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I went to Vietnam with my 2 month old baby (She was 3 months old when we returned after 3 weeks!) and it was the best decision I ever made – It is so easy to travel with a newborn when you can carry them everywhere and they sleep ALL the time!
Here is a sweet photo essay of all the sleeping my baby did while me and the rest of my family were enjoying ourselves! If you would like practical tips on travelling with a baby or young child please see my post here instead.
Disclaimer: I highly recommend you also get an actual hotel room via booking.com. Despite appearances my child did actually spend every night and a scattering of day naps sleeping in a cot at a hotel haha.
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In the above picture my baby is sleeping in the Koo-di Pop-Up Travel Bassinette. It can be used for sleep in a hotel room but is also handy to have for at the airport, beach, park etc. so baby can have a safe space to lie down.
Oh and just for fun here’s one of my toddler falling asleep at the hotel pool too! Travel is TIRING. She slept there for 2 HOURS.
There you have it – sleeping on an aeroplane, a train, a boat, a cruise ship (at the bar), multiple restaurants, a vineyard, a pool, in our arms, on a massage table , in the carrier, on the bed and in a bassinet. And these are just the times we took photos! This baby experienced so many things while travelling haha!
What weird places have your kids fallen asleep? Let me know in the comments!
This post contains affiliate links. If you use these links to book a stay I may earn a commission at no cost to you.
Colombia has a lot of big cities. Medellin is to me just that (unpopular opinion – lots of travellers love Medellin). Yes it has some fascinating history but really these days its a mild city with mild weather and mild activities. Most of the ‘things to see’ here are tours trying to re-create some of the excitement of Medellin’s sordid past by making you feel like you are visiting somewhere dangerous.
However, if you do find yourself in Medellin I do suggest taking a day trip to Guatape. This country town is definitely worth seeing – it is one of the most colourful places you have ever seen with bright paint everywhere and murals on every building. Also, it is home to Piedra Penol – a giant rock with 700 steps so you can climb to the top and see an amazing view of the beautiful Colombian countryside.
Top Tip for Guatape:
The town of Guatape is super cute but the best thing to do here is Piedra del Penol so don’t miss this! It’s a massive climb with lots of steps but its worth it for the view! Allow plenty of time to get to the top if you aren’t super fit and don’t think you can manage it. There is a place to purchase refreshments at the top if you need to rest for a while once you get there.
Definitely don’t discount the town though! It’s a great place to relax and breathe in the cool mountain air after your climb!
Where to stay:
Guatape is a pretty small town – I definitely think a day trip is plenty of time. BUT if you want a relaxing weekend away or want to take things a bit slower (ie. you are travelling with children) then I definitely suggest booking a stay through Booking.com – their search function is super user friendly to customise what you are looking for and its easy to find the information you need.
Getting there and away:
The best way to get to Guatape is by bus from Medellin. Buses to Guatape leave from Terminal del Norte and cost approx. 20,000 COP. The trip takes 2 hours – buses leave approximately every 30 minutes so there is no need to book in advance.
You can get to Terminal del Norte from Poblado via Metro Line A (get off at Caribe Metro station as this station is connected to Terminal del Norte).
You can book your return ticket at the Guatape bus station in advance – if you want to travel later in the day I suggest doing this as these buses can fill up quickly with day-trippers like yourself!
Getting around:
I suggest getting off at Piedra Penol first – you can ask the bus driver to drop you here directly so that you don’t need to catch a taxi from town – it will save you some time and a bit of cash. After visitng the rock you can take a taxi into the town proper – it shouldn’t cost you more than 15,000 COP and there are plenty of taxi’s waiting around the rock.
Food:
Walking up Piedra Penol sure makes you work up an appetite: Once you are back down to the base of the rock there is a small restaurant on the left as you exit the steps of Piedra Penol that does a great Bandeja Paisa (share one!) and has beautiful views over the lake.
What to bring:
Take lots of water for the climb, good walking shoes and your camera to capture the view and all the quaint colours of Guatape.
What to expect:
Entrance to Piedra Penol is 20,000 COP. It is open from 8am to 6pm every day.
In Guatape town itself, just soak up the atmosphere. Wander the cobblestone streets and plazas, drink coffee and people watch in the main square. EVERYTHING in Guatape is art.
We were there at Christmas so the town was even more spectacular with colourful Christmas decorations everywhere!
Although Brazil is a wonderful place, food is so expensive here! After eating our first home-cooked meal since we got here, lovingly prepared in the hostel kitchen, we realized that we had still spent 15 dollars on dinner! I began to worry that my budget of 20 dollars a day for food would be nowhere near enough for my travels. Fortunately, I don’t have the time to worry about that now, as our stay in Brazil is nearly over.
Peter and I felt that today would be the perfect day to visit some of the many museums and art galleries scattered around Rio de Janeiro. We took a bus to a suburb near the centre of town, Cinelandia, where many of these attractions were clustered.
We began our culture fix at the Museum of Fine Art. It was really interesting to note how late in history art began to be an important topic to be taken seriously in Brazil. Earlier paintings in the gallery were by unknown artists, while a rise in French-inspired art seemed to increase the popularity of the genre. This new found popularity could be seen in an increased use of European styles, copied amateurishly by Brazilian artists. We also visited the national history museum which provided a decent overview of Brazil’s heritage.
Peter and I did get a bit lost looking for what we thought was the Cinelandia Gallery of Contemporary Art, however, we stumbled across the actual gallery eventually – it was an industrial style building which held lots of interesting pieces. A lot of our time in these museums and art galleries was spent taking photographs of the actual buildings themselves, as my boyfriend Peter is an architectural student and was in the process of researching a future project to design a gallery. This side project was relatively successful,and possibly made up slightly for Peter missing the first week of university due to our vacation.
On the way home from the galleries, we stumbled upon some GIANT ants and preceded to get in everybody’s way on the footpath trying to get a closer look. It was pretty exciting! Apparently, these giant ants are called Tiger Ants.
The photograph is of me on a beautifully designed staircase in the neighborhood of Lapa
THE ONLY ERIKA IN THE VILLAGE 