Try the delicious olive oil from the Tuscany region. Very light and delicious. Also, got some nice pottery from Florence. Leather jackets a real bargain there as well.

Silk scarves and leather gloves are still good buys and make great gifts for the folks back home. I also love the aprons with reproductions of art works, and the museum calendars, too.

dln, I personally can't help you out there because I'm not a souvenir hound...my weakness is gelato and it's too bad you can't bring that stuff home. My wife OTOH bought every possible knick-knack available. For inexpensive gifts, she really liked those ceramic wine stoppers you can purchase all along the Amalfi Coast. And limoncello is terrific. Best of all, you can get it in distinctive bottles that come in all shapes and sizes. If you visit Capri, there's a few perfume shops where you can get your own customized scent. Lastly, if you really want to burden your husband both physically and financially, spring for some ceramics. We were warned by our private driver that you will pay tourist prices at the wonderful shops in Positano and Ravello. He pointed out a large ceramic shop, Ceramiche d'Arte, which sounds just like the store up in Ravello, along the coastal road just past Praiano and next to the gateway to the Emerald Grotto. Other suggestions also include items you can actually use during your trip such those past and present books of either Pompeii or the Forum. Terrific in helping one envision the sites back in the day.

I've found that everyone loves food, and it's inexpensive and unique. You can't bring back anything fresh to the US (no cheese, sausage, fresh breads, fruits, veggies), but you can bring things in sealed packages like dry pasta, dry bread sticks, and bottled soda. I brough back Fanta Orange...completely different formula than the US version...much better!...and Lemon Soda (that's the brand name). Pasta is also very lightweight, virtually unbreakable, and easy to pack. I simply went to a local supermarket--no place special--and had a ball browsing through all the products not available in the US.

My husband loves following the news, so I brought back a copy of the International Herald Tribune...very interesting to read news from an international perspective. Again, very inexpensive, lightweight, and easy to pack.

The bookstore at the Rome (FCO) Airport has a great selection of souvenirs...not just books, magazines, and postcards but also a full array of tacky stuff like those pope snow globes. I got a great mouse pad of a cat looking at the Colosseum.

Linda, it is possible to bring back certain cheeses, aged hard ones, I think. I always bring back a wheel of pecorino and enjoy every single crumb of it at home. On the other hand, skip the dancing Mickeys.




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charms for my (and granddaughter's)nomination bracelet.
wrapping paper.
small, purse size, beautiful notepads.
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