Travel. Souvenirs. What sorts of items do you get to remember your trip by? Over the years my MO on souvenirs has changed a lot. It used to be silly tchotchkes but those add up and become clutter. Then it was postcards - I literally have thousands tucked away in albums. For a while it was jewelry and I still do that on occasion. Same with clothes. Basically, I wanted something I could keep forever. Now in my 30s I'm not so interested in admiring my souvenirs on display but in getting use out of them. Maybe they last a couple of months, perhaps a few years. Now I look for interesting products that are hard to find elsewhere.

Like these cat socks with an ankle band.




Which go great with these funny cat butt harem pants that my aunt got for me!




Or a fun twist on a striped T. This particular one is Lulu Guinness for Uniqlo.




A panda bottle cover for my travel coffee mug.



I think this is so useful! During the warmer months I usually carry a bottle of water in my bag and I hate when it sweats and dampens my bag contents. Problem solved!


And fo sho a new bento box for the hundreds of lunches I bring from home every year.




First lunch in the bento box!




Also loving the two types of decaf tea we found: gobou (burdock root) and soba (roasted buckwheat) which I drink out of my new Japanese penguin mug :) Oh. That reminds me. I can't help myself from buying penguin things - especially in Japan, there are so many options! Picked up a penguin tea towel, two pins, a keychain from Sumida Aquarium, and a comic book series about a polar bear who runs a cafe whose regulars include a penguin and panda :)