The Travelite® FAQ

In general, my mantra is “If you don’t need it, leave it home.” Once in a while, though, I make an exception because the item makes life so much easier.

One such item is the travel tray. They aren’t particularly popular items at travel supply stores so you might have trouble finding them, but you do occasionally run into them in unexpected places. The best one I got was a brown Hello Kitty travel tray for $1 at the dollar store in the San Francisco Japantown a few years ago (OK, so it’s Hello Kitty… but how can you beat a buck?).

Mall store Brookstone offers a no-frills travel tray. Photo courtesy Brookstone.

What makes these travel trays OK in my book is that when not in use, they’re just completely flat, like a sheet of cardboard. To use it, you pinch the corners together and snap the buttons together, and now you have a little tray.

Maxpedition, an online store that sells a lot of rugged gear, also sells a travel tray. Unlike the one from Brookstone, this one even includes a little pouch on one side for your small items, like rings. Photo courtesy of Maxpedition.com.

Why is a travel tray so convenient that I actually think it’s OK to pack? Because it helps you keep all your stuff together in one place when you get back to your hotel room! Your wallet, your cell phone, your car keys, your hotel key card…

While you might have a place for everything when you’re home (and not even think about it when you go to grab them), staying at a hotel means things aren’t at their ordinary places. It would be so easy to misplace things.

I’ve gone so far as to keep my cell phone in the travel tray while getting it charged!

Fortunately, once you unsnap the corners, these travel trays are pretty travelite-friendly. Just slide them into the side of your carry-on and you’ll barely notice it’s there.

Cosmetics consumer advocate Paula Begoun (who has authored a number of books on practical cosmetic tips and sells her own line of skin care and cosmetics), recently discussed the topic of how to pack your cosmetics for travel in her syndicated radio show. You can listen to an archive of her show here.

Paula explained that she flies between 150,000 to 200,000 miles per year for her job (since she oversees overseas manufacturing of her products), and that she has a standard regimen she follows when flying. Some of her more handy tips include:

Laying out everything you plan to pack, on your bed – this lets you see if you’re taking anything unnecessary, and also lets you see if you’re missing anything important.

Wearing sunscreen on the plane – this is something most people don’t think about. But when you are flying at 30,000 feet during the day, you are getting a lot of UV rays through the windows.

Wear shoes that expand – Paula talked about all the women she saw in the airport wearing high heels who are in agony because their feet swell when they fly. Paula recommends comfortable stylish shoes from manufacturers like Merrell and Clark, and orders her shoes from Zappos.com (so do I!). She warns against wearing flip-flips because they provide no support.

Wear loose, comfortable clothing – Paula is particularly keen on wearing jersey knits, and mentioned MyShape.com as a great Web site for purchasing comfortable clothes for full figures, and Missook for women with a bigger budget. While I agree that jersey knits are comfortable, I have to disagree with Paula here, because jersey knits are a pain to hand wash. Unless you plan to stay in a hotel with laundry machines, stick with travel-friendly fabrics like “scrunch cloth” from Orvis.

Wear easy-to-remove make-up on the flight – Paula recommends that you go ahead and remove your make-up once you settle down on your flight, using a baby wet wipe, which will take everything off except the stubborn mascara. Once your make-up is off, she recommends keeping your face moist with face cream to combat the dry air in the cabin.

Paula carries the following in her quart-sized resealable bag, which she keeps in her carry-on:

• Nasal decongestant spray (such as Afrin) – this helps you breathe easier and prevents pressure problems when your plane is about to land. If you are tight on room in your quart-sized bag, my suggestion is a nasal decongestant inhaler stick (like Vicks Vapor Inhaler). The stick is the same size as a stick of lip balm, and is a solid. Be careful: Both of these products clear your sinuses by shrinking the membrane, and you don’t want to use it all the time.
• Your favorite fragrance – this makes you feel a little more feminine. Be careful not to spritz on too much; the last thing people like to do is smell strong perfume in an enclosed cabin. Just a dab on your neck will do.
• Your entire full skin care routine, in travel-sized containers – Paula recommends toner, cleanser, moisturizer, etc. for her regimen.
• Travel-sized stick of deodorant
• Toothbrush and toothpaste
• Moisturizer for your hands, like shea butter or cocoa butter – the Body Shop has little travel-sized tins of their Body Butter that is perfect for this. She says your hands will only feel greasy for a short while, but that the extra thick moisturizer will keep your hands from drying out during the flight.
• Lubricating eye drops – since your eyes dry out as much as your skin does.
• Silicone serum for your hair – keeps hair from frizzing out. She recommends the Garnier Fructis Brilliantine Shine Glossy Spray, which conveniently comes in 3-ounce spray bottles.

Paula likes to remove all her make-up on the flight, and then go through her entire skin care regimen and put her make-up on before the plane lands. If you brush your teeth and get all your make-up back on, you will feel like a civilized person when you land, and you’ll be able to hit the ground running.

For the most part, I think she’s got the right idea. Since I recommend taking everything with you in your carry-on, though, it means you need to be a little more organized about what you pack in your quart-sized toiletry bag. For example, the silicone serum spray might be handy since it comes in a 3-ounce bottle, the reason Garnier sells the product in a 3-ounce bottle is because most people will only need two sprays to tame their hair. Nobody in the world will run out of this product during their vacation trip… so there’s incentive for the Travelite packer to transfer the silicone serum into say a 1-ounce spritzer bottle.

If you’re like me, you take a small list of items in your carry-on that most travelers don’t bother packing. Whether your handy item is a diaper pin (to pin your sweater on the seatback in front of you on the plane or to pin your ID tag inside your carry-on) or a small container of baby powder (to keep your feet from feeling too sweaty when it’s hot, or lessen the greasy-haired look if you can’t get to a shower for another day), these small items take up very little room but can be very handy and have multiple uses.

One of those really handy items is a roll of adhesive cello tape. Most of us are most familiar with the Scotch brand. Scotch tape can be immensely helpful when traveling. Besides keeping paperwork together when you don’t have a stapler, you can use strips of these as a lint remover, cover up a small cut when you don’t have a bandage, prevent a snag in your clothes from getting worse, provide endless entertainment for a toddler on a plane, and so on.

