What did you buy on a trip that you still use or enjoy regularly?

[Parigi]

Jan: I also bring back Bomba rice from Spain, lol. Spanish friends of mine in Paris complain that they can't make good paella in Paris because … pourquoi? The water is different. They actually had friends bring water - ! - back from Valencia in order to make a paella comme il faut.

 

[Pauline]

... The water is different. They actually had friends bring water - ! - back from Valencia in order to make a paella comme il faut.

I have heard of bringing back a small amount of Holy water, but water to cook with - wow!

 

[francofunghi]

I have a pipe from Amsterdam and bongo from India. Still using both )

 

[Pauline]

I was up in the attic today searching through boxes of kitchen linens when I came upon dish towels and napkins I have never used. They are from France, Italy and Switzerland trips. I must have washed and ironed some of them, but didn't use them. There is set of dish towels from Olivers and Co. I'll be using them now!

Two dish towels from CUCINA in Rome. Is that shop still there?

 

[Chris]

I don't recognize any of those from our shopping together. I have a whole section of my linen closet full of dish towels, mostly from France, that I've never used. Yet in my kitchen you'll find some that really should graduate to the rag bin. I don't know what I'm saving the new ones for...

 

[Pauline]

A friend of mine was cleaning out her Mother's house after she died and found stacks of beautiful table linens that she had been given over the years and never used. I thought of that today when I found these.

I do hate to give up those lovely French tea towels even though they are rags, so I have a pile of them in the garage. Not sure what to do with them.

 

[Pauline]

Today I poured 5 litres of olive oil from Basilicata, from our May 2016 trip, into my olive oil container that I bought in Italy at least 10 years ago.

 

[jonathan]

Ooh, I want one of those! Filling bottles from one of those 5L cans isn't easy, and that tap looks perfect.

 

[Roz]

What I always bring home from France or Italy are the big reusable plastic shopping bags that cost a euro in most of the large supermarkets or discount stores. They hold more than most of the bags stores sell in the US, seem to be more durable, and usually have attractive designs. I use them for lots of things, not just shopping. And of course they are so easy to pack. I usually bring a couple of extra ones home since they make great inexpensive gifts.

 

[JustTravel]

I do the same, Roz. I have quite a few myself and have given some away.

 

[Karen Frerichs]

Pauline's pic of tea towels sent me to my drawer of similar (old, but not used yet) towels... I decided it's time! I sometimes use them as napkins first... seems a nice way to break them in, w/o getting "too dirty" as dish towels...
still, can never resist more, so time to use them, I say.

 

[Pauline]

What I always bring home from France or Italy are the big reusable plastic shopping bags that cost a euro in most of the large supermarkets or discount stores.

Me too! I use them for shopping. But I have too many now, so I usually bring one with me on trips to Europe, to use for shopping.

I was just putting some wool in a nice cotton shopping bag that @Valerie gave me (with something about Mozzarella on it).

 

[jonathan]

All this talk of shopping bags got me thinking about the bags I tend to use at the moment. And, of course, it's got a lot to do with places that we've enjoyed: we want to bring home a bit. So, 20 years ago and more, it was those same French supermarket bags for me. But my recent choices reflect my much more recent travels in the opposite direction to most of the contributors here: cotton bags from Trader Joe's, Andronico's Markets, and the Ninth Avenue Arizmendi Bakery.

 

[JustTravel]

Hey, Jonathan, you sure know the best places to shop here in SF!

 

[Bren]

Ohhh, good question...
From Firenze ~
Gorgeous paintings by Angie Brooksby
Black leather blazer from 2006, from Maria Vittoria
Several pieces of gold jewellery from Cellini Gold
GEOX lace-ups from GEOX on via Calzaiuoli
2 pairs of leather gloves fron Martini’s

From Santarcangelo ~
Beautiful pottery - a pitcher, a salt cannister
Pressed linens from Antica Stamperia Marchi, created on a 17th century huge wheel mangle

From Paris ~
More gorgeous paintings by Angie Brooksby

From Haleiwa, Hawaii ~
Ceramic fish and driftwood mobile
...and loads of items that are useable...the Pope's salt from Cervia, vin santo, butter from Paris...

 

[Ian Sutton]

Guzzini cutlery bought in Gravina (Puglia)
Bialetti cups bought in Mondovi (Piemonte)
these top two could have been bought at home on the internet I suppose, but it helps to see what you're buying to make you realise it's something you want.

Fiery coloured bowls (soup, dessert etc) bought in Lipari (Sicilia)
Slow food wine glasses bought in San Miniato (Toscana)
Moomin mug from Stockholm (Sweden)
Coffee cups from Amsterdam (Nederland)
Duvet covers from Amsterdam, Torino, Bologna, Wellington

Kelemata deodorants from Torino, Bologna, etc.
Antica erborista toothpaste from local markets
Native Australian herbs from Perth (Australia)
I'll also buy food & wine from Europe, as (for now) it's ok to bring most things through customs. They don't always last long!

some t-shirts (I'm wearing one as I type this)

probably a lot more if I think about it. I used to aim to travel out with bags only 2/3 full, but when doing shorter trips, I'll take an extra bag on the return flight and I find it all too easy to fill it!

 

[PatrickLondon]

I bought my ready-made curtains from BHV in Paris, also some plastic table mats (so big you might call them table-cloth protectors) for a euro each in the BHV sale, and various tea-towels and odds and ends from Tati.

But the thing I use most often is a very, very cheap kitchen knife I bought in a supermarket in Ibiza a good 30 years ago when I needed something to cut up my picnic tomatoes and cucumbers. And it's still the one I tend to turn to first.

 

[Chris]

I don't think I've ever been to Paris without spending a few hours in the kitchenwares department at BHV. Some of my best place mats, tea towels, latte bowls, and many other odds and ends came from there. Also purses. They used to carry Mandarina Duck bags, my favorite, but they don't seem to sell them anymore.

 

[JustTravel]

And last summer, I bought two more of these Mephisto sandals in different colors from BHV They were a bargain for less than 75 euro a pair.

 

[Ian Sutton]

Ah - I knew there would be something obvious... shoes. Many pairs bought over the years, indeed I've bought more in Italy than in the UK for the past decade.