Vicky

I write a journal and when I get home I type it up on journal size pages and paste them into journal books that are all the same size. Tie with ribbon and attach tags with colored clip art and the place and date. I have them all in an antique suitcase. This is a new thing so I had to go back and type all of them up... still typing. Also take pix, buy postcards and keep receipts and put them all in a scrapbook with captions -- but not into fancy scrapbooking.

Areala

Poohgirl...I have to laugh because this is exactly what I do also.

I always have every intention of doing better about this on each trip and yet somehow, someway, I start out fine and then I don't know what happens. I guess I get caught up in my travels and the journal goes to the wayside. As the day progresses somewhere along the way I remember that I haven't jotted things down and think to myself that I will do all my catching up tonight at the hotel, however, once I get back to the hotel, usually very late, I am thinking of nothing but going to sleep immediately as I am totally exhausted.

But this September while in Paris once again I will truely try to keep my journal and this time I mean it !!!

Robespierre

I sometimes use my iPAQ to record ambient sounds to accompany certain kinds of still photos ... markets, street performers, Métro bands (including that accordion virtuoso on Ligne 1). When I burn the trip to CD, I use the sound impressions as part of the narrative.

Most MP3 players have an audio recording function, and I think iPODs do, too.

BabsB

I have a day by day itineary prepared in advance. I carry it around with me and make notes about things we saw, missed, enjoyed, didn't enjoy etc. Then each evening I talk about our day into a small tape recorder. I take tons of photos and once home I transcribe my tape recorder, refer to my notes and make a pretty scrapbook with my photos, post cards and souvenirs in it.

d1carter

Great thread... I bring along my Palm and a small fold up keyboard to record my journal each day whenever time permits. I note people my family and I have met, places we stayed or special events that we enjoyed. I use digital cameras that are date stamped and refer those to my jounal when I return. It has made it possible for my family and I to recall the joy of our travels over and over.

laclaire

Follow-up: I just got home and found an envelope from my cousin containing my 3 most recent letters. No note on how they were recovered, but treasured they will be.

lucielou

I write my adventures every day in a journal since my 13th birthday, i'm now in my early 40's and sometimes I read back over old journals and see how happy/sad i've been over the years. I always take my journal with me on holiday so i can write exactly how i feel each evening just before I go asleep, so that way the emotions and feeling are real and true, and not just remembered when I get back.

BTilke

I use my "reporter's notebooks" that I also use for reporting work (bought in bulk from the U.S., the so-called reporter's notebooks they sell in the UK are just ordinary notebooks). They're long and slim, fit easily into an inside pocket or purse. Sometimes they have unexpected benefits...I was writing some notes to myself at a good restaurant in Vienna (about a museum I'd been to in the morning), when the waiter saw the cover (it says Reporter's Notebook in large blue letters), had a whispered consult with the bartender/manager/whatever and next thing I knew I was served another glass of wine and dessert "on the house." Later they aske me who I wrote for (I said several magazines, which is true, but they're all medical, not travel, mags). They also asked what hotel I was staying at--in this case it happened to be the 5-star Grand because I'd found an incredibly low special rate on the Internet--so I guess they assumed I was on some posh mag assignment. Anyway, I got great service!
Alas, that's only happened once. I keep hoping, though.

stokebailey

I once read a tip about eating alone in a restaurant that involved looking thoughtful during the meal and making occasional notations in a notebook. Voila. Instant change from 'pathetically alone' to respected and feared food critic.

cantstayhome

Yeesh, all you people are way more organized than I! Whenever I start a journal for any reason, I seem to put it in a special place so I remember to write in it, then promptly forget where that place is.

Traveling, I take notes in whatever tiny little guidebook I take with me in microscopic handwriting on the inside cover, the back of the title page, etc. Then when friends borrow the book or I want to know what restaurant had the fantastic wine/desert/whatever I break out my magnifying glass and look it up. That's as organized as I get!

jojo106

I am determined to be more organized moving forward. I also started and stopped writing in a journal. And, I was really bad at keeping my photos in order.

Well, I started scrapbooking and "catching up." From here on out, I'm keeping a food journal. I realize that it's something I'd really get into, writing about the food, restaurants and social experiences at meals. I got a little accordion folder to keep ticket stubs, brochures, etc. for scrapbook projects later. I also picked up a spiral bound notebook for sketches from http://www.dickblick.com/categories/papers/. If you buy in bulk, you can get a discount.

I like the idea of sending postcards to myself at every location, so I'll try that on my next trip to Italy.

Finally, I bought a digital camera so that I can store pics on cds instead and just printout as needed. I didn't want to spend a lot of money (<$400), so I picked up a Panasonic lumix dmc tz1 that was onsale online at http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Panas...oductDetail.do. It's got lots of zoom, feels substantial in my hand, but is still compact enough for me. I'm not ready for digital slrs like some of the serious travelers here, but I'm really happy with the pictures that I took with this camera so far. I'm still playing around with the features, but I found the image stabilization and macro mode are really great. Now that I have a mac, I might finally try shooting some video clips that I can edit.

I'm not blogging or using a pda, but maybe I'll try flicr.

All of your posts have really inspired and motivated me to get started and stick with it. Thanks!

ilovetotravel29

I use a combination of photos, my journal, and souvenirs that I place around my apartment to remind me of my trip.

I also try and bring back something I can use all the time so everytime I use it, I am reminded of my trip. For example a brand of tea, or a cosmetic, or a pen or something of that nature.