TRAVEL JOURNAL

by S. E. Chambers, associate editor

A travel journal is one of the many kinds of personal writing one can contribute to bhag life journal. A journal can be used to organize thoughts and ideas about a specific event or project in one's life. It is like a scrapbook but all in words.

Both times I traveled to Paris, France, I decided to keep a small travel journal so I would have both written and photographic records of my experience. It was my first time seriously keeping a journal and I found it tedious. On the first visit to Paris, I brought along a blank notebook that fit nicely into my purse. I was able to sketch what I experienced and jot down notes about inspirations that I received during my visit. I found out that sketching scenes and jotting down quick notes helped me later to label the photographs and work on my scrapbook. Plus it supplemented my journal entries.

On my second visit to Paris, I set aside a specific time every night to download my digital pictures and type my journal on my PC. I used the quick notes and sketches to supplement my entries and to reconstruct my reasoning for that occasional out-of-place photograph. When I arrived back in the US, I printed all my photographs and journal entries and filed them with my first visit's memories into my scrapbook of Paris.

Sometimes keeping a journal can be exhausting, but it is rewarding. You can look back on your writings years from now and be able to recall the images and memories that might have been long forgotten.

© 2003 S. E. Chambers
 

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