Category: packing

Lost Luggage and Found…Managing Travel

December 13, 2018

How to keep track of your luggage

Airplanes at the Calgary airport terminal at sunrise
Calgary YYC airport sunrise views

We decided to spend Christmas in Asia with our daughter this year. Rather than spend a long time in one place, we chose to spend a week in Chiang Mai, Thailand, 2 weeks travelling through Vietnam, then a final week in Bali. We selected one piece of luggage each and packed only what was necessary. When we arrived in Bangkok, both our suitcases were missing. Managing luggage before, during and after a flight whether lost or found, require a few planning steps.

Packing

Although we are travelling for 5 weeks, tropical countries don’t require the layers of clothing that Canadian winter does. We decided that a carry-on might limit space for things we might buy along the way since the countries we are visiting sell clothes in their markets for very reasonable prices.

I travel with my computer and camera equipment in a daypack so it is usually at its weight maximum once I add a few things I don’t want to be without on arrival. I chose a medium, solid side wheeled suitcase, and Peter chose a soft duffel bag with internal backpack straps. We knew that we had several flights and car rides to  hotels every few days. We also had 3 people in a vehicle. Smaller seemed wiser. Compared to the 2 large and full bags I took to Cambodia last winter, this was a real downsizing for.

Carry on necessities

In addition to my camera, laptop and external drive, I include in my carry-on luggage anything I feel I wouldn’t want to replace. My contact lenses in their case come with me, but not the bottles of solution. The cleaner I use is not available in Asia so I pack big bottles in my checked bag. This is another reason that just a carry-on is too challenging for me).

Beijing, China was our layover on the way there and that airport is not very warm. My sister had to buy a parka for her layover a couple of year ago. I packed a fleece jacket, toque and gloves for our short stay there since it was December. I didn’t need the gloves, but the toque and jacket were very welcome. Most of the staff in the airport were in what we would consider “outside coats”. 

The other items in my carry-on included my jewelry, my Kindle reader, a water bottle, a neck pillow for the plane and my noise cancelling headphones. Any medications would be advisable to include as well.

Of course I also bring along any travel documents, including my passport, boarding passes and my e-visa for Viet Nam. I usually take along a travel toothbrush when we fly for more than 12 hours, but somehow it didn’t make it this time.

You can really tell what you value most when you see what you pack in the bag that is going with you. 


We’re in Bangkok…Our luggage is in Vancouver

We travelled from Calgary to Vancouver, Canada to Beijing, China to Bangkok, Thailand before carrying on to Chiang Mai, Thailand the next day. Our first leg was delayed while WestJet tried to sort out a mechanical issue. Eventually they put us on another plane to Vancouver where we arrived 40 minutes into our 79 minute layover.

It would appear that our bags never made that flight and were a day behind us all the way. After completing our time in the immigration line in BKK, the luggage carousel was pretty empty. Although we flew WestJet to Vancouver and AirChina the rest of the way, Thai Air was responsible for writing up baggage claims.

The agent not only wanted our baggage claims, but he also wanted all the boarding passes from our complete journey. I assumed that they served no purpose after you found your seat for each flight, but I was wrong.  The baggage claim stickers were on the back of the first boarding pass. Usually I like to have them on the back of my passport so I know exactly where they are. I will check on that next time.

Lost luggage–Found!

The agent told us our bags had not made the AirChina flight to Beijing after only one quick phone call. Both suitcases would arrive at midnight the following day, about 24 hours after our arrival. As we would be in Chiang Mai by then, the agent told us they would be put on the first morning plane and be delivered to our hotel about 10am.

Montreal Convention 1999

We were not offered any compensation information and were told to contact the AirChina number written on the claim form. I looked on their website but missing luggage compensation was not described at all, except to say that a claim for lost luggage could be mailed to them. I am still not sure if the responsibility was actually WestJet’s. 

The Montreal Convention 1999 is a legal document that protects passengers’s rights when flying. There are lots of good blogs explaining the details, but is essentially requires an airline to reimburse you up to about $1000 for items that you require between the time you arrive at your destination on an international flight, and the time your luggage arrives. 
I only bought a couple of toothbrushes and some paste since I had everything that was important to me.

Amazingly, our suitcases were delivered right to our hotel within an hour of the time given to us. Both bags arrived with several RUSH tags affixed from each of the airports we had visited. 

Plan ahead

Because we had all the paperwork required by the airline, and we had packed our carry-on with the things we cared about most, wearing the same clothes for a couple of days was not a big deal. Our itinerary was on our phones so we were able to start our next adventure without our luggage.