Honestly, the only inconvenience about a roll of Scotch tape has been its dispenser. The zig-zagged edge made cutting the tape handy, but the cutting end stuck out, and took up a lot of space; space you don’t want to give up when you’re traveling with just your carry-on.

Manufacturer 3M has come to the traveler’s rescue with a brand new Scotch tape dispenser in the form of a plastic donut.

Scotch Magic Tape in a donut dispenser

A quick glance shows an obvious difference to a regular tape dispenser. This is a completely enclosed, round plastic donut with no extraneous parts.

A traditional dispenser (left) next to the new Donut dispenser.

The convenience for travelers is that the donut dispenser can be tossed into your carry-on, but can also just as easily get tethered to your bag  using a short string or bead chain. As an added convenience, having a brightly colored plastic ring on your carry-on gives you a quick and easy way to identify your bag as yours.

You’re probably looking at this donut dispenser and wondering how the dispenser actually works. Is it just a plastic ring with tape inside, that you have to untwist to get to? Nothing so difficult. If you look closely, you see a white tab on the dispenser. That’s the opening. On the top of the white tab on both sides are two little round nubs of plastic, which you flick to open the tab. The tab itself is hinged, so when you flick the tab open, the little jaw opens up and shows up a peek into the inside of the dispenser.

Inside, is a standard roll of Scotch tape with the familiar green checkerboard bit of tape that indicates the start of the roll. The plastic dispenser consists of two halves of a donut; just wiggle it a bit and pull the two halves open. Once you open the halves, just pull the starter tape out and pull it onto the white tab. Close the halves up again, and you’re set to go.

The white tab acts as the dispensing portion of the donut.

Whenever you want to use some tape, just open the white hinged tab. Pull out whatever amount of tape you want, cut it on the jagged edge of the white tab, then snap the white tab shut and you’re good to go. The white tab snaps into place and will not come open on its own, but it can be easily unsnapped and unhinged with one thumb or finger.

You’ll read some negative reviews of this product online, but it looks like people get frustrated by overthinking this product. Some people aren’t happy that you have to fold the tape away before you close the tab, some people aren’t happy with the smaller roll of tape it comes with. The thing is, you don’t need to do anything with the tape before you shut the lid. The tape end stays stuck right on the teeth of the white tab, and the extra tape just folds over naturally when you shut the tab.

Once you're done with your tape, just snap the white tab shut.

The best thing about this new donut dispenser is that it’s refillable with a standard sized roll of tape (of either the 1/2 or 3/4 inch variety); no need to find special tape for this dispenser.

Scotch sells a number of other special dispensers, including pre-cut pop-up tape dispensers. I’m not too keen on that one because, although it’s handy, it limits the length of tape you dispense at a time, and inch-for-inch, costs considerably more than a regular refill roll of tape.

The Scotch Magic Tape with Donut Dispenser comes with a roll of 300-inch tape. If you plan on using this a lot on your trip, you might consider swapping it out with your own larger refill roll. The dispenser comes in a variety of bright colors (purple, turquoise, lime green, pink, red), and you can buy it at most office supply stores for a few bucks. If you have trouble finding this at your store (in my experience, these seem to sell out often), pick one up online at Amazon, Office Depot, or any number of online stores.

Maybe you do most of your travels by car, or you’ve just never had the chance to fly before. As much as I’ve flown, I still get little baby butterflies (hmm… caterpillars?) in my stomach right as we take off. I know it’s all physics and engineering, and that it’s safer to fly than it is for me to drive, but there’s always that bit of nervous excitement when we take off.

But before you can get to that seat for your flight, you need to “go through security.” If you’ve had to walk through metal detectors for school or music concerts, then airport security won’t be completely alien to you. But what can you expect, and how can you make the process as smooth as possible?

TSA-friendly packing tips

If you fly to or within the US, you will be screened by the federal Transportation Security Administration, established after the airplane attacks of September 11, 2001. What you pack for your flight should fall into these four categories:

Carry-on bags – these are the smaller bags you keep at your side and bring with you to your seat in the airplane. There are numerous restrictions associated with carry-ons, such as how large they can be, how much they can weigh, and what items are not allowed in them. Most of the tips at my Travelite site are designed to help you travel with just your carry-on bag. It’s perfectly doable, with a little planning. For the purposes of making it easier to get through your security screening, consider these:

• Avoid placing loose items in your main carry-on – the easiest way to organize these is with reclosable ziplock baggies. Go ahead, use them to pack your underwear and socks. Bring extras to store your dirty laundry a well. You can even find 2-gallon ziplock baggies, and they can fit a lot! Make sure to squish out excess air.
• Keep all your paperwork in one place – a manila folder works, although a stiff Priority Mail or FedEx envelope may be a better option if you have smaller slips of paper. Slip these into a big front pocket on your carry-on for easy access
• Even if you plan to stay with your carry-on, use a luggage tag to identify its owner. Consider including the same info inside the bag as well.

Check-in luggage – these are typically those bags and suitcases that are too big to bring with you to your seat on the plane. the TSA allows you to put things in your check-in luggage that are forbidden in your carry-on. For the purposes of a security screening, you don’t need to worry about your check-ins. However:

• If you choose to put a lock on your luggage, use the newer TSA-approved travel locks. These are clearly marked on the packaging, and allow TSA agents to open your lock with a master key should they need to.
• Use a luggage tag on the outside (it is fine if you used one with a cover that makes that requires lifting to see the info; the idea is that the information is there), as well as your personal info inside the luggage.
• Use a check-in bag if you need to carry items that are prohibited in your carry-on (such as knives and large scissors) or you have too many things to fit in your carry-on. Do not assume that you should always check in your luggage, or pack your check-in luggage to the hilt just because you can. Most airlines now charge a fee for even the first piece of check-in luggage, making it an expensive choice if you don’t need to take that much with you.

