Hi everyone. I'm pretty new to this board (although I've been lurking for ages) and thought I'd start a post on travel journals (I did a search and didn't find any past discussions on this topic).

I've tried journaling in the past (not travel but just regular) and never had much success so I thought if I bought a travel journal to use for all my travels, perhaps at least some of my life would be "journaled" (and probably the best bit of it as well).

I'm getting married in a few weeks so the plan is to have a "couple" travel journal that we'll both write in on all our future travels as husband and wife. It works out perfectly as our first trip will be our honeymoon to France (mainly Paris and Provence) at the end of August.

Does anyone have any tips on being a successful "journaler"? What do you write about (i.e. is it just factual or more "impressions / feelings")? How often do you write in it? Do you keep anything in your journal (ticket stubs, maps, busines cards from restaurants, etc.)

Also, does anyone have any interesting things to share about reading past journals?

Cary

In October last year, I visited Sicily for two weeks, and for the first time, kept a notebook. In the evenings , between returning from sightseeing and going out for supper, I would write up thoughts, impressions, musings and activities from the previous 24 hours.

I intend to do it for my next holiday, as I found that although it began as a chore, after a day or two I realised it was helping me to organise my thoughts. When I returned home I was able to sort out the journal, tidy up the writing (often I had just scrawled notes or brief paragraphs), and in conjunction with my photographs write down a fairly detailed account of the trip. I put the trip on my website for anybody else to read, but it was mostly for me - I find that rereading my notes brings those memories back with greater intensity than my other holidays

I am not an expert on this subject. I have two lovely leather journals, both embossed with my initials. They are empty except for the items you asked about - train, airline and opera tickets, napkins from cafes, museum entrance stubs, lire. Nothing at all jotted down.

But I did take small but thick spiral bound notebooks on my trips and they are filled with my pre-trip notes, itinerary, Italian contacts and then my daily scribbles. My plan was to transfer my daily scribbles to my nice journals - in beautiful penmanship I could admire when I am 80, of course.

I suppose it takes dedication. I do begin each journey with every good intention of being faithful to my journal. But somewhere along the way, about 4 days in or so, my daily pages filled with descriptive paragraphs become simple blurbs about the day.

Here are two websites with journalkeeping tips.

Writing the Journey
Destination Unknown Journals

It's the easiest thing to not do and the one you'll mos tregret not doing. And I'm not immune to being too tired to write daily, but I do my best to get at least a few things down every day. It's priceless to read back over my journals from previosu trips now, and it is immensely helpful when writing a trip report.

Don't feel like you have to block out an hour a night. Write for 10 minutes when you wait for a train or while you wait for your husband to get out of the shower. Most of mine are done in bits and pieces like that.

I tend to slack off the most at the end of a trip thinking I'll catch up on the airplane on the way home. Well, I never ever actually do that, so sadly I have some incomplete journals.

They're also a good place to have people you meet write down their addresses in. Or, in one case on a train in Italy, a kind fellow coffee-lover drew a diagram of how to brew the perfect espresso I also have an arabic alphabet written in one from a passenger next to me from Iraq.

I like a small (5 1/2 x 3 1/2) lined journal with a inside pocket and a elastic band closure and paper protector. My favorite brand is Galison and you can get them at Barnes & Noble. When I know I'm going on a trip part of the pleasure is picking out a new journal to write in. All my information goes into it. My flight number, hotel addresses and numbers, my trip insurance policy number and their phone number. I make of list of all the things I'm taking and check it off as it goes into the suitcase.

Then I take a page a day to list where were going and what we might do on that day. My last trip should have been June 28th thru July 15th. I would have a page for each day, beginning on June 28th, and continuing on, such as Friday, July 7th Chartres with Kathy, Charlie & Kelly; and ending July 15th flying home. Then I skip a couple of pages to start my recording journal when I arrive.

As the same with everyone else I write in the evenings. Of course all the W's (who, what, when, where & why) plus all my feelings and impressions. I do have a suggestion though. Whatever and where ever you visit pick up a guide book it will be invaluable as you try to reconstruct your day. If your going to a museum get a book, if your in a new town keep your brochure or map.

Sorry if this is too anal. It's just that I have tried many methods and this one works the best for me.

