packing

[Muesli]

i can't live without my Swish(!) Army knife. I'll be travelling for 3 months ,but with only a small carry-on type pack.How do I get that on the plane and get to keep it?I'm a neat and tidy "platinum power 'woman of 59 and couldn't possibly be taken for a hi-jackeress.

[Kim]

You can take it with you, only you can't take it in your carry on luggage. You have to pack it in the bag that gets checked to go on the plane. If you are only taking one carry on bag and not checking anything, your best bet is just to buy a new one over there 'cause there is no way you will be able to bring it on the plane.

We ran into trouble doing this-and this was before Sept. 11
Trust me, there is no way around it.

If you buy one over there, you could always just mail it home when you are heading home. It could be a nice keepsake!

Kim

[Muesli]

Thanks,Kim.
I was hoping that I could give it to the cabin staff and collect it at the other end.
Life will not be the same.

[Kim]

No, they won't let you anywhere near the plane with it-even to give to someone.

It's unbelievably strict now-nothing is being let on, knitting needles, nail files etc. Everything has to be checked.

Trust me, you don't want to end up in the interregation area like we were, due to the fact that my boyfriend forgot to check his.... That was fun!

Maybe someone could mail it to you in Europe? They have something called Poste Restante, where someone can send you things care of the local post office and you go pick it up. They will hold things for 30-60 days usually.

I did it in Ireland (I wanted to get a couple things from home for my boyfriends birthday) and it worked perfectly.

For everyone's info, this is how you address something to be sent to you via Poste Restante:

First Name Last Name
Poste Restante
c/o Main Post Office
Address Here

You will have to look up post offices addresses on the net, it's really easy. Make sure you always get the main post office-it's usually the large cities that do post restante. You will need photo ID to pick up any mail.

Here are a few that might come in handy for everyone:

London:

POST RESTANTE
Trafalgar Square Branch
24-28 William IV Street
London WC2N 4DL

Zurich:

POSTE RESTANTE
Schalter 8
Sihlpost
CH-8021 Zürich<br>
Barcelona:

POSTE RESTANTE
Lista de Correos,
08070 Barcelona, Spain

If anyone needs an address for one specifically, post and I will look it up.

OK, I'm shutting up!

Kim

[Muesli]

I believe you ,truly I do, Kim.
Thank you for the tip on Poste Restante.
My first stop is Moscow.so I think that the "Swishy" is safer at home in the cat basket
I'll find a local sword for the salami.
Now I'll continue my search for the 10 pocket travel shirt I saw on some site on the web, but can't find again.

[[e-mail]]

Muesli:  Don't try to bring your knife on the plane!  My equally "innocent-looking" "platinum power" Mom lost a knife she had purchased in Paris and had used to cut up some cheese on a picnic.  She had forgotten about it and had it in her purse, not her luggage.  This happened in 1980.  She is still talking about that incident, how they confiscated her knife.  The authorities don't know who is dangerous.  This knife was not especially sharp and apparently was more decorative than utilitarian, with an ivory handle.  She only used it to cut up some cheese, for goodness sakes. She was travelling with her equally platinum power sister on 90 day Eurailpasses.   Please note that this happened almost 22 years ago to a "platinum power" grandma!  
    Good luck on your trip!  Mom and Aunty had an absolute blast.  They are still talking about it.  

[dmbfan715]

Hi Kim,

Thanks for the tip on the post office. I'm backpacking for 2 weeks before studying abroad in Vienna and would like my parents to send me more clothes, etc, when I'm in Vienna. Can you look up the Vienna address for me (if this is offered in Vienna?). Also, do you just send it there through regular mail? HOw long does this take? TIA!

[Kim]

Yep, you just send it through regular mail.
It all depends on the service you send it-ground takes a long time but air is more expensive.

Here is the address for the main post office in Vienna:

First Name, Last Name
Poste Restante
c/o Hauptpostamt (which means main post office)
Fleischmarkt 19, 1010
Wien, Austria

For you to get there, you will want to take the underground to the Schwedenplatz station.

Kim

[Marie]

It's definitly not even worth trying to get anything sharp on the plane these days, but in january 2002 I went to Vienna with my parents and we flew back through Frankfurt and my Mom forgot that she had put 12 cheese knives in her carry on bag and they just asked if they weresouvenirs and let her through!!

[cesul]

how about nail clippers? are those allowed on board? i was wondering...because nail clippers usually have a small nail file attached to it - and it looks kinda knife-like

[LHR02]

no...nail clippers will get you stopped as well. Think this....if it is metal, if it is even remotely sharp or pointy...pack it or leave it at home. You will not get through to the plane with it.

One other thought....this 52 year old had a devil of a time at Sainte Chappelle in Paris with my Swiss army in my pocket! They confiscated it on the spot, took down all my passport info and gave me a 'claim check" for when I was ready to leave. I went back, claimed my knife, and was on my way, but it was a huge inconvienance overall. I was traveling in the 4 months just after 9/11 and did not have too many troubles, but it gets more intensive each year and more and more sites are 'scanning' you and your gear. The days of blithely having a knife in your pocket is gone....be prepared to lose it on the whim of any inspector.

[LHR02]

another thought....Kim is dead on with the posts in europe...you can mail to them and go claim it later....but be aware if you use the cheapest, groud transport option, it will likely take 6-8 weeks for arrival! Really does go by slow boat! You will have to pay the costs for airmail at a minimum unless you are a great planner and mail extra early!

[cesul]

thanks for the advice, dustoffmom! looks like i'm going to have to check my backpack in, instead of carrying it on board hope my stuff doesn't get lost!

[Kim]

Does your pack have a removable daypack? If so, take the smaller pack onboard with you with anything that is important that you have. If you aren't bringing a daypack, pack a sturdy plastic bag to bring on.

Important to take on board: Glasses/contacts, any prescriptions, important documents and passport, camera and any film with pictures on it (that's more for coming home). Good to take an extra pair of underwear and your toothbrush in the "onboard" bag as well - never know when you might be stranded with nothing!

If you have special meal requirements, it's a good idea to pack snacks just in case. For example, when I was vegetarian, there were a few times my ordered vegetarian meal never showed up - and I was starving only eating the bun. They don't have much in the way of snacks so it's a good idea if you are vegetarian, diabetic, hypoglycemic etc. to have something on you.

And I TOTALLY agree with dustoffmom about shipping via ground - think it took some of our stuff we shipped about 6 weeks.

Kim

[bc]

Can one bring a Zippo on board? Or does that have to be checked?

Also, I'll be bringing lighter fluid for my Zippo too... can I even check that?