Toiletry bag – TSA has instituted a new “3-1-1″ policy whereby you can only take one quart-sized transparent resealable bag with you for your liquid and gel toiletries per person, and each individual container holding liquids and gels cannot weigh more than 3 ounces. Of the various things the TSA can nitpick about at the security screening, toiletries (believe it or not) is one of them:

• Most important: Your 3-1-1 bag must be within easy reach when you approach the security screening area, as you are required to place the bag in a tray for independent scanning through the X-ray machine. Don’t pack this in the bottom of your carry-on.
• Be mindful when purchasing souvenirs. That bottle of Caribbean hot sauce? If it’s bigger than 3 ounces and isn’t in your 3-1-1 bag, it needs to go into your check-in or it’s spicy condiment time for the TSA agents!
• Be careful when packing during your trip. It’s easy to accidentally toss in a bottle of shampoo or shaving cream in your carry-on at the last minute while you’re packing up from your hotel, but those will be confiscated.
• Although a quart-sized baggie is not very spacious, you don’t need to carry your entire set of regular toiletries with you. Think carefully about what exactly you want to take. Do you really need your body wash when you know the hotels you’re staying at provide bars of hotel soap?
• Limit the 3-1-1 bag just to liquid and gel toiletries. This may sound silly, but a lot of women are used to packing their make-up together with their toiletries. The thing is, your powder eye shadow, compact, and hair brush don’t neeed to go in the 3-1-1 bag. Once you completely isolate just the liquids and gels, you’ll likely be pleased to see that you can fit everything in the baggie.

Laptop case – you can pack your laptop in your main carry-on, or you can carry it in its own case separately. The airlines allow “one carry-on and one personal item,” and the personal item includes a laptop case (as well as other small totables like purses and camera bags):

• Make sure your laptop is charged enough to turn on if a TSA agent asks you to.
• Be prepared to remove your laptop from its case so it can be screened by itself in the X-ray machine. Some bag manufacturers make special laptop cases with a transparent pocket for your laptop; these must be approved by the TSA (the labeling will indicate this). Such bags let you lay the laptop sleeve open but keep your laptop in the bag through the X-ray machine, providing a little more security from laptop thefts.
• If you expect to be flying with your laptop frequently, consider purchasing travel-friendly cords that retract into a spool, minimizing cable clutter.

Secondary screenings

Look at your boarding pass. There is a corner of the ticket that can sometimes include a notation that looks like “S S S S S S S”—this is the dreaded “secondary screening” code, and it can be added to your ticket for a number of seemingly random purposes. Perhaps you purchased your ticket with cash, at the last minute, just for a one-way trip, or some other behavior that caused the trigger. It’s also altogether possible that during your routine screening, you set off the metal detector, or the X-ray inspector found something unidentifiable in your carry-on. If you do get pulled aside for a secondary screening, relax, breathe, and be polite. The TSA agents are just going through their normal tasks, and your goal is to make the process as smooth as possible so you can get out of there and off to your gate. A TSA agent will pass a handheld detector wand over your body, and they may need to inspect every item in your carry-on (and this is where having everything organized will come in handy).

Things to avoid having on your body when walking through a metal detector

• Keychains and keyrings with keys – it’s easiest to stash this in your carry-on or purse. Many bags have keyfobs so you can snap your keyring in place and forget it until you get back and need to get to your own car.
• Belt buckles – OK so you won a rodeo and you wear your winning buckle proudly! Except through the metal detector. It’s easiest to remove these and stuff them in your carry-on, place in the tray with your shoes (more on that later), or loop around the strap of your carry-on. Don’t worry; your pants won’t fall down in the 10 steps you’ll take through security.
• A pocketful of change
• Big pieces of metallic jewelry
• Your watch – it might not set off the metal detector, but you might as well stash it.
• Your metal sunglasses/glasses
• If you have metal rods and such in your body, consider traveling with your doctor’s note indicating this. Chances are you will still be wanded, but the process is made a little smoother with a doctor’s note.

How to go through security

1. Before you enter the queue:
   • Remove all large metal objects from your body and place them in your carry-on (see the list above).
   • Make sure you can easily get to your 3-1-1 toiletry bag and laptop computer.
   • From your wallet, remove your official government-issued picture ID card, and keep it with your boarding pass in your hand.
2. As you approach the security screening area, you might see different signs for queues for business travelers, or for travelers with children. There are no strict laws regarding which queue to enter, although if you are new to the process, you should probably avoid the queue for the business traveler. They tend to be veterans at the process, and may be impatient should it take you a while to get yourself oriented.
3. Near the entrance to the queue will be a uniformed agent – hand your ID card and boarding pass to this agent. The agent will scan both the ID and boarding pass, making sure the names match, and that you match the photo on the ID card. Most of the time, the agent will also mark a notation on the boarding pass.
4. Once you get into the queue area, there may be several queues. Unless you are directed into a specific one by an agent, you can choose which queue to stand in. The multiple queues are there to expedite the screening process.
5. The actual processing area usually holds about four or five people at a time. The first thing you will be able to do is to grab a large plastic tub from a stack near the counter. You will need at least one, maybe two:
   • Remove your shoes and place them flat in the plastic tub.
   • Remove your 3-1-1 toiletry baggie from your carry-on bag and place it next to your shoes in your plastic tub.
   • Place any small electronics like your cell phone in the tub.
   • If you are carrying an empty refillable water bottle, place it in the tub to show them that it’s empty.
   • If you are wearing a light jacket, you can also remove it and place it in the tub if it still has room. If it’s already full, or you are wearing a thicker coat, use a second tub.
   • Use a second tub if you have a laptop. Place the laptop flat in the plastic tub, with nothing on top of the laptop. If you have a TSA-approved laptop case, unzip the case so that the portion containing the laptop can be laid flat on the X-ray conveyor belt.
6. By this time, you should be about ready to pass your articles through the X-ray machine:
   1. Lay your main carry-on bag flat and have it be the first item that goes through the machine.
   2. Place your “personal bag” (purse, camera bag, laptop case) laid flat as your second item through the machine.
   3. Your plastic bin(s) should be the last item to go on the conveyor belt.
7. Do not take your eyes off of your belongings until you have ensured that the last of your plastic bins has successfully moved into the closed X-ray machine mechanism, even if it takes an extra moment. Sometimes a TSA agent will pause the X-ray machine and even back up the conveyor belt for a closer inspection, so the belt may be momentarily paused. The idea here is to minimize the chances of anyone in the queue sniping your valuables, so take the moment to make sure your tubs have moved into the mechanism.
8. Do not place your ID and boarding pass in the tub! Hold onto these.
9. Now, it is your turn to walk through the metal detector, which is parallel to the X-ray machine. Stand on your side of the metal detector and look to the other side. There should be a TSA agent standing there facing you. If there is no agent there, or the agent is busy with someone else, wait your turn. Only when the agent is ready and acknowledges you, should you walk through the metal detector. Walk through calmly and continue walking.
10. Assuming you do not set off the metal detector, you are now clear to retrieve your belongings. A few more steps, and you are at the exit end of the X-ray machine conveyor belt.
11. You will see your main carry-on and your personal bag come through first. Let these continue to roll; your goal is to retrieve the items in your tub first:
    1. Put your keys, cell phone, etc. away in your pockets
    2. Grab your shoes, place them on the floor and quickly stick your feet in them. Don’t bother lacing them or strapping them completely for now.
    3. Grab your 3-1-1 toiletry bag.
    4. Check that your first tub is completely empty.
    5. From your second tub, grab your laptop.
    6. Now grab your main carry-on bag and your personal item bag. At this point you are probably carrying your main bag, your smaller purse/case, your 3-1-1 bag, your laptop, and your ID card and boarding pass. And your shoes are flopping on your feet.
    7. Optionally, place your now-empty tubs in the stack at the end of the counter.
12. You’re now done with the security screening. Most screening areas provide benches in the exit area; spend a moment to put all your items in order here, making sure you haven’t forgotten anything.

