OK, so I'm a shopper!
 

Sorry, re-posting this since I can't find my original post anymore! My husband and I are planning a 3 week trip to Germany, Prague, Krakow, Budapest, Vienna, and Montreux, Switzerland. We'd like to bring home one or two small but nice oil paintings, and I love jewelry. I know that Prague has garnets and amber, Switzerland has chocolate--but what else would be fun and/or different to bring home?

I've travelled all over Europe and what I usually do is buy a Christmas ornament every place I go. That way my tree is decorated with memories. I usually try and get an ornament that symbolizes the area or an experience I had. Examples:<BR><BR>Munich-handblown glass Santa holding a beer stein - it's prettier than it sounds<BR>Dresden-porcelain ball in a typical Dresden pattern<BR>Prague-beautiful crystal star from a local producer<BR><BR>

Laura- For Switzerland I like the cowbells (lots of variety) and the wooden carvings (chocolate is always great, of course). I also got some silver edelweiss earrings that I love.

My favorite thing is to go to the local grocery store and buy interesting foods and bath products.

Ha! I'm with Heather in the Xmas ornament thing. The first "travel" ornament I ever bought was in London (a little Harrod's bear in the traditional doorman's outfit), and when I hung it on the tree I realized how many great memories from that trip it brought back. Since then, I have been buying a tree ornament every time I travel to a different country. It's great fun and you get to relive the memory year after year as you decorate the tree. Of course, this won't work if you don't celebrate Christmas, but you don't necessarily have to be Christian to collect tree ornaments, I suppose.