Stationary and pens from the hotel rooms.

Masks. We have traveled often in Mexico and South America, and use the masks as a decorating scheme; we're planning on one from Venice this trip.

A poster for whatever the "Special exibit" is at the big museum in town. Has the city and year, and hopefully reminds you of something you saw that was special at that museum.

Depends on the trip. We went for our 20th anniversary at the same time as we took our 3 teens for 3 weeks. Twentieth anniversary is the china anniversary so they helped us pick out a set of china at Villeroy&Bosch in Paris. We love it.

I collect blue jugs - so always pick up a piece of local pottery if I can. Also try and always get a piece of art, preferably a watercolour. Nothing precious, just something that when my husband and I look at it, it brings back memories. And I always pick up a little something that I can use/make into a Christmas tree ornament. After 20 some years of travelling we have a wonderful collection. My husband also collects Carrig ware pottery fr. Ireland so we are always on the lookout for that, Torquay pottery for my mother, and Cornishware for my sister. When we started picking up pieces they were dirt cheap, now they are getting a bit harder to find. My one regret is not picking up pieces of Clarice Cliff pottery when it was going for a pound or so.

You have given me some new ideas. One cheap thing we collect in Southern Europe are the cardboard beermats. We have a basket full of them that we use at home. I usually write the place and date on the mat. It helps bring back memories. We also usually buy one of the little ceramic coasters with the different towns pictured on the coaster.

and it's a good thing, too, gretchen--god knows you can't get villeroy & boch (not bosch) in the US, right? and it's more convenient to ship it from europe than buy it here, anyway...

Not that I planned to, but I'm acquiring a small collection of facecloths -- bought in Dublin, Paris, and Amsterdam--since moderate hotels and B&Bs only have them about half the time. Now when a facecloth at home begins to look a bit threadbare, I toss it in my suitcase (though I rather like shopping in the local equivalent of Kmart in other countries).

a bad case of crabs...

I look for playing cards and book markers. The cards in Italy are so well made that they last for years...

My grandmother showed this thread to my grandfather and he replied, deadpan, "a piece of German shrapnel."<BR>A reminder of how easy we have it now days, and how ultimately unimportant some of our complaints are. Thanks, gramps.

ttt

for the places I tend too travel too and activiteis I do.. bringing my self home is enough.. <BR><BR>I like bringing back basically what would be called trash. for instance empty packets of strange potato chips like TOMATO PUFFS from Syria.. or place mats from SANTAS hamberger joint in bangkok. which has a picture of Santa claus hurling a smiling baby.. <BR><BR>I'm all about the stories as well..

A refridgerator magnet ( I was stymied in Turkey---I couldn't find one in five days of travel!). Also, something that is unique to the country (as another poster suggested)---this year it was an Irish Linen tablecloth in Ireland.

I brought back 2 web addresses from Ireland and revive the beautiful memories of my trip almost every day.www.rte.ie has 4 radio channels and I am listening to classical music on one of them,Lyric FM, as I write this.Sometimes too I read The Irish Times on www.ireland.com

That's an easy one for me. Aside from little momentos (sp?), scarves from France, tea from England, crystal from Prague, my favorite thing to bring back is food! I literally load up a shopping bag full of stuff! Coffee, tea, dried beans, cookies, fancy and unusual seasonings and spices, of course lots of chocolate! Having lots of little dry goods on hand to use to cook meals brings back many fond memories from the places we travelled. I also try to bring back cookbooks. <BR>Carol

Pint glasses from all the dodgy pubs, clubs and bars I've been to over Eastern Europe.

CamCorder Videotapes.<BR><BR>Why? In a word: sounds. The organ at Sacre Couer. Crashing surf at Amalfi. That bobbing-cork boat trip to Capri. Thunder and lightning at Assisi. Gondoliers chatting up customers. An amazing rendition of Bach's Brandenburg performed on a souped-up accordion in the caverns of the Lausanne hauptbanhof. <BR><BR>The combination of images and sounds recreate that singular presence that still pictures hint at and postcards totally lack.<BR><BR>

charms for my bracelet...i love to wear it...

On a recent trip to Paris I fell in love with BHV -- only bought a couple of tea towels and small baking dish, but it could have been worse if they had had 14 of the door knobs I wanted for my kitchen ;)