You’ve now successfully gone through an airport security screening! Now let’s go have fun on your trip!

The TSA has some helpful Web pages:

• Screening process
• “Checkpoint-friendly” laptop case information
• 3-1-1 toiletry bag

The Wall Street Journal has a new article out today called “What It Costs An Airline to Fly Your Luggage,” which concludes that it costs the airlines about $15 to carry your check-in luggage for you.

However, it’s not until you scroll well into the article that you see a couple of whoppers.

First, take a look at their chart.

Wall Street Journal’s at-a-glance chart showing current luggage fee charges by major U.S. airlines.

Currently, only Delta, Southwest, JetBlue, and AirTran charge nothing for the first bag (although Delta charges a whopping $50 for the second bag; and that will change on December 5 when Delta starts charging for the first bag, and lowering the price for the second), and Southwest is the only airline that doesn’t charge for a second bag. If you are flying any of the other airlines, checking in two bags can easily set you back $40.

There’s one more whopper in the article, though:

This summer, Delta Air Lines Inc. Chief Executive Richard Anderson said he thought it was fair for the airline to haul one suitcase free for passengers.

But earlier this month, Delta said it, too, would begin charging $15 one-way to haul the first bag, effective Dec. 5. (At most airlines, elite-level frequent fliers, first-class ticket-holders and international passengers are exempt from many of the fees.)

What changed? Customers were paying the fee at other airlines without a backlash. Delta said it wasn’t getting any benefit from not charging the fee. So why not charge it?

Can you believe the gall of these people? How much research did they do? Did they do any market surveys to find out if people were choosing to fly Delta because the first bag was free? That’s not the kind of thing crew members would hear, so I’m really curious how they came up with this cockamamy notion.

And does anyone remember all the big whining excuses the airlines gave earlier this year about why they needed to charge for check-in luggage? Because oil prices were spiraling out of control. When’s the last time you filled up your car in the U.S. for over $3.00? Even in the expensive San Francisco Bay Area, prices are amazingly below $3.00. Has even one single airline used it as a marketing tool to say, “Hey, we want your business back; don’t drive, fly with us for the holidays and you can check in your bags for free!” Nope, no such policy change. We knew they weren’t going to remove those fees, didn’t we? I’m just waiting for airline executives to go begging for relief money from Congress just like the automotive industry CEOs did last week. Let me tell you, they are simply out of touch with the public.

I don’t know about you, but this just raises my hackles.

Of course, the best way to counter this is to travel light! Lift up your fist, stick out your chin, and give those luggage fees the old heave-ho!

…that said, it might be a little tougher if you’re visiting relatives for the holidays and you plan to take gifts with you. As we head into December, you’ll see a lot of these kinds of stories in the media, but here’s a really simply list to remember as you start holiday shopping:

• Shop online and have the company mail the item to your destination. You can spend a bit extra for gift wrapping, but you can also let your family members know to immediately place the mail under the tree.
• Buy something that’s flat, small, and lightweight. Small electronics are fine but be mindful that many of them are overpackaged (iPods use minimal packaging). CDs and DVDs come in pretty small boxes now, and they’re also pretty easy to tuck in your carry-on. Silk scarves, fine jewelry… be creative!
• Remember not to wrap your gifts before you fly. The TSA reserves the right to open everything, including your boxes.
• Don’t buy any stocking stuffers that are liquid, like hand lotion. All liquids still need to go in your 3-1-1 baggie.
• If you’re staying in a hotel at your destination, you can ship your packages to the hotel directly, so that you can take your time to do your gift wrapping once you get there. Beware that not all hotels accept packages for guests, so check in advance. Make sure to ship it well in advance so it gets there in time, and make sure you clearly mark your package with your check-in date, as well as confirmation number.
• For a big splurge, consider buying someone a trip! You can tuck a guidebook to that destination under the tree, be it a weekend getaway to a nice B&B, a trip to Disneyland or the Mediterranean.

One more thing (that most people don’t think about): You have to convince your relatives that you only want small, flat, light items as gifts—because you’ll have to fly home after the holidays, too. This one is the true challenge. Many years ago, a relative gave us a huge tin of popcorn for Christmas. We just opened it immediately and shared it with everyone so we didn’t have to take the tin home. Another year, that same relative gave us a very large kitchen appliance (I think it was a large crock pot) knowing we’d flown thousands of miles to visit. We promptly returned it to the store and exchanged it for something smaller and flatter.

It took a few years, but people finally started to remember. As a result, we got things like calendars and muffin top pans… stuff you can actually pack in your carry-on! Things that will help:

• If you get any electronics, make sure everything works before you lug it home.
• Make sure to remove any extra packaging. Do you really need the big case that comes with the watch, or do you just need the warranty card?
• If you get a lot of stuff, just mail everything home.
• If you get any food, share it with everyone so you don’t have any left over to lug home.
• If something is really too cumbersome, go to the store and exchange it before you go home.

Although I keep politics out of the Travelite FAQ, the past year and a half or so has been a truly eye-opening experience for me as America prepares to vote for the next leader.

If you are registered but have yet to vote—especially if you’re in a swing state like Pennsylvania, Ohio, Florida—you should expect lines to be very long. Don’t let the long lines discourage you; please stay in line, and please vote. It is the one voice you have, and together, our country is a wonderful choir of different voices.

