What souvenirs do you keep from foreign trips? (2 Viewers)

[lgonz1008]

I remember that Madagascar had especially nice wildlife banknotes.

I often bring small pieces of rocks or such. I also used to bring bird feathers.

I have a work colleague that likes to collect rocks, so whenever I travel, she asks me to bring her one. I think she's the only person I've met that has rocks from the Masai Mara, Mt. Rainier and Yanacocha, without ever going to Kenya, Washington or Ecuador.

 

[Andy Adcock]

Same here, always bring back a clean, low denomination note.....and a fridge magnet!

Ditto, my fav attached

My best souvenir is a piece of bamboo that had been chewed by a wild Giant Panda.

The skull of a Cassowary on a tribal necklace from an antique shop in Indonesia, a Dayak paddle from Borneo.

 

[WalterRayle]

I always bring back a small pebble or stone from whichever site(s) I visit, I also once brought a Pine Marten scat back from Ireland.

 

[Andy Adcock]

I always bring back a small pebble or stone from whichever site(s) I visit, I also once brought a Pine Marten scat back from Ireland.

I'll bring home natural stuff if I'm lucky to find anything, this dessicated, Fire-bellied Salamander we found in Serbia is one of my best bits.

 

[Richard Prior]

I remember that Madagascar had especially nice wildlife banknotes.

I often bring small pieces of rocks or such. I also used to bring bird feathers.

That’s what we do too Jurek, though without meaning to we seem to have a collection of coins and notes of little value (our Syrian and Lebanese banknotes for example!).

 

[temmie]

I wouldn't take rocks though.
A Belgian couple has been denied leaving Turkey because while the couple claims they randomly took a rock from the streets, the Turkish police believes it could be a carved stone with archaeologic value, and thus prohibited to export. The lady of the couple has to stay in Turkey until the court case (somewhere in December).

 

[jurek]

If the street was inside one of numerous archeological monuments, I can believe it! I try not to take anything obviously valuable or of historical value, although such stuff is still possible to pick or buy in some countries.

 

[Mysticete]

usually some small local craft or artwork. If its a birding spot I might also get a T-shirt or hat. More likely to get the latter if the destination is actually in the US and Canada. One of my favorite at home shirts currently is one from Channel Islands National Park, while my birding hat was purchased at Guango Lodge.

 

[SlowLowFlyingTurkey]

Another member of Team Fridge Magnet here:

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I also bring back coins and banknotes. I've filled an album with coins, then the rest went into a tin. One day I'll get them organised. The notes are in a large, Loadsamoney-style wad.

Often I'll buy a T-shirt if I see one I like.

As for found objects, I've brought back a few rocks and fossils, but not many. The best things I considered bringing home, but didn't due to size and possible illegality, were a dead Horseshoe Crab from Jamaica Bay in New York and a Peruvian Pelican skull from Paracas in Peru.

 

[Jeff Hopkins]

The notes are in a large, Loadsamoney-style wad.

Wow. It's been years since I've heard "loadsamoney".

 

[Maroon Jay]

I get a little carved wood figurine of my favourite birds that I have seen in my travels. I am currently in Galapagos and I got a Blue-footed Booby. At home from previous trips I have a toucan, a Cock-of-the-rock, a Marvelous Spatuletail and others. Sometimes I get something other than a bird such as a turtle. Whatever my favourite sightings are. I wanted to get a poison dart frog in Peru but was unable to find one.

 

[Euan Buchan]

When my grandparents were still with us used to get them magnets. Used to collect Hard Rock Cafe T-shirts & snow globes. Nowadays I just buy the odd tshirt of not don’t get anything.

 

[WalterRayle]

I once very nearly brought home a piece of stone from an old dry stone wall I saw in County Cork that looked like it had some Ogham script on it, would have been fascinating to have and study, hope it's still there next time I'm over there. but I guess a photo and a go at translating at home I would have to do.

 

[Patudo]

None. Just memories and some photos (mainly landscape or general interest pics, I have limited interest in bird photography). As the song by the Lightning Seeds goes: Pure and simple every time.

 

[delia todd]

some photos (mainly landscape or general interest pics,

Hi Patudo

We're always interested in landscape/habitat type pictures for the Location part of The Opus encyclopaedia.
That section doesn't feature bird images.

It's easiest if they're in the Gallery, but if you don't won't to, they could be uploaded to a thread in the Opus Discussion Forum: Opus Discussion Area

 

[cafe birder]

I don't usually bring back anything. However, having watched a David Attenborough programme on trilobites, I could not resist buying one on a Morocco trip

 

[MKinHK]

Amazed no-one has mentioned scars and parasites.

My favourite memento is an abandoned carved wooden yurt peg from Bayanbruke in the Tian Shan in Xinjiang where I saw my first Demoiselle Cranes, Pallas’s Eagles, breeding Whooper Swans, and one and only Rock Thrush.

I also have a llama knuckle bone from a Diademed Plover site in Peru where I also saw Andean Condor.

I bought a wooden letter opener in the shape of an Azure-winged Magpie from Karuizawa where a Copper Pheasant sat on the path giving scope-filling views for 20 glorious minutes.

And finally … I brought back a fiancé from a carefully disguised twitch for aJapanese Grey Bunting on a snow-capped volcano in Hokkaido.

Cheers
Mike

 

[Andy Adcock]

I don't usually bring back anything. However, having watched a David Attenborough programme on trilobites, I could not resist buying one on a Morocco trip

That is lovely but I'm not sure it isn't a fake?

 

[raymie]

That is lovely but I'm not sure it isn't a fake?

Fake fossils can look really good - but I also see no reason to believe this one is fake. Trilobite fossils aren't exactly rare.

 

[Jos Stratford]

Amazed no-one has mentioned scars and parasites.

Well, now you come to mention it