best thing you ever bought while travelling that you still use...
 

When I am travelling I am sonetimes buying things because I like them-sometimes just because I need them at this moment and forgot to take them with me.

Sometimes these things are much better then I ever thought-or better then the things I have forgotten at home.

Do you have made the same experiences?

Which things you bought are wonderful to use or look at long after you are back home?

probably the knives I bought in Toledo made of their famous steel, or the nogent paring knives I bought at a Paris street market. For sure not the gizmo that makes potatoes into curly things like giant pasta that I bought from a pitch man at the Campo di Fiori in Rome--though I'd buy one all over again to watch that guy work.

My favorite best value, is a colorful ceramic spoon rest that I bought in San Gimignano for the equivalent of about $5.
People mention how pretty it is, I only wish I'd bought some as gifts

A beautiful handmade intarsia box that I bought in Sorrento makes a perfect jewlery box for my most often worn earrings. It's home is right on my nightstand where every day I use it and am reminded of a wonderful time in Italy. Also, although we're not big on souvenirs, we do try to collect a cookbook from every destination. That way when we're missing our travels, we can make a dish to remind us. They're all on a bookcase in our kitchen, and also remind us of all the places we've visited. :)

Dishes from Italy, tableclothes and jewelry from several countries, and then our admittidly odd thing we buy each place to go...bug bite cream. Started out on our first trip abroad...dd was bitten by mosquitos and we had to go to a pharmacy to get some cream. Over the years it became a joke and we buy bug bite cream in every country we go to. I said it was odd! lol!

In Rome in 1966, I was about 4 weeks into my 6 week Europe on $5 per day grand tour, and had reached the point where my suitcase was ready to burst. On many street corner in central Rome there were vendors selling little black suitcases for 1500 lira. At a more remote corner I purchased one for 1000 lira. It served me well for the rest of my trip, and I still use it occasionally for overnight trips where I am packing not much more than a clean shirt and underwear. I still remember with pleasure the look of sheer disgust from the bellman at the Ritz Carlton in Montreal when he picked it up to lead me to my room.

I fell in love with aprons in Italy and France. The fabrics, colors, styles, etc. are different from what I might find here at home in MA. I bought one in Positano a few years ago and several in Sorrento and also in Menton just recently. Since I usually cook while on vacation (we have rented villas and apartments), I have many pleasant memories of trips when I use the aprons at home while cooking. I cook a lot so I use them all the time.

I stillhavethe carved wooden platter that I bought after some haggling over price from some Gypsies in the south of Spain in 1974.

It serves as a fruit bowl and without it there I am sure I would not eat nearly as much fruit as I do.

Harzer

A charity shop in Peshawar was selling leather bags made by Afghan refugees in the early 90s. For $5 I bought a Gladstone bag: for 50c, a beautiful A4 ring binder in matching leather.

Still, by far, my favourite travelling companions. Well, actually, Mrs F is, but it's a pretty close thing

Fake "pashminas" that I bought in San Lorenzo market in Florence a couple years ago. I am not a really "girly girl" and I never wear scarves or wraps, much less colorful ones. Well, I was buying one, then another, then another, in pastels that were popular then and now. Lilac, rose, and sky blue. I swear I wear them now all the time, winter or spring, and am taking one of them with me to Paris this trip.

I never would have bought myself 1 real pashmina because of the cost factor, and these were so affordable, about $8 each, paid for in those lovely Lire notes that are now gone! :(

I bought a beautiful leather pocketbook in Rome. I hadn't brought one with me, opting to use a tote instead, but I really missed carrying a pocketbook! Or maybe it was just an excuse to sample Rome's beautiful accessories?

Over the course of several trips to Great Britain I've purchased stacks of tea towels - such a typical British item, not expensive, easy to transport, some have typical tourist scens and some are very beautiful and artistic. Though I gave a bunch as gifts (my original plan in purchasing them) I still have lots for myself. They make perfect dresser scarves and I have them on my desk at home to keep the computer etc. from scracthing the wood. A little table in my living room sports one from the new Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, and hanging in my cubicle at the office is a really pretty one from the V & A museum in London with swans on it.

Thanks to dln for reminding me...my purses! I fell in love with a few on various trips and those are the only ones I use. I don't even both to look at purses in the stores here anymore, and I get many compliments on them:)

It has to be the bone china tea jar I bought at a National Trust gift shop in England. I keep my tea in it and use it daily. It's very pretty - local flowers hand-painted on it.