Today’s post is a very different kind of packing list published at the Jack and Jill Politics blog:

Before you go to vote

• Confirm polling location: not always same as primary / caucus location. Check @ http://govote.org
• Print out voting rights: know phone numbers, rules, etc. Check out http://bit.ly/print-voting-rights
• Save election protection numbers in your cell:
  • 866-OUR-VOTE / 866-687-8683
  • Espanol 888-VE-Y-VOTA / 888-839-8682
  • Asian languages: 800-966-5946
• Check weather
• Note nearby public bathrooms

Voting day packing list

• Avoid political buttons or campaign-related clothing
• Bring I.D. just in case — see your state’s ID requirements here

(for yourself or others)…

• Bottled water. snacks
• Umbrella / trash: bags in case of rain.
• Jacket: in case of cold or to cover campaign clothing
• Folding chairs: for the tired, the injured, the elders
• Camera: to document fraud or simply history. share with Video The Vote or YouTube’s Video Your Vote project.

Activities to pass the time waiting in line

• Be alert for scams! for example, if somebody suggest you can “vote by phone” to avoid the line, they’re lying—call the hotline to report it
• Play six degrees of kevin bacon
• Remember favorite campaign moments
• Sing civil rights songs
• Make up new dances
• Meet your neighbors!

Finally…

• If you have problems voting, call the hotline numbers (1-866-OUR-VOTE / 1-888-VE-Y-VOTA)
• Femember that voting with a provisional ballot is better than not voting at all
• If you are in line when the polls close, you are still allowed to vote

Go vote, America.

“Ideally packed!”

That’s what a London Gatwick Airport security agent told me when my bag got tagged for a manual inspection. She was completely impressed because she couldn’t believe how efficient and well-organized my carry-on bag was!

[If you've ever had one of those, you know that they take everything out of your bag. It got flagged because I had a bag full of wires and electronics, so after that leg of the trip, I just removed that baggie and put it in the bin next to my toiletry bag, and I had no further problems.]

It’s been three days since my return home, and my body clock is still very off. They say it takes a day to adjust to each hour change, and it feels pretty close. I’ve managed to stay up a bit later each night and not wake up as early in the morning, but still, I was up by 5:00 a.m. today and am not able to snooze anymore.

So now that I’m wide awake, I may as well be productive and finally share with you how I managed to travel with just 13 pounds for my Europe trip.

Oh just a warning: Today’s post is going to be long. Grab a cup of coffee.

Details, details, details

First, the foundation: We were originally planning on traveling with another couple whom we’ve traveled with in the past, with an itinerary that included France, Germany, and Luxembourg. As a return favor for my providing a fair bit of translation and cultural knowledge about Japan on a trip we’d all made to Tokyo Disneyland a few years ago, our guide was going to be the husband of the other couple, who had spent a few years in France.

However in an example of how our current bad economy affects us in direct ways, Alex and I were hit with unexpected news: The wife, who is a small business entrepreneur, was forced to decide between going on vacation with us, and keeping her business afloat.

At that point, we could’ve decided to just scrap the trip altogether, except for one minor thing: I’d already bought Alex and myself nonrefundable tickets on Virgin Atlantic.

Getting over our disappointment at not being able to travel with our friends, Alex and I looked at each other with “Oh my god, what the hell are we going to do now?” drawn on our faces. With zero independent itinerary, zero French/German language skills, zero travel knowledge of the area, we were at a complete loss.

It wasn’t until a few days later that I’d had an idea: Check to see if Rick Steves had any tours that would fit our schedule. We were in luck. There was one tour that fit our schedule exactly: His Best of Rome in 7 Days city tour. [How many people chose to go to a destination because they looked over a list of tours and picked the one that fit their flight schedule?!?] The tour was spendy but since we were completely noobs we felt it was worth the price.

Once our main destination was set, everything else fell into place, with plans to spend a bit of time in London (since we were flying in and out of Heathrow), as well as in Paris for a few days so we could see both the city as well as Disneyland Paris.

If you’ve never seen Rick Steves’ PBS series on traveling through Europe, he is a firm believer in low-key immersion travel. Pack lightly, stay in smaller hotels run by locals, focus more on learning and absorbing the culture in smaller groups rather than being shuttled around like cattle and spending all your stops in tacky gift shops. Rick Steves also happens to be one of my personal heroes because he was the one who originally inspired me to learn to travel lightly. That, combined with the fact that Alex and I would be on all sorts of public transportation with our luggage, meant we were going to avoid check-in luggage at all costs.

Traveling with just my carry-on? No problem! Not even a challenge!

…except there was. It was called “Virgin Atlantic’s unusually small weight restriction for carry-ons.” If you read my previous entries, you know that we had to limit ourselves to no more than 13 pounds (6 kilograms). Most full carry-ons will probably run you at least 20-30 pounds depending on the weight of your bag, so getting our stuff together in the weeks before our trip became almost like a game for us.

We were successful, but not without a lot of adaptation and sacrifice.

My Packing List

I based my initial packing list on the one Rick Steves recommends for women. I provide the original list here, with my notes on how I adjusted it for the trip. Some assumptions I made included October weather in Europe, which ranged from the low-40s to the low-70s. Each item is followed by a description, and any pertinent comments (negatives are in red, positives are in green). Those I did not pack, are crossed out.

