Dumped in Dublin

I enjoyed reading of the variety of ways air travelers get all their liquids and gels into a one-quart bag (May ’11, pg. 40 & June ’11, pg. 42). I, too, travel this way and put whatever I need in little half-ounce sample containers and containers holding up to two ounces that I’ve bought at a travel store. I have traveled to Australia, China, Egypt and many places in Europe with no problem.

However, at the end of a trip to Ireland in May ’10, my husband and I were going through security in the Dublin airport when the agent took my one-quart bag out of the bin and informed me that she was going to throw out all of the travel-sized containers.

She insisted that they had to have “proper” labels on them (like “Crest” is labeled on a toothpaste tube). She told me that it didn’t matter if they all were smaller than three ounces because I could have put absolutely anything in the containers.

She then tossed everything except for my toothpaste and a tiny hairspray container that had its “proper” label on it.

I wonder if anyone else has had this occur or if I just happened to get a person who was having a bad day.

LENITA FIRTH
Mill Creek, WA