When it’s spring again, I’ll bring again… plastic tulips from Amsterdam, a watch in a snow globe from Switzerland and a miniature Eiffel Tower from Paris. Ah, the bane of travelling that is souvenir purchasing and carting them back home. Veronica Stivala ponders this existential conundrum...

When I was young, I had an aunt who had a display case in her living room full of dolls dressed in traditional outfits from countries around the world.

I used to love looking at these pretty dolls – I wasn’t allowed to touch them – and wondering what the place they came from was like.

My aunt had bought some herself, while others were gifts from friends and family who had gone travelling.

I never asked whether she was glad she had been brought so many souvenirs because I was too young, but the fact they were put on display must have been a positive sign.

I too have been brought various souvenirs from friends and relatives and although it is admittedly difficult to find place on my shelves for them, I still have every one stored safely in a cupboard.

Typical gifts often lack style and taste, but can have a certain kitsch appeal.

They range from the piece of lava rock my brother brought me from Mount Etna, to a miniature San Damiano Cross associated with St Francis of Assisi a junior school teacher had once brought back from Perugia for all her students, to a snow globe from Switzerland, a red-and-white polka dot pen in the shape of Minnie Mouse from Disneyland, a teddy bear from Germany and a little Paddington complete with the ‘Please Look After This Bear’ tag from London.

I remember clearly being given each of these souvenirs and cherish them dearly, especially since some were given to me when I was really young and became my first taste of ‘abroad’; I had not yet been on a plane.

Of course, come my first trip overseas, it was my turn to get some souvenirs from France, both for myself and for my friends back home. Luckily, this was an extended family trip, so my parents did not have to pay for gifts for aunts, uncles and grandparents, and purchases of Holy Water (we went to Lourdes) were kept to a controllable minimum.

Souvenir buying can be fun at first, particularly when you are still a child, but it can turn into a burden – and not just like the time I got stopped by US security officers when I was innocently carrying bubble-wrapped glass drink stirrers in my hand luggage.

What exactly is your friend going to do with a plastic pretzel or a miniature statue of the leaning Tower of Pisa?

As luggage content and weight restrictions get stricter, making space for key chains, statuettes, soft toys and trinkets can be an issue, especially when you travel frequently.

And where do you draw the line for who you buy?

As you grow older, you inevitably end up with more relatives and it can become quite a problem if you don’t want to offend people.

Embarrassment can also be a factor. After all, what exactly is your friend going to do with a plastic pretzel or a miniature statue of the leaning Tower of Pisa?

Although I am troubled by these deep, existential dilemmas, never­theless I have recently bought shot glasses with leprechauns on them from Ireland, a miniature alarm clock from London (don’t ask why) and landscape paintings of Berlin.

Perhaps souvenir buying is especially popular in Malta because we keep in contact with and regularly see many relatives since we are such a small country.

Yet for those who think we have it rough, I must share a fact about Japanese culture.

In Japan, it is not custom for holidaymakers to send postcards but instead to buy a souvenir.

When you are expected to bring back presents for colleagues too, and knowing that they will get offended if they do not receive something, this evidently puts a bit of pressure on the traveller. I dare not think about what colleagues do in a travel agency.

The redeeming factor in Japan is that the gifts are often edible: I have found myself resorting to this nifty solution.

While recipients might find themselves at a loss to make use of trinkets, a delicious box of Belgian chocolates, fresh cheese from France, pasta from Italy or pistachio liqueur from Sicily surely never goes amiss.

Airports have been catering for chocolate buyers for years and now even have fridges with fresh produce so you can easily buy some Brie, Porcini mushrooms or Salami just before you board a plane, neatly avoiding packing issues, though you may find the prices are higher than in local shops.

Food makes a great option for anyone not wanting to waste money or burden friends and family with useless gifts.

Should we do away with non-edible souvenirs though? Never!

If we do, then what will proud children bring back for their relatives after their first trip abroad?