I am a sucker for touristy items. Not always because I want them, but because I can’t say no when someone tries to push me to buy something. It really is a problem and I do get suckered into buying a lot of random things I don’t always need or want. For example, I went into a gift shop in Athens because I wanted a postcard and a replica old greek coin. That is it. However, the salesman saw me and knew I was an easy target because he no joke made a beeline for me when there were other people in the store! I ended up buying my postcard and greek coin yes, but I also got suckered into buying a bronze greek horse, sunglasses, and a replica pot depicting greek mythology. What! Ok I did actually need sunglasses because I forgot to pack mine but still! Basically I can’t say no and I suck at even negotiating the price. However, every once in a while I do buy something cool that I am proud of so here are some of my favorite items I’ve bought in no particular order!
Egyptain Papyrus Painting
This is one of my favorites splurges since Egypt was always one of my top bucket list destinations. The shop I went to was really cool! They showed me how the papyrus paper was made step by step and even the process of making paint. They even showed me how to spot fake ones. You can buy all sorts of these painting but a lot of them are fake and I wanted the real deal. I think I paid maybe around 30 dollars for it which I think was the most expensive thing I bought on the trip! I love artwork to begin but this is such a unique piece that it is one of my favorites.
All of my other Paintings
As I said above, I am a sucker for artwork. I think it is kind of cool to buy art from each place I visit. I have friends who collect magnets, mugs, tshirts, etc but I like collecting paintings. Instead of displaying magnets, I display cool art on my wall. Sometimes I do buy the cheap mass produced pieces in shops, but other times I like to splurge on a unique piece. I like talking to the artist since painting is one skill I wish I had which is why I think I like paintings so much. I usually buy a painting that depicts the location I am at and if I can, in watercolor. My favorites would probably be from Rome and Athens but I also have a really cool piece from Edinburgh but that is a replica copy of the artist’s original piece.
Travel Tattoos
Right now, I have six small tattoos. I say right now because I am actually really wanting to get at least one or two more tattoos, no biggie. Out of the six, three are travel related and one book related. One of my favorite tattoos is my initials (AG) in Egytian hieroglyphics which I had put on my foot. The pharaohs used to carve their name into the feet of their statues so if they were ever destroyed you would still know who they were since the base of the statue usually remained, hence the reason mine is on my foot! My other favorite is my tiniest tattoo which is not actually travel related. It is harry potter related which is why I love it so much. It is the three stars which is the corner of all the US harry potter. It is to represent my love of books and HP. The coordinates are the locations I have studies abroad: Rome, Italy, Belfast, Northern Ireland, and Cairns, Australia. Technically I went three cities in Australia for my program but I choose my favourite place out of the three!
Jewelry/Rings
Another item I like to buy when I am traveling is jewelry, particularly rings especially if the place has more meaning to me that just somewhere I am traveling to! My first ring I got was in Australia and it is a gorgeous little opal ring and it was hella expensive as all things are in Australia. It is one of my favorites rings. I have a few others but I won’t bore you with details!
Slate Candle
As most girls, I love candles! I found this unique candle in a shop in Gatlinburg TN right near the Smokey Mountains. It is made with slate from the Smokey Mountains and it uses oil which means I can reuse it over and over again, I just have to add more oil! It doesn’t smell or smoke, it just looks very cool in my opinion. Again I think I maybe spent like 20-30 dollars on it, which I guess could be considered expensive for a candle but since all you have to do is buy a new wick and oil and it never goes bad, I think it was totally worth the price. I can’t find a picture of my candle, but I did post one I found on google that looks quite similar!
Lava Statue from Nicaragua
This is another one I wasn’t going to buy but now I think he’s kind of cool. I did watch the guy carve it in front of me and how many people can say they have a little statue carved out of lava from Nicaragua. I bought it in Ojo de Agua on Ometepe Island but I do not remember what volcano the lava is supposed to be from. Plus the statue was super cheap and small, so I guess it is ok. The photo is not mine as I could not find a photo of mine.
Peteoskey Stone 
For those who don’t know what a Peteoskey stone is, “it a fossil colonial coral that lived in the warm Michigan seas during the Devonian time around 350 million years ago.This type of fossil is found only in the rock strata called the Gravel Point Formation” aka you can only find this in Michigan! There are other similar types of coral you can find in other regions, but this is unique only to Michigan. The name is most likely due to the fact they were often found and sold as souvenirs in Peteosky Michigan. I bought a small stone before I moved to Germany so I would have something of home with me. Everyone used to hunt Peteoskey when we were little and went up north. It is a cute and small keepsake.
Read more at http://www.geologyin.com/2017/06/what-is-petoskey-stone-and-where-can.html#D5898S7ah2lTIuC5.99
These are just a few of my favorite items I’ve purchased while traveling. I am sure there are more but for now, these are my main ones! Let me know what your favorite items are or if you have suggestions for me to buy! Tschuss!
AJ goes abroad 