My friends and family seem afflicted with the same spending condition. Wherever in the world we go we have to bring something cheesy and touristy back with us.

We call them “souvenirs” but really it is just something cheap, mass-produced, usually plastic, made in China, with the name of the place on it.

Go to Scotland? Got to have something like Nessie wearing Tartan. Spain? A straw donkey wearing a hat. Canada? A beaver with a maple leaf t-shirt. Believe me, we have it all cluttering our storage. Isn’t that always the case too? After the glow of the vacation is over this stuff is never useful.

Just say no!

Next time you or your friends are planning a vacation, try this. Make a pact. We don’t buy gifts, you don’t buy gifts. The photographs or video are the souvenirs.

Enjoy the place, not the inside of crappy gift shops. You will save money and have a better time.

Photo by Paula The Destroyer