There are so many ways to keep your travel memories alive. For me, it has rotated throughout the years but a few things have stayed pretty constant.
Pressed Pennies
I have been doing this since I was a kid. I don’t know what my obsession is but I love them. I have also learned over the years to make sure I always have change with me. I personally love the excitement of finding the machine, BUT there is an app called PennyMe if you want to find them that way.
I was at Sleeping Bear National Park Visitor Center and I overheard someone asked about a pressed penny. They didn’t have one, but wondered if they knew where the next one was but the ranger didn’t know. I told them sorry for interrupting but there is an app called PennyMe that has where machines are located. The ranger asked me to repeat it and show him the app. He said you don’t know how many times a day people ask about them.
Collect Things
People collect different things when they travel. I know if I see a thimble I get it for my aunt. Some people do keychains – which I did for a VERY LONG time. I had them all together in this big jumble. Magnets and salt/pepper shakers are popular items.
Patches and Stickers
I am not sure if this goes under collect things, but I am making it it’s own thing. I have done the sticker thing, but I hate putting them on things because it is so permanent. I put a lot on tumblers and other things but then I’m holding on to something because i don’t want to get rid of the sticker.
I’m not trying out patches to put on a canvas tote. I am going to go back & get patches for my favorite places. The hard thing with patches is it’s really hard to find pretty ones.
Travel Journal/ Blog
I write a lot here about my travels, but I also have a notebook in my car that I use when driving. It also goes in my hiking bag to write about the trails. Some people have a travel journal and write their thoughts about the trip. I want to do something like this but I get too caught up in the moment.
Create a playlist
Music is one of my favorite things. Music has such a power over me that helps me change my mood or get me excited about something. I have so many playlists created but nothing for a specific trip. I have car driving music, writing background music, but nothing for a specific trip.
Side Note: When I was on a recent trip, I was listening EDM station. The DJ said if if he had to pick 50 songs to describe his life or are his life songs it would have been the next 2 songs he played. That got me thinking and I want to create a Life Playlist
Make A Scrapbook
Scrapbooking is really fun, but it also gives me so much anxiety. It’s so permanent and what if I don’t like it. I do take tons of pictures, but I haven’t turned them into scrapbook pages. You can have each page be a different place or even a different book for everywhere. You can include plane tickets, ticket stubs, receipts, maps, brochures, etc.
Photo Album
I haven’t used an actual photo album in years. I love them tho because who doesn’t love looking through pictures and thinking about all the memories from that trip. On my trips, each night I upload all my pictures to Dropbox. All the pictures get uploaded to the folder “Camera Uploads,” and then get organized and put in their own folder. I do have some pictures on a hard drive that I don’t use or need as often.