Then why am I presently in possession of about a hundred blue glass eye beads, a handful of brass Athena-owl keychains, and a vast quantity of worry beads? Oops.
So you can imagine why my heart was cheered recently when I read of the misfortune of a poor woman traveling alone from Hong Kong on Singapore Airlines. When she arrived in the States, she was subjected to a ghastly day-long ordeal of searches by the Customs Service, which ultimately resulted in a lawsuit against them. Why was she picked out for this treatment? Officials said she was a woman in her fifties traveling alone from Hong Kong on a flight that was often used by drug traffickers. Most suspiciously, she was not carrying any mementoes from her trip to Hong Kong.
So buying souvenirs is not a useless indulgence. It's a necessity. Approach Customs proudly with bulging bags of individually-wrapped worry beads, and with a few rolled rugs poking out of your baggage.
But wait - what if you're already home and discovering that your cache of gifts for the people back home is running dangerously low - or, for shame! you've found you can't bear to give that antique set of worry beads to your uncle Harry after all. Try these post-trip resources.
Greek Imports Inc.
Already at home and discovered your nautically-inclined boss is expecting a Greek fisherman's hat? Stop by this Daly City, California firm where they will happily send you a Greek fisherman's hat for $14.95.
Greekshops.com
Here's online shopping for a variety of Greek products, including books and maps, icons, jewelry and watches, embroidery conveniently listed by island, and even AEK Greek Football (Soccer) fan gear.
Happy souvenir hunting!
