"When you travel with your children, you are giving them something that can never be taken away- Experience, Exposure and a way of life!"
Being raised by parents who strongly believed in it, I always knew that some of the best learnings in life come only when one travels and a new year resolution of 2019 and 3rd birthday gift I promised my son was each month atleast one travel. I knew it was going to be extremely tough but unlike all other resolutions which I allowed to slip by, I was committed to make this happen.After 12 months and 12 journeys, looking back, it was tough to begin with and it was like always being on a constant plan for the next one, but as they say when you want to do something wholeheartedly, the universe helps you around it...I always got an inspiration/reason/companion for the next trip whenever I was losing sight...My constant companions were my 3 years old (referred as Y, henceforth) and an equally invested husband (referred as O, henceafter) to make it happen.Since, we wanted to include travel as a way of life, we decided to begin with short trips and getting Y look forward to something every now and then. We were watchful that we do a mix of roadtrips/train trips/trips by air, budget/luxury, solo(mommy & son)/couple/family, hills/nature/history/fun/beach/city life/rural life and being based in Bangalore came as a blessing. It turns out that we did a lot of our long pendings/much awaited trips this year.
Sharing short description of month wise trips/destinations (each of these travels are worth a post in itself, do reach out to me, if you want any further details on any of these locations or travelling with a kid in general, would be happy to help with whatever I know)
January'19- Art of Living Convention Center- day trip via Road- Right after, Y's birthday, we did a family trip (both set of grandparents included) to Art of Living Center. Short but fun trip for Y to run around the big open spaces.
February'19-Gandikota and Bellum Caves- stretched day trip via Road- Gandikota was on my wishlist for long and it just seemed apt to do it before the sun got mightier. It was a long day for us to have begun the drive at 5 am and back home by 12 midnight, but the experience was worth the stretch. This was one of the longest road trips, Y had done so far but he was playful and sport through out and especially delighted to watch the Canyon. Gandikota and so is Bellum Caves must visit for travellers, you would be awed.
March'19- Prani Pet Sanctuary- day trip via road-This again was on our list for long to take Y to, and by far this is one of the best animal rescue shelters we have been to. The volunteers are invested in the cause of the animal welfare and are very passionate about the place as a whole.In March, we also made a trip to UP(by air) and Y got an opportunity to witness Ganga Aarti in its glory at Chandikan Ghat. its always a surreal experience to float Diya with flowers in the Ganga and watch it wobble yet sustain its way for the longest distance possible.
April'19- a long weekend and we were again on the road for much awaited but completely unplanned trip to O's place of origin- Malvan. This broke the longest drive record of Gandikota - too soon!-14 hours of drive and beauty it was. O's ancestral home is everything a retirement dream is made of- a cute old world village home with coconut/jackfruit/mango trees in the compound, a well to drag water from and a chulha to heat the water using coconut scrapes as fuel and a calm ocean across the road giving full view of Sindhudurg Fort. It was Y's first visit here and he had a blast of time being spoilt for choices to keep himself busy with.
May'19- Having ancestral home in Malvan meant O never in his life knew Goa beyond family and traditions and when a lazy afternoon idle search threw unbelievable rates for flights to Goa, we just booked it without blinking an eye. From being in customary Calangute, Baga and Anjuna for couple of nights, a night in Bogmallo was a perfect end to our much much awaited Goa! Y is a water baby but seeing his expressions, mannerisms, laughters at a beach are pure joy compared to none.
June'19- I was completely clueless on a trip for this month and was almost sure that the resolution is going to be broken half way along the year, but out of nowhere O was presented with an opportunity to visit his company HQ abroad and that gave Y and I a perfect opening for a mommy son trip. For my love of trains and Y's love for animals, quick train tickets were booked to visit Mysore Zoo along with other attractions in Mysore. Having done several Solo trips in my life, being able to do this with Y again was a big big confidence booster. Mysore Zoo is worth a visit even if you have to travel for this exclusively. This was also the most budget trip of the year (under 2k all inclusive for a 2 days one night trip).
July'19- Being a Mythology freak, Lepakshi was another destination on my wishlist and when we were running out of ideas to travel to, we turned the wheels towards Lepakshi. For Y knowing story of Jatayu was very intriguing and till date he turns heads towards him (and us in turn) by narrating it at most unpredictable places and times.
August'19- Mumbai & Pune (Flight and road trip)- Ganpati in Maharashtra and family reunion along with it, is the best one can ask for combination. Y was happily shocked to see so many Gampati Bappas and couldn't stop Morya Morya every time he saw a Lord Ganesha idol.
September'19-Dubai & Abu Dhabi- This has to be the highlight of not only this year's trip but of many years. We did this trip as a family trip including families of both sides (mine and O's). It was the first such trip we did and it was good fun. An elaborate itinerary and a fun loving family- what else one could ask for!
October'19-Kochi, Alleppy(by train)- an extended weekend trip to the picturesque Alleppy and a charming Dutch Portugese architecture of Fort Kochi stole our heart..a stroll around Jew Town reminded O and I of the times when we strolled around the streets of San Gimignano weaving plans of our future together. This was the trip where we made profuse promises to each other to be back and soon!
November'19-Chennai (by road)- An invite from an old friend was good enough reason for O to set on a road trip again and how we loved Chennai and its weather at this time of the year :)...we were pleasantly surprised by the cleanliness and serenity of Thiruvanmiyur Beach and the lipsmacking breakfast options along the roadside..a walk around T Nagar, finding a little North in heart of Sowkarpet..Chennai surprised us every bit.
December'19-Nagpur (one way flight, one way train)-well, the Grandfinale to 2019 trips came in the form of a much awaited family wedding leading back to nostalgic city of Nagpur. Nagpur is the place from and to where I have done most of my train journeys, the place is more than a city on the map and I am so glad this was the place from where we embarked on a 21 hours long train journey and a wrap to the journeys in 2019. It meant so much more to me. Having not travelled in trains for such distance and time for more than a decade (first time for O and Y), I was tentative of how it would turn out to be, but I could see a marked difference in cleanliness, support, on time travel and overall experience of train travel. This journey has definitely flexed us a little more in favor of train journeys for all our future travels.
None of these journeys were easy and all through rosy, not all the times during and before/after our travel were fun, there were goofups, moments of anxiety, tantrums, meltdowns, disagreements, adjustments, there were elaborate plans on the well planned trips and lot of last minute running around for the impromptu plans, but at the end, the experiences, the family time, the bonding, the people we met, the friendships/relationships we rekindled, the learnings we got from these travels compensate it for more than we can ask for. These travels have bettered us as individuals and we know we are raising a traveller when our soon to be 4 asks with twinkles in his eyes "where are we going next mommy" and travels, stays, eats like a pro in any mode of commute, any kind of accommodation and any kind of food (well almost!)Hope 2020 remains as kind as 2019 was, we hope to navigate it with more fulfilling, more exploratory and longer travels.
PS- Parents, please dont think twice before you take a trip with your child, dont hold back...I promise they will surprise you...
PPS- As a couple, we have moved from clicking zillion photos to living the experiences more and limiting the photographs to count of max 2 rolls of earlier times, so the memory cards in our minds are fuller than in our phones/virtual storage spaces.
#mommylife #travel #travelwithkid #resolutions #2019