Keeping A Travel Journal

As I mentioned in a previous post, I spent July in Ecuador, volunteering in local communities and travelling around the country. It was an incredible trip, more of which I will be sharing here on this blog, and I’m so glad I took the time to write it all down. I remember before going on the trip perusing Pinterest in search of inspiration.. Where should I get the journal from? Lined or plain? And how thick should it be? Do I take graphite pencils or normal pencils? I’m chuckling to myself as I write this; it seems so petty and it probably is. But for a lover of beautiful things.. this is a once in a lifetime trip! Of course I have to record it and I have to do it right!

I decided to get a set of three smaller Moleskines (I used the yellow one for this trip) instead of one chunky one because I didn’t want a half empty journal. I also wanted to do a bit of sketching whilst away, leaving my beloved graphite pencils behind and instead taking some normal pencils. I also took the necessities; biros, a rubber and a sharpener. Now the only problem left was how to store all of this so that I could throw it in my hand luggage without worrying.

Ideally I would have used a journal holder type thing, I found some on Pinterest like the ones here. But they are damn expensive and hard to find so in the end I settled for something just as good (maybe just not as pretty!)

 Turns out the moleskines I bought fit perfectly inside a clear pencil case I had lying around from exam season. I probably could have fitted a lot more in there if I'd have wanted, maybe some paintbrushes and a mini watercolour set - something I'm building myself up to do.

 

 In addition to writing everyday, I also picked up a cheap disposable camera from Boots. The plan was to take one photo everyday for the month, which I stuck to.. kinda! And then attach those photos in with the corresponding days in my journal. It bulked up my journal and left it feeling a little heftier, as well as hopefully adding to the nostalgia I'll feel when looking back on it in years to come. I'm so glad I also took the time to do a few sketches over the month. There's nothing like drawing something right in front of you instead of from a photo. Now when I look back over the drawings it takes me back to what I was thinking of as I sat and sketched, I know it's kinda soppy but I'm only being honest!
Finally I added this ribbon to keep it all together - after adding all those photos it literally wouldn't shut!
And there ya go. I hope that was helpful to anyone thinking of starting a travel journal.
I'd love to hear of other ideas...
Georgina