Ginger

Ginger I do the exact same thing with my itinerary for each day. And depending how slosely i'm counting my euros on that trip the daily budget is written in as well. I took this Frommers Europe planner last time and loved how it had special pages at the beginning for jsut that purpose.

Whenever I can find the right kind, I buy a stack of them -- spiral, not too many pages, but with a hard back so that you can write on it anywhere. Small enough to stick in a tote bag to take with you so that you can write while sitting at lunch or quietly on a rock looking out at some fabulous view. I bring along one per trip and hope to fill it up but ... naah. But even if you write down each day where you went and quick impressions and take just 10 minutes, when you read the entries a few months later, it's kind of wonderful or horrible how much you've forgotten already !!

I am the worlds worst journaler but I try and each time I get a little better.

It is worth the effort and so much fun when you go back and read your experiences. It's amazing how fast you can forget the small details.

I also like a hard covered medium sized journal with inside pockets to fit reciepts and things.

Maybe someday I'll graduate to writing a trip report.

Colleen

An interesting thread from 2003 on keeping a travel journal.

I have always been in love with the idea of keeping a travel journal, but never was successful until our first trip to Italy years ago. I took a small ringed binder and used a page or two each day, mostly with notes about what we did that day, something special that I saw or experienced, etc. When I returned home, I matched my notes with my photos and that journal is one of my treasures. I have done it on each trip since. I've also learned that it makes writing a trip report upon your return much easier. It's the only way I can recall the name of the hotel, that wonderful resto, or a particular meal with detail. I plan to continue traveling just to perfect this activity!!

Jennifer

Cary,

Congratulations on your wedding! Enjoy this special time in your life. Like you I used to try to keep a regular "life" journal. As a teen and into my early 20's it was a ritual. Somewhere along the way though I stoppped. Now, like you are considering, I only do it when I'm travelling and those ARE usually some of the best memories!

I love keeping a journal on my trips. I just use the bound blank books you can find at just about any bookstore, I'm into my second one now. No "rules" really, once I kept a page to track spending, that was fun to look at again as everything was in lire! I write on the plane going over, then every evening. It's a great way to end the day and wind down while impressions are still fresh. It is so fun re-reading them, especially the one from that very first trip to Italy almost 10 years ago.

The journals have been very useful in looking up a street address for restaurants to revisit, for a wine name, a dish that I had to eat. I have a big box that has all things Italy in it, museum stubs which are little pieces of artwork themselves, maps, cards from restaurants, itineraries, postcards, guidebooks, brochures from musuems etc etc that I have told myself I will organize someday! I had an idea to do a decoupage box with all of the museum stubs but have never gotten around to it (yet!). This year's journal will have a new destination when we go to Paris.

I don't know how well a "joint" journal would work for me. I might feel like I am writing with the idea that my husband would be reading it too, and that might make me self edit some things (e.g. that gorgeous man in the Milan airport, mama mia)! I don't know about everyone else, but I also usually have one major melt down per trip, not quite sure why...sensory overload, lack of sleep, intensity of feeling? But that day would not be a good day for a joint journal for me!

It is a unique idea though, has anyone else ever done it?

I highly recommend journaling your trip. Just don't get too caught up in rules etc. If it becomes a chore it's no longer fun. There are so many types of journals, I tried finding one with pockets etc, and they do exist, I'm just not organized enough, thus my big old box o' stuff. Congratulations again, have fun!!

Journaling is such a great way to reflect on your experiences---I highly encourage it. My colleague and I wrote an essay for Slow Travel last year about travelling with teens in which we talked about some ideas for getting you started on your writing. Here's the link: http://www.slowtrav.com/europe/cm_teenagers.htm Scroll down to the section entitled "Reflect Daily" if you don't want to read the whole thing.

Just some basic journaling techniques that have worked for us over the years.

Good luck and have a great time!

Cecelia

Cec - that report is fantastic! As the mother of two teenage boys I got so much out of it!

I enjoyed reading the whole thing. Thank you.

Cec - I really enjoyed your report on traveling with teens...and not just the journaling bit. But that will be helpful...I see, I hear, I feel, I smell, I taste...I will definitely be using that.

Everyone else - these are all great tips. I bought a small journal (probably 3 by 5 or a bit bigger) and we'll try that out on the honeymoon. I wanted something that we would take with us each day so we would write in it during the day and not just when we're tired at the end of it. I'm itching to write in it now, but I'm making me wait until we're at least at the airport!

