What can I buy my sister that she can use on her trip to Italy this Spring?

March 4, 2009 9:06 AM

What can I buy my sister that she can use on her trip to Italy this Spring?

My sister's 33rd birthday is coming up in a few weeks and I usually spend around $50 on her present. I thought it might be fun to put together a few little things that she can use on her upcoming trip to Italy. I'm not sure if she has a guidebook yet.

I was thinking perhaps some cute or well-designed travel gadgets (she hasn't been to Europe or a long haul flight in 10 years). But I was thinking of getting some things that pertained to Italy or were Italy-specific like the *Wallpaper Rome Guide. She appreciates nice design and I've gotten some good ideas from this Design Sponge post. I want to put together something that will make her smile when she opens it (she lives across the country and it will be sent in the mail). Any ideas?

posted by Bunglegirl to shopping (11 comments total)

She might have some fun with this and it'll come in handy for other destinations as well.
posted by watercarrier at 10:00 AM on March 4

Somebody gave me this electronic translator a few years back. I speak near-fluent Italian and French but still found it incredibly useful. You could pair this with a good guidebook.
posted by charlesv at 10:42 AM on March 4

I once bought a Moleskin City Guide for my old room mate who was moving to NYC, she said it was the most useful gift she'd gotten in a long time.
Looks like they have a City Guide for Florence, Venice and Rome...

I wish I had bought one for when I lived in Madrid...it's half guide book, half journal...so she'll always have a memento of the trip...
posted by dearest at 11:52 AM on March 4

I think a good microfiber towel is a necessity for any long travel. not really that cute or design worthy I guess . . .
posted by Think_Long at 12:01 PM on March 4

If she doesn't have a camera, I would contribute to that. Nothing she'll want more.
posted by xammerboy at 12:16 PM on March 4

Thanks for the responses. Her trip is two weeks long. I travel with a travel towel and stay in hovels but I think she'll be staying at mid-market hotels.

She has a Nikon D70 and I think she's looking for a new bag for it (which I could contribute to or buy) so I'll keep that in mind.

I got her a small blank moleskine for her Christmas stocking. I love the city guides but aside from maps they are blank, no? It's a maybe.

I travel a lot and my pantomime skills are legendary so I totally forgot about the language issue. Her Spanish might help a tiny bit (it helped me understand basic things in Italy) but I hadn't thought of a translator. Thanks, another maybe!
posted by Bunglegirl at 12:42 PM on March 4

A Slow Food restaurant guide. This will get her to the best food. If you don't eat well in Italy, you've seriously blown it.
posted by Carmody'sPrize at 12:46 PM on March 4

I don't know how you would get it to her but I like to give people exchanged currency before they go overseas. That way they already have some euros when they get off the plane and don't have to worry about exchange in the airport (if it's late, closed, holiday, whatever). You could give the money with a cute passport sized bag.

A fancy brand of sunscreen. Sun glasses. A scarf if she's going to be in places that get cold. This necklace from etsy is cute but will use up most of your budget. This ring is similar and less $$.
posted by dog food sugar at 2:09 PM on March 4

I found a travel book to be very helpful. When I was in Italy, there are many museums, so I only went to the big ones, and some books explain the significance of what you're looking at. Also, there are decent restaurant and shopping suggestions.

There will be many waiting periods that she'll need entertainment. If she doesn't have an ipod, maybe you could get one for her, or some songs.

She'll also need a nice, comfy, stylish shoes, a light jacket.

A small size bottle of a good haircare product to tame her hair if it's sensitive to humidity.

I went to all kinds of places and found very little language barrier. If she has one of those small collection of most common questions/answers, she should be fine.

She'll also need a really good, sturdy, not flashy or too big, to carry all her stuff.
posted by icollectpurses at 2:46 PM on March 4

Is she going with anyone, or a group? We had a group of 5 friends (plus one child) and two rental cars. A pair of nice walkie talkies was the smartest thing we took since we inevitably got separated while walking or driving in and around all those super cool little mountaintop villages. I don't know how much they cost but they were very helpful and easier/cheaper to use than cell phones.
posted by ourroute at 6:47 PM on March 4

On my last trip to France my stepfather brought along a little food dictionary, both French-English/ English-French. Even with my studies in several romance languages, I found it quite helpful (I mean, one can study a language for years and still not know how to say nutmeg, you know?)
I can't give you a specific reference for an Italian version, but here's a version I found looking on Amazon.
posted by queseyo at 11:10 PM on March 4