Little Black Guidebook

Here is my first pass at a packing list for our upcoming trip to Hong Kong and Singapore. I long for uber-cute outfits and tons of accessories, but I know from experience that without the budget of a travelista who is going to have a driver carry her bags and a single hotel to stay at, all that cuteness comes with a price. It weighs you down.

My biggest struggle is to find nice linen or cotton items which layer, don’t cost a ton and sort of color coordinate so I don’t have to bring as much. The expected temperature for the time of year we are going is 85-90F so I also had to call a friends to find out whether sleeveless was appropriate and if I really needed a suit in Singapore, the answer to both was yes.

I have two days of meetings which require a suit and at least one formal dinner to attend all while sink-washing. I did find a nice drip-dry suit, but it is black and tropical wool is really a pain. I opted instead for linen with a lining for the suit, which I will not wash, but just wear for the two days. If packed properly it won’t wrinkle before I wear it. When I get around to actually shopping for the trip I may opt out of packing a jacket for the suit. I picked a pair of linen pants which looked like they wouldn’t wrinkle too badly, but I’m still looking for the perfect pair of travel khakis which are sink-washable, but don’t look like they should zip off at the knees. I also picked a swimsuit which can be worn as a top when used as a seperate.

So here it is, 11 days, 2 countries, and 13 possible outfits for a one bag travelista. 

Asia Trip(1)

And here it is broken down into outfits. Ocassions covered: formal dinner, business meeting/conference, comfy/cute on the plane, working out in the room, site seeing.

Asia Trip (2)

I like to think of myself as a very put together person, especially when traveling. But when I have a lot of details to take care of, and don’t want a bunch of printed out confirmation codes weighing down my luggage, I’m left thinking, “There has to be a better way.” I usually create my own little black book out of a Moleskine notebook for long trips, creating my own little guidebook and leaving the thick Lonely Planet and Fodors behind. This isn’t usually worth doing on little weekend trips though so when I stumbled upon the website TripIt I though it might be a useful application for a frequent traveler.

It’s dead simple to use and it keeps you organized – all you have to do is forward confirmation emails to them when you purchase airline tickets, hotel reservations, car rentals, etc. Tripit pulls the relevant information out of the emails and builds an organized itinerary for you. You can send emails in any order, for multiple trips, whatever. It just figures everything out and organizes it.

I have used it since  the 1st of the year and its already saved my bacon once. I accidentally booked a hotel room for the day of my meeting rather than the night before. When I looked at my itinerary, it was organized chronologically so I saw, flight arrival Friday night, meeting and check-in at hotel followed my flight home on Saturday, then arrival home followed by check-out of hotel on Sunday. Something was off. I shifted the hotel reservation to the night before the meeting and everything was fixed. Yeah, it would have been no problem to do this at the hotel after they could not find my reservation for the night and I could have talked my way out of any change fees or price increases, but it would have added stress. I give Tripit a big thumbs up for ease of use and practicality. I don’t use it for the social networking features as much. I did find it interesting that a friend and I would both be in the Seattle airport at the same time and could stop and grab coffee. This is something I never would have figured out without Tripit, but a really minor feature.

You don’t even have to register to start using it. Just take any travel email and forward it to plans@tripit.com. Within seconds you’ll get a confirmation email back.

Passports, originally uploaded by jaaron.

I have a recurring travel nightmare, well two actually. The first is that I’ll sleep through and miss a flight. The second is that I’ll lose my passport. It was so vivid last night that I looked up what to do in case that ever happened, you know, just in case.

Before You Go

• Make two copies of your passport; leave one with a friend or relative in the United States. Bring the other with you. Keep it safe and separate from your passport. Don’t ever leave it in the hotel room safe.
• Register with U.S. Embassy in countries you plan to visit. Write down and keep handy the embassies’ contact information.
• Buy a passport travel holder that attaches to your waist or neck. (I hate the feel of waist bags so I just have outfits with zippered pockets.)
• Bring copies of passport photos with you and keep them safe. It is a hassle to find a place to have these taken while overseas, especially in non-English-speaking countries.
• Scan a digital copy of your passport into the computer and put it on a secure hosting spot or give it to a friend who can send it to you. That way if you lose your paper copies, luggage, and everything on you, you can still call a friend from the embassy and get a copy electronically.

While You Travel

• Don’t use a hotel safe. What happens if you forget your combo? The hotel will send someone to the room who can unlock the safe. What stops them from doing this while you are away?
• Use a passport holder or concealed pocket and pull it out only if needed. Never put it in a backpack or a purse.

Once You Realize It’s Missing

• Be sure it is really missing. Once you report it, the passport is invalid. Search all of your bags and clothes thoroughly, enlist a friends help searching.
• If your passport is missing or stolen, contact nearest U.S. Embassy or consulate immediately.
• Travel to the embassy or consulate in person prepared to prove your identity.
• If you cannot prove your identity, bring someone with you who can attest to your identity.
• If possible, bring money for a replacement passport.
• Be prepared to travel to an immigration office in the host country to obtain an entry stamp.
• Be prepared to spend at least four hours waiting in line, filling out forms and answering questions from officials.
• If you didn’t bring extra ID photos with you on your trip, have some taken before heading to the embassy or consulate. Make sure the photos are cropped to the correct size for your country’s passport.
• U.S. citizens who are traveling alone and have no other way to prove their identification will be allowed to call “family, friends or associates” in the United States to confirm their identity, according to the U.S. State Department Web site.

Somehow this made me feel better.

March 20th was the official first day of Spring, but May seems more like Spring here in Alaska. There is still snow on the ground so its definitely still hot tea weather. I will be wistfully sipping from my most dainty mugs today in hope that I will soon have grass and balmy weather suitable for tea parties on the lawn. Have a cup of tea, it revives you!