Mexico in a Box...

If you read You are My Fave, you know that Melanie is pretty much the queen of doing anything "in a box".  They're always some of my favorite posts and I love how each item is chosen carefully and laid out, and pulled together lovingly to brighten someone's day.

I've been traveling quite a bit recently and my grandmother always asks me for two things: postcards and hotel pens (she may or may not have a habit of, let's say, "collecting" them).  She no longer has the use of her legs but is still an adventurer at heart and I know she would have loved this trip through and through, from the colors everywhere to the breeziness of the beach. 

Here's what went inside the box:

1. An issue of Hola magazine, the Spanish version of Hello (or the equivalent of fine literature staples such as US Weekly), if there is one thing my grandmother adores, it's glossy updates of royals and glitterati, even if its in Spanish.
2. Postcards from Valladolid and Chichen Itza - it doesn't matter if my grandmother wasn't on the trip, she loves to send them out anyway as a proxy.
3. A wooden pen that was bedside at our hotel in Maroma
4. A book about Mexico produced by the Xcaret park - they had it in the gift shop and the photos and illustrations were gorgeous - they cover the ancient civilizations, food and folklore from all parts of Mexico, and explain all kinds of traditions.  In retrospect, I should have bought one for myself as well.
5. A little sombrero
6. A straw fan - I thought the colors were amazing but it's also a practical item as well - yes, my grandmother is never without a fan.
7. A caftan from our hotel in Maroma - they had these great breezy cotton caftans that you could just throw on.  Almost like a natural colored muu muu - this is straight up my grandmother's alley for easy pieces around the pool in the summer heat
8. Papel picado - I can never get enough of these paper banners - I got a few extra for us in case a party pops up but since paper cutting is also big in the Polish tradition, I know my grandmother will appreciate these too.

And that's it! I didn't appreciate how hard it would be to photograph all the items but I promise to brush up on this!

All photos by The New Diplomat's Wife.