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First trip abroad - what a nightmare!

Well we just got back from our trip to Austria/Hungary, and we couldn't be more happy to be home sweet home. Elysia was an absolute angel - she didn't sleep in the evenings as she normally would at home - and instead she came out with us to various restaurants, where she was delightful company and didn't seem to suffer from lack of sleep at all. Also she was fine on both flights - no problems with air pressure or anything. We've concluded she's just a very happy adaptable baby and we're very lucky.

However the trip was made a nightmare by the total un baby friendliness of our surroundings, and a big dollop of old fashioned bad luck. Nowhere had baby change facilities, and I was stared at hugely breast feeding in public. However the worst was that the taxi we had hired to take us from Vienna to Herdevar in Hungary, where our friends' wedding was, turned up with a booster seat for Elysia rather than the baby seat we had requested, despite us checking and rechecking they had the right one on the phone beforehand. SO we ended up having to go out and BUY a car seat for 150 euros, which we only used for one journey. We then had to cart it around Vienna yesterday all day - we left ours at home so we could travel light then ended up having to carry one round that didn't fit on our buggy - so annoying.

Elysia was then ill on the evening of the wedding - that was just unfortunate - so I missed most of the meal (my husband brought it up to my room and I ate alone with a baby on my boob) and the speeches. SHe was fine after her constipation had cleared itself and slept soundly frpm 8.3-pm, but we were then kept awake until 4am by the very loud band which was right outtside our window and might as well hsve been set up in the corner of our room. Don't know whether the bride and groom were just too busy to consider these things, but we were the only room with no bath and were right on top of the marquee. (I should have known we were in for a bad night when we were shown to room number 13). So we lay there awake listening to deafening music while Elysia slept soundly next to us. At least she got some sleep. It made us realise that when babies are tired you really don't need to creep around them they will sleep through anything!!!

Then I actually broke down in tears when on the return flight last night we were finally sitting on the plane and Elysia was fed and asleep and we were just counting down to take off and a bit of a snooze, and the pilot came on the intercom to announce that we would be sitting on the runway for 2 hours as airspace had been closed due to a technical problem. A german woman sitting in front of me nearly got the sharp end of my tongue as she kept commenting loudly about me to her friend: oh look her baby's crying, oh look she's crying now, oh blimey she's got her boob out, etc. Anyway, I cried even more, with total relief, when they announced that they had managed to clear an alternative route and we set off after just a 20 minute delay.

Home now safe and sound we've learned such a lot. NEVER rely on someone else to provide a car seat - take your own if you can. Even the taxi which picked us up from the airport had one which wasn't quite good enough - I realised after we had set off that the straps didn't support Elysia's neck properly and when the driver braked she lolled forward alarmingly - so I had to keep my hand firmly on her chest all the way to the hotel. Also, it made me realise how difficult it is to go away with friends without children as they just don;t understand. Why is she crying|? Can't she just sit there while you eat your meal? What;s worng with the booster seat,an't we just pad it out a bit for her? And the restaurant my friend booked for his birthday on one of the nights in Vienna: a trendy cafe bar made up of lots of tiny twisty corridors and very small rooms with the tables packed in, lots of steps and split levels, loud banging music, and practically everyone inside chain smoking. It made me feel very old indeed when everyone had to decamp to a nice roomy traditional family friendly italian restaurant! (I'm veggie and Austria is the least veggie friendly place I have ever visited - incuding Japan!)

Anyway, I'm glad we did it as it was a bit of an adventure, but it was ultimatley a really expensive trip which turned into a bit of a disaster.

Anyone any ideas on what to do with a car seat only used for one journey?! Guess it will be an ebay job.

S and E, happy to be back home.
xxx

ps to finish with a recommendation - the best purchase I made for the trip was an inflatable Boots breast feeding pillow - exactly the same shape as the Widgey which I use at home, so the covers are interchangable too - it was extremely useful on the plane and it made feeding a dream.

Replies

  • Travelling is a nighmare!!! Especially with unhelpful people.
    I have always thought that in most of Europe they have a really different attitude to in car safety than we do. I frequently see babies sitting on their parents laps in the front of the car!! (this is Italy) Does my head in!!

    Glad you got home safely and Elysia was fine. Just mummy and daddy that need another holiday!

    Joanna x
  • what a holiday, gald you got home safely, i just cant imagine going abroad with a LO in toe, we are going away in the uk whilst LO is still tiny, shame your friends were not very understanding x

    becca and jacob
    21 weeks 4 days
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