I love to travel even more than I love chocolate. Okay, well, maybe AS much as I love chocolate but I do love to travel.
And when I travel, I like to treat my loved ones back at home. I always bring back a little something something to let them know that I might have been on vacation from work but not from thinking about them.
At first, I brought back the classic, overpriced touristy stuff. Eiffel Tower miniatures from Paris, boomerangs from Australia, hula girls from Hawaii. My mom’s apartment was looking like a mini United Nations. One of my brothers had a year’s supply of white t-shirts that he couldn’t really wear because every time he did, people asked him if he had been to the place blazed across his chest.
Having been on the receiving end of similar gifts, I appreciated the thought but the items went straight into a box destined for either a yard sale or Goodwill.
Now, I STILL bring back things but I put more thought and less money into them. I found a secret place to find authentic souvenirs at bargain basement prices.
The grocery store
I buy vanilla in Mexico, soy sauce in China, paprika in Hungary, chocolate covered mac nuts from Hawaii. My loved ones love the fact that its not only useful but “authentic”. The ingredients that the locals use.
I love the fact that it exposes me to a slice of everyday life that other tourists don’t get to see. What says more about a country than its food? Where do you see real moms and wives and families than at the grocery store?
Shopping at the grocery store requires local currency but I don’t tend to travel without it anyway (I never know when an emergency might require it). The other downside is that I am getting pressure from my Mom to go back to China to get more soy sauce!
