Saturday, February 23, 2008

Adventures in India - Packing for Trip

Before I left for my trip, I was asking everyone what should I take with me. I checked online and I couldn't find a decent list. I got extreme answers - "Take everything" to "Don't worry, they have everything there!" It turns out both answers are correct. You can get what you need in India, but isn't it better if you already have it with you?

When I went to India when I was young, we were so happy my mom brought Tang. The food items are really there to make the kids feel more at home. We were surprised to see the variety in India now. There's definitely no shortage of pizza places. My inlaws brought chicken nuggets for my daughter and her eyes lit up! (This was the first time they cooked meat in their Brahmin kitchen!). My sister-in-law brought chocolate and berry muffins and soft buns from a local bakery for breakfast! However, I know this is mostly in large cities like Mumbai

Here are some tips:
Hygiene

  • Flushable wipes - I took a big bag of these with smaller Zip loc bags. Always kept these in my purse or knapsacks. If they dry out, dampen with water. I can't tell you how handy these were in public restrooms, restaurants, and car rides.
  • Wrapped hand wipes - I found individually wrapped packs at CVS in the drug section at the last minute, even though I was looking all over.Again, good to keep in purses.
  • Sanitizing gels - I bought travel size ones, but never had it handy when I needed it. The wipes were better.
  • Kleenex & Q-Tips - I felt I didn't bring enough of these. Again, available in India, but you need them when you need them.

Medical:

  • Chewable Pepto Bismol for Children (I ended up popping a few of these to ease my stomatch too!)
  • Chewable Dramamine tablets for Children for the plane ride
  • Children's Benedryl, Advil and cough syrup
  • Immodium AD (adults only)
  • Hydrocortisone cream (for bug bites)
  • Insect repellent - though I found a great gel in India, better than my spray
  • Neosporine & Band-Aids for cuts
  • Airborne - some people swear by it, I'm not sure
  • Sunscreen
  • Chapstick, moisturizers, hair conditioners and frizz control gels for the humid climate.

Food:

  • pasta and parmesan cheese
  • Jello pudding mix - easy snack to make
  • snack packs of pretzels and cookies (the 100 calorie packs are a great size!)
  • pancake mix - the kids had this for dinner one night
  • granola/cereal bars
  • cereals - I didn't take any, but wished I had
  • sandwich crackers with cream cheese
  • Halloween candy - we had so much left over, we brought it along with us to share. What kid doesn't love a gummy eyeball?

Kids Stuff

Obviously you bring your child's favorite toys. I went to a used book store and picked up 10 soft covered books for 50 cents. These were "new" to my daughter, easy to carry and I could leave them behind for someone else to enjoy.

The carryon for her was a roller knapsack. These are good for travelling with kids because an adult can strap it on their back as well. While the airlines have individual TV screens and everyone watches movies and shows, it's good to have other things to do. Her entertainment included crayons, books, Barbies and a handheld video game. I bought extra batteries as well.

We had ordered child's meal plan for her, which was nice. However, since she's a picky eater, I kept additional snacks in the backpack.

One thing I wanted to get for her and didn't was a personal digital camera. They have smaller ones now,which I know she would have enjoyed using.

If you have other suggestions for the list, please let me know.

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