The make-believe bag

Place – The casino at Monaco

Scene – A young couple, standing in front of the slot machines, mindful about how rich the interiors are and how suddenly their clothes seem a tad shabby. Everyone seems to be flaunting atleast one designer piece. 

Ten minutes later, the couple emerges from the casino, heady with their winnings at the slot machines. 

‘Get yourself a nice, designer bag’ the guy grins. 

‘I will’ the girl grins.

Five minutes later, they walk out of the first shop realising that 240 euros is a pittance to shop in a place of this kind. Nevertheless, she manages to find a small but lovely, blush-coloured, calf skin Longchamp bag. 

Over the years, she uses it sparingly, bring it out for special occasions. 

When the baby comes, she stops using the bag. A big and roomy mommy bag that can be guarded against spit-ups seems a better choice. 

The baby becomes a toddler and get his own bag and wants to tot it around everywhere. Including to the birthday party of the 4-year old that he has been invited for that morning.

She notices the lovely, blush-coloured, calf-skin Longchamp bag in her cupboard and decides the time has come to use it again. 

She carries the bag to the enormous indoor play area that has been hired for the morning and greets everyone and watches her toddler disappear into the crowd. He loves the make-believe sections containing a mini-super market, a dress-up corner with all sorts of costumes and so on. He plunges into this fantasy world and grabs the child-sized versions of all the things he is forbidden to touch in the adult world. 

She keeps her bag with the other bags and starts mingling with the guests.

The time goes by. 

She turns around to do her usual check on her toddler and notices him sitting at the cash counter of the mini-supermarket and grins and turns away before something catches her eye. Standing at the cash counter with a mini-trolley with fake groceries is a four-year old girl carrying a familiar-looking bag.

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My eyes widened ‘That can’t be my lovely, blush-coloured, calf-skin, Longchamp bag surely’

But it was!!

I cut the swiftest path through the crowd and told the girl that she had my bag and it was not a toy and could she please return it. 

If you have tried to explain logic to a toddler, you would know that it is next to impossible. Not to mention, an agitated Indian accent (mine) does not work very well for communicating with a British kid. 

Nevertheless, I decided that this was not a time to negotiate and explain. I repeated my story politely and before she could protest, took the bag away from her. She look a bit startled but then moved on. 

I checked my bag, saw there was no damage, heaved a sigh of relief and worked my way back into the crowd and got back to my conversation.

My mind was wandering though. 

I could not really blame the poor kid. I had after all left the bag unattended and she obviously was too young to know that lovely, blush-coloured, calf-skin Longchamp bags don’t come in make-believe children’s play areas. 

Then suddenly, the girl was back. In the arms of her enraged looking mother. 

‘Excuse me’, the mother began ‘but my daughter was playing with the bag and you took the bag away from her’

I was flabbergasted. 

This lady actually thought that I had taken a toy bag away from her four-year old so that I could hold it in my hands and chat with other adults. Was she serious! Was she crazy?

To my credit, I kept an even temper and dangled the bag in front of her face. 

Surely she would be smart enough to recognize a lovely, blush-coloured, calf-skin..oh you know. 

But no! She insisted that I give the bag to her girl. 

I then explained to her that the bag was not a toy and it actually belonged to me and if she could see inside (helpfully opening the bag for her), she would be able to spot my wallet, iphone and keys – all real, I assured her. 

Luckily the lady backed off. Just as well since I would have probably brought the bag hard on her otherwise. 

‘Honey’ she told her snotty-faced, teary-eyed kid ‘that is actually the lady’s bag. It is not a toy’

And then with nary an apology, she walked away. Instead I was the one muttering away about how kids can sometimes be mistaken etc etc. 

I am probably poor at dealing with four year olds. I never thought I was poor at dealing with adults, but apparently when it comes to aggressive moms, I am. 

But most of all, I was a bit put off by the fact that my bag is special only to me and in the world of Louis Vuittons and Pradas, is not a particularly expensive piece either. 

