hand, I totally understand a person's desire to have memories of a trip and I don't begrudge people who enjoy shopping. It's just something I find a waste of valuable time when I'm traveling, unless it's shopping for toothpaste, razor blades, shaving cream or necessities -- I think that can be fun in Europe.

c

I guess this is a good thread to show the difference in styles of traveling..<BR>While I never go to Europe with a shopping goal, as we walk along, and we see something,we might buy it! We often go on our anniversary and my birthday, and we try to buy little gifts for each other,then we buy things for our children and friends sometimes..so our trips do include shopping.And we usually see things that will go well in a certain room,on a certain wall and buy them for our house..meanwhile seeing all our favorite museums and eating in all our favorite restaurants.I always like to buy clothes in Europe because they are a change from the usual stores here in the States .And-I always like to have things from my trips as daily reminders of that place/time/good time.

Barry

Hi Keila -<BR><BR>I guess we are a little different from many folks. We hate to shop here at home in the same old stores for the same old things!<BR><BR>We do all our Christmas and birthday shopping for family and friends in other countries. We haven't been in a mall here at home at Christmas time for probably 10 years! We buy things and put them away for future occaisions.<BR><BR>That way we are able to find meaningful things for people that they would never see, as opposed to the things everyone else buys in malls. We also like shopping for ourselves in places where prices are really good or where you aren't going to see the item anywhere else. Those things remind us of "when we were there"! We walk by and see something sitting on a table, the mantle, hanging on a wall or whatever... and it brings back memories of that trip. Now.... sometimes I do acknowledge that I may come back to the States looking like a "packhorse"... and sometimes I make the customs agent unfortunate to get us groan... but we feel like it is worth it (most of the time) !!! ;&gt

lisa

While I don't mind shopping abroad, I guess I rarely buy abroad. I like to see what the women in Spain are wearing or what kinds of things they carry in their stores. But I rarely see something that I think will look just as good once it has been transplanted back to my life in the States.<BR><BR>That being said, the one thing we tend to buy while traveling is original art. Our walls serve as a constant reminder of wonderful trips -- the watercolor of the statue of the bullfighter in front of the bullfighting ring in Ronda. The painted papyrus from Egypt. We love these things, they beautify our home and remind of us another, wonderful vacation together.

John G

I absolutely love to shop. I am the type of person who could swoon over a beautiful sweater or pair of shoes. I don't enjoy going into souvenir shops either. I enjoy buying "good stuff" not cheap, tacky crap. I do like buying t-shirts because I like to wear them to my tae-bo class and have people say, "Oh, were you really in Sri Lanka?" This usually starts up a pleasant conversation about travel.(And you all know how much I love to talk about travel.) Besides clothes, I like to buy fabric, dolls, carpets, and artwork. I bought beautiful silk in India and had it made into pillow covers. Now, when I sit on my sofa, I think of India. All these purchases remind me of where I have been and where I am going. (Now I sound like Joyce Carol Oates &lt;wink&gt;.)

r

Keila; Don't change anything. Lots of people hate to shop. But some of us (I'm a shopper) like the souvenirs that remind us of a time and place where we were relaxed and really enjoying ourselves and our surroundings and we want to bring a piece of that home with us. Way back in the 50's and 60's when Americans began going back to Europe (I say going back, because many of their relatives had emigrated from Europe just a generation before. Escaping oppression,etc.) there were bargains galore on all sorts of cool stuff. My parents had whole wardrobes created for them in London, Paris and Rome. China, crystal, antiques, perfumes, all were very affordable. Finds, infact. So it became a tradition among many Americans to try to find the wonderful things of Europe and bring them home. I think I would be much more relaxed and get along much better with my partner, if I didn't have the shopping bug while there. So, in a way, I envy you.

Sue

Patrick, you are so right! As anti-shopping as I am,I do love to go shopping for everything from deoderant to cough medicine on a need-to basis in a foreign country. It allows me to pack lighter, find something that perhaps works a bit better that what I normally use and meet a few more people in a neat way. <BR><BR>I love shopping for lunch at a grocery store just because I'm nebby. The differences in yoghurt from country to country (the flavor favorites alone) fascinate me.<BR><BR>But I also agree with you about the status of international goods these days. I see very few things I could not buy in the US, too often at a lesser price. <BR><BR>I do understand people who like decorating their houses with original art. But I also agree with the poster who says she likes to put her $$ into travel, not purchases. I don't want my $$ on the wall as a memory--I want it applied to my next airfare!!!!!!

Capo

Hi Keila. I'm very curious why you would ask if you *should* change your habit of not shopping when traveling. To me, the only "should" is that you should do what *you* like to do, not want others like to do. <BR><BR>I've bought a few things, like shoes in Barcelona, fabric in Arles, a coat in Nice, and those cool grid notebooks the French seem to love in Paris, but, in general, shopping isn't a big part of my travels in Europe. <BR><BR>This reminds me of a friend of mine who brought his girlfriend to Europe for the first time, in 1987. They went to Paris and Chamonix and he told me that, after they returned to Paris, with a few days left to go, she told him that she had finished her shopping so she was ready to go back home. He was stunned (and they broke up shortly thereafter) but I guess, for her, shopping was her main reason for going to Europe. <BR>

kate

Capo; Since it was her first visit and he was the more experienced one, perhaps he could have helped raise her consciousness a little by taking her to some of the other Paris attractions and showing her that she can have a good time without shopping. I mean, maybe she didn't know any better. My hunch is that he broke up with her for some reason that he wasn't in touch with and used her boring travel-style as an excuse.

x

OR he was a bore,so she shopped and that is the real reason they broke up.

katewithx

x;I was afraid of the fodor-in-crowd wrath if I said that. But no doubt, you are correct.

Nan

I love to shop in Europe, where my knees get weak at the beautiful items for sale. I walk into Passamaneria Toscana in Firenze and I could walk out with the store, the fabric is so beautiful, I lose my senses. I bought a beautiful plate in Siena and glass in Murano. These are my treasures, and I am honored to dust them, because as I do, I am transported back to the cities I love.

xx

LOL, I was afraid too, but as usual, could not help myself! It was not meant as an offense to anyone, just a thought.It has been known to happen

kate

x; forgive my ignorance, but what does LOL mean?