Clothing

• 1 pair of walking/comfortable shoes – This was the single, most important decision I was going to make. After reading the “Best Walking Shoes” section for personal recommendations at Rick Steves’ site, I chose a pair of Keen Seattle shoes. Since Keen no longer makes them, I had to do quite a bit of looking around online before finding one. I also took a spare pair of insoles with me, and swapped them out daily to keep my feet feeling less tired. At the end of the trip, I tossed the spare insoles away. These shoes worked out great for my feet, which are wide.
• 1 pair of sandals (weather permitting) – I couldn’t afford a second pair of real shoes, so I took a pair of Pocket Slippers from Magellan’s. They roll up and tuck into a little pouch that weighs just a few ounces. This was a waste of space for our particular trip since I only wore them on my flight to London. But they are keepers for future trips.
• 1 rainproof jacket – I picked up an LL Bean Storm Chaser 3-in-1 jacket, which has an inner fleece that zips out so you can wear it as a fleece jacket. And since the two zip up into one jacket, it was less I had to carry if I wasn’t wearing it. I applied Scotchguard on it to get a little more protection on it, although it should do OK in light showers. This jacket is terrific! Big pockets, zippable pockets, secret inner pockets, and comfortable. Highly recommended.
• 2-4 pairs of shorts/capris/skorts – I assumed it would be too cold to take shorts.
• 2 pairs of pants (one dressy, one casual), 1 belt – I wore one pair of slacks, and packed a second pair. The second pair was a Slinky brand from HSN.com, but it’s very similar to the Travelers line from Chico’s. That means no ironing, easy to wear.
• 1 swimsuit (packed in a plastic bag) – I assumed it would again be too cold.
• 5 1 pairs of socks (cotton blend) – The Keens can be worn with or without socks, so I chose to take just one pair of very thin Smartwool socks that I picked up from REI. Smartwool socks dry fast and don’t smell. I highly recommend them.
• 5 pairs of underwear (silk, lace, or micro-fiber dries quickest) – I took some that were the lighest I could find (if you are comfortable wearing thongs, they save a ton of space)
• 1 extra bra
• 4-6 shirts (long/short-sleeved, various colors) – Assuming it would be cold, I took 3 long-sleeve nylon/polyester shirts, a button shirt, and a layering overshirt. I really wish I packed for warmer weather. My shirts were way too hot in Rome. Lesson: Check the weather right before your departure, and be prepared to adjust your wardrobe at the last minute.
• 1-2 light cardigans for layering – Instead of a cardigan, I used the fleece jacket from the LL Bean 3-in-1. So glad I just used the fleece lining instead.
• 1-2 skirts (wrinkle-resistant) – With colder weather I assumed this wouldn’t work well.
• 2 dresses (optional) – No special dinners, and no space in my bag.
• 1 hat – My jacket had a hood, but I also took a neoprene Headgasket visor from Croakies. I kept the visor in my daybag and used it all the time. It worked out great, especially in those sunny days in Rome!
• Scarves (to wear with clothing or hat) – I took a warmer scarf. This is one of the best things I took, since you can wear it instead of packing it when you fly. The wider ones work as a wrap on your flight, too.
• 2 vests (optional) – Completely unnecessary, and didn’t miss not having them.
• 1 pair of pajamas (or long shirt to get you to the bathroom down the hall if necessary) – No room, no need.

Toiletries/Medicine

• Body soap/puff (washcloth); most European hotels do not supply washcloths –The single best wash cloth I have used all my life is the Salux nylon wash towel from Japan. Anything else makes me feel like I’m not getting clean, so I made sure to take one. It’s better than any scrubber ball because you can scrub your back easily. I also took a large Japanese bathtowel. These things barely take up any room because of their thinness and loose weave. I probably didn’t need the bath towel. I never travel without one! [Fortunately it weighs next to nothing.]
• Toothbrush/toothpaste/floss – I wound up not taking enough toothpaste with me but we made do with the baby containers of toothpaste we got from our Premium Economy amenity kits.
• Shampoo/conditioner – I took 1 ounce of shampoo and 0.5 ounce of Paul Mitchell leave-in conditioner. We augmented the shampoo with hotel shampoo, and it worked out perfectly.
• Brush/comb –I took a folding travel brush, which was small enough to carry in my day bag.
• Lotion –I took a tube of face lotion with SPF, which worked out fine.
• Vaseline (for feet) –Unnecessary; I just made sure I pedicured my feet nicely right before the trip.
• Razor (non-electric)/shaving cream or soap – I didn’t bother (since my leg hairs are almost nonexitent) but for most women it’s probably easier to get a professional wax before a trip. My husband just bought some razors when we got to Rome, and that worked out well. Alex used either soap or shampoo for his shave (after a shower so his skin was moist).
• Sunscreen, insect repellent –See lotion, above.
• Prescription drugs (in original container with your name and your doctor’s name, write down generic name) – I had a small prescription bottle with me that didn’t take up much room.
• First aid kit/moleskin/blister kit – I used a lot of Band-Aids preventively but I purchased them all when we got there.
• Feminine hygiene products –Assumed I could buy them during the trip if I needed.
• Deodorant – We actually didn’t take any. Shaving/trimming underarm hairs does wonders to keep the odor to a minimum. Given how warm it was in Rome, I wish we’d taken some. We used a lot of Febreze instead.
• Nail clippers/file/tweezers –I took a nail file and tweezers, and just made sure our nails were clipped before we left.
• Spare glasses and/or prescription, mini-eyeglass repair kit, or contact lenses and supplies –Neither of us wear glasses anymore, but we did take our sunglasses.
• Hand sanitizer – I didn’t take any, but I wish I had. I couldn’t find any in Rome, either.
• Vitamins –Didn’t take any.
• OTC remedies (whatever works for you): Pepto, decongestants, etc. –Took ibuprofen and acetaminophen; glad we did, since it took the edge off our sore feet at the end of the day.
• Clothesline, sink stopper, soap – These came in handy for washing our clothes in the bathroom.
• Baby powder (dry shampoo for hair) –Didn’t take any.

Money and Security

• Moneybelt: Passport, plane ticket, debit card, credit cards, traveler’s checks, railpass, driver’s license (if you’re renting a car) – Rick Steves tours make you sign an agreement saying, among other things, that you will use your moneybelt. This is not only for your peace of mind but also so the tour guide (and their travel office) doesn’t have to deal with the hassles of one of its customers having to deal with the U.S. embassy and banks during the trip. It was the one thing I made sure we followed, and our entire group in Rome did great during the tour, and nobody lost anything to pickpockets. We did have numerous attempts made on us, though!

Other things I took

• Guidebooks – I went to Kinko’s and had them cut the binding out of all our guide books. I then selected the pages and sections we needed, and rebound them into smaller books. This saved quite a bit of weight since we took guidebooks for Rome, Paris, and London. As we were done, we tossed the books.
• Moleskine notebooks – I’m one of those people who uses Moleskine books, so I took a Rome Citybook as well as a sketchbook.
• Drawing and writing utensils – Pencil, pens, small ruler, eraser, and so on… didn’t take up too much space but I wanted the opportunity to do some sketches.
• Various electronics, including an iPod Touch, a Sennheiser noise-cancelling headset, AC adapter. I tried to take items that were as small as possible, and I managed to fit them all into one liter-size Ziploc bag.

