I have a few questions about customs – something which i know very, very little about. I am going to be flying into france, travelling to italy, austria, germany, and switzerland before ending my travels in England for several months (where i’m studying abroad). What is all this about customs searching my backpack (which i have to check in as luggage) and taking stuff??? when does this happen and how do i know what’s acceptable to pack and what’s not. I would rather not pack anything that will be taken away! I’m packing any food or plants or anything, but i do have IB profen and allergy medicine (both over-the-counter drugs) – are they going to be taken away? Another thing – i’m planning to send a box beforehand to England so my stuff is there when i get there. When i went to check costs for FedEx the lady at the store told me that i needed to have all kinds of clearances for my box – they would search it and stuff. she gave me all kinds of paperwork requiring me to list the exact contents of my box (such as the fabric content and where the items were made). She told me to call FedEx and make sure that the contents were cleared for sending to England because if they weren’t then it would never make it!! HELP!!!! i know nothing about Customs and i have a feeling its something i should be informed about. if you can’t tell me can you tell me where to find this stuff out???!? thanks everybody for all your help!