International Travel

Ready for intl travel

It's hard to believe that just a few days ago my husband and I and our infant son embarked on a journey. We left our fabulous new apartment outside of Seattle to visit family in Pakistan. The last few weeks have just been insanely hectic--with a move across town, (packing, cleaning, unpacking), hosting two parties at our new place, a small surgery on my foot, and shopping and packing for our trip to Pakistan. So hectic that by the time I was on the plane, I was finally able to relax! But now that the hard part of travel is behind us, I can breathe easier. Because this is my second time visiting Pakistan, I have a better idea of what to expect. And as long as I'm here, I can really relax.

Zakariyya on plane

I've wanted for a while to blog about my trip to Pakistan, but never got around to it. So this year hopefully I can get it done while I still here. If you dare to read on, beware that I am still a bit jet lagged and thus my writing quality reflects it.

Since the trip started with the flights--Seattle to Dubai, then Dubai to Lahore--it seems an appropriate place to start. And the most memorable moment had to be during the descent into Lahore. That's when the baby decided to poop. And poop. And poop. Of course, while landing we couldn't use the lavatory to change him. Instead we had to hold him in our laps while his diaper blew out. So, up his shirt and out into the world, into my husband's jacket. After landing we still had to wait for all the first/business class passengers to deplane, and then there would be the line at immigration. But I just couldn't keep carrying him, poop all over, knowing he was about to meet these family members for the first time. So no sooner than we were greeted by the dusty smell of the Allama Iqbal International airport, did we find a corner behind a pillar and decided to change him right there in the hallway.

With that exception, he was really great during the trip, making things easy for us. Having an extra seat on our row during the flight to Dubai (14 hours!) helped too. From the time we left our home in Seattle (1pm Tuesday) until we arrived at our family's home in Lahore (5am Thursday) was about 27 hours. So we had to be prepared for that (plus more in the case of delays or other emergencies anywhere along the way) in terms of diapers, wipes, and a way to feed him. I have long wished he would have breastfed from the beginning to spare us some trouble along this trip. Instead, we had to be prepared with formula and bottles, and even a way to clean the bottles. Plus a breast pump because he still gets some breast milk.

Playtex Nurser

Carrying as many bottles as we'd need in order to avoid washing them wasn't really a practical option. On the other hand, washing them on the plane isn't really practical either. Instead, we decided to buy pre-made formula (in case we were unsure of the water quality) and also had some packets of powdered formula already measured out. We purchased enough at home for the trip here, the trip back, and in case of any emergency situation while here in Lahore.

But just what we carried on the plane was enough to make the TSA grimace. But I'm okay with that--there are limits to what I will compromise on to make their job easier.

To solve the bottle problem, we started feeding Zakariyya from a Playtex Nurser, which is a system that uses pre-sterilized disposable liners instead of a regular bottle. It meant we only had to clean the nipples. Until now we had been using Dr. Brown's bottles, which have a few pieces that would need to be washed. And not just on the plane, but also washed for every feeding--creating another headache once we reached our destination. Last year I got really sick so now I try to be extra cautious of the water, and I feel better having less that needs to be washed. Our decision to use the Nurser though did mean that we had to pack plenty of liners in our checked baggage. It did take a few days to get him used to using e Nurser, but I'm grateful he finally took it. So far it's made life a lot easier.

Partial stash of baby supplies

Having heard from some friends that the quality of diapers and formula in Pakistan might not be what I was used to, or might not be available, we decided to bring all the formula and diapers he would need. This took up a lot of room in our bags!

But at least I didn't need to bring too many clothes--my mother-in-law is having some made while I'm visiting. Even the fabric was ready once I arrived and a suit was made my first day here.