Things I wish I’d taken

• Addresses – I ran out of time, and wasn’t able to put together an address booklet of people I wanted to send postcards to. What would have been easiest was to hand write the addresses on a strip of adhesive mailing labels.
• A pair of capri pants –Given how warm it was, I probably should have traded my Slinky slacks for a pair of capris.
• Short-sleeve shirts – I really wish I’d swapped some of my long-sleeve shirts for short-sleeved ones. I was completely prepared for layered clothing for cold weather, not hot.
• More podcasts, books on tape (MP3 format), and albums for the iPod – I wound up mostly playing Bejeweled and Jewel Quest.
• A tiny digital camera – I didn’t take one because Alex was taking his SLR; as it turned out, he mostly took “photographs” whereas I would’ve taken more snapshots of things like our tour group (who were a terrific bunch, by the way).

Items packed for the Europe trip include Ziploc baggies for electronics, for miscellaneous junk (medicine, pens, earplugs, etc.), toiletries, clothes, a very thing Japanese bath towel, and a couple of Platypus brand collapsible water bottles.

What I picked up and brought home

One thing we collect when we travel, are refrigerator magnets of the places we visit. We adhere to a strict guideline (for example, we have to both go together, and we they don’t count if they are souvenirs given to us from friends). Normally, these barely take up any room, but after a while they add a bit of weight. I was prepared to carry them in my jacket pocket for our flight home if necessary.

Refrigerator magnets from some of the places we visited on our trip. Can you guess where all of these magnets may have come from?

One thing I was looking forward to was purchasing Moleskine Volant softcover notebooks—they are currently available only in Europe. I found these in a bookstore in London. Don’t let your eyes deceive you; the larger notebooks in the photo are the small index card sized versions. The smaller ones are slightly larger than credit cards. Each Volant packet includes a pair of notebooks of the same color scheme (one lighter, one darker). If you look carefully, the small green one is by itself; I unwrapped it and started using the lighter green one during the trip!

Moleskine Volants, purchased in London.

These weigh a bit so I was also prepared to just stash them in my coat pocket for my flight home.

Finally, I kept various paper receipts, tickets, and such so I could eventually put together a trip report and remember where I went. These take up almost no space or weight.

Used tickets and other small, flat souvenirs.

How I packed

Ziploc baggies – More than anything, I used a lot of Ziploc baggies. I normally use fabric ditty bags and cosmetic bags and such, but the only non-disposable one I used was my Paula Begoun makeup bag, to hold my toiletries. While the dimensions are approved for air travel, her bag is gussetted, which lets me carry way more stuff than in a Ziploc liter-sized bag. I used Ziplocs to separate clean underwear from used, to hold my electronics, to hold our fridge magnets, and so on. Where I would have used a net fine-washables laundry bag, I used a Ziploc bag. In addition, I went to a local craft store and picked up some smaller resealable baggies (2″x3″ and 4″x6″) for things like holding Band-Aids and Q-tips. Speaking of Q-tips, I normally take the little travel container but I did away with the container to save on weight. Instead, I counted how many Q-tips we were likely to use (1 per person per day, with a few extra thrown in), saving a fraction of an ounce.

Weighing every item, and taking only what I planned to use – I had to make some tough decisions about my wardrobe. In hindsight, I wish I’d gone with two short-sleeve shirts and a long-sleeve instead of three of the latter, but I really didn’t expect weather in the high-70s all week in Rome. That said, I still chose the most lightweight of my shirts; they were even lighter than cotton T-shirts. Every liquid toiletry item was carefully scrutinized. Did I need a full ounce, or could I manage with half an ounce?

Using the smallest version of everything – Instead of large and clunky AC adapters, we took a USB-to-AC adapter that was as small as a film canister. A laptop was out of the question, but the iPod Touch gave us the option to send email in wi-fi hotspots (including a free one in a small part behind the Notre Dame in Paris!).

Tom Bihn Convertible Cube/Shoulder Bag – This bag turned into my everyday daypack, and it was awesome beyond words (see one of my earlier posts for a full review). I carried this thing everyday full of stuff, and it never saw any wear or unraveling at all. I routinely packed two soda bottles, notebooks, and various other sundries, and the unstructured form meant I could just toss things in willy nilly and have everything settle in easily. I cannot speak highly enough of this bag as a travel daypack.

The Tom Bihn Convertible Cube/Shoulder Bag.

I used this bag as a packing cube when I flew, stashing a lot of the assorted things in my carry-on bag that would otherwise get loose or scattered around in my bag. It’s where I put my underwear, socks, and other stuff that I put in my Ziploc bags. And once I passed security, I’d move stuff around in my carry-on, moving my toiletry bag and electronics baggie into the packing cube. When I get to my airplane seat, I just remove the packing cube to keep by my feet for easy access, and stow my carry-on in the overhead bin. Easy as pie and a wonderful solution without trying to shove the carry-on by my feet.

Traveling with a partner

One huge benefit to having a travel partner is your ability to share some things during the trip. For me and Alex, that meant sharing toiletries. He actually managed to fly without a toiletry bag at all! Alex is a very low-maintenance traveler anyway, and he just shared things like shampoo with me (or used the hotel supply).

He kept his packing list as short as possible, and did a great job swapping out a lot of his clothes for travel-friendly items. A couple of items that worked particularly well include:

ExOfficio Trip’r line of travel shirts – He picked up a few from REI, but you can buy them directly from Exofficio online as well. The fabric is the typical travel shirt feel, but they make them in checkers and plaids, so you can completely avoid the “Hi, I’m wearing this khaki travel shirt” look altogether. The shirts are adequately vented, the chest pockets have zippers, and best of all, their buttons aren’t sewn on but instead, they are secured on with a little piece of fabric. It’s hard to describe; let’s just say you won’t worry about losing any buttons.

Very attractive ExOfficio Trip’r shirts are available in patterns that don’t make them look like ordinary travel shirts.

He also picked up a few pairs of travel-friendly underwear, which dried really easily on the clotheline.

One item that weighs down a carry-on bag for the guys is their big shoes. So for this trip, he took just the pair he wore on his feet (a pair of nubuck New Balance shoes). He made sure to break it in for a few weeks before the trip.

