Since many of our travel dreams will be on hold for a while, now seems like an opportune moment to reinforce travel memories from trips past. Many of us have some down time, after all, courtesy of the coronavirus; we might as well make good use of it—and preserving travel memories likely will help us maintain a chipper attitude.
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Here are some ways to reinforce travel memories:
Table of Contents
Organize Your Travel Photos
Organizing my travel photos is something I’ve been meaning to do for years. My trip pics tend to be organized in a vast category called “Camera Uploads”—which is great for making sure I have preserved memories of every trip in chronological order, but it’s not so good for pulling up individual photos. I’ve spent far too many hours trying to remember what year I went where and then scrolling through hundreds of photos.
So now I’m reorganizing those photos by place and, often, by other categories such as Art, Cakes, other food categories, and individuals in my family. Sometimes, I place copies of photos in multiple files. It’s time consuming, but—eventually—finding my travel memories will be much easier!
Buy Stickers in Places You Visit
Years ago, I bought an old-fashioned trunk and started affixing stickers from the places I visited on it. A sticker habit is a pretty inexpensive one to maintain, and finding stickers in the places I go can sometimes be a bit of an adventure in and of itself. Adhere your stickers to something travel-related.
Send Yourself Postcards
It seems weird to be writing a postcard to yourself, but you don’t have to begin the message with a “Dear Me,” too—just go with straight content: “Visited the Vatican today” or “snorkeled in the Galapagos Islands.” It may seem now that you will recollect everything on this visit; in 10 years, though, those memories might be hazy. Give yourself a reminder with a postcard. It’s also a great check on whether postcards you sent to others may have arrived. Besides, finding a post office in a foreign country and buying the appropriate stamps—often via a language barrier—can be an invigorating task, too.
Acquire Crosses and Crucifixes
From the number of crosses (a representation of the form of death sentence accorded Jesus of Nazareth) and crucifixes (which include representations of his body on the cross) on my walls, one might think I’m an uber-religious person. I’m not. But I do buy crosses and crucifixes wherever I go. The Jesus story is pretty much universally known, and it’s intriguing to see so many interpretations of the story of the son of God.
A cross from Peru depicts the Incan trinity (condor, jaguar, serpent); one from Ireland includes Celtic knots. Crosses from Greece and Russia are not shaped as a lowercase t. Just be sure to note somewhere (possibly on the back of the cross) where you obtained it. After a while, memory sometimes fails.
Buy Children’s Books in the Local Language
Don’t tell anyone, but I don’t always have the patience to read lengthy history books about a place I am visiting. A great way to learn a lot quickly is to pick up a children’s book. They tend to have pictures that reinforce the storyline and usually are written in language that a novice can pick up without too much difficulty. They also give readers short, easily digestible doses of a place’s history.
Purchase Dolls Dressed in Traditional Costumes
Toy shopping is always fun, and searching for a doll wearing traditional clothing even more so. An avid Barbie doll collector in my youth, I am also always interested in seeing which Barbies are being sold in other countries.
Go for a Tee Shirt
I admittedly have a love-hate relationship with the tee shirt. Yes, I wear them all the time. Yet somehow they seem an inappropriate souvenir from a trip—too touristy. And yet I love wearing tee shirts from places I’ve visited and love, too, that they keep my memories of these places alive. So, why not?
Buy a Hat
Ever hopeful that hat-wearing will again become fashionable, I’ve often purchased hats in the countries I visit. How fun—and functional—a Russian ushanka (a hat with ear flaps) is as is a Peruvian chullo. A Greek fisherman’s hat and a French beret keep my memories of those destinations alive.
Collect Gold Charms
Collecting gold charms from each place you have visited and then having them attached to a charm bracelet can be a bit of a pricey endeavor. I’ve made my personal charm bracelet a lifelong hobby, courtesy of a grandmother who traveled a lot when I was little (and gold was less expensive). She bought gold charms in each country she visited and then gave them to me when I was 16. I and various family members have carried on the tradition. And so that is how I have come to possess a miniature gold Eiffel tower, an Egyptian scarab, and a reproduction of Copenhagen’s Little Mermaid statue.
Create a Physical Scrapbook
Remember these? An actual scrapbook—consisting of prints of photographs, ticket stubs, postcards, maps, and other paper remnants of a journey—is a marvelous way to keep memories of a trip fresh. Be certain to hold onto some of the paperwork involved in your trip, and keep glue sticks handy when you get back.
—Lori Tripoli
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Lovely post! Thanks for sharing all these great ideas for collecting and organizing!
Organizing all of my photos could take all of January–or longer. Let me know if you have some great way for organizing yours! -Lori