Firsthand report: international airport security

There's a 95 percent chance Senior Editor Christine Sarkis is thinking about travel right now. Follow her on Instagram @postcartography and Twitter @ChristineSarkis.

Christine Sarkis is an SATW-award-winning journalist and executive editor at SmarterTravel. Her stories have also appeared on USA Today, Conde Nast Traveler, Huffington Post, and Business Insider. Her advice has been featured in dozens of print and online publications including The New York Times, Conde Nast Traveler, and People magazine. She has also shared travel tips on television and radio shows including Good Morning America, Marketplace, and Here & Now. Her work has been published in the anthologies Spain from a Backpack and The Best Women's Travel Writing 2008. She is currently working on a travel memoir.

The Handy Item I Always Pack: The Trtl Pillow. It's easy to pack and comfortable, and makes it so I can actually sleep on flights.

Ultimate Bucket List Experience: Seeing the Aurora Borealis from the comfort of somewhere warm, like a glass igloo or hot spring.

Travel Motto: Curiosity is an amazing compass.

Aisle, Window, or Middle Seat: Aisle all the way.

Email Christine Sarkis at editor@smartertravel.com.

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SmarterTravel.com Contributing Editor Erica Silverstein is back in the U.S. with a report of her return journey from Ireland. “During check-in, I was asked a few extra questions about what I had in my bags,” Silverstein says. “At security, the lines were fast and the process was the same; the only difference was that there were signs posted about the new liquid restrictions. As we boarded, our bags were searched and some people were patted down, but it didn’t hold up the departure at all.”

After flying internationally and domestically twice in a week, her verdict is that there doesn’t seem to be much need to get to the airport earlier than usual, but it’s not a bad idea to get to the gate ahead of time to keep the pre-boarding checks from delaying departure times.

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