Sunday, October 05, 2008

Souveniers

First a note about my pictures - It took me over 3 hours to upload all my photos to Facebook and organize them into albums, put them in chronological order and label them all with the related stories. It was a frustrating, painstakingly long process and I just can't stomach the thought of making a separate slide show just for the blog. SOOOO, for those of you who are NOT on Facebook, I discovered that I can give a link to those albums that you can access directly. You do NOT have to be a member of Facebook to view them (as I understand it). So, please see the photos, in order, here, here and here. I had to split them into three albums due to the number. It doesn't take that long to view them all though, I promise...

Here are the souveniers that we brought home from our trip. From the top left, clockwise:
1. wooden coasters made from 4 different woods that are typical to Tasmania
2. a novel, the cover of which was designed by our friend Nick (graphic designer) and written by their friend who we met at the Salamanca market and autographed it for us. It is about a musician who moves back home to Hobart (Tas) from NYC after a nervous breakdown. In my opinion, this is the BEST kind of souvenier!
3. wine from the Hunter Valley trip. We managed to bring two bottles home with us. It would have been a shame (and a bit embarrassing not to purchase at a tasting) not to bring some home to share with friends.
4. a commemorative Sydeny spoon for T
5. scenic calendars of Australia (one is actually full of aboriginal artwork for a friend who was particularly interested in knowing more about their history)
6. a sweater bought at the mall on sale since they are going into summer weather there. :o)
7. multiple postcards we intended to mail home but didn't manage to do so.
8. money (see below)
9. dishtowels with cute drawings of animals unique to Australia.

I've realized with chagrin that we didn't buy enough gifts... Oh well, hopefully people will understand. There's only so much room in a suitcase.

Here's a close up of Australian money. I collect money from any country that I travel to. I especially like the coins, but I try to get a few small bills as well. I'm very sad that I didn't make it to Europe before the Euro went in. You probably can't tell, but if you look closely at the pink bill, you might be able to tell that there is an emblem that is see-through. The bills have a plastic core to them. The small gold coin is a $2 coin. There is no $1 bill. Also, there are no pennies. All prices are rounded up to the nearest 5 cents. I think our money is so boring compared to other countries!

8 comments:

Priscilla said...

I suppose that money is what you are used to...or not used to in order to decide whether or not it is boring. If you are bored with your money, I'll take it! LOL

Martha said...

When it comes to collecting money, I prefer the kind I can spend if I so choose. And, ours has gotten a bit more intersting in the past decade with commemorative coins as well as colors in the paper bills.

Tracy said...

You guys are funny! :o) That's true, the commemorative coins are nice. My mom is avidly collecting them.

T said...

I like the spoon. :)

AMG said...

I have a Bahamian dollar! I have carried it around for several years in my purse, not sure what to do with it, but I would love to offer it to your collection. It is not accepted anymore in the Bahamas, only American dollars.

Tracy said...

Oh cool! I would love it. :o)

T - glad you like the spoon. I'll be in Portland the 24th and 25th to take my diabetes certification test. Can I get it to you then?

joeks said...

What a fun trip for you! Thanks for taking us along via your Facebook pictures!

Erin said...

You're missing the $50 (the ugliest) and the $100 (the least ugly and novel because I barely ever see one).
I have a $200 coin that my dad bought in 1983 as an investment for all of us kids (one each). Last I checked it was worth $103. Woo Hoo!