Small little travelling buddies

Now that the kids have their vacations, we went on a short two-day trip to Matheran. My mother, my daughter Sia, my 7-year-old nephew Kris, me and the maid took off for the nearby hill station about 2 hours away from Mumbai. Throughout the journey I was apprehensive about how I would manage with two kids and a mother with weak knees as Matheran does not allow cars beyond a certain point and the only mode of communication is either hand rickshaws or horses.

But the kids laid to rest all my fears. While I cribbed about the clumsy hand rickshaws, the kids were super excited as the men pulled it along. For Sia it was the most awesome ride she had ever had. She screamed and shouted in excitement and the whole experience left her super thrilled. I was amazed at her sheer delight.

Ditto at the resort! While I worried about how we would reach the various scenic points Matheran is known for, the kids happily walked with me to the Rambagh point which was a good 2 kms away from our resort. They walked through the paths shaded by trees, pointed out birds to me, spotted monkeys, counted the number of stones on the way and just generally had a blast reaching there.

By the second day I realised that I didn't even have to necessarily take them anywhere, so happy were they in the resort itself. The swings, the monkeys, the swimming pool and the general resort environment kept them happy and busy. Happy in that realisation I could finally relax and curl up with a book.

I read, slept, relaxed amidst their happy giggles and screams of joy.

Earlier I used to worry about travelling with a baby, not any more. Children make great travel buddies. While we adults fret and fume over things and the way they turned out, the kids happily absorb each experience and revel in it. Their curiosity and innocence makes them see the beauty in every small thing. They adjust and adapt as per their surroundings. They do not need exorbitantly priced rooms with jacuzzis just natural surroundings in which they can bloom and shine. A simple horse ride gives them the joys no air conditioned car can.

Travel by itself is such a great teacher. A child who travels and sees new places and experiences them learns more in two days than in probably half a year of school. The journey itself is a source of joy for them as they do not give too much importance to the destination like we adults do. We wait till we reach a place to let our hair down. Children just give in to the experience the moment they set out.

I can't wait for my daughter to grow up. I dream of doing many mother-daughter journeys with her once she is 5 or 6 years old. Same with my husband who keeps planning a lot of mountain trips with her once she grows up. We are bitten by the travel bug and its heartening to see our daughter take after us in that regard.

Here's to many more enchanting journeys with your bundles of joy!

Till my next post! You can write to me at http://mammamania.in

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