Travelling with a favorite toy and photographing it in front of various landmarks, began as a totally off the wall idea known as the travelling gnome. It originated in Australia in the 1980’s, and is now firmly entrenched in popular culture. I first came across it in the quirky little french film Amélie, and I’ve been dying to do it ever since. Adults may have come up with this idea, but it has plenty of kid appeal. All you need is a toy and a camera.
Since garden gnomes are a bit cumbersome to lug around, we invited our temperamental little friend, iBat, to join us on our USA road trip, where we travelled from Toronto to Florida and back in just under three weeks. We stayed in ten different cities, with plenty of pit stops along the way, and a nice lengthy stay near Hogwarts. iBat was thrilled to come along, but returned home sulking because I forgot to photograph him at the Edgar Allan Poe Museum in Philadelphia. He was right there, hanging off the back of my purse, but I just plain forgot about the little guy, and snapped a ton of shots – without him.
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