GLOBETROTTERS WRITING PROMPT
Souvenirs — The Finale
The most unique and creative selection of travel gifts
We first just think of cheap plastic stuff collecting dust on the shelves of our homes. But souvenirs can be a lot more than simple statues of a building from a city we visited as our writers showed us.
- Fridge magnets
- Bottle caps
- Ghosts
- Tattoos
- Bookmarks
- Memories
- Photographs
- A ball of dung
- Paintings
- Postcards
- Smoked Salmon
- Rocks
- Bicycle bells
- …
The list of incredibly unique and thoughtful souvenirs collected by writers of our Globetrotters community is mindblowing. I never thought we’d receive such a vast collection of diverse souvenirs and on top of that, all of them wrapped in incredibly well-written and interesting challenge posts.
Thank you so much for that but it made it unbelievably difficult to make our choices this month. If you didn’t get mentioned it’s not that your story wasn’t great but we simply had too many outstanding ones.
We also do like seeing the trend going on the growing popularity of our monthly challenges with an increase in quality as well as this is the third month in a row receiving 40 submissions of which six were boosted by Medium.
Here we go, our choices.
Adrienne Beaumont
I do not like this part of my duties as an editor of Globetrotters, especially when I’m travelling and under the pump to decide. I enjoyed reading every single one of your stories. They helped me realise how I could have done a much better job with my own story. I made a list of the ones I loved and have tried shortening it by rereading your stories. That was a bad idea! I simply cannot choose a winner, so here is my much-shortened list of highly commended.
Sandy Maximus with “The Paintings I Bring Back Home Speak to Me”
Mario López-Goicoechea with “My Unusual Souvenir Collection
Casey Lawrence with “I’m Basic: Collecting Souvenir Postcards”
Jordan | Sunriser Club with “How a Galway Legend Made Its Way Back Home With Me”
Sindoora Rai with “My Cherished Souvenir that Rings a Bell of Nostalgia
Monica Ray, M.Ed, MS with “When a 5-Hour Line Was the Best Thing Ever”
April Stephens with “The Souvenirs that Bring Me the Most Joy”
Congratulations to everyone who entered October’s challenge. You are all winners in my eyes.
Michele Maize
When you typically think of souvenirs, you think of little tchotchkes and items that go along collecting dust on your mantle but you writers really brought your A-game this month with the challenge.
There were so many unique stories of souvenirs that I didn’t expect. I love learning and being surprised by you all. As always, it’s never easy to pick my favorites because I think we have a talented group of writers here at the pub!
Claire Elizabeth Levesque made me aware of a souvenir that I wish I’d picked up when I visited my first national park! How cool would that be to have all the stamps of the parks you went to in this cute little booklet? I am getting one next time I visit a national park!
Jerry Dwyer brings the most useful souvenirs home, books! But, not just any books, they are books related to where he’s visiting. He also takes a lot of photos and makes books out of them. I wish I’d done this with my vacations because you remember more of the details to write down.
I love everything that Ellen Eastwood writes and when she shares a travel story, it is a treat to read. She loves looking at all of the things you can buy while traveling but doesn’t usually end up bringing them home and I relate to that. But, there is one thing that she grabs from her travels. Rocks! They sit and remind her from this beautiful bowl about her travels.
Jillian Amatt
Ah, you guys! This month's prompt responses truly brought me through so many nostalgic journeys with you all. It always amazes me that such small items can bring back such strong memories. I have thoroughly enjoyed all of your stories and thank you for taking the time to write them while sharing your favorite souvenirs with us here at Globetrotters. This community is truly inspiring!
Again, we received so many incredible stories that I can’t just pick three. Instead, I have seven that I really enjoyed, but even those were hard to narrow down. Here are my favorites.
As a lover of tattoos, I really enjoyed Matthew David’s story about getting his first tattoo in Thailand. Tattoos are truly the most everlasting souvenir!
Bell Dae tells us about a delicious treat that she received from members of our Canadian indigenous population. This food is a must-try if you are ever on the West Coast of Canada.
