Top Ten Pens

I've numbered my top ten but they are not really in any particular order........

1. Cross.
I love the way Cross ballpoints write. I have 3 (dont know their model names) but I dont carry them about too often as I'm scared I lose them! Get a life I hear you say.
2. Uni Jetstream from the Mitsubishi Pencil Company.
My current favourite. Quick dry gel pen. Such a smooth writer.
3. Pilot V
A liquid ink pen. Great in black or red. Smooth and cool for notes.
4. Pentel Superb
A cheap but 'pleasure to write with' ballpoint.
5. Lamy Safari Fountain Pen.
Costs about £13 and is a good fountain pen to start with. It looks chunky but doesn't feel chunky to write with.
6. Stabilo Pen 68
We'd have called this a felt pen when we were young. Never had a felt tip as good as this though. Great colours
7. Fisher Space Pen
It has to be the bullet pen. I've never had to write under water or upside down and the bullet shape is so small and aerodynamic I keep losing them but the coolest pen ever.
8. Berol Notewriter.
Blue barrel. Kind of felt tip pen. I have a set of Underground pens where each colour pen is an underground line and these seem simlar to the notewriter. Lasts fo what feels like forever.
9. Stabilo Point 88 mini
A great fineliner but smaller.
10. Berol Rollerwriter.
Yellow barrel. The first pen I truly loved having. My brother bought me it. I was at school and he was at University so of course it was cool. Used them for years. Think they might not be made anymore. I haven't seen them for ages.

Travel Journal-Paperchase Wire bound

This travel journal comes from Paperchase. It's spiral bound with several sections, some lined paper, some plain paper. It also has some see through pockets and paper pockets for putting in mementos. It's quite bulky because although it's A5 size the wire binding is quite large. Still it was thrown into my rucksack and happily carted round Cuba on buses and taxis.
The paper copes best with a ballpoint (Pentel Superb my favourite) and a fibre tip type pen like a Berol Notewriter.
What I like about it is that it isn't too perfect. It's not one of those very special notebooks that I'm frightened to write in. I was happy to write about our experiences (and in Cuba everything is an experience!) draw pictures in it and it was good to have places to slip in cards from the casas we stayed in and other pieces of memorabilia. I have used a smaller A6 version for a trip to Austin, Texas to record some highlights. Because of its size highlights, addresses, quick reviews, travel details are what it's good for.
Now Cuba? That's a whole blog to itself......... Fantastic lace, fantastic people. Book a flight now. Go now. Enjoy before it changes into a horrible American theme park in a few years...