We are going to be spending 17 days travelling Spain in Sept. Arriving Madrid, <BR>and then to Cordoba, Sevilla, Ronda, Nerja, <BR>the coast to Allicante, and then over to <BR>Mallorca. <BR> <BR>What kinds of things would you suggest that we send back home, or bring back with us? <BR> <BR>Maybe little treasures that you have brought <BR>or sent back or wished that you had. <BR> <BR>Thanks <BR> <BR>Brent

Buy yourself a nice pair of Spanish shoes. They'll last you forever. Buy Turron (a hard candy mix of honey, nougats, almonds; popular as a Christmas candy). Buy leather (belts, purse, wallet; in Granada), buy your Grandma or Aunt a beautiful handcrafted fan. In Mallorca buy your wife nice pearl earrings, ring AND/or necklace.

<BR>You'll find lots of pottery too, and lace things. And I wished I'd brought home more of those beautiful fans as gifts. Spain is wonderful, have a great time.

I love the ceramics from Spain and have found many small items (bowls, plates, cups, etc., that I can place in my carry on bag (take some bubble wrap). Toledoware is also great for gifts and come in various forms (letter openers, plates, earrings, bracelets, etc.).

From Toledo, there is lovely black/gold jewelry that I brought back as gifts for friends. From Cordoba, there is lovely silver filigree jewelry. You can buy this stuff all over Spain, from the little shops in the cities or from the large dept. stores. <BR> <BR>There is also Lladro porcelain which is much cheaper in Spain than in the US. Make sure you get your VAT back at the airport if you buy more expensive pieces or a lot of it.

Tapa sets are nice. You can get a bowl for olives with an area for pits. There are nice olive wood bowls with picks for tapas. You can also get these in damascene ware too. For cooks, earthenware items are nice. Small casseroles aren't too bulky. I have a pendent that is a 25 peseta piece dipped in gold. For men there is a gold-dipped cien.If you are in Andalucia, look for tack shops. Most carry other leather items too. And you can get great tassles and ropes of colored balls. These are for feria decorations for horses and riders. I use them as curtain tie backs and accents. <BR>Ronda has several shops for hunters and fishers. Look there for knives, shell bags, belts, covers for flasks,

Brent: <BR>Aside from the little items to display in our wall unit, things we will use daily, or nearly so. Leather goods, belts, sandals, pack of tube socks, colognes, pearl items, Xtra virgin olive oil in a can, Serrano ham, Turron Licquer made from hazlenuts, local wines. The shops at the airport can also help you get rid of those extra pesetas, so you don't have to bring them home. <BR>Bob K.