Traveling Lightly

     I love the ongoing challenge between the airlines and passengers over baggage. The airlines charge for checked luggage, so folks stuff everything into carry-on bags. Now some airlines are charging for overhead bin space, so under-the-seat bags are becoming the rage. While I absolutely can afford it, it irritates me to no end to pay baggage fees on top of the steep ticket prices. So I am now the proud owner of a pretty-damn-small under-the-seat bag. As you can see from the photos, it is just a bit bigger than a standard-size binder.
     I am leaving on a 10-day trip later this week. I am employing several strategies to pack this small bag. My husband packs for the Bike Across Kansas each year and gave me this helpful tip... put clothes in a zip-lock bag, sit on it and seal it. Voila, vacuum-packed! Fortunately, I don't need fancy clothes, so shorts and t-shirts will satisfy my needs throughout, along with one pair of good walking shoes. I learned that the hotel we are staying at midway through the trip has laundry facilities, which I will use. I don't need much jewelry or a lot of make-up or hair products. Those that I do bring are quite small. I'm also very healthy, so I don't have any drugs or medical equipment to carry. I'm very low-maintenance.

     I will be reporting on my trip here on the blog. I have a bucket-list mission to see a baseball game in every major league ballpark. As of right now, it's 13 down, 17 to go. My upcoming trip is devoted to this mission. It's a died-and-gone-to-heaven tour. I fly into Baltimore, where I've given myself an extra day to explore on my own. Once I join the group for the bus tour, we begin with a game and tour at Camden Yards. Then we go on to Philadelphia for a Phillies game. The next move is to New York City for two days to see both the Mets and Yankees, along with some free time in NYC. My two NYC tourist goals are the 911 Memorial and McSorley's Old Ale House. The "icing on the cake" of this trip is a day at Cooperstown for the Baseball Hall of Fame. We finish up in Boston where we get both a game and a tour at Fenway, plus I'm staying an extra day to explore Boston on my own. This will add four more stadiums to my bucket list, as I had previously been to a Phillies game at Citizens Bank Park.
     I am going solo on this trip. I don't know anyone who is as nuts about baseball as I am, nor willing to spend that kind of money for baseball, baseball and more baseball. The advantages of this group trip are many. Transportation in unfamiliar cities is taken care of. We have great seats and nice hotels that I probably would not have treated myself to had I planned it myself, which would have taken an extraordinary amount of my time. There will be lots of ground covered with no driving by me! The tour company (Triple Crown Travel) can take advantage of group rates and packages. I have traveled many times in my life on group tours, and I love meeting new folks, which on this tour will be extra-fun because we will all be baseball nuts. However, being the introvert that I am, I will be very happy to retreat each night to a hotel room all to myself. Can you tell I am excited?!?!?!
     More fun to come...
            Leta