Twice Mice

One aspect of this trip that I had not prepared myself for was the constant attention that Hayden would bring to us in India. At every tourist attraction, it seemed like he was the most interesting exhibit. Our guide said that in his 28 years of work, he had never seen so much activity around his guests. It seemed to me like every person we met wanted to hold Hayden’s hands and pinch his cheeks. While I was busy batting away people with anti-microbial wipes and muttering “germ theory, germ theory” to myself, Adrian was relaxed and inviting. He was always willing to stop for a photo and answer questions. Adrian said that he was pleased that Hayden was making people smile, and glad for a chance to reverse the traditional roles of traveller and citizen. I had to laugh at the brashness of some of the locals, who demanded “take off his hat”, “stand over here”, let go of his hands”, and “you come here too”. Usually, I never feel comfortable taking photos of strangers, but under these circumstances I figured it was appropriate.

A few months ago, Adrian was invited to India to talk at the opening of a new medical research institute. He suggested that we make it into a family holiday. I was torn. I wanted to explore this intriguing country, but Hayden would only be seven months old, and even adults have difficulty spending a week there without getting ill. So we took Hayden off to the travel clinic, discussed our itinerary, and the doctor said that in her opinion it would be safe. I agreed under the condition that we had a private tour with our own driver and stayed in good hotels.

Normally I like to travel light and fit everything into a backpack. However, this would not be possible. I bought an embarrassingly large American-style suitcase, and this is what I packed for Hayden:

Checked luggage:

• Electric steam steriliser (with power adaptor)
• Electric kettle (with power adaptor)
• Ibuprofen
• Oral rehydration powder
• Enterol probiotic sachets
• Antibiotic eye drops
• Saline solution
• Light coloured onsies (long-sleeved with enclosed feet to protect from mosquitoes and sunburn)
• Sunscreen
• Aloe vera cream
• Fungicide
• Betadine
• Band-aids
• Burp cloths
• Nappies
• Powdered formula in aliquots suitable for 240mL water
• Ready-to-drink formula
• Breast pump
• Medela quick clean wipes

Checked at the gate:

• Bugaboo Bee Stroller
• Maxi-Cosi Car Seat with adaptor clips for stroller

Cabin baggage:

• paracetamol
• Baby bjorn carrier
• Passport
• Residence card
• 6 Avent baby bottles filled with 240mL sterile water (yes, security is OK with this)
• 4 days’ worth of formula aliquots
• anti-malarials
• anti-biotics
• 1 spare onesie
• Cold-water sterilising kit
• Ethanol hand sanitiser
• Anti-microbial wipes
• 7 nappies
• (I foolishly forgot a pen)

Adrian was already in India, so I made the 8 hour flight solo. It was actually fine – I caught a taxi to the airport and gave myself an extra hour to get through security (water bottles out of bag and onto tray, bag onto tray, baby out of car seat and into baby bjorn, car seat separated from stroller and onto tray, stroller collapsed and onto tray, walk through metal detector, stroller unfolded, car seat snapped back onto stroller, water bottles back into bag, baby back in car seat, baby bjorn packed into bag). Once on the plane, we had the whole four-seat bulkhead row to ourselves, and Hayden was happy to lay in his bassinette while I had my meals. We also met some lovely people across the aisle who wanted to play with him, which gave me another break.

Once we landed at 10:30pm, my headaches began. I waited 15 minutes for the car seat and stroller to be delivered to the gate. Then 20 minutes to get through immigration. Then 30 minutes for my luggage, only to be told that, as is tradition, it had been “delayed”. Somehow, Adrian’s luggage had travelled from Belgium to Portugal to Switzerland to Qatar to India without problem, but my one direct flight had been too much for the airline to handle. It took another hour for a representative to get my details and tell me that it would be at least another two days until I was reunited with my bag. I was somewhat relieved that the car seat had arrived, and my carry-on bag contained all the essentials we needed to keep Hayden fed safely for the next couple of days.

Poor Adrian had been waiting at the airport to meet us, and by the time we all got back to the hotel it was close to 2 AM. Hayden barely slept in his travel cot, and we all started the next day in low spirits. At breakfast I did not greet Kim, our travel companion, with much enthusiasm.

I already felt overwhelmed by India and I had yet to step out of my air-conditioned hotel.

We met our guide in the morning, and the first thing that he suggested was a bicycle rickshaw through the Chandni Chowk markets of Old Delhi.

This was one of the most noisy and chaotic experiences of the whole trip. We started out on the road, and I was suddenly surrounded by a cacophony of auto-rickshaws, motorbikes, cows, trucks, and cars.

The long rows of market stalls smelled of spices and street food, and the windows were filled with everything from marigold garlands to sparkling red wedding saris.

The crowded and narrow alleys of the markets bustled with pedestrians giving us curious looks, as well as monkeys sitting on the tangled cords that made up the electrical system.

By the time the rickshaw ride ended, I was feeling strangly rejuvinated. We had entered the colourful and chaotic world of Old Delhi, and I had actually enjoyed it. Here I was, reunited with Adrian and exploring an exotic and fascinating country with Hayden and Kim. There was plenty to learn here if I was just willing to let it in. I gave a kiss to my two boys, a smile to my other companions, and we all climbed back into the car ready to see more highlights of Delhi.

Hayden’s greatest accomplishment this month has been sleeping through the night (at least when he is in his own bed). This has made a world of difference to our life. For the first time I wake up refreshed, and ready to get myself and Hayden ready in the morning at a reasonable hour.

Hayden is also rolling from front to back to front, and pushing himself up with his arms. He loves his jumperoo, but hates solids. I continue to breastfeed him in the morning and night, with formula during the day. The carers at his creche patiently feed him potatoes and fruit, half-teaspoonfuls at a time. He will happily chew on an antibacterial towelette if given half the chance, but if he puts so much of a grain of rice into his mouth he looks completely disgusted. So at home we are sticking with milk for nourishment, and we offer him food from our plate during meals for fun.

He loves looking at photos of himself and chatting with the other baby in the mirror. Whenever he sees my phone he starts mashing at it until I turn on the forward-facing camera so that he can drown in his reflection. No stranger anxiety yet – he will beam at all kinds of strangers, though I like to think that he saves his biggest smiles for us.

He can sit unassisted for a reasonable time, and at 70 cm long and 9.1 kg is starting to outgrow his 9-12 month old clothing. We continue to be very lucky with his health, with no major illnesses this month. He is full of smiles and laughter, and I am so glad that he is our little piglet.

Our Bugaboo Bee was really the only splurge baby product. As a car-free family, I think that it was certainly worth the investment. So far it has weathered nine flights, over one hundred and twenty train rides, and quite a few miles along the cobblestone streets of Belgium. A few months in we had a bit of a problem with the height-adjusting handlebar, but a quick email to our Dutch seller had replacement parts arriving the next week.

This is Hayden on the day we brought him home, a ten minute stroll across the park from the hospital:

He loved his little snug cocoon – as a newborn it was one of the only places he would sleep (as long as it was in motion), and while travelling, he much preferred to sleep in it overnight than the travel crib.

However, I finally had to admit to myself that he had outgrown the cocoon, and it was time to switch the buggy into a chair and turn it around to face the world. Adrian was still in denial, telling me that he was still a baby bear, and surely too little for a big bear chair. Hayden seemed a bit apprehensive about the upgrade.

With a foot muff combined with a stroller snug sack from mum, he is still plenty snug on his daily commute, and Hayden soon warmed up to this arrangement.