Breastfeeding is best when you travel

by Jamie Rhein on

There have been discussions about breastfeeding and travel on Gadling before. Breastfeeding on an airplane, in particular, has come up as a subject with many opinions. Here’s my take. I was reminded of my breast feeding days when I saw a woman with a two-month old at the movie Sherlock Holmes. When it comes to travel, breastfeeding is the way to go. And don’t worry about what anyone thinks about it.

If you’ve ever been to West Africa where a breast is for nursing children and not used as an object desire, you’ll see where I’m coming from. My Peace Corps male friends who were in The Gambia when I was would moan every time they saw a woman pounding grain without a shirt on or whipping a breast out in the middle of a conversation to nurse an infant, “This is ruining it for me,” they would say. What would they have to fixate on-to fantasize over?

When my son was born in India on New Year’s Day, I was fortunate to be living in India, a country where breast feeding is seen as natural as breathing. It gave me the notion that babies and travel do indeed go together.

Because I breast fed only, for six months my husband and I traveled bottle free. There was no worry about our son getting sick. No paraphernalia to pack. I’d pack onesies, a few cute outfits, and a pair of baby shoes, one of those plastic diaper changer travel kits, disposable diapers, burp cloths and a cloth baby blanket. (The portable changer rolls up to slip into a daypack and has a pocket for carrying two or three diapers and baby wipes.)

Breastfeeding made our lives easier. What I also discovered is that if one is quiet and discrete, you can breast-feed about anywhere as long as you look comfortable. I breast fed in movie theaters, museums, and restaurants. If you’re not worried about what people think about you nursing, you’ll feel comfortable. If you’re comfortable, chances are they won’t notice, and if they do, it won’t seem like a big deal. Think of it this way. Your breastfeeding is helping add to the peace and quiet of everyone else. Your baby who is breast-feeding is not crying. On an airplane, that’s a real gift to give to passengers-particularly during take offs and landing.

To help make breastfeeding easier, take a light weight shawl with you and wear shirts that provide room for your baby to nurse comfortably, but also will cover your breast.

Even when I traveled in the summer in the U.S. and breast fed there, I never had any problems.

For more tips on traveling with a nursing infant, whether breast or bottle fed, check out “Travel Recommendations for The Nursing Mother” at the Center of Disease Control and Prevention’s website.

Copenhagen at Christmas–or at any time of the year is splendid

by Jamie Rhein on

In Denmark in December, darkness settles in around 3:30 p.m. Spend a few days where there is such an early sunset and late sunrise, and you’ll know exactly why a festival of lights is a grand idea. Danes embrace the Christmas season with candles, evergreens and warm mulled wine.

The result of the cheer is a feeling that the world is drenched in pools of warm, soft glows. The candles and evergreens promise that the darkness will eventually lighten is enough to carry one towards spring.

The mulled wine called glugg, help seal the deal. The best glugg is served with the almonds, raisins and spices still in it.

Toss in a city of stunning architecture that artfully blends the old with the new, cobblestone walking streets, and centuries old canals and there you have it: winter magic. Copenhagen in December is a visual treat.

Last December, I traveled back to Denmark where I had spent a semester in college living with a family about twenty miles outside of Copenhagen. The trip brought back memories of my first Christmas away from home and reestablished the thought that I must have been Danish at one time. Denmark and me? A hand to a glove.

Here are my must see suggestions if you head to Copenhagen at any time of the year. On this visit, I was with my 16 year-old daughter so I picked out the places that I thought she would enjoy, plus those that would offer her a wide overview of Copenhagen’s cultural history and delight. We were also interested in spending as little money as possible.

We traveled twice by train into Copenhagen from our friend’s house where we stayed.

Day 1: In the early afternoon, we started out at Nationalmuseet, the Danish Resistance Museum. Denmark’s resistance movement against the Nazis during World War II is impressive. The museum tells the story of how the movement started, the important players and what occurred in Denmark between 1940-1945.