White Rim Road… alone in the desert wilderness

September 3, 2017

Canyonlands, Utah–White Rim Road

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To prepare us for this road trip, we took a side trip down the Shafer Trail when we visited Canyonlands, Utah in 2016. This road has to be seen to be believed.  It heads over the side of the Mesa and in 8 km it drops 1400 ft. into the canyon.  It follows the cliff with many switchbacks and is a single track gravel trail.  We didn’t need 4 wheel drive that day, but high clearance is necessary. Once at the bottom, we turned on Potash Road and followed an interesting road out to Moab, with views of arches and the river.

There is another road that continues from where we turned off.  It is 160 km and travels around a third of the park with the Green River to the west and the Colorado River to the east.  There are a number of campgrounds available for booking along the way.  Peter decided then he wanted to take this White Rim Road and explore the desert in his truck.

Planning

This was his trip so he did most of the research and planning.  He read up on the regulations in the park.  He watched YouTube on others who had done it and checked out the route on Google Maps.  The campgrounds were analyzed and booked.  The truck had all the fluids topped up and the tires checked.  Extra water jugs were pulled out of the basement and the backup battery charger for the engine’s battery was prepared.

I was rather anxious about this kind of adventure, but I trust his driving and I knew the truck was safe, so I was in.  Not ecstatic, but in.  I thought of it more like a backpacking trip with our Coleman Instant Tent, where you needed to be self-sufficient for a number of days, in this case, 4  We had 2 coolers, 1 for ice and 1 that runs off the 12 volt.  I checked the first aid kit and made sure we had all the necessary supplies.  

After a pleasant journey through Montana, Wyoming and Colorado, we arrived at Canyonlands National Park at 5 pm on a Friday afternoon.  It is about 45 minutes north and west of Moab, Utah.  We fully expected to have to camp somewhere in the Land Management Area in order to find a spot, but drove through Horsethief Campground just in case.  It was almost empty!  We couldn’t believe our good fortune.  Our site overlooked the desert and although it didn’t have water, vault toilets were available and it was only $15.  

Desert Sunset
Sunrise

It was hot and breezy, but the sky was so dark.  The moon was almost new and I enjoyed working on my night photography skills without having to wear my toque and mittens.  The MIlky Way was so clear and it was hard to see all the constellations for the stars.  

Milky Way

Milky Way with our tent and a plane trail

Shafer Road to White Crack Day 1

We stopped at the information center at Island in the Sky to check in.  The sites we booked were confirmed and after looking at the entire trip, we decided that 3 nights would be adequate for this trip and cancelled our final night.  The fee for our back country permit was only $30 and was good for up to 7 days.  It included our camping.  

There was water available here and we topped up all of our containers.  They recommend 4 liters per person per day when travelling in the desert where temperatures were usually 35 Celsius in the day and 18 at night.  We had 47 L plus our filled water bottles.  The cooler had a variety of canned drinks as well.  There was plenty to drink, but I felt thirsty the whole time between the heat and knowing that my water supply was not unlimited.

Model of the White Rim road in red

We tipped off the top of the world onto Shafer Road.  I felt okay since we had been down this cliff before.  I had been in the back last time so hadn’t seen how many times the road seems to disappear at the corners.  The road was smooth and a little more than 1 lane wide with amazing vistas.  Looking back though, it is hard to know where you just drove.  As we wound our way to the bottom, there are sheer red cliffs above you, and sheer drops below.  Fortunately we didn’t meet anyone until the bottom.

We passed 2 tour vehicles ready to head up the trail.  We also met a park ranger whose truck you can see in the picture.  The info center told us they drive the White Rim Road daily, but this was the only official we saw in 3 days.  We were also passed by a couple of Land Cruisers.  They didn’t have any camping reservations and were driving the entire loop in one day.  They could travel much quicker than us as they had a shorter wheel base, were not loaded with equipment and could reduce their tire pressure to go over the bumps and rocks more easily.  

The Road

The road was primarily one lane wide.  It was dirt or small gravel in lots of places which made for easier driving.  The challenging sections were in the drainage and washout areas.  Rain run off had washed away all the small rocks and left large rock or sometimes bedrock called sliprock.  There were many large holes in front and behind these larger rocks that required lots of driver attention.

It wasn’t too bad in the flat areas, but the same thing happened on lots of the steep up and down climbs. Some climbs were so steep we couldn’t see past the hood of the truck. Watching for rocks sticking out from the side, holes in the road, drop offs and having no idea if the road turned left or right at the top of a climb made for full-time navigating for us both.  Fortunately the 4 wheel-low works flawlessly.  4 high did a good job too when needed.