Alex’s biggest challenge was his camera gear. He has a pretty nice Canon digital SLR that he wanted to use for his trip, but wanted to avoid using camera bags that were too easy to identify (and which also tended to weigh too much). Up until right before the trip, he was planning on taking a Tom Bihn Large Cafe Bag, although we were a bit concerned since the fabric is thin for a camera.

At the last minute, he chose to take my Timbuk2 mini Metro Messenger bag, and that turned out to be a great decision. The biggest reason he changed his mind was that Cafe Bag doesn’t have the ability for you to  remove its shoulder strap; this turned out to be a huge disadvantage. In order to save even more weight, Alex used the luggage strap for his carry-on once we were in Rome, to carry his Timbuk2 bag with—he couldn’t do that with his Cafe Bag. The Timbuk2 is also pretty water resistant, which worked out well on one day in Paris when we met with some foul weather.

For packing purposes, Alex put all his smaller items (underwear, socks, etc. around his camera gear) in the carry-on itself so that the Timbuk2 bag was safely packed in the carry-on.

Timbuk2 Metro Messenger bag. Although this bag isn’t padded, it’s very sturdy, making it an option for carrying camera gear. If you bang up your camera in this bag, though, don’t blame me; do so at your own risk!

We had both planned to use the Outdoor Products Carryon Bag, however we discovered that the bag was actually too big for the items we put together to pack! Instead, I wound up using the discontinued Sierra travelpack from Uphill Down, and Alex used a discontinued travelpack model from MEI in Canada. We could have used the Outdoor Products bag but we both felt that we might be tempted to pack more stuff in it during our trip, so we abstained. I’m sure we’ll use the Outdoor Products bag in future travels where bag size—and not weight—is the limiting factor.

Final thoughts

All in all, the 13-pound weight limit imposed by Virgin Atlantic was an awesome challenge, and we wound up thoroughly enjoying the opportunity to test our packing abilities. For years, I’d become pretty complacent and not being particularly fastidious in my carry-ons since it had gotten to be old hat, so being forced to face a new test kept me on my toes and more excited about the trip than originally expected.

I don’t know that I’d pack that lightly again unless I’m forced to do so. I wouldn’t have minded taking a third pair of pants (or capris or skirt/skort), and maybe a T-shirt. That said, let me tell you—a 13-pound bag is a breeze to carry! I think in the future I may try to keep it down to around 15 pounds or so, just to make it easy for me to carry through the airport.

It’s been a busy couple of weeks, and we leave for Europe tomorrow.

In the meantime, we went to our local post office this evening to use their Automatic Postal Center machine to weigh our carry-on bags so that we could meet the stringent weight restrictions on Virgin Atlantic. The verdict?

My bag: 12 pounds .40 ounces.

Alex’s bag: 11 pounds .20 ounces.

We are both safely within the 13-pound limit. Cross-checking the stuff we are carrying with Rick Steves’ recommended packing list, the only thing we aren’t carrying is our bathing suits.

I must say, I’m quite impressed.

…but no, no photos for now. Everything’s packed up and I don’t want to open the bags up until we have to.

But it looks like we made it!

Two newspapers recently published articles about packing light.

The first, titled “Travel light and elude fees with a well-packed carry-on,” is a standalone list-based article by Chantal Lamers that ran today (July 22, 2008) in the The Orange County Register. The article is based on an interview Chantal had with me, and should serve as a nice list of tips as you learn how to pack lightly.

The second is a more comprehensive set of articles under the banner, “The Art of Traveling Light,” which published this past Sunday in the San Francisco Chronicle. Staff writer John Flinn has put together a number of short, helpful articles, including:

• “Minimalist traveling a matter of mind-set and tactics” – provides a list of tips that should be helpful to everyone, but particularly men.
• “Packing light: Assembling the essential wardrobe” – more tips, separated into sections like “footwear” and “pants.”
• “Packing Light: Gizmos and gadgets for travelers” – covers electronics as well as things like drain plugs.
• “One woman’s key to smart packing” – staff writer Margo Pfeiff takes the helm for this particular article to provide a woman’s perspective. Some good quick tips here.
• “Traveling light means doing your own laundry – is a very practical and helpful article on how to do your laundry by hand in your hotel bathroom sink, especially if you’re a guy, since that’s not something guys generally do. Raise your hand if you’re a guy and you hand wash your fine washables in Woolite at home. Anyone? Bueller? [By the way, doing your laundry is one of the biggest keys to traveling light!]
• “What to expect with airline carryon fees” – may become outdated the fastest out of all of these articles, but it’s probably the most helpful. If you do nothing else, either bookmark this page or print it out, because it includes the current baggage policies for all the major U.S. domestic carriers.

Nothing completely new in these articles if you are already familiar with our travelite philosophy, but presented in little nuggets they are quite handy.

It’s also quite nice to see mainstream media give credence to this topic, which has traditionally belonged on the fringes. You should’ve seen the looks I used to get from people when I told them you could travel extensively out of one bag.

I previously mentioned some mesh bags and pouches you can use to carry your non-liquid toiletries in your travels.

I just returned from a quick run to an office supply store and was reminded of one of the cheapest and most convenient “toiletry kit” pouches around: The pencil pouch.

The Pencil Pouch from Staples.

You can find pencil pouches in most office supply stores, but during this time of year as we creep into the “start of school” sales, you will likely find these in most larger box stores for a very affordable price.

Most of these types of pencil pouches have holes to put them in a 3-ring binder, and they all have a straight-across zipper. They come in a variety of colors, and many of them also have a loop or keyring for hanging.

About the only real difference other than color is in the front panel: Some have an open-air mesh format, while others use clear plastic. Some use both.

Either way, these pencil pouches are realtively small, but are long enough to fit things like eyeliner pencils and eyeshadow brushes. They are not pleated, but you should easily be able to fit most of your non-liquid toiletries in them just fine.

Best of all, when these are empty, they lie completely flat. They’re so cheap you might even consider using one of these to create your own in-flight amenity kit, with eyeshades, ear plugs, socks, and such.

When looking for a pencil pouch to use as a toiletry kit, make sure the zipper works pretty smoothly, and that the sides are hemmed well. These items are imported from overseas and don’t go through the same quality-control scrutiny you would see with expensive cosmetics bags.

Happy packing!