Since the time I visited when I was in college, the museum has a new building and the exhibits have been updated. Most of the information is also provided in English. Take time out to watch the videos of interviews that are scattered throughout the museum. They have also been translated. This museum is marvelous and it’s FREE. I repeat. FREE!

From here we walked to Amalienborg Palace to see where Queen Margrethe II lives with her family. Depending upon when you arrive, you can see the changing of the guard. We missed this, but we enjoyed watching the guards anyway.

As you go to the palace you’ll also see the gorgeous Fredriks Church, also called The Marble Church. We didn’t go inside the church or tour the Amalienborg Museum in the palace complex as we were in a hurry to get to Nyhavn and the canal boat ride. Besides, the day before, we had toured Frederiksborg Castle in Hillerød, a town in the northern part of Sealand, the island where Copenhagen is located. Of all Denmark’s castle’s, it’s my favorite.

At Nyhavn, the oldest part of Copenhagen’s original harbor, we took in the Christmas market where I found glugg and we ate pølser, the Danish version of a hot dog. Pølser is better. Each cost about $3. Nyhavn is also where you can catch a harbor canal tour. There is more than one company but DFDS Canal Tours is the only company to offer winter excursions. The boat tour takes visitors along the canals that were dug out by prisoners in the 17th century. This is one of the best ways to find out about Copenhagen’s history while seeing important landmarks–both modern and historic.

The statue of the Little Mermaid is one of the tour’s points of interest. If you go on the 50 minute tour in winter, bundle up. The $12 per person fee we paid seemed like a bargain.

After our tour that started before dusk and ended in the dark, we browsed the Christmas market once more and watched the ice skaters at the area’s outdoor rink before walking back to the train station.The market is an excellent place to buy Danish-style Christmas ornaments and fur hats. We bought a nativity set and a rabbit fur for my son. He used to be Daniel Boone in a past life. The $10 fur was the best present ever.

Day 2: (Between the two days, we took a ferry from Helsingør, Denmark to Helsingborg, Sweden to go to the Christmas festival at Fredriksdal Open-air Museum. Helsingør is where Kronberg Castle of Hamlet fame is located. Shakespeare set the play here. Remember? “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.”

We started out at Rosenberg Castle to see the Crowned Jewels. The castle was closed on that day. Oops. Next stop, shopping along Strøget, the pedestrian shopping street. Here I discovered I had been pick pocketed. Credit card? Gone. Money? Gone. Someone snagged my wallet right out of my day pack. Next came the detour to the police station to file a report and call VISA.

Without any money or a credit card, there wasn’t any reason to go to Royal Copenhagen, as we had planned. Sure, it would have been a gorgeous store to visit since it was decked out in its holiday finest, but how depressing would that have been? Why go to a place to shop when you can’t shop?

Instead, we headed to Tivoli Gardens. Tivoli, an amusement park that opened in 1843, served as inspiration for Walt Disney when he was designing Disneyland. During the Christmas season, Tivoli is a twinkling fairyland. Glugg and apple fritters are plentiful and the amusement park rides are in full operation. Every building and tree seems to be awash in holiday lights. We were content to walk around the park enjoying the ambiance and displays.

We left Tivoli for home around 9 p.m feeling satisfied, despite a day of being robbed. On a return trip, we’ll see the Crown Jewels and Royal Copenhagen. They’ll still be around.

10 ways to not break your travel resolutions

by Jamie Rhein on

You’ve made your travel resolutions, but how do you keep them? We all know the resolution drill. Sometime around the end of December, in the glow of holiday cheer when all things seem possible, we make a list of how we’ll improve. As travelers, perhaps we leaf through a copy of 1000 Places to See Before You Die and make a list of our own must see places. Or we decide that we’ll travel smarter. We’ll travel greener. We’ll be the best traveler there is.