On our honeymoon in New Orleans in September 1978 we came upon a Christmas store and bought a tree ornament that represented the area, That started a tradition and now on every trip we try to find an ornament or two. Favorites from Europe are our hand painted Delft ball from Holland, a glass Santa in a gondola from Venice, a ceramic colosseum from Rome, a tiny St. Francis statue from Assisi, a pewter view of Salzburg. If we can't find an actual ornament we buy something and glue a small gold string on it like our small Eiffel Tower statue, our miniature Oktoberfest beer mug and our tiny Beefeater doll.

After 26 years of travels all over the world our tree is filled with about a hundred wonderful memories every Christmas.

I received a very special gift from a very special person in Scotland. She sent a wooden spurtle to me, and I use it for stirring hot cereal and to stir frozen orange juice in a pitcher of water, among other things. Here, take a look! http://www.sunrisewoodcrafts.ns.ca/spurtles.html

I buy teapots to bring home from England, and right now my favorite one from there is blue with white polka dots. It is large enough for two large cups of tea, and we use that pot just about every day.

I also buy at least one cup and saucer in every country that I visit. I use different ones every day, and they always make me feel good. Right now, my favorite one is from Portugal. It is blue on the outside of the cup, with yellow on the inside, and it has a blue saucer. I got this in a store similar to Pier One. It cost around $5, that's all, but I love it.

In 1958 I spent 25 shillings for a marriage license in Scotland - much the best expenditure ever though the upkeep has been substantial.

jsmith, LOL!!

My name is Allison and I buy teaspoons...I buy them in Ireland every trip, I bought some lovely ones in Harrods, and I bought some in a Chinese store in Paris. (That Chinese store was terrific, I only found it the morning of our flight home so didn't have a chance to buy any of their pretty little tea sets etc..) We use these teaspoons every morning, and I have given them as gifts as well. I'm sure I'll come home with more in October!

My all-time favorite is the lightweight Italian wool print shawl that I bought at Portobello Market. It goes everywhre with me.

Julie- I just recommended on another thread here to pick up steel knives in Toledo- mine from 2000 hasn't needed sharpening yet!

... a variety of books, maps, old stamps/coins/currency, works of art, eyeglasses frames, sweaters, antique curiosities...

Wine opener from Italy. "Mind the Gap" tea/bar towels :-D.

We bought the Alessi pizza wheel cutter that looks like a little man in Santa Margherita Ligure in 2001. Last March we bought a matching little man potato peeler. Everyone likes them.

I collect images of the Blessed Mother and some female saints, so we usually (no, always) find something great in Europe. I love a little ivory barogue china statue of Mary we bought in the Bourse flea market last year in Paris.

I wear purses from the straw market in Florence all the time. Don't ever want a Coach or other pricey bag again! And Camper shoes I bought in Rome: I adore them.

where do I start

Watch from Switzerland
A nice swiss utility knife
Shoes from Spain
Shoes from Italy
Jewelry from Poland
Ceramic from Spain and Italy
Wine from Spain and Italy....ooops I drank it all already

A wooden instrument I bought years ago sometimes called a sangria stirrer. It's great because it's one of the few kitchen items that can be used by left-handed people like me. It's flat and I use it when cooking sauces as well as making sangria. Bought several more in Spain. They are hard to find in the U.S. For a little over a dollar, a great thing!

My last England and Belgium trip 2 years ago I had bought too much souvenirs (tea pots, beer ... it adds up!) I actually needed another bag to carry it home.

While in London I saw a duffel bag I liked from a street vendor, only I didn't have enough money. So I bought the cheesey (or so I thought) black tote bag that says "London" on it.

It turns out that I LOVE that bag! It has held up so well too. I thought it was cheap and would fall apart but I was wrong! ... It is a great bag and every time I use it I am reminded of great memories. :)

I bought a Certina watch in what is still one of my favourite cities, Luzern-Switzerland. I bought it on my first wedding anniversary-on this very day. I have never seen another Certina watch like it. The salesperson was a young lady from California who was doing what we were doing-travelling Europe in a VW van for a year. Twenty nine years later it is still on my wrist and I like it even more that when I first bought it. Same can be said for about my spouse for the past 30 years today. Since then I have acquired a number of watches but they are just not the same even though they may be more stylish or in vogue. I walked in to a watch repair shop (a real one -not a depot) in Vancouver, Canada several years ago to get it cleaned. The proprietor smilled from ear to ear. Not only was he familiar with the movement, but he had apprenticed with Certina in Switzerland. Needless to say I let him do a thorough cleaning/inspection!