Nevertheless, the bag has been returned to its dustbag, and it still retains its status as a luxury. Though the next time, I will probably hold onto it instead of leaving it lying around.

How to feed a giraffe

“Where are you guys?” I asked D over the phone.

“In the Wild Africa section”. D replied

Bobo, his grandparents and we were on a jaunt to the zoo. Post-lunch Bobo had shown no signs of being tired and insisted on seeing a few more animals. The rest had dragged their weary feet to Wild Africa while I had made a stop at the ladies.

“Where exactly?” I queried

“Hmm. We are at the Hippo section but we will head over to the Giraffe section soon. There is a feeding session at 1.50 p.m. We just missed the Hippo feeding by two people” D caught me up on the latest on-goings in the zoo.

I had not known about the existence of feeding sessions in zoos till Bobo was born but now they seemed to be important events around which our schedules were planned.

I agreed to meet them at the Giraffe feeding, checked that I still had fifteen minutes to find my way and set off. Except, I got lost and by the time I reached Wild Africa, it was already 1.45 p.m. 

There was a long line outside the Giraffe enclosure and I could only see the tail end. I raced to the head of the line to catch up with D and Bobo, casting a glance at the people at the end of the queue. “Poor blokes” I told myself “these guys are bound to miss the giraffe feeding. I wonder why they even bother to wait”.

Suddenly from behind I heard D yelling “Mummy is here! She will stand in the queue”.

What??!!

It turned out that D and Bobo had just finished watching the lions being fed and were not in the queue at all, head or tail.

A thousand questions ran through my head begging to be answered, the most pertinent of which seemed to be “why did you guys stand in the line sooner knowing how you missed the Hippo feeding already?”

There was no time to waste however, and I meekly took my line at the end of queue. The line snaked so much that I could not even see the giraffes and had to merely take D’s words that I was in the right queue.

“Wow! That is a long queue”, D remarked “Hang in there Mummy. We will walk around a bit and come back”. Before I could begin the third-degree interrogation on poor-planning, D and Bobo were off.

Time passed really slowly. I could only watch with satisfaction as more people joined behind me. D and Bobo visited me occasionally in between their visits to the animals and gave me news snippets. I found out the grandparents had plonked themselves somewhere, being too tired to move. The giraffe feeding had apparently started but that did not result in any progress in my position in the line.

Suddenly there seemed to be some movement and I could glimpse the head of the line. D came by to tell me that it was touch-and-go and I should hang in there. I felt like smacking him but let it go.

Finally I was just two people behind and I could see that there were enough food trays still left for us to have a turn at the feeding-session.  We organised ourselves in preparation. D, Bobo and I would do the actual feeding while the granddad took the photo. Grandma stayed put in her place, looking tired.

Excitement mounted as our turn came. We were handed a small tray with a few pieces of potatoes and carrots.

D handled the part of making a token donation for the food tray.

I held Bobo on one hand and a food tray in the other hand.

Grand-dad positioned himself for the best photo angle.

The two giraffes stood eagerly with their mouths open and licked their lips with their giant tongues.

Giant giant tongues. Huge and long tongues with tons of drool coming out. I was going to have to feed this creature with its huge tongue…

In a moment of panic, I held out the tray to one of the giraffes. Partly I did not want the tongue to touch my hand. Partly I was being a lovely hostess, holding up the food tray rather than doling out food in portions.

Unfortunately the giraffe was not a perfect guest and in one quick motion, gulped down almost all the food on the food tray.

At this point, D appeared and pulled me back. One carrot remained. I meekly gave it to Bobo, who bravely held it out to the giraffe. The greedy giraffe smirked at me and then gently took the carrot from Bobo. The other giraffe merely nodded its disappointed head at having gotten no food.

It was D’s turn now to be annoyed. Instead of holding out one vegetable at a time and stretching out the experience for Bobo, we were done in less than five seconds.

I tried telling D that I had moral superiority here, having done all the waiting. Besides, Bobo did get a turn and most importantly, we had it on record.