The advantage of being 1400 ft below the usual viewpoints is that you are that much closer to the canyons.  We walked into Mussleman Arch and could look at the other hoodoos and formations and colours that are not apparent from the top.  I took a picture of Mesa Arch from the top last year and was able to look at it from behind this time.  The Washerwoman looks so interesting from close up.  It is just a tiny formation seen through Mesa Arch.

Mesa Arch and Washerwoman from above March 2016

There were a few campgrounds and picnic stops along the way.  We had a picnic in the truck and completed 60 km to our first stop.  It had taken most of the day as we were travelling between 10 and 40 km/hr. White Crack Campground was 2 km off the road and set on a rise overlooking the lower basins.  We were at the very southern tip of Island in the Sky section of Canyonlands.

White Crack Campground

The camping area can be booked by a group of up to 10 with 3 vehicles.  Since we were only 2 people with 1 vehicle, that is all they booked into this site.  It is remote and silent. The sound of jets flying over were all there was to remind us that we were still part of the modern world.

It consisted of a vault toilet with the most spectacular view in the world, a large slab or red rock and a single juniper tree that we moved our chairs around to get a little shade.  There was a short squall soon after we arrived but the wind died quite quickly and we didn’t lose any of our supplies over the cliff.

The sunset showed itself with clouds and lots of virga, although by true dark, the stars could be seen through the open windows of the tent, even without my glasses.  We got up to watch the sun come up over the mountains and light up the canyon walls in the west.  There was a short trail that took us neared the views to the south where  we could clearly see the white rim of stone that was the uppermost layer in the canyons.

White Crack to Murphy Hogback  Day 2

Our second day was much shorter than the first at only 15 km and about 1 ½ hours. We returned to the main road and travelled over several washout areas.  We stopped several times to look at rock formations.  Erosion is always at work here.  We saw towers with harder rocks balanced precariously on top.  There were some rocks that stood out from the canyon walls like fins.  

Our first real challenge for the truck was driving up Murphy’s Hogback.  It is a section of land raised up from the White Rim where we felt like we were driving straight up like those trucks you see in the commercials.  It was very scary but the truck and driver did a great job.  By the time I arrived at the top, I had a few tears of relief.

The road up!

Murphy campground

The camping area was right at the top of the Hogback at almost 1600 m.  We were there by 11 am but I was glad for a break after all the anxiety of this trip.  The steep section was a success, but I knew we had to go back down the other side.  We did see one more truck go by all day, and that was the last of humanity that we saw until we completed our trip.

This campground had 3 separate sites, but we were the only ones there. Again we had a vault toilet with a view and a friendly juniper tree to give us so more shade. There were no tables provided, but we had a portable table top that unrolls and sits on a base.  

We also had Coleman Instant Screen room.  It was really handy on our trip to the Alaska Inside Passage.  We set it up over the picnic table and used the propane fire ring in the doorway to keep us warm and dry in all the rain.  Since we were encouraged not to exert ourselves in the heat of the day, we set up the room, covered the sunny side with a tarp, spread out our camping mat and had a day off.  I worked on my blog and read.  Peter read the maps and rested from the driving of the last week.  We had lots of water to drink and finished the day with rib steaks on the grilling pan and wished we had brought wine as well.  Those kinds of meals are definitely not backpacking meals. (Pinot Grigio)

A juniper tree gives a lot of shade
shade in our screened patio
Stay out of the sun!

The sky was very cloudy around sunset.  There was rain and virga in the area, but we didn’t get moisture.  I didn’t want to have to worry about slippery roads for the way out.  After sitting and relaxing all day, we realized that we didn’t need another night in the desert so planned to drive out the rest of the way.  We planned to stop at our last camping spot and check it out just in case.  It was also the day of the North American Solar Eclipse so we needed to be somewhere open enough to see what effect an 80% eclipse had on the landscape.

Murphy’s Hogback to Potato Bottom and beyond  Day 3

Getting up so as not to miss the Canyon sunrise meant we were on the road by 7:30.  The trip down off the summit was like pointing your skis down a black run.  You just have to go.  It was steep and rough, but it was okay.  Luckily no one was coming up at the time.  We used the GPS more today to see which way the road curved before we got there.

 

The road today took us along several canyon edges and eventually down to the Green River.  The weather was clear and sunny again and the views amazing.  We could look up at towers and mesas.  We got to our booked camping spot about 9 and decided to carry on to the Mineral Bottom boat lauch for the eclipse, just past the end of White Rim Road.

