Recent Souvenirs from Europe: Gifted, Won & Bought
The Globetrotter’s October challenge fits my recent travels perfectly!
Magnets, ornaments, wine, beer, candy, scarves, mustard, and paprika were some recent souvenirs we purchased on our recent two-week-long river cruise through Europe on the Danube, Main, and Rhine Rivers.
Actually, we didn’t purchase a magnet but were gifted this souvenir by a fellow cruise passenger we had befriended. Joking about the prizes on the cruise’s game nights, we started bantering about magnets to commemorate our trip with my husband promising to get one for our new friend.
Instead, our new friend from North Carolina bought this magnet for my husband in one of the museum shops we went through on a general tour in Wertheim.
Another game night arrived and we participated, winning second place for “Name That Tune.” It was quite an upsetting win as we arrived 15 minutes late, were allowed to play, and crushed all other teams except the first-place winners who beat us by a point!
Our prize? A souvenir magnet! How the prizes are supposed to be split 4 -8 ways was beyond us — and it didn’t matter — it was the fun we all had that mattered.
We gifted our “won” magnet to the couple that had gifted my husband the cuckoo clock magnet — both coming away with a memorable “little gift” that enclosed the larger and more fun memories of being together on this trip.
Magnets are a popular souvenir. They were widely available in all of the towns we visited and many collected them. I suppose their popularity is because they are inexpensive.
Holiday Ornaments
The first souvenirs I purchased on this trip were holiday ornaments. In the town of Passau, only one small shop was open. It was Sunday and most stores were closed.
I immediately found some lovely decoupage ornaments and bought two. One was for my sister-in-law and one was for us to keep.
Each year, when we decorate our Christmas tree, ornaments from past trips bring wonderful memories to the surface. And these will do the same.
Next, in Bamberg, I bought four hand-blown, clip-on, mushroom ornaments. These were souvenir purchases for our home. I recently began foraging for fungi and am enamored of their forms and colors.
These were a welcome and unusual find that I was happy to bring home! The shop owners packaged my purchase carefully in a gift box and gave me their brochure in English after I expressed an interest in the German copy shown on the counter at check out.
A scarf was purchased in Koblenz as a gift for our son’s girlfriend. It was a fun and pretty purchase that can double as a shawl. The shop owner was thrilled to know I had brought my own bag!
Scarves seemed popular in Europe and even on our cruise. I wish I could wear one and not look as though I am buried in fabric! They were readily available in many places.
Food Stuffs
We bought local beer and wine — souvenirs that we consumed in our stateroom. These were from Austria and Germany and bought in a grocery store.
We also bought German mustard at the grocers that we’ve had before. My sister-in-law and husband brought some home from their “retirement” trip to Munich four years ago.
I had planned to buy the mustard in Regensburg but we were ill for that port stop and could not go into town. Oh, well! We still got the mustard and there will be a future trip to Regensburg.
Of course, at our first cruise stop in Budapest, the Central Market offered vendor after vendor with paprika for sale. We complied and bought some from a young lady whose booth offered many kinds.
By the time we reached Cologne, Germany, I only had a couple of souvenir purchases left. For these, I reached for candy. I mean who doesn’t enjoy some delicious chocolate?
The Lindt Chocolate Factory is located in Cologne and while we didn’t go there I bought two bars of chocolate and a gift box in a large department store called the Galleria.
They also offered some licorice from Holland and since the Kinderdijk Windmills were our last stop, I got a package of Dutch licorice in Cologne. I love Dutch licorice and was happy to purchase some.
Souvenirs We Could Not Find
My husband wanted a plain German beer stein. We came up empty on this souvenir search. All of the steins were colorfully decorated and not to his taste.
We saw plain steins on our table during the Bavarian Dinner the cruise ship put on for us. It was this type of stein we searched for.
In hindsight, we should have just asked to purchase them from Viking. Other passengers purchased the olive wood bread baskets that sat on our tables at lunch and dinner. I think purchasing a Stein or two would have been possible. We just didn’t think to ask.
He got his steins online (made in Germany) after we got home.
After hearing the story on our tour of Nuremberg about a German Renaissance Artist named Durer, I wanted to purchase a print of his famous rabbit (hare) painting. But sadly, all the shops were closed the day we visited for German Reunification Day.
Our youngest son is an artist and I thought he’d appreciate the story behind the Durer’s hare. I’ve since ordered the print online.
And here's the thing about souvenirs; they are readily available now after your trip as well as on it. If you see something you liked but didn’t act fast enough to purchase, well — there’s always the internet!
Photography
My most cherished souvenir from any trip is my photos. I take hundreds to thousands of them each trip. They allow me to document my travels as well as share memories of each trip through my writing or verbally with friends.
To me, my photos are the best souvenir! They’re free and they don’t take up any room either!
To read more about souvenirs all one has to do is check the Globetrotter’s publication this month! I always try to participate in their challenges and this month will surely have some interesting entries! Here are two:
Erin Astin wrote a charming story about her magnet collection.
Adrienne Beaumont recounts a family trip in which she did purchase a souvenir but admits that her best souvenirs are her memories. This is a sentiment that I thoroughly relate to.
