Final preparations and a quick look ahead

My bags are packed, my spreadsheets have been proofed, and my selfie stick is charged.  We are off! Well, sort of.  My first flight out of DCA is delayed, so I thought I'd pass the time recounting some of my last minute preparations and noting what I'm most looking forward to over the next couple days.
Over the weekend, I probably packed, unpacked, and repacked my bag and backpack no joke about 6 times.  I was determined not to check a bag, but when it came to fitting everything I wanted to bring along, I realized I'd need to make some hard choices.  Don't worry, I made it work, but I had to edit out some looks. So as I share pics along the way, do be kind :)

I filled a 22 inch roller bag pretty much with just clothes, and my backpack has a 2nd pair of shoes, my electronics, toiletries and a few other odds and ends. I basically packed for a 2 week trip and will do laundry 3 times along the way.  My initial plan was to pack for a 2.5 week trip and do laundry just twice, but once it came to fitting all that into a bag, I had to revise.  Though even with the extra time I'll have to dedicate to another visit to the laundry, I think its still worth it.  I'm taking a grand total of 21 flights, and when you account for connections there'd be 13 times when I'd have to check and then also wait for a bag at baggage claim.  Then there is also the risk of a lost bag!  So, I feel good about my choice and it's also nice not to have a lot of baggage to lug around.  I've got enough of that already!

My carry-on and backpack!

In the spirit of traveling light I also put every flight, hotel, train, bus, and tour confirmation number and some other key details into one master spreadsheet instead of printing out dozens and dozens of confirmations.  I crammed all that onto both sides of one 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper.  I've never done it that way before, so we'll see how that goes.  Worse case, I have all the PDFs on my laptop and iPad, but I'm hoping I won't need them.

Then beyond that I spent some time reviewing the details of my travel over the next few days.  Here's what I'm looking forward to tonight and tomorrow:

Hampton Inn JFK
- Well this isn't really all that glamorous, but I get free breakfast!

AA Flagship First Lounge JFK
- Before my JFK to Hong Kong flight, I'm looking forward to visiting the new AA flagship first lounge which just opened in May 2017.  I get access because my JFK-HKG flight is in Cathay First Class.  Stay tuned for a review of this one!

Cathay Pacific First Class Flight from JFK - HKG
- Now this is the first thing on my itinerary that I'm truly geeked to experience.  This will be by far the most luxurious first class flight I've ever taken to date.  The first class cabin has just 6 seats, and so far only 3 of them are occupied.  I'm looking forward to champagne, caviar and a huge lie flat bed!  There will be pics to come of this for sure!

The Pier and the Wing - Cathay First Class Lounges in HKG- I gave myself a solid 7 hours in HKG, on purpose(!) just to check out both of these world class lounges.  The Pier is known for offering complimentary massages, a seated dinner where someone actually takes your order and private shower rooms.

So hopefully I get out of charming Arlington, VA sooner rather than later and my next post will be from far, far away!