A lambskin leather jacket from Rome that gets alot of wear and the Longchamps handbags from Paris. My son got a 13th b'day gift while in Bern: a relatively inexpensive Certina watch. But he wears it daily and it's been almost 3 years now the battery still works!

Some ten years ago in a craft sale in Otford in Kent I bought a tea cosy, and have used it repeatedly since. I found that if I use the controls for short machine washing at moderate temperature of delicate articles it goes through my washing machine, and it has morning colours of green and yellow, to light up the tray at tea time.

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-Frenchie dishtowels from Galleries Lafayette
-A folding Opinel knife that I saw an elderly woman using on the train to slice cheese and fruits...can I still take it with me on the train?
-Some really cute household stuff from KARE store in Munich (not sure the brand) and a Habitat store in Hong Kong
-I bought pounds and pounds of a Taurin Gummy candy from Bears Friends in Munich--this is used by me and my friends in marathons. I need more!
-A couple of alarm clocks from Japan that scream at me in Japanese every morning (I have a hard time waking up) to open my eyes and get up

A fanny pack I bought outside Gaudi's Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. I have several others more expensive or stylish but this one has the exact number of pockets I want and I can always remember what's behind each zipper.......so this is the one that has gone on every trip for three years now and counting.

The cheapest possible kitchen knife I bought in a Spanish supermarket for my beach picnic - cost less than £1, and it's still slicing my salads nearly 20 years later.

A pearwood fruitbowl from Lahore in Pakistan.

Sneakers. The ones I found in Paris & London were very different than I have seen here in the states.

gosh that's tough. I bought much of my kitchen stuff there, I buy shoes and bags galore, cosmetics... clothing.... art... books... couldn't narrow it down to tell the truth.

A hair dryer that works in Europe. For years I carried adapters and converters and it was a hassle. Then one day I was in Belfast and my "American" hair dryer kicked the bucket. I bought one that works there, then I bought an adapter so I can use it in the rest of Europe too. I wish I had done this years before, it's great not to deal with that darn converter box.

Great Question!

A Monopoly game from England. It's a great souvenier because instead of Boadwalk and Parkplace, it has properties like Mayfair, Bond Street, Regent's street, etc... It's a wonderful conversation piece. (not ideal if you are packing light though!)

I agree that useful "everyday" items make the best souveniers.

My other favorite is a little purse from Burberry. I carry it almost everyday, inside my handbag. True, I can purchase Burberry here, but everytime I see it, I am reminded of fun shopping trip I took with my girlfriend in London. (much more practical for packing light!)

Leather jacket from Spain; leather purse from Italy.

Our family collects Christmas Tree ornaments and we just added a Beef Eater from our recent London trip, Pashimas (I LOVE them! and didn't think I would enjoy them that much); Christmas ornaments from Scotland, several sweaters from Scotland; Beads that I've made into jewlery and given as gifts (I loved The Bead Shoppe in London...and am delighted they have a US branch so I can continue to order my favorites.) Some traveling Laundry Soap and local cook books. I like to shop, much to my DH's chagrin! :)
Julie

A rug that I had to lug throughout France in 1999 that we bought at Château du Clos Lucé, Léonard de Vinci's home in Amboise. It is still in our entry hall. Also in our entry hall is an original painting that we bought on the Ile St. Louis in December 2001. Obviously, if it doesn't go in our entry hall, we do not keep it.
((H))

I love a linen tablecloth I bought from a vendor at the Acropolis in Athens. She just kept coming down in price to €15, and our guide nodded, so I bought it. On the way out, she offered one to a woman walking beside me for €10. When I laughingly said I thought she owed me €5, she replied without batting an eye, "That wasn't me. That was someone else." I use it quite a lot, and it always makes me smile.

I like bringing home things I will use or enjoy as decorating items and have a number of them; e.g., a little Wedgewood dish, a couple of Belleck pieces, a fairly large sized copy of a b&w photo of Parliament and Big Ben and a bridge and lamp post taken from the South Bank in London, a sweater from Scotland, small paintings from Greek islands, some gold jewelry--really, just what is a meaningful souvenir that is affordable at the time. What I really need is to go back to Italy and get some leather gloves.

They're not really the "best" of anything but I like the 4 pair of rayon print baggy shorts I bought a couple summers ago in Switzerland when I was caught in an unexpected heatwave.