Originally Posted by LuvsParis

You all are a treasure trove and I'm so glad I found you. I'm new to international travel, and when I travel in North America, it's usually by car. In short, I know almost nothing about airports and air travel these days.

So...the TSA says food is allowed in our personal item, and suggests sandwiches. But what sort of sandwiches? The ones we usually make (cream cheese and cucumber, peanut butter and jelly, hummus and wheat bread) all contain, well, gel-like substances (don't they?) Okay - so if it's just peanut butter, no jelly, is it okay? Or do we have to eat bologna? Is cream cheese a gel like substance? Is cheddar cheese okay?

My husband wants to know about avocados - any thoughts? Surely they're not a gel...are they?

Now - if some of you believe I should be discouraged from this plan of action (taking sandwiches), please tell me so. But, after a delayed international flight and the worst, most skimpy food possible in-flight last year (with the entire planning dashing to make connections), we ended up going for about 16 hours with very few calories (I can eat a granola bar and live, but the DH wants a sandwich! Since he schlepps everything everywhere, I'd like him to have one).

And, while asking n00b questions, I'll just throw in another one.

Can I put my contact lens supply in a separate bag from the 3-1-1 bag? They do contain a liquid, but the TSA says that OTC and RX liquids that are over the limit are allowed (with no attention to quantity) as long as they are separately declared. I just really dislike having them near the other things in my 3-1-1 bag, like mouthwash. If anything spills, getting anything on the outside of the contact lens packaging (which I might not notice, especially since I have poor eyesight to begin with), it will be transferred to the contact lens.

Am I just asking for it? Will I hold up the entire airport from its operations?