Or next scary section was up Hardscrabble switchbacks which very quickly takes you up and over a high section and back down to the river again.  It really took 2 of us to get through this.  I watched for rocks and holes on the  right and Pete kept his eye on the left.  I was also responsible for any big rocks jutting out from the right although there was seldom any room on the cliff side of the road to do anything about it. Neither of us looked down.  There was one switch back that we had to enter a turn around area to get the right angle to continue up the hill.

We got back down to the river again along a narrow trail that caught us by surprise and were soon found ourselves at the exit to the White Rim Road, 3 days and 160 km of adventure later.

We got a chance to see the eclipse through some paddler’s glasses.  The light seemed to glare less off the cliffs but it was really not that noticeable, considering how much of the sun was covered by the moon.  We did notice some really interesting shadows on the sand and the temperature dropped from about 35 to 25 Celsius for a short time.

After watching the paddler’s prepare for their trip, we finished our trip on the White Rim Road by exiting up the Mineral Bottom Road.  It was steep with lots of switchbacks, but it had signs for curves and reinforced corners and felt like a highway.  It was time for a shower and dinner in Moab.

Packing for a Winter in Thailand…What did we really need?

April 15, 2017

It was difficult packing for a winter in Thailand.  What did we really need?  Having never visited Asia before, we weren’t sure what was essential, what recommended and what would be nice to have. We only had 28 sq. m for living space so we couldn’t take too much.  As we packed to come home, I made some notes for next time.

Prepared for action

Clothing

As almost every travel site will tell you, pack your bag and then take half of it out.  I did that initially, but could have done it again.  Thailand is hot and humid.  It is also very casual.  The only people dressed up were the tourists from China.  I took dresses, shorts, skorts, and wicking t-shirts as well as some stretchy shorts and light t-shirts to use in the gym.  I added a couple of swim suits and a cover up.

Here’s what I found.  The laundry lady on our street washed, dried and folded our clothes about every 10 days for $7.  She usually had them overnight.  That meant I took too many t-shirts.  I also preferred wearing dresses with the stretchy shorts underneath.  The rayon dresses they sell in Thailand for $10 each are perfect for this climate.  They hang loosely and were the coolest, most comfortable option for me.  I had one nice sun dress I brought and a couple of other dresses that were also cool enough.  I would recommend buying dresses on arrival and a long wrap-around skirt to keep packed to use as a skirt or a wrap to be respectful in the temples.

Thai dress

The skorts were useful as they are appropriate for any occasion.  The black one was good when I needed black and white for a choir uniform. I had a white t-shirt but bought a dressier white top when we were performing. I rarely wore the shorts.

The most important item I took was a big white sun hat I purchased at MEC before we left.  I wore it every day.  The chin string seemed a bit uncool until I was riding in tuk-tuks and boats when it became essential.

swim cover and hat locked on

Travelling Clothes

Since we planned to visit the Great Wall of China during our Beijing layover on our flight there, we had a bag of clothes for layering.  We wore zip off hiking pants that were also very practical for our visit to Nepal.  I took a toque and mittens as well as a wind jacket and light fleece jacket.  As it was just around freezing with a light breeze, these clothes were perfect for the stopover.

The coldest high temperature in Chiang Mai was 23,  and only for a couple of days.  I wore my hiking pants once, just because I had them.  I wore a light sweater that I did buy there.  It was also useful in the movie theaters when we sat in the air conditioning for a couple of hours.  A scarf or skirt as a wrap would probably do. Most restaurants were open air with fans so we didn’t experience the chill I feel when sitting in A/C here.  We brought umbrellas and rain jackets.  It only rained twice and was too hot for a jacket.  The umbrellas could have been purchased at 7-11 for a small amount and then left behind.

Brisk day in Beijing

Footwear

For footwear I took flip-flops for the pool, hiking shoes, runners and sandals with good support.  I could have managed with just the runners and sandals but they both were pretty new and I wasn’t sure if they would feel good with all the walking we were going to do.  We had planned to do some hiking, but we didn’t, so I would take the same choices again another time.  There is plenty of footwear for sale, but with my feet I wanted to be sure I had what I needed ahead of time.

Toiletries

As far as toiletries are concerned, you can buy most of what you need.  There are many recognizable brands in the drug stores and grocery stores.  There were a few challenges.  Peter found the toothpaste tubes looked the same as at home, but the taste of Colgate was not the same.  Deodorant is either spray or roll on and contains whitener, as does almost every skin product in Thailand.  They want their skin lighter and we are all trying to make ours darker!  If you like solids, take lots because you will need it in the heat.