Then roundabout January 5, the glow is gone and it’s same old same old. Your travel habits are the same they’ve always been except for perhaps a tweak or two.

There are things you can do to break your travel pattern. It has to do with your thinking. Here are 10 thoughts to keep you traveling and happy with your resolutions intact.

1. Be flexible: Let’s say you decide that you really, really, really need that trip to Hawaii. Only that trip to Hawaii will do. But round about February, it’s clear you don’t have the money to get to Hawaii. Flexibility allows you to pick another destination within your financial reach. However, you understand that not going to Hawaii this year doesn’t mean you are never going. This trip could be your pre-Hawaii trip. Voila! Your resolution to make to Hawaii is still intact.

2. Ignore aches and pains: So, you have a bit of a backache. Your joints slow you down. Your feet hurt when you walk a lot. You need a hip replacement. Go on that rafting trip anyway if it’s that once in a lifetime opportunity. Here’s the thing. You can ache at home on the couch, or you can ache in an unusual destination or on that trip you’ve always wanted. This happened to us two summers ago. My hubby’s hip was not doing him any favors but we had an opportunity to go on a group five day raft trip on the Smith River in Montana. We took the trip with my husband as one of the main rafting guides. His hip is now replaced. Six weeks after his operation this year we took a three week road trip through the West. Not to brag, or anything, but if you knew us, if we can do it, so can you.

3. Don’t give up easily: You have a trip planned, but it seems that life is not helping you out one bit. Your car, for example, needs unexpected work. Or you’re toilet on the second floor has leaked enough that your kitchen ceiling has caved in a tad. Mop up the floor, find a mechanic who can fix that car lickety-split and hit the road. Keep saying to yourself that life is not telling you to not go on the trip, but your resolve is being tested. Go, man! Go!

4. If it’s raining–so what? You’ve planned a day at the beach, or you’re heading to Disneyland–or you’re going to visit the Statue of Liberty. This is the one day you can make it to this outdoor destination. Don’t whine about it. Get out the umbrella, wear a pair of shoes that can get wet and head out the door. If you’re going to an amusement park, believe me. There are rain ponchos to be bought there. The beauty of a rainy day is that ride lines are not so long. As for the beach, enjoy the solitude. Also, it may not rain all day.

5. Be delighted with the cheapest thing on the menu— You are on a tight budget and the place you are going is not known for being inexpensive. Go anyway, but aim for the cheapest thing you can do while there. What’s free? Visiting religious places is free. Walking is free. Parks are free. Going in and out of stores is free. Some museums are much cheaper than others. Go to the cheap ones. When eating out, look for the cheapest thing on the menu, it’s yours. The whole time you are on this trip, be happy you are on this trip. Don’t keep saying if only I had enough money to do or buy . . .Be happy, for heavens sake!

6. Nothing is perfect–Don’t aim for a trip to be perfect. If something has to be perfect, you can be derailed before you start. If what you have in mind is not possible, look forward to the surprises you’ll find when the trip is not just the way you wanted it. It could be better. If it’s worse, what a great story you can tell others. People love worse travel stories better than the best times ever stories.

7. Just because you have kids doesn’t mean you can’t travel–The worst advice I ever heard was “Travel now because when you have kids, it all changes.” Harumph! Not true. If you ignore all these other resolutions, maybe that person is right, but kids will travel if you travel. When my son was three months old, we went to Thailand for several days. Once when our daughter was five and she was pulling her pull behind suitcase through Narita Airport in Tokyo, she exclaimed, “I want to travel the world.” We’ve done a pretty good job of it so far.

8. Just because your significant other has different travel likes doesn’t mean you can’t travel— Just because you have a partner, doesn’t mean you’re a salt and pepper shaker set that always has to be together. If you have different ideas about what to do on a trip, pick places that have things for both of you. Meet up at night after a satisfying day. If your partner doesn’t want to head home for the holidays but wants to go to Myanmar instead, don’t see who can get the other to bend first. Do what’s in your heart. You’ll both end up merry and bright.

