We are planning a short trip to Pakistan next year who will be almost 4 by then. I am quite worried as I have only had one trip with my son so far and that was when he was very young, wearing nappied.
I am quite nervous about this trip as I found it quite difficult last time and now with him having a mind of his own it would be very difficult to completely control what he eats. Also, getting him used to the toilets there will be a HUGE issue and not sure how to prepare for that.
I was owndering if people had any tips on having a manageable trip witha toddler.
I’m in the same boat as you. Will be visiting Pakistan next year with my daughter who’ll be 3.5 yrs old and baby who’ll be around 10 months old. I will be living at the inlaws for 1-2 months (not sure yet…) .. husband will only be there for 3 weeks.
Looking forward to the advice.
go in with the belief that they WILL get sick. its a given. so hen they dont.. you will be elated.
but honestly… look at the odds.. they arent in your favour.
i took my 2 .5 yr old and 2 month old … to karachi.. during winter.. everyone was like no one gets sick during winter.
wrong. my son ate nothing from anywhere.. only home cooked stuff.. we used only nestle water.. but he was sick on and off from the get go. ith appens man.. u cant protect them from it. even if you use bottled water for cooking and washing up.. what when the child showers? some water can get in their mouth.
only thing you have to remember is.. its not the end of the world i dont mean to be patronizing.. and im not.. but seriously… they have drs.. amazing ones.. and they fix the boo boos. all you have to believe is.. its temporary.. and you will be home soon enough.. and your kid can go back to being healthy and happy …
i know i dont sound too positive.. but thats what it is.. realistic advice. the day i switched off my mind and realized.. hey.. this is how it is.. cant protect them from it all… i enjoyed myself more. kids are also made to tolerate these kinda things better than most adults.
as for the washroom issue… will your home base have the western style or desi? if the latter.. than you can try to get him used to it.. but if he doesnt… just buy a transportable potty. and use that?
Not every kid gets sick, last time we went, feb/march this year, AH none of my kid got sick. Of course we avoided food from outside and they drank nestle water.
We took a lot of baby food with us.
Even if you only have the eastern style toilet available there, its not a big issue, let the kid sit and let him do the business, you support the child, so that he doesnt fall.. as our kids are not use to being in that position for long, and quickly clean him up with water (if you have the muslim shower installed its even better)… its not recommended to throw toilet paper in the toilets there as they get blocked very easily.
Avoiding food from outside is gonna be hard. We’re going for a wedding, a very close one, and there are gonna be a lot of davats to go to and as we all know the trend is to take the newly weds and their family out to dinner so we’ll be eating out a lot … I really hope my daughter doesn’t get sick
Thank God the inlaws have normal toilets No worries here.
Another question, about taking kids to the bazaars. How safe is it? Leaving my daughter at home will be easy but I’m not sure I’m comfortable leaving my baby at home … how easy is it to handle a stroller in say liberty market in Lahore??
I’ve never seen a stroller out in a crowded bazaar/market in Khi…only the posh indoor shopping malls…my advice would be to leave the baby at home too on days when you have marathon shopping sprees or nitty gritty darzi ka kaam to take care of
I have taken my daughter to Liberty in a stroller.This was in the year of 2010,I was there for my sister’s wedding and had to make quite frequent trips to the bazaars.Back then there was a good thing about Liberty that no vehicles were allowed in the market area and corridors and everyone had to park in the central lots.This made it easy to maneuver the stroller there. Last year I was there this parking arrangement had just changed (not sure how it is now) and there were too many vehicles and no place to move a stroller with ease.But no matter what,Liberty is easy to do with a stroller.So is fortress stadium.I also took her in a stroller to Auriga…not a good idea…!!..there rae steps and stairs and just not enough space to move the stroller.Also,the dupatta galli side of Liberty will be a lil hard…but not impossible.
slowly her stomach will get used to the food, what I meant food from outside is the one on stalls / street food, food at wedding or from good restaurants will not be such am issue, but then food from home can make the little one sick too, as we never really know where all the germs are sitting. dont worry, like i said, if you can take food along, like dry stuff, cereal, bottled food for the beginning.
I never left my kids at home, only the eldest a few times stayed home coz of cousins, the rest 2 came along. What made me take my little kids with me, as the homes in pakistan are not baby/kids safe, there are water tanks that are not covered or just with a tin lid, the roof tops, stairs are not secured, the doors not locked, the safety factor does not play such a big rule with them as they say our kids are used to such a mahool, so I would rather have my kids with me , in front of my eyes as to leave with others, who are not safety conscious.
A stroller doesnt work well on the side ways of the roads, if you can carry the baby, it will be better. Been there, done both stroller and carrier.
We did not even bother taking a stroller with us, because there is only very few areas in Lahore where you can actually use it. Liberty is one of them but only during “less busy” times.
i dont mean to be patronizing.. and im not.. but seriously… they have drs.. amazing ones.. and they fix the boo boos. all you have to believe is.. its temporary.. and you will be home soon enough.. and your kid can go back to being healthy and happy …
No worries here.