I loved Kim Baker’s thoughtful stories about purchasing jewelry as she travels. She even made one of her necklaces which holds fond memories of her time in Bali. I can relate to Kim too as I collect earrings as souvenirs.
Krasi Shapkarova tells us of a hilarious attempt to purchase nesting dolls for her cousin's daughters. She had good intentions, but what she intended to purchase, didn’t quite turn out to be what she thought it was. Thanks for the laugh Krasi!
Roberta Patellaro had me intrigued with her title — Setting Fire to Uzbek Scarves. I must say, the article did not disappoint and I learned a thing or two!
Another Canadian story that stole my heart was from Erie Astin. I used to do dragon boat races so I resonated with her writing and enjoyed her narrative as her team won a bronze medal in her only international race.
But, there can only be one absolute favorite, and that prize goes to Brad Yonaka for his story about A Ball of Dung. I am almost certain that no other human on earth has a souvenir such as this.
My dung beetle ball is a marvelous work of nature’s art. It invokes all the emotions I would want from a souvenir; a unique object with the power to take me back to the time and place I first picked it up.
Thanks again to everyone who took the time to partake in our souvenir prompt. I am constantly amazed by your stories and always look forward to reading your responses from around the world.
JoAnn Ryan
Reading about the souvenirs people have accumulated on their travels has been particularly fun this month. It’s amazing what people come up with and all the memories those mementos can conjure up.
I loved reading Ellen Eastwood’s story about collecting rocks as souvenirs. I love rock collecting as well. I am from The Gem State, after all: My Favorite Travel Souvenir Costs Nothing But a Little Dignity.
Enjoyed, as well, this story by Simon Whaley. So sad that someone would cut down such an iconic tree!: The Enduring Souvenir
Brad Yonaka would get the most wonderfully unusual souvenir award, if we had such a thing: A Ball of Dung.
And for the too cute award, this might have to go to Nella DiCarlo’s cute little turtle: A Tiny Painted Turtle is a Treasured Souvenir
Ultimately though, I did have to choose this story by Wendi Gordon as my overall favorite. It was so super cute and such a great story in the wake of the island’s recent tragedy:
Thank you to everyone who submitted to this month’s challenge. See you all next month!
Anne Bonfert
It really was a tough one. Not even half the month had passed and I selected already ten favorite challenge stories. How on Earth would I get down to three? I simply wouldn’t, I knew it.
I never imagined receiving such amazing stories of incredibly unique souvenirs like a tattoo from Thailand or Easter Island, paintings from around the world or a bicycle bell from the Netherlands.
Anyhow, to be able to downsize my selection, I decided to hand out awards this month. See below.
Cheapest souvenir award
She didn’t dare to enter a tourist shop and buy any souvenirs. She knew what she needed was outside. On the streets. On the beach or in the mountains. A simple piece of rock.
“Finally, I spotted a large pebble and decided to go for it, not wanting to risk coming up empty. I faked like my ankle was itchy so I could pick it up.” — Ellen Eastwood
Environmental aspect award
Instead of supporting the production of more plastic by buying cheap souvenirs, Scott-Ryan collects something he anyway bought already. Bottlecaps.
“As I said, sometimes I get strange looks. Sometimes they ask why and I explain it to them and this might lead to a longer chit chat with a local, which can be its own reward.” — Scott-Ryan Abt
Best narrative award
His narrative is always so captivating and authentic at the same time. I’m always taken to wherever his story travels. And this time it is to a certain tree that no longer is.
A memory and a few photos are all that is left.
“The chap winked at me, then broke away from his girlfriend and pointed up at the top of the tree. As she turned to look up at where he was pointing, he suddenly dropped to one knee, pulled out a ring box, and offered it up to her.” — Simon Whaley
Weirdest souvenir award
I mean, there were certainly a few weird ones out here but whatever this guy carried around for over 50 years blew my mind. A ball of dung? But whatever it is that is keeping our memories…
“While wandering around the lake, I always looked for unusual seeds, rocks, or anything I could stow away in my pockets. My prize find was a perfectly smooth and spherical ball made by a dung beetle.” — Brad Yonaka
Once again, we thank each and every writer who has contributed to this writing prompt. The stories were all interesting and inspiring. I loved hearing all those stories about different kinds of souvenirs.