9. Be open to opportunities–When any one ever says, would you like to go to–or an opportunity you hadn’t thought of before comes up, say yes. This adage has found me in Mexico building houses, on a six-week trip Rotary club trip to Nigeria, on a 7-day cruise to Greece from Venice, at my Danish family’s 50th wedding anniversary celebration in Denmark and Los Angeles meeting Mark Saltzman, one of my favorite authors.

10. Let the house go for a change–Do not ever not go somewhere because the house is a mess. Sure don’t let it go to seed, but seriously, does the vacuuming have to be done today? Don’t’ let the list of things that need to get done keep you a prisoner. Schedule your must do things, around travel. Keep resolution Number 1 in mind.

Here’s to happy travel in 2010 with your resolutions in tact. It is your life after all.

Most unsual way to go to Las Vegas: The Flying Elvi

by Jamie Rhein on

This scene in Honeymoon in Vegas is the most unusual way to head to Las Vegas if I’ve ever seen one. Here at Gadling, unusual travel is not unknown. Catherine is trying out various travel options in China at this moment, Jeremy is traveling around Southeast Asia as creatively as he can, and if you check out Mike’s personal blog, you’ll see A LOT of the unusual. I mean A LOT.

Although Honeymoon in Vegas is not the best movie Nicholas Cage has been in–Moonstruck and Raising Arizona are my two favorites, this scene is a hoot. This is something Mike would do when he slips out from behind his SkyMall Monday desk. Totally. The Flying Elvi, sky divers who are Elvis impersonators, do exist. I can see Mike now.

By the way, Honeymoon in Vegas is still wandering around cable channels. I saw part of it two weeks ago which reminded me of this scene. It also has one of the funniest altercations with another passenger at an airline check-in desk. You can see that here.

5 reasons to travel after a breakup

by Brenda Yun on

We’ve all experienced heartbreak — the kind where you’ve cried until you have no more tears and you feel like your soul is on the floor. It’s never a good feeling, and you feel so emotionally spent that you feel like the best thing to do is stay in bed so you can’t get more hurt. The problem is you can’t get into a bad pattern of self-deprecation. You have to see the light of day at some point, and it might as well be as soon as possible.

Here are five reasons you should travel after a breakup:

  • A much-needed distraction: You may not feel inclined to pack your bags and hit the road, but travel requires mental (and emotional) energy that can make it the perfect distraction after a breakup. Instead of wondering about your ex or why things went wrong in your relationship, you’ll have to plan your next great travel adventure.
  • Learning about yourself: Breakups are all about learning and moving on, and the best way to truly know yourself is by getting yourself into a healthy state of self-reliance. By traveling, you quickly discover your limits and your goals realign so quickly that your heart will realign with them in no time.

  • Freedom is a gift: Relationships require work and time, and now that you’re no longer in one, you have the freedom to do what you want, when you want, so why not embrace it! Liberate yourself on the road by giving yourself the gift of independent travel.
  • The world is a beautiful place: Even if you live in paradise (I’m raising my hand right now), there are plenty of beautiful places in this world and life is too short to just experience them vicariously or virtually. Beauty will make you smile again, and soon enough you’ll wonder why you ever frowned.
  • Get cultured: I find open-minded, free-spirited, cultured people the most attractive and inspiring individuals to be around, and when I’m traveling I’m surrounded by them. Not only that, I’m experiencing life and educating myself of cultures I could only read about before.

After a breakup, there’s a tendency to trap yourself in a seemingly endless state of sorrow that it’s easy to forget about the world around you and the beautiful, inspiring things out there. If you can, find that strength to lift yourself out of that dark, personal space you’re in, step out into the fresh world, and embrace everything travel has to offer you. There are more than five reasons to travel after a breakup. In fact, there’s really no reason you shouldn’t, so get out there and go!