Tags: Technology - Social Media, Travel tips

Collecting and preserving your travel memories

June 20, 2010

By Judy McEuen
Travel Writer
Troy Media

Judy McEuen

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, June 20, 2010/ Troy Media/ – More than a hundred travel destinations later, you would think that I would be immune to collecting and storing travel memories like any other jaded veteran tourist.

Truth is, I have become quite an expert on saving and organizing travel mementos. In fact, I can make a whole library out of my collection.

Every destination unique

Every destination is special and every trip unique. Each has its own peculiar smells, flavors and tastes. Every local or fellow traveler you meet along the road is different and every encounter is a story of its own. At least, that is how I see every journey I take and I relish every memory created. In order to capture the uniqueness of every trip, I take pains to keep and preserve keepsakes to remind me of the fun and excitement of the trip.

Journal-keeping is one of the best ways to preserve a memory of the experience. This is especially true if you make an effort to describe the event. When writing, you will want to well-express your thoughts so that you can easily recapture the experience when reading your journal in the future. But more than the descriptions themselves, the highlights of my journal entries are the encounters I have had with interesting people and funny events I have observed during the day with the lessons I have learned from each. It is best to write down your experiences, however, while they are still fresh in your mind.

Of course, taking photos is another great and effective way of preserving your memories. You can post your photos in your journal to help give a more colorful recollection of the travel experience or, as we did on a recent trip to Germany, France, Luxembourg and Brussels, on Facebook. Remember to write a short description of each photo as you take it to remind you of when and where they are taken. I am waiting for the day I can purchase a camera that will let me save a short audio description of each photo as I take it.

Even better than photos, however, are amateur videos. Videos are especially recommended when taking a trip with family members and children.

Posting both your photos and videos to Facebook is also a great way to keep in touch with family and friends back home. They will be able to follow you on your trip.

Don’t forget a souvenir

Finally, I always make it a point to get a perfect souvenir from the place I am visiting. It does not have to be the merchandise usually sold in touristy areas. Make it something special; perhaps a beautiful antique, a gorgeous piece of shell or a funky local handicraft.

There are a number of methods you can use to organize your travel mementos. You can group them according to country or continent; you can organize them according to the year traveled. Whichever method you choose, remember to organize your journals, photos, videos and souvenirs right after you have recovered from the trip. If you put it off, you will end up with such a big clutter you won’t find the energy to even start the process.

If you are as passionate about your travels as I am you will find the whole process of preserving your travel memories to be lots of fun!

Books

My Vacation Place: A Memory Book (Family Fun)

Vacation: A Traveler’s Journal – A Trip Diary

Channels: The Calgary Beacon, June 26, 2010