I wasn’t able to find 3 products.  I use a hydrogen peroxide solution to clean my contacts.  It is considered “dangerous” and is not sold in Thailand. I had to have some brought from England and Canada.  Blonde hair colour is also not available, which is to be expected in a country where everyone has beautiful black hair. I also had difficulty identifying antacids like Tums in the stores so my sister brought me some from home.

We took towels, but our apartment provided towels for the bathroom and for the pool.  I found some beach size quick dry towels that pack very small.  They were good when we went to the beaches in Krabi.  We also bought full face snorkel masks for the ocean, but there were places to rent them if we had wanted.

Games and Activities

I took a crib board, some cards and a couple of puzzle games.  We did use them, but there was lots to do in the evenings, or we were too exhausted to do much besides watch a little Nat Geo channel.  I took a couple of books with me, but there was a book exchange in our building and a couple of used book stores where I could find lots to read in English. Peter took his guitar and golf clubs.

Electronics

My computer got lots of use.  I bought an ASUS zenbook because it runs on a solid state drive so it is fast and is more durable if (when) it gets bumped around.  It is also powerful enough to run photo editing software. I used it to write my blog, edit photos, watch movies on Netflix, call home on Google hangouts and video call on occasion.  I also had a couple of external drives that I used for picture storage. Pete took his laptop and our tablet.  We also took along a small Bluetooth speaker that we used quite often. We did have a TV in our room that had many English channels, including a movie channel, National Geographic, History, and CNN International.

Phones

Our phones were old when we took them.  After a few weeks of trying to keep them charged or plugged into external batteries to enable Google Maps to keep working to help us find a location, we started looking for something more efficient.  Once Uber became an option, it was essential to have a working phone.  We ended up buying the first new phone in Laos.  It was 2.25 million kip!  This is only $350.  Peter bought another of the Huawei gr5 2017 phones when we returned to Chiang Mai.  They last about 1 1/2 days on a charge.  What a relief.

Chargers and Adaptors

Thailand works on 220V and North America on 110V.  We took a plug-in adaptor with us as well as a small power bar.  We found that our phone and computer chargers work on multiple voltages.  This is printed right on them.  Even my camera battery charger worked.

The cords in Thailand have 2 round pegs and no grounding plugs, however the slot plugs from home would fit into the outlets which had an extra slot for the third peg. They often had to propped up to stay since the plugs had to be inserted sideways, and they weren’t gripped as tightly as we are used to.  The power bar was useful but we didn’t need the adaptor for our plugs.  I didn’t take any other appliances.  I bought a small blow dryer when I arrived.

Money

Thailand, and most of South-East Asia for that matter, is a cash economy.  We rarely used our credit cards, and if we did there was at least a 3% fee added on.  The ATM worked well for taking money from our Canadian account and giving it to us in Thai Baht.  There was a $7 fee for the withdrawal on that end and a $5 fee from our account at home.  We always took the maximum amount possible to minimize the fees.  Next time we would be sure to have a larger limit for withdrawals.  We also needed American dollars to pay for our visas in other countries.  It would probably be cheaper to take some of that currency with us.

We paid our rent with a global e transfer from our bank to the hotel account.  This had a smaller fee than 2 withdrawals would have and worked easily.

Packing

Air China allows 2 free checked bags of 23 kg on their international flights.  When we came, we brought 2 large rolling duffel bags, 1 smaller duffel bag and Pete’s golf clubs.  I had a 40L daypack for my camera/computer equipment and Pete had a similar daypack for carry on as well as his guitar.  We also used the daypacks as luggage for our trip to Laos.

Daypack and hat went everywhere

To return, we were doing well with only buying a few small items for gifts and had decided to replace the smaller duffel with a larger pack from the market.  Luckily we sent the golf clubs and few other items home with our daughter, Melissa, in March before we went to Nepal.  The “made in Nepal” outdoor gear was too tempting.  In the end we brought home our 2 big duffel bags and 2 large North Face waterproof bags full of outdoor clothing that will be great additions to our truck camping supplies.

Things We Left Behind-maybe for next year?!

Supplies
Our kitchen supplies
My cozy chair and computer table
Left this for the neighbors

Thank you for all your interest in our travels.  I will share a few more pictures and shorter stories now that we are home and have time to look through them before we head off on whatever comes next.  I appreciated being welcomed back to church last Sunday with, “We thought you were in Nepal!” since that is where my last post referred to.  It let’s me know people were following us closely.  We never felt lonely on this trip.  Let me know if I can help if you decide to just go to see the world.