30 hour trip with a 20 month old

S & I planned a travel to India this summer. Both of our parents and relatives live in India. I decided to come ahead so that Sarath would be able to spend some time with his grandparents. It is a very long flight and I was really tensed about the journey with a toddler.

I went and bought a few baby toys which do not make noise but will keep him busy for a while. I packed a couple of his favorite books and a few new books . I took a couple of his favourite toys and a travel doodle pro. I packed a lot of his snacks like fruit puffs, animal crackers, fruit strips etc…

Our fight was from Chicago to London(7.5 hrs), a 3 hour layover at London and another flight from London to Hyderabad, India (9.5 hours).When I was checking in at Chicago, I got an upgrade to world traveler plus which was good and bad. The seats were wider and the leg space was good. But, the arm rest was immovable making it difficult for Sarath to sleep with his legs stretched. The flight to London was an overnight flight. So, I got Sarath into his pajamas. He slept all through the flight and for the most part on my lap. I did not have enough sleep and was very tired by the time we landed in London.

In London airport, it was horrible. We had to go through security check again and the London security is really bad. They said I cannot carry any liquids over 100 ml even for an infant. I told them that I had a 10 hour flight ahead but they wouldn’t listen. The day before my flight I called British Airways and asked them about carrying liquids and they said I can carry it for my son even if they are over 100ml. But, at the London airport, they took all the milk and juice. It was horrible. They told me that I can buy similar stuff near the gate but I couldn’t find any.

They let me carry the apple sauce. So, I fed him that in the airport while waiting for my next flight. Once on the other plane, he was very hungry and sleepy. Good thing that I had packed some home made chapati’s for Sarath and also ordered the food on the flight. He ate that and slept for a while. When he woke up, it was 4 PM Chicago time. He was hungry. So, I asked the crew for some milk and they said they do not have enough milk. I asked them for apple juice and they said they are out of that. So, I gave him orange juice and some snacks. He then played with his doodle pro and some other toys and books. I did not even have to take out half of his toys. He was very good. I was tired and slept for a while and he played. He did not give me any trouble.

Once we landed in Hyderabad, our immigration was done very quickly but we had to wait 45 minutes for our bags to arrive. That was the most horrible part. I was very tired due to lack of sleep. Sarath did not want to sit in his stroller and there was no other way I could handle him there. After collecting the bags, we slowly came out and my parents were there waiting for us. I was so relieved seeing them.

Overall the journey was better than I thought but very tiring. My baby was the best. He did not complain at all. It has been a week since we came here and we are still jet lagged, tired and sleepy all day. But the good part is that I get take some rest while he is playing with his grandparents.