If you missed the deadline and still want to share a travel story presenting souvenirs, you can do so. The article will just not be part of the challenge. We are always open to travel posts.
I also encourage you to stay tuned for our next writing prompt for the month of November. We will announce it here on Globetrotters on the 1st.
The team of editors also has contributed to the challenge with the following articles. These posts never join the contest.
JoAnn Ryan with “This Rosary, Blessed by Monks in the Majestic Mountains of Trinidad, Brings Me Peace Everyday” (BOOSTED)
Jillian Amatt — Artistic Voyages with “The Best Travel Souvenirs Are My Memories” (BOOSTED) and “Nomad Souvenirs Must Be Small”
Michele Maize with “I Got Flagged at London Heathrow for Smuggling Ghosts”
Adrienne Beaumont with “Among My Souvenirs”
Anne Bonfert with “My Wedding Dress Was a Souvenir” (BOOSTED)
And now, please give credit to all participating writers and read these awesome submissions if you haven’t checked them out yet:
Simon Whaley with “The Enduring Souvenir”
Erie Astin with “Magnets Tell My Travel Stories”, “From Oxford, I Brought Back Gargoyles” (BOOSTED) and “The Great Dragon Boat Racing Summer”
Wendi Gordon with “How I Helped Maui’s Baby Sea Turtles Crawl Safely Through The Sand and Swim Out To Sea”
Matthew David with “The Most Personal of Souvenirs” (BOOSTED)
Sandy Maximus with “The Paintings I Bring Back Home Speak to Me”
Brad Yonaka with “A Ball of Dung”
Mario López-Goicoechea with “My Unusual Souvenir Collection”
Bell Dae with “The Most Unexpected Souvenir from our Canada Roadtrip”
Luda Zueva with "Islands’ Souvenirs — Mezze Bowl and Stretching Diva"
Richa Singh with "Take a Souvenir Which Makes You Smile"
Jody Lynn McBrien with “Les Souvenirs”
Casey Lawrence with “I’m Basic: Collecting Souvenir Postcards”
Ellen Eastwood with “My Favorite Travel Souvenir Costs Nothing But a Little Dignity” (BOOSTED)
Jordan | Sunriser Club with “How a Galway Legend Made Its Way Back Home With Me”
Rhonda Carrier with “Sweet, Sour, Salty, Spicy, Savory, Souvenirs”
Tim Ward, Mature Flâneur with “A River of Wine: Marlborough, New Zealand”
Marianne O with “Boxes from Asia — Memories of Tears, Beauty, and Strengths”
Kim Baker with “The Art of Buying Souvenirs I Use and Remember”
Sindoora Rai with “My Cherished Souvenir that Rings a Bell of Nostalgia”
Carol Labuzzetta, MS Natural Resources, MS Nursing with “Recent Souvenirs from Europe: Gifted, Won & Bought”
Geo Snelling with “The Souvenir I Take Wherever I Go”
Ronald Smit with “Watchable and Wearable Wealth”
Roberta Patellaro with “Setting Fire to Uzbek Scarves”
Dr. Preeti Singh with “Collecting Memories: My Passion for Souvenirs”
April Stephens with “The Souvenirs that Bring Me the Most Joy”
Christina Daniels with “A Lifetime of Travels in One Bookshelf”
Jerry Dwyer with “My Bookshelves Display My Souvenirs from Around the World”
Monica Ray, M.Ed, MS with “When a 5-Hour Line Was the Best Thing Ever”
Janin Lyndovsky with “The Most Valuable Souvenirs Are Those Bound with Emotions”
Nella DiCarlo with “A Tiny Painted Turtle is a Treasured Souvenir”
Aaron Paulson with “Everything’s Going to Hell” Music Festival. Reykjavik; Iceland”
Krasi Shapkarova with “The Souvenir That Couldn’t Be”
Claire Elizabeth Levesque with “The Only Souvenir I’ve Purchased In Years”
Your Globetrotters editing team (JoAnn, Adrienne, Jillian, Michele & Anne)