At which point I heard the granddad say “Ok the camera is ready. Go for it!”

He had missed the entire action while trying to figure out the buttons on the camera.

All of us walked quietly to the next enclosure, when Bobo broke the silence

‘I want to feed the giraffe some more’

Port Douglas

I had never heard of Port Douglas. So I was a bit surprised that D suggested we go there instead of the more popular Gold Coast. Then I found out that Port Douglas is the gateway to snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef and of course, I had heard of that!

We spent almost a week here, of which a couple of days were just for lazing around.

When we went – This was the week before Christmas. Still the low season so not very crowded. Temperature could get quite high at 34 degree in the middle of the day but the morning and evenings were perfect.

Where we stayed – We stayed at the Freestyle Resort serviced apartments, located about ten minutes’ walk from the beach and the main street. It is run by a really lovely lady, Anne, who took an immediate shine to Bobo. We loved the place all the more for it.

Do/See –

Great Barrier Reef – I have never snorkeled before. The one attempt I made in Egypt was a spectacular flop. This time I was determined to have a go and we went about it in an organized way. D had booked a day trip on the Quicksilver tours. They took us in a large ferry to a platform located just where the reefs begin. D and I both tried out the snorkeling equipment from the platform. With a life jacket, it is quite easy to have a go. I then went on a guided introductory tour. This is easily one of the most awesome things I have done. The corals look so different from land life forms. It was very strange looking from above into a colourful and new world. The tour lasted 45 mintues, with our marine biologist-guide pointing at various things for us to admire. They were exotic indeed but not things I had heard of. Still, it did not stop me from being completely gobsmacked.

Daintree rainforest – As if having access to one world heritage is not enough, we could also check out another one. D and I took turns to go on day tours to Daintree rainforest/Mosmann Gorge. This rainforest is 110 million years old and has some of the earliest plant life on earth. The guide pointed out all sorts of interesting trees and lizards. The tour also included a crocodile-spotting boat tour and a stop at Cape Tribulation where James Cook realized it was not all easy-going (and thus the name).

Kuranda – This is a hill station of sorts, accessible by a cable car or a train through the mountains. We did one each way. Both are lovely and offer spectacular views. The village/town had all sorts of attractions. We decided to focus on two – lunch and the butterfly sanctuary. Lunch was at the highly recommended Frogs Kuranda, where we sampled crocodile, kangaroo and emu kebabs. To this exotic fare, we also had the pleasure of exotic company when four Boyd’s forest dragons decided to play on the edge of terrace in which the restaurant was located. Considering our guide had spent considerable time in the Daintree rainforest trying to spot one for us, it was quite hilarious to see them walk about so happily in broad daylight. Post lunch, we went to the butterfly sanctuary which looked like a magical world with thousands of them fluttering everywhere.

Wildlife Habitat (or the local zoo) – This was a trip that the dad-son did by themselves. I have seen the evidence with a photo of the dad holding a cute Koala bear while the son stands next to him looking a bit scared. I believe it has some cute exhibits and obviously a toddler cannot have enough of animals as long as he is not made to stand next to one.

We could have done these attractions, one each day and still finished in three – four days. Infact, we met a lot of Australians who were doing long weekends in Port Douglas. However, the couple of days which we had as a buffer between the sightseeing tours were nice too. Port Douglas’s beach is rather lovely and in this trip, Bobo discovered the joys of dipping his toes in the water, playing with sand and hurling mud clumps into the sea. We managed to cook a couple of meals each. We had slow mornings almost every day, with breakfast in the patio watching the red-breasted parakeets that liked to frequent the tree outside our apartment.We visited the local grocery stores a couple of times. I took Bobo to the second-hand bookshop.

It was not just travel. It was also a vacation. 

Sydney

I have been fascinated by Australia ever since I read Bill Bryson’s ' Down Under'. There was no end to the natural wonders the place had, including the world’s oldest living organisms. However when the time to visit Australia finally came, the itinerary was attuned to traveling with a toddler. We spent a whole week in Sydney and one in Port Douglas. 

