Christmas is over and thankfully, there’s a few months of reprieve until shopping begins for next year's holiday. I did the majority of my Christmas shopping in Italy. Yes, there’s an article coming soon (maybe this weekend) about cheap souvenirs to buy in Italy. And since Thanksgiving is an American holiday (which is when I was in Italy), I didn't have to deal with the Black Friday mess. Yeah!My overall budget for the trip wasn't as much as I would have liked. Because of the weak Dollar (it hit an all-time low during the trip), I used cash sparingly (to use where plastic wasn't accepted) and relied on my debit card and a couple of credit cards.
This Christmas, I think everyone was pleased with their Italian gifts. It was almost like a scavenger hunt, I really didn't know what to get but found great treasures. Got lost in Venice’s alleys and found a great little shop for jewelry. In Florence, wandered the local markets and found a wool cap for my Dad and in Rome popped into several little shops around the Vatican finding those special Catholic gifts. I was also on the hunt for a specific candy and by chance, found it in Rome, too.
I didn't do too much damage to my credit cards but for those who did, visit my friends over at Beat That Quote and apply for loans to do away with ugly Christmas debt before next year’s shopping begins.
Photo: Some of the Italian gifts and treasures I found.
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