I read travel blogs religiously and this year is gonna be crazy. It already is! Long lines, delayed flights, canceled flights, lost luggage, frayed nerves. And here we go, jumping right in. Are we crazy?

For my last trips (to Scotland and Japan) I made a commitment to carry on. There are so many reasons to do this especially now with lost bags, customs, immigration and missed connections. It also makes sense because it’s nice to be a little bit lighter with less stuff to drag around. And you don’t have to wait in line to check your bag, nor do you have to wait at the carousel for your bag to hopefully come down that shoot — and what if it doesn’t? Plus when I deplane I’m ready to go and start the adventure . . .

But how do you just take a carry on for 3 months? Enter DHL. I decided that I’d ship my ‘big’ suitcase to Italy where we’ll be for 5 weeks and have the clothes, shoes and travel books I need for the longer parts of our journey. My big suitcase will be at our apartment when we arrive in Italy three weeks from now.