My Idea of a Souvenir

Key chains, t-shirts, snow globes, fridge magnets: I've bought all of these things and other destination bric-a-brac in tourist settings, but I also think the standard notion of souvenirs is unnecessarily restrictive. Or maybe I just have an eccentric take on the idea. That's probably it.

I didn't have much time to acquire conventional souvenirs in Mexico, though I did get a few items at the Puerto Vallarta airport to distribute to family members. I didn't want anything like that for myself, besides postcards, because I already had a couple of uniquely Mexican items to remind me of my short stay in 2009.

Namely, breakfast cereal boxes. This one amused me no end:

Note that it's an Edición Retro, which tells me that Mexicans have been enjoying their Fruti Lupis quite a long time, long enough for Kellogg's to mount a marketing effort that appeals to nostalgia. Note also that Toucan Sam is just Sam in Mexico.

Tony the Tiger, on the other hand, is Tigre Toño. He's retro too.

The cereals inside have already been eaten. They're exactly the same as their U.S. counterparts in taste, color, texture and everything else, but they aren't an export to Mexico. One of the side panels on each box notes, "Henco in Mexico." That makes them genuine souvenirs, to my way of thinking, though I expect I'll only save the front panels.

Happy Easter to all. Christus resurrexit, vere resurrexit!