Christmas markets are something Austria is definitely not lacking in, but when we heard that our regular summer beach spot, Lignano, was holding a Christmas market over December, we thought… why not? Something different. And definitely warmer than cold ol’ Austria. So, we packed ourselves and the in-laws up, and off we went to see what it was about.
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I love summer. With good weather, long nights, the swimming pool open and the garden to nurture, there’s plenty to do. So, since Sam’s not yet in school, we generally plan holidays in shoulder season when it’s quieter, and cheaper. But all of a sudden, summer was about to end, and I hadn’t organised anything.
That’s how it came to be that I was due to head away every weekend in September.
And guess what? It was too much.
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I’ve already summed up my top ten tips for making a long-haul flight half bearable. But here’s some more tips to encourage the time to fly… just like you are.
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It was only going to be a quick trip… it was! Three weeks from start to finish which amounts to 2.5 when you take out the flight times. We didn’t want to put Sam through another long flight and jet lag, so the decision was made that I would go on my own.
I was excited. This was going to be my trip. This was going to cancel out all the disasters from last year’s trip – the snow, the Covid, the everything. I was organised, my excel sheet was planned out and it was going to be great!
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I just had four weeks off parenting… and it felt… decadent.
It was only meant to be three weeks, which in itself is more than a lot of parents can dream about. But then I came down with the flu upon arrival in Australia. So we decided to add a week to make up for the time I spent in bed.
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There have been a few incidences of bad turbulence in the media lately, and it got me thinking about turbulence. It’s one of those things you try not to think about when cruising at 35,000ft. Much like those weird beeps and noises that sometimes happen during take-off and landing, you curl your fingers tighter around your arm rest (or your vodka tonic) and tell yourself it’s normal. Nothing is going to happen. I mean, it’s not like we’re going to drop out of the sky.
Except sometimes you do.
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In the thick of it, it honestly felt like everything that could have gone wrong did. If I’d known how hard it was going to be going into it I probably wouldn’t have done it.
But it had been almost two years since I’d visited Oz. I’d had a kid in the meantime. And last winter almost killed me (or at least threw me into a deep hole of depression that a holiday to Australia probably could have fixed).
So, we went for it. We endured the flight, the jet lag, the covid, the weather, the constant moving around with a toddler, the terrible sleeping from said toddler. And then we faced getting back on the aeroplane and doing it all again.
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I’d read a lot of stories online of people who travelled with kids. And there was one general consensus. The difficult age is between 1 and 3. Before one, kids are more flexible, sleep a lot, and their bodies don’t react as much to things like jet lag and so on. After 3 they are old enough to understand what’s going on and old enough to be reasoned with (to some extent).
The bottom line was… when I looked into the question of ‘should we do a long plane trip with an 18 month old’ the answer was… DON’T.
It can’t be that bad, I thought. And in any case, we don’t have a choice – I want my friends and family to meet the little dude before he’s not so little any more.
It WAS that bad.
So, if you’re thinking about it. My advice is… DON’T. lol. But read on. Enjoy my pain.
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I had to split this blog post up… because when just getting to the airport became a mission in itself, well… I guess you’ll find out if you read along.
I was nervous about the prospect of flying with an 18-month old. But how bad can it be, really? In the end it’s just a day of our lives. It will be difficult. But it won’t be terrible. Well… actually it kind of was.
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There seems to be a growing trend on aeroplanes these days… and I’m not sure I like it. Back in the good old days there were kids meals and vegetarian meals… and well… that was about it for options. Have you taken a minute to look at the options available now?
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an aussie in austria 