When we went - We were there in the Christmas week. Before I left, people warned me about the hot summer and the crowds. The temperature never crossed a pleasant 27 degrees in the day. Also, the tourist season picks up only post-Christmas. So it was a good time to have visited. 

Stay - We transited through Sydney to Port Douglas and stayed a night in Circular Quay. This was a stone’s throw away from the key attractions – Opera House, Botanical gardens, Harbour Bridge – and had lovely restaurants. After Port Douglas, when we spent a few days in Sydney, we stayed in Meriton Service Apartments on Pitt Street. While not next door to the sights, it was very well connected by bus and train to all the key spots, was the heart of the shopping district and CBD, next door to Hyde Park and had pretty decent restaurants. With a two-year old, a spacious serviced apartment worked better than cramped hotel rooms. 

See/Do –

Opera House – We went on an hour-long guided tour of the Opera House (have to book ahead. Can do it online). The iconic structure looks magnificent from up close too and the whole tour was very engaging, with quick dashes into the various theatres, a short video on the engineering challenges during construction and some wonderful sights from various vantage points. Highly recommended – laze around the Opera House after the tour watching the seagulls and the sea. Then follow through with drinks and food at the Opera Bar adjoining the seaside wall of the Opera House.

Royal Botanical Garden – Massive gardens with all sorts of exotic-looking flowers. Great for walking around and for a picnic.

Hyde Park – Lovely place for a picnic. Had a large supply of birds on hand for young kids to feed and chase. Every time we passed through the park, Bobo simply ran behind the poor birds.

Hyde Barracks Museum – An UNESCO World Heritage spot, it gave an idea of Australia’s convicts history. While everyone knows how criminals were shipped to the new land, it was heart breaking to see the crimes for which they were being punished (life sentence for stealing a horse!). The only reason I could see the place and listen to the guided audio tour was because we took turns babysitting. Bobo missed this bit, but I am sure he did not miss it at all.

Taranga Zoo – A really big zoo that can take up a whole day. There were very good maps available online and at the venue to plan our day. The Australian animals were the best to see since we could have seen lions and tigers in other zoos too. They also had a section for farm animals which my city-kid gawked at open-mouthed.

Bondi Beach – Long white stretch of sand, with surfers all around. When we went, the weather was chilly but that did not deter the surfers! We also dropped in at the Iceberg bistro next door from where we could see the seaside pool with people swimming furiously in the cold water

Manly – A ferry ride brought us to this beach/eating/shopping area. It looked very promising in terms of the beach and the food. Unfortunately it started to rain and we beat a hasty retreat in half an hour.

Blue Mountains – This was a day trip. We saw several brochures for tours but it was quite easy (and cheaper) to just take a train to Katoomba and then public buses thereafter. The big draw was the Scenic World, with the world’s steepest rail line, a skyway over a canyon and a cable car. We had lunch at ‘The Yellow Deli’ which had really yummy food.

The Rocks – Stone-paved roads that lead to various restaurants. We also read about the weekend markets here but never got around to seeing them.

Darling Harbour – Lovely place to eat and watch the sea. Also had a nice kids park with plenty of play equipment, most of which were meant for older kids. Still, Bobo persisted in playing

Sales – As it happened, we were there on Boxing Day and so I could visit the Boxing Day sale. Despite Australia being horrifically expensive, I could still find some bargains.

Sydney without a toddler would have been a little different and probably included more walks and restaurants and definitely more drinks. Still, it was a good place for kids and every place seemed to welcome them with open arms. So we managed to eat some great food and see some nice places, all with the kid strapped into a stroller. 

Sydney without a kid may also have taken lesser time to tick off but the amazing thing I discovered was that a slower pace meant that we could actually savour a place instead of constantly getting prepared for the next part of our day. Especially letting a toddler lead you can mean stumbling upon a game of chess in Hyde Park being played on a large board with waist-high chess figures and watching the final exciting bits before checkmate. 

Sydney was pretty ok.