Notes from the road

The digital world offers us many options to keep records, but for some there is nothing like a journal

Yang Li carefully traces the outline of Myanmar's map with a pencil, transferring it to her notebook with carbon paper. She then uses colored tape to make a collage in the shape of the map.

It's a simple way to produce a travel journal, which contains both illustrations, photos and text as you capture your experience.

"It's like the journey becomes an indelible memory, because each time you thumb through the pages, you remember the happy times," says Yang, 39.

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She has been keeping travel journals for around three years, and she teaches others how to make them.

Speaking about travel diaries, Yang, who is now a freelance illustrator, says: "You may soon forget about digital photos and rarely browse them on your computer, but it is convenient to read your journals repeatedly."

She adds that making a travel journal is like creating art, and everyone has a unique style.

Her diaries contain travel tips. She records details like things to pack and information about public transportation.

So, whenever her friends have questions before they go to a destination she has visited, she can take out a journal to help them.

Such journals have become popular in Europe, the United States and a few Asian countries, including Japan and South Korea, in the past two decades, Yang says.

But the trend is in its infancy on the Chinese mainland.

Yang uses pens, paints and notebooks.

While traveling, she collects such items as tourist guides and can produce a pretty journal without spending much money.

She often cuts out things from a map or a brochure to use in a journal.

She also buys ink stamps and carves her own from erasers, etching designs of local images, such as iconic landscapes and buildings.

And she records memorable stories and beautiful scenery by drawing.

For instance, at Bayon Temple in Angkor Thom, Cambodia, she painted the iconic "face towers" known as the smile of Khmer, using a mixture of the red earth and water.

Speaking about the kind of people who are likely to maintain travel diaries, she says: "Those who prefer a fast pace of life may not like doing it. But nowadays, many people want to cultivate their own interests and often like handmade things.

"You don't have to be adept at painting, You can start by pasting things you like in the journal. You can do simple drawings."

Referring to those who enjoy photography, she says they often find that keeping such journals is a good way to preserve the pictures.

Li Shanshan uses a pocket photo printer to print the photos she takes and pastes them in her journal.

The 30-year-old Beijing primary school teacher does not draw very much, but she collects items to include in her journal.

She also often reads others' journals online to learn how to improve her own diaries.

Li takes photos of stray cats in iconic places, at home and abroad, and is preparing a journal about them.

"I enjoy the process. When I collect the items, I am happy because I know I will use them in my journal. I record my feelings about the trip when I return home."

Some people, however, like to record other things in a journal.

Chen Jiahong, 21, says: "Keeping journals helps me to organize my life and makes me feel positive. It also reminds me of my progress. I feel a sense of accomplishment and am motivated to do more."

The junior at Beijing Sport University uses the same method to take notes in class. She's more motivated to learn when she sees beautiful drawings and cute stickers.

Chen, who shares photos of her journal on social media, says her parents are supportive because they know she uses the journals to organize her life and studies.

Zhao Shanshan, 20, says: "The journal has become an inseparable part of my life. I take time off to record my daily life. The palest of ink is better than the best memory."

The junior at a university in Dalian, Liaoning province, adds that keeping a journal has also improved her ability to study because she uses the journal to make a reading plan and follow it.

Zhao, who has used the internet to make friends with others who keep journals, says they get together in coffeehouses from time to time to exchange notes and pretty tape.

When she started keeping a journal, she spent about 3,000 yuan ($436; 412 euros; 349) on tape. Each roll cost about 10 to 50 yuan.

"You can't help buying tape because you are anxious to use it to make your journal fancy. But then I found I did not need so much tape because the most important thing is the content," she says.

xulin@chinadaily.com.cn