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Tips For Keeping a Travel Journal
When traveling, keeping a journal can be one of the most valuable and rewarding things you do! It provides a fun way of keeping track of what you have done for future reference and it will bring back memories for years to come.
Depending on your preference, a spiral-bound notebook or a blank artist's sketch book both work very well for travel journals. The lines in the notebook help keep your writing organized while the artist's sketch book encourages your creative juices. Also a careful selection of writing implements is recommended. If you prefer pencils, get a mechanical pencil so you don't have to worry about the lead breaking or getting dull. Also, pencil markings don't run if the writing gets wet by accident. If you like pens better, get several in case the ink decides to run out!

You can write in your journal at any time or even many times through out the day but most people pick a quiet time in the evening to sit, relax, and think about what they've experienced throughout the day.
When you are ready to write in your travel journal, start by recording the date, time, and location you are at when you begin writing. This will be helpful later when you read back through it. What you write next is up to you. You can record how many miles you traveled that day, what places you visited, restaurants you ate at, roads you traveled, and all the quirky things that may have happened, like getting splashed with mud while changing a tire, or ending up in the hospital with a bug in the ear! You can also doodle or sketch pictures of things you see along the way.
A laptop is another option some people prefer. Using a computer to keep your travel journal is good too. It allows you to write (type) a lot faster and you can share your journal with others by uploading to e-mail or an online web-log or "blog". By keeping your journal on the computer you can easily add photographs if you have a digital camera with a cable attachment or removable chip. You can also print out the page later when you get home. The drawbacks of a laptop journal is that you have to take the time to boot it up and you have to make sure you have power available if you are going to type for any length of time. Also, it's rather difficult to make a quick sketch on the computer when you see something of interest!
There are many options for keeping a travel journal and you need to choose what will work best for you. Keep it simple, fun, and creative!

Learn more about this author, Roan Kishpaugh.
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