Only 3 more sleeps (sorry...an old habit from being a kid...everything is in terms of how many sleeps) until we head off for the wedding and only 15 until we are off to Paris! I can't believe it's almost here!

Hi, Cary!
Sounds like you're in for an exciting trip. My experience with journaling began when I was 10. I started with a simple diary. I am now 56 and still enjoy opening my diary and reading the notations I made so many years ago.
For me, I found the best time to write in my journal was when I was riding in the car, train, bus, etc. By the time I got back to my hotel each night, I was just too tired. In addition to writing, I saved ticket stubs, tourist brochures, napkins from restaurants, etc. I like to scrapbook so I use that format to store my memories. I use text, photos and paper souvenirs on almost every page of the scrapbook. If possible, try to note in your journal the name and address of the restaurants and hotels you visit. This comes in handy when you want to revisit these same places later. I regret I did not do that previously. I visited Paris in 1971 and went back years later but couldn't find my favorite restaurant, nor could I remember the name of it. Currently I'm keeping a pre-trip journal of tips off the slowtravel website. I'm making categories such as "Salzburg" and under it noting the restaurants, hotels, museums, etc, recommended by everyone on this site. The journal is small enough to fit in my fanny pack and I'll be able to use it as a reference guide when I arrive in each town. Happy journaling!
Patty

ive been madly travel jounalling on my laptop for the last six months... just reached 100,000 words the other day. The trick is making yourself set aside a few hours every couple of days to write everything down in as much detail as you can. It can be hard if youre with other people who dont get that the time you invest in your journal is "souvenir time" but once you explain that your diary is your biggest souvenir of this trip then they should shut up.

I write everything in my journal - right down to how much the trains were late. Im also honest. If I didnt like something, or I did something stupid, or had a bad experience then I still write about it and dont try to make it sound great if it wasnt.

I should also add that if it werent for the fact that im typing my journal, then i wouldnt have written a thing.

I agree with pretty much everyone here-- travel journaling is incredibly worthwhile, and I just love it when I'm cleaning out the closet or bookshelf and I come across one of my little notebooks. I am one of those on-and-off journalers in my regular life, but I really try to do it when I'm traveling. Here's my method:

1) First, I have to pick the perfect journal. I can honestly spend an hour at the bookstore picking up each one and feeling it. For me, the important thing is portability and ease of use. It needs to fit in my daily pack, and I have to be able to fold the front all the way back, easily, so I never get those nice leather ones. Usually it's spiral-bound with stiff cardboard covers-- that way I don't have to worry about finding a hard surface to write on.

2) Second, I have to make myself stick to a format. Every evening when I do my daily entry, I start by writing one short paragraph that just lists everything I did that day. After that, I'll write as much as I want about anything I thought was particularly special. If I don't do it this way, I feel compelled to describe every single event on a play-by-play basis! Then of course it ends up being pages long and in two or three days I'm burnt out and start avoiding my journal altogether! Anyway listing all the events of the day is very very helpful for organizing photos once I get home. When I make a photo or scrap book, I can get everything in order and I will have the names of all the monuments, parks, etc. It also helps organize the little things I collect along the way-- like you were saying, ticket stubs, programs, and so on. They ALWAYS get all mixed up, in my experience.

Actually, having a format like that might work especially well for a two-person journal. Which, by the way, sounds like a really neat idea! Maybe you could also take turns each day; one day you would write the main entry, and then he could make any extra comments he wanted underneath, and then the next day you could switch.

Congratulations on your marriage, and have fun in Paris/Provence!!!

Suzanne - I really like your suggestion about listing everything you did first and then just expanding on that where necessary. I completely agree that otherwise you end up writing down every single detail and burning out.

I'm interested to see how the joint journaling works and like your suggestion. I guess my idea was just to share the load and it'd be nice to have both of our thoughts on the trip and not just mine.

Saint_Bambi - Congrats on making it to 100,000 words...WOW!

Patty - I agree with writing while traveling in the car, train, bus...that is definitely my plan. I have to say that I'm just aching to get to the airport so I can start on the first entry!

We're off tomorrow for a whole month of wedding first and then honeymoon! Can't wait to get home from work today and finalize the packing!

Cary