To buy or not to buy?

[leahlovestravel]

I like to bring home a small piece of artwork if I can. Something that can be rolled up and popped in a cardboard tube which is easy to stuff into a pack, it's light weight and it brings back good memories when I see them on my wall. They don't have to be expensive.
Oh, and I always try to find a fridge magnet

[nikimarcotte]

well, i ended up shipping home an 18kg box of stuff from south africa after my overland tour...if they hadn't changed the international flight luggage allowance from 2 down to 1 bag, i would have been fine. got some beautiful malawi wooden bowls and a hand woven carpet from namibia....plus jewellery, paintings and various other treasures. i would have bought a hand-carved wooden table from malawi if i could have figured out a way to get it home unbroken...just can't buy stuff like that at home. also, there are some awesome cutting boards that are still hanging by some roadside in madagascar because you need export papers to take wood out of madagascar and the poorer areas just don't have papers available...such a disappointment. oh well, i did as much for local economies along the way as i could carry home

[georginal]

I went through a stage of collecting shot glasses as everywhere does them. Then I went through a stage of bracelets. I'm pretty good at saying "no" to buying things that are difficult or awkward to carry. Although the Turkish Carpet seller in Istanbul saw me coming and after a "Night" flight and with out sleep for a day and a half, I was persuaded to buy the Turkish Carpet.

A Morrocan headscarf and also boomerang were just must haves though!

[kat6942]

On the flight on the way there, I don't check anything and put everything in my big backpack. That includes an old backpack, a cloth purse, and clothes I know will not be coming back with me. Then on the way back I have the extra room in the backpack and a small backpack and purse to fill up. If I'm wearing all of my outerwear, that leaves quite a bit of space.

I've already heard about volcano hikes melting your shoes so on my next trip I'll be bringing a pair of old sneakers that will not be coming back with me. I'll probably end up wearing sandals in snow on my return trip but just think how much space I'll have.