A couple of years back one of my very close friends went on huge trip around Europe to then live in England for a while. She was told of this great idea to collect post cards from everywhere she visited as a way to remember her trip. I ended up flying over after a year to see her and we did some travelling together. She had gotten well into the routine of scoping out the best post card from each place by the time I met with her, so it didn’t take long for this ritual to rub off on me and I have been doing it ever since!
So since then every place/city/town I stay in when I am overseas I purchase a post card on my last day, one that most resembles what I did there or what I saw. I address it to myself, write the dates I was there, where I stayed and what I did. Once I am at my final place before going home I go to the local post office to get them sent home to me. A week after I am home and when the post holidays depression starts to really sink in I receive all my post cards in the mail! It never fails to pick me up as I read back things I did and what had forgotten about on my trip.
Postcards are traditionally for sending to family and friends back home about your trip, but really they are the best souvenir to keep for yourself! Here is why you need to jump on the postcard ban wagon…!!
Firstly, they are guaranteed to be everywhere you go, it’s easy to be consistent with your keep sake when they are all over the word! Go into any tacky or nice souvenir shop and you will find one! Plus, if you forget they are always at the airport too!
They are compact. Easy to travel with and easy to keep at home! Trust me it beats collecting cups! You can keep them all in the box, slip them into albums, stick them in books, peg them onto string along your wall, the list goes on!
They are personalised, it’s not just the picture on the front that will bring back memories but it’s the fun things you have written on the back that you will love to treasure. If you write them on your last night at the place, it’s going to have details that you normally would forget. Also when you read it back, knowing that you wrote it over there brings back such vivid and joyful memories.
They are dirt cheap! You will never have to break a note to get one! It’s always a good way to ditch some of the coins you seem to collect so easily when you travel!
And lately it’s authentic. It was picked by you, has your imperfect hand writing on it, stamped and marked by the post office and a little ruffed up on its journey all the way home! Just like you it comes back changed with impressions of where it has been.
Give it a go on your next trip and let me know what you think!
AK xx