Souvenirs

Souvenir Sunday: Chubu Centrair Int’l Airport, Nagoya Japan

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It’s Souvenir Sunday, a day to take a look at some of the cool, inexpensive items you can buy when you’re Stuck at the Airport.

This week’s treats from the Chubu Centrair International Airport in Nagoya, Japan, which I visited recently for a preview of the Flight of Dreams attraction the airport built around the first 787 Dreamliner test plane.

Courtesy Flight of Dreams

Read about the Flight of Dreams project in this recent post, but take a moment to scroll below to see the  fun souvenirs I spotted in the Chubu Centrair International Airport in Nagoya.

Plush dolls portray the mascot of the airport in Nagoya, Japan

 

Aviation-themed stationary items for sale at the airport in Nagoya, Japan

Souvenir Sunday needs your help. If you see an inexpensive, locally-themed souvenir in an airport shop, please snap a photo and send it along to StuckatTheAirport.com. (Bonus points it the item is unusual or odd.) If your souvenir is featured on Souvenir Sunday, we’ll send you a cool travel souvenir.

Silly souvenirs spotted at Orlando International Airport

Souvenirs,

My flight today from  Orlando International Airport leaves pretty darn early.

Too early to take a tour of the art and too early for most shops to be open.

But a few newstands are have their lights turned on, giving me a chance to scan MCO’s offerings of souvenir chocolate ‘droppings’ for the growing StuckatTheAirport.com collection.

Luckily, there are plenty of options on the shelves.

Orlando International Airport souvenir

Orlando International Airport souvenir

These choices are good, but the offering also include Gator Droppings and another version of Pelican Poop:

Orlando International Airport souvenir

The photos should be better, but I had to take them on the sly. For some reason the shop clerk was enforcing a strict “No photos before 6 a.m” policy.

Help us expand the collection. If you spot a fun version of themed chocolate ‘poop’ at an airport, please snap a photo and send it along.

TSA’s travel tips for getting souvenirs home from Comic-Con

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TSA’s blog has some helpful information for anyone heading home through San Diego International Airport after attending Comic-Con International this week – and for those traveling with collectibles and souvenirs from this or any other special event.

TSA suggests that if you’re traveling with a collectible item that has an original seal on it that you don’t want broken, that you ship it home instead of taking the chance that the seal will broken during a TSA search.

Getting dressed up in a costume to attend an event? TSA reminds travelers that neither replica weapons nor real weapons should be placed in carry-on bags and that while both replica weapons and real weapons can be packed in checked bags, actual firearms must meet packing guidelines and be declared.

And, TSA s suggests that if you’re traveling with a lot of brochures, comic books or other books that you put them in your carry-on bag and then place them in a bin prior before sending them through the x-ray machines.

Those items can show up as dense blocks and “Packing these items in checked bags may cause alarms leading to bag searches that can cause a significant slowdown in the screening process leading to delays and bags possibly missing their flights,” says TSA.

Exchange leftover currency for Bitcoin at Schiphol Airport

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Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport says it is the first European airport to install Bitcoin ATMS that allow passengers to exchange leftover euros for Bitcoin or Ethereum.

The kiosks – located in Arrival Hall 2 and in the corridor to Departure Halls 1 and 2 – are on site for a six month trial and are part of the airport’s efforts to always be looking for ways to innovate and provide “optium” service to passengers, Tanja Dik, Schiphol’s director of Consumer Products & Services said in a statement, “With the Bitcoin ATM, we hope to provide a useful service to passengers by allowing them to easily exchange ‘local’ euros for the ‘global’ cryptocurrencies Bitcoin and Ethereum. That can be beneficial if, for instance, it’s not possible to spend euros in their home country.”

 

Would you use this machine to get rid of euros or use them instead to buy something fun in Schiphol shops selling cheese, tulip bulbs and other fun souvenirs of your visit?

Souvenir Sunday: Sydney Airport

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Beyond memories, it’s a good idea to bring home souvenirs to remind us of our adventures out in the world.

I found this addition to my growing collection of chocolate ‘poo’ at Syndey Airport, on my way home from a conference.

Just another example of the fun, inexpensive, locally-themed gifts you can find when you’re stuck at the airport.

Have you found a fun, somewhat odd gift at an airport? Snap a photo and send it along to us here at StuckatTheAirport.com. If your photo is used in a future post, you’ll receive a fun souvenir as a thank-you.

 

Souvenir Sunday: wacky plane + Extreme Post-its

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It’s Souvenir Sunday – a day to look at some cool things you can buy at airports and gadgets that are good for the road.

This week’s treats come from El Dorado International Airport in Bogota, Colombia. And from the folks who make Post-its.

At the airport in Bogota, I spotted – and now regret not buying – this offbeat airplane souvenir with wacky passengers, including chickens in the windows and a lady sunbathing on the wing. I may have to make a return trip to secure this travel souvenir.

And there’s a new version of those ever-useful Post-its.

These are called Extreme Notes and the suggested use if for everything – wet walls, pipes, cloth, wood doors, etc – except paper.

I always travel with a pad of sticky notes because they come in handy for all sorts of things: I often use them as “Do Not Disturb” signs in hotels that don’t have door hangers and I put them over the peep holes on hotel doors. I’ll start using the Extreme version now and likely sleep much better on the road.

Souvenir Sunday at Frankfurt & Austin Bergstrom Int’l Airports

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Today is Souvenir Sunday – a day to look at some of the fun things you can buy – or just look at – when you’re stuck at the airport.

This week’s treats come from Frankfurt Airport, where I ended up spending the night on my way home from a visit to Florence, Italy, where I spotted these champagne cork-shaped seats at a bar in the Amerigo Vespucci Airport (FLR).

At the Frankfurt Airport, I came across plenty of Christmas-themed souvenirs, including nutcrackers and ornaments shaped like pickles. Why pickles? Evidently the tradition of hiding a pickle-shaped ornament in your Christmas tree and giving an extra present to the first person who finds it orginated in Germany.

And lucky travelers on one special Southwest Airlines flight from Austin Bergstrom International Airport to Chicago last Thursday got some great souvenirs.

The airline teamed up with Austin-based jeweler Kendra Scott and gave all passengers on the flight a free drink, goodie bags and gift boxes filled with – you guessed it – jewelry! – at baggage claim delivered by a yellow-clad Santa.

If you see a great souvenir when you’re stuck at the airport, please take a photo and send it along. If your photo is featured on Souvenir Sunday I’ll send you an aviation-themed souvenir.

 

Souvenir Sunday at Quito International Airport

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It’s Souvenir Sunday – the day StuckatTheAirport.com takes a look at inexpensive, locally-themed items you can find at airports around the world.

This week’s treats come from the Mariscal Sucre International Airport in Quito, Ecuador.

Shops inside the airport sell many items from the region, but the airport recently opened a socially responsible store offering agricultural products grown and provided by the families living near the airport.

The new shop is called Nuestra Huerta – which means ‘Our Garden’ – and is located in the Airport Center building, across the street from the airport passenger terminal.

16 farmers and their families from the Puembo, Pifo, Tababela, Yaruqui and Checa communities are running the shop, which sells fresh produce, such as strawberries, avocados and lettuce, as well as honey and a variety of bagged snacks.

International passengers may not be able to fly home with a head of lettuce from Quito, but honey, snacks and many other items will certainly travel – and the shop is certain to be popular with arriving passengers and those who work at the airport.