Bringing back the memories!

Whenever hubby dear goes to some new place alone or we go together, one thing that I keep stressing is buying something from that place. Souvenirs I understand means memories in French. I have always wondered during my school days as to why mom spends so much on buying souvenirs or mementos from the places we travel. Why doesn't she just get me something else ..like an extra  dress.. or some extra ice cream may be? My first remembrance of a souvenir is a Taj Mahal replica that we bought at Agra. Mom and Dad were so thrilled to open the gift box and show it to our family in Chennai. They spoke about all that the shop keeper had told them. It didn't matter to me about the material of the replica, the cost or anything at that time. All that mattered to me was my vacation was over and its back to school time! I wanted to tell my friends about the visit to Taj Mahal and nearby places in New Delhi. Like any other kid, I forgot about the trip very soon. But even today that replica stands tall at my Chennai home among other items in the shelf. That replica was a matter of pride for my parents, not many had visited Taj Mahal then. This replica has been my inspiration all along to collect souvenirs. Now coming back to souvenirs that we have collected so far, the simplest yet the most collected item is the fridge magnets. We have a huge collection that it was impossible for us to carry everything with us when we moved to US earlier this year. We just got few of them. These collections more than being a symbol of pride, brings us back the good times that we spent earlier. A Hawaii magnet reminds us the wonderful week spent at Maui, the Egyptian pyramid replica gives me a smile, makes me feel happy that I had in fact been to a wonder of the world! Buying souvenirs not just for us, but even for our dear ones is a way to show them that they are very much part of us , and we remember them all the time! I am looking at my shelf now and see there is enough space for few more to fit in there. On the lookout for a new vacation place and a souvenir shop there , hubby dear, where are u :)