Packing for this trip took me only two days, but I felt quite stressed throughout those 48 hours. Andrea and I had looked up the baggage allowances for each airline and knew we were limited to 2 check-ons and 2 carry-ons. Of course, I first set out way too many outfits, shoes, and toiletries, but was able to narrow things down enough to fit perfectly into my humongous suitcases. I also invested in a few space saver bags (where you vacuum the air out) and managed to shrink my feather comforter into a small ball... perfect. I knew I wouldn't be able to live without it. What worried me most was the carry-on allowance. One bag and one personal item. This did not mean one bag, one personal item, and one pillow (so said the lady from United rather impatiently). I really wanted to take my pillow and knew it wouldn't fit into my luggage so I vacuum sealed it, too, and shoved it into my carry-on bag. Andrea arrived the night before our flight as I was zipping my last bag closed.
Once our parents saw our large suitcases, they raised questions about the size and weight limitations of United and Korean Air. We checked online again and realized what we had was okay for United, but way too big for Korean Air. We made a few calls and panicked for an hour, but were assured our bags would be placed on the plane by United. Once transferred, Korean Air had to accept whatever they were given (even if the bags were twice the allowable size). We still had to bring the weight down several pounds so unfortunately, my comforter did not make the trip. Boo.
Departure Day
I stepped up to the United counter at the airport and heaved my giant bag onto the weight scale. "That bag will cost you $300," said the lady. Oops... Apparently, their guidelines had changed at some point and the Internet had not been updated. My other bag was okay so she urged me to rearrange things and even out the weight. I would still have to pay an overweight fee, but it would be less significant than $300. Opening your luggage in the airport is embarrassing, but I moved quickly and ignored the staring. The weight issue was resolved and I said a tearful good-bye to my parents before crossing through security. Of course, Andrea and I were flagged for a search...
Our plane to Chicago had also been flagged, and was due for it's routine maintenance check. We sat at the gate for an hour wondering if moving to Korea was the right decision. Before pulling out, the flight attendant asked the eight people in the back of the plane to move up to the front due to a weight distribution problem. I'm sure our bags were to be blamed.
We arrived in Chicago with just enough time to check in and board our flight on Korean Air. I love this airline. Our plane was huge and as we walked back to our section, it felt like we had crossed the length of a terminal. The seats were spacious and, because the flight was not full, we had the three middle seats to ourselves. To keep busy during the 14 hour flight, the attendants made their rounds throughout the cabin continuously. They fed us twice at bizarre hours unrelated to U.S. or Korean time and carried around coffee, tea, water, and juice constantly. During "dinner," we were offered wine and the attendant chuckled when I asked the cost. "Free, of course," he said. Of course. We even had a selection of 20 movies to choose from, but my Twilight books kept me busy for most of the flight. As we landed, Andrea and I said a little prayer for the safe arrival of our luggage.
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