Bringing London Back to Pittsburgh

Throughout my time studying abroad, I have been gathering pieces of London to bring back to Pittsburgh for myself, my family, and friends. Memories are great to have, but I also wanted to bring back physical items and memories. 

Ways for me to do that included journaling. I bought a journal the first week of arriving to London, and would write a journal entry just about every day since being here. Whether I did something interesting that day or not, I would just write about my day and life in London. I love that I will be able to keep that journal now and look back on my time here. 

I was worried about trying to pack my pieces of London too because suitcase space is limited and I want to try and buy something for everyone including myself, but I think I figured it out.

Postcards are your best friend. They are flat, small, memories, and easy to pack. Postcards are something I personally love. I have bought a postcard at every location in the United Kingdom that I have been to, whether it was from Kensington Palace, the White Cliffs of Dover, or Cambridge. It is a great way to remember the places you have visited, while also saving room in your suitcase. Plus, everyone loves a good postcard. 

Additionally, keychains and little magnets are small pieces of London that are enjoyable for everyone too. I like to get keychains and magnets as gifts for other people because it saves me room, but also are cute ways to have a piece of London with you. 

I also found that flat, small prints are easy gifts and memories to bring back from London that also help reduce the stress of figuring out how to pack to come home. With it being close to Christmas, I have been trying to shop for myself, while also getting Christmas gifts for my friends and family so the small prints have been my go-to. 

I also have been keeping tickets to plays, bracelets from events, and brochures from places, so that I have them to remind me of the things I have done in London. These make for great pieces to put in a scrapbook or to just hang up around your room. 

Photos. Photos are without a doubt the best way to bring back memories of London and save space. Everywhere I go, I take pictures so that I can have those on my phone and camera to print out at my own time. No extra space is needed with photos. That is definitely one of the beauties of having this technology available at our fingertips. Photos really are worth a thousand words and plenty of memories. Photos are a great keepsake and provide so many memories. 

During my time here, I have taken so many photos of places I have been to, friends, food, and selfies that when I go home I will always be able to have pieces of London available for me to reflect on. Having limited space in my suitcase and not being able to bring all of London with me, allowed me to think of other ways to bring memories home with me and gifts for others. I cannot wait to look back on this study abroad trip and see all of the amazing pieces of London I was able to bring back home with me to Pittsburgh.