2 days

Here we are, packing up to go! 2 more days until we leave. Everything feels pretty good, we are anxious to get on with it and start traveling! This post is about what we are taking. Packing for traveling with a child is not the same as packing for traveling alone....or with a 1 year old like we did last time.


This is Walker, watching "Monsters, Inc" with furrowed eyebrows. He is asking us what he can take, and when we get on the plane...then he syas he does not want to go. Oops! But we know he has NO IDEA of what is in store for him, so we just keep on keeping on!


This is my bag. Jamie has one almost just like it in black. It is just as big as they will let you have for carry on, but I do not know the exact dimensions. I wrote on the side this afternoon, just my email address. I thought I would put my mailing address, but then I thought it might be better to just put my easiest contact info. I did the same with Walker's bag, but Jamie's is black, so I guess I will use a paint marker on his.

Here is our bed full of the little bags I put inside our big bag. I like using little bags and designating each one for a specific purpose. I have my doc kit, Walker's doc kit, a bag for electronics and plug converters, a bag for powdered drinks & wipes, and a bag for underwear and
socks. We have lots of bags...clear and wet/dry and for liquids and for poopy diapers and for snacks and for collecting items....I know it is not good for the environment, but I LOVE ZIPLOCKS of all shapes and sizes.


These are the toys we are taking for Walker. He will turn 3 on January 28th on our trip while we are in Varanasi. We are bringing lots of books, because he LOVES to read. We also are bringing a 10" netbook, with pre-downloaded movies (4 of them). We are bringing a soft Woody doll, a hard plastic Buzz lightyear doll with wings, a hard plastic lion, a 3" robot, many small figures he can set up and play with, a magnetic board with "stickers," 4 crayons and a coloring book, a pad of paper, 2 different magnetic drawing toys (one that is the guy with the beard and the other is the kind you can "swipe" and erase), a small box of 4 colors of molding clay, and some surprise toys: a miniature "Mater" from the movie "Cars," a small motorcycle with rider, and best of all...a Mater pillow pet! The pillow pet was much larger than the one we ordered, but we kept it because we hope it will bring him joy and comfort when he is on the road. I hope he will be thrilled. And last but not least, we are bringing Benadryl to help him sleep when it is time. We experimented to make sure it did not have the reverse effect and make him hyper.



This is walker's stroller and Ergo (soft backpack carrier) in the carry-on bag. We outfitted the stroller with an under-carrier and a bag that hangs from the handles. His Ergo....we'll see if he gets in it. He might or he might not. We want to bring it in case he gets tired of walking and we don't have the stroller in a big city. Lots of sidewalks in Asia are not really used for walking, but for parking or sleeping or selling or hanging out, which makes it harder to "walk" on the sidewalk, especially with a stroller. But we are bringing it for the airports and for smaller & quieter towns and such. It cost us $15, so if it is a total pain in the ass and completely useless, we will give it to someone who might like it.

Here is Pa's bag, with the 1st Aid kit inside. He is carrying half of the shared stuff and so am I. He will have diapers, the Netbook, some books, the pillow pet, a blankie (we are bringing 3 couch-size down blankies), and a pack of powdered Gatorade.

Walker has his own backpack. He is carrying his clothes (half of them) and his toys. And he will carry his bottle, too and he will be technically responsible for the FOOD, but one of us will probably carry it. If we are paying full price for his ticket, he gets 2 carry-on bags, too.


These are the snacks. Because I am a jeweler, I have lots of small ziplock bags that I use when sending out my work. I brought them to the bulk section of the grocery and filled them up with a variety of snacks. They are all healthy and sugar-free due to our confined circumstances. I think this is good for the trip because I hope Walker will have some kind of snack he can't refuse because of the large number of choices! And then Ma & Pa can enjoy whatever he doesn't want. I also have a bag of "wet" food (sounds like I packed for a cat, right?) that I think the TSA might take away, which includes a yogurt drink Walker loves, juice, and also fruit puree he loves. I went to the TSA site and they said they allow an amount of food for a "baby" for the duration of the trip, including breast milk, food, and juice. Walker is not technically a "baby" but several of our items have the word "baby" written on them so I am hoping this will persuade the TSA workers to let me bring the wet food on the plane. If not, Oh well..I am prepared to be nice and not mad.

We fly into Delhi on January 9th (India time) at 11:30 PM. We are staying at the Anoop in Paharganj unless it sucks for the family and we have to upgrade.

Whoa! Back atacha when we are there, unless I am compelled to write afore time.

One more thing different from the trip...today Marthe Le Van and I signed a lease on 9 Walnut Street in downtown Asheville. It is a gorgeous 800 square foot retail space which we will use to showcase and sell my jewelry. We have tons of fun plans for the shop and business. We'll let you know the date of the opening party so you can attend! If you are not on my email list now, please write me (joanna@joannagollberg.com) or Marthe (marthe.levan@gmail.com) to get emails from us! Whoa! Life is awesome!

Namaste, Dosti!