Holidays with mom at sea. My next vacation with my mom. How to create maximum comfort for mom

You should definitely take your mom on vacation. This is not discussed. But where to go? So that it is not too hot and at the same time not blowing, so that you can see a lot of interesting things and at the same time not move at all. Wrote an article on how to plan perfect holiday with mom.

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When to go?

Velvet season (September - October) is ideal for relaxing with the older generation.

Three years ago I was on holiday with my mother in Turkey. She had a vacation in July, so there were no options when to go. Out of ignorance, I also chose the hottest region - Alanya. The temperature was +40 degrees! So, on the way from the airport to the hotel, it was scary to look at my mother. She fanned herself constantly and drank water, but she still sweated seven times. Then gradually her body got used to the climate, but I won’t take my mother on vacation again during the high season.

The main and very simple advice is to look at the weather forecast in the place where you want to go and select the appropriate month. There is archival data on the Internet for at least the last ten years - for example, on the Gismeteo website. The statistics will definitely not deceive you. The most comfortable temperature for beach holiday– this is no higher than +25 degrees during the daytime, and for an excursion – approximately +20-22 degrees.

also in the Velvet season There are far fewer people relaxing, and the lack of crowds everywhere is a pleasant bonus. And tourists are becoming different - noisy young people are giving way to older and calmer ones.

What type of holiday should I choose?

In fact, only your mother can answer this question. The most effective way is to ask her herself: the sea, excursions or sanatorium treatment? If she refuses and generally assures that she does not need rest, then she will have to make a choice for her.

On the sea

Your mother will definitely not get tired physically.
Swimming and sea air are good for health.
Prolonged exposure to the sun is harmful.
It can be boring if there is nothing to do in the evenings.

Excursions

Educational and interesting, you definitely won’t be bored.
Long daily walks are not meant for your mom's legs.

We advise you to combine these two types and get an almost perfect mix - a beach and excursion vacation. Depending on your interests and health status, you can regulate how much time to lie in the sun and how much to walk.

Treatment in sanatoriums

Well, very useful.
Surely your mother will make friends with other vacationers.
But you might get bored quickly.

Mikhail Danilov, medical director of the Health Tourism Association:

In sanatoriums, a person receives a comprehensive healing and restorative effect through climate therapy, the use of medical procedures and the release of psycho-emotional stress. As a rule, already on the third day of your stay at the resort, your health improves significantly. A classic sanatorium package on average includes 5-7 daily procedures, physical therapy, a visit to the pool, a course of massage sessions, and dietary nutrition.

Where to go?

Often the older generation flatly refuses to travel abroad, because “it’s a hassle to get a visa,” “there’s a lot of terrorism there,” and “they don’t understand our way.” If your mom didn't say anything like that, here are some travel ideas.

Costa Brava, Spain

Costa Brava is Northern part Mediterranean coast of Spain. First of all, you will definitely like it local beaches. Secondly, from the resorts of the Costa Brava to Barcelona (which means to the main airport of the country and to the city where you will certainly walk) is only 60-80 km. Choose a place with the most convenient transport accessibility– for example, from Blanes you can get to Barcelona by train in 1 hour, and from Lloret de Mar in 1.5 hours by bus.

Rimini, Italy

Maybe Rimini is not the best clean beaches, but what cities are nearby! Venice, Florence, Bologna - and all of them are within a two to three hour drive in a comfortable high speed train. One-way ticket costs from 10 euros. You can plan your route and buy tickets on the website railway company Trenitalia.

Well, what woman, even at 60 years old, does not dream of riding a gondola or taking a photo with Leaning Tower of Pisa? In Rimini it is very convenient to alternate trips to luxury Italian cities with “doing nothing” on the beach.

As many say, Rimini is almost like Anapa - there are many Russians and Russian speakers. Mom should be comfortable.

Jurmala, Latvia

Jurmala is located 20 minutes by train from Riga and can be a compromise option. On the one hand, it’s abroad, on the other, it’s still a very dear city in spirit. A beautiful endless embankment, a cozy center with its streets and cafes. Many Russian artists also visit Jurmala. Go to a concert by Larisa Dolina (also a favorite of mothers) while on vacation.

Irina explains the choice of Jurmala:

Our family does not like too hot climates, we try to avoid it. So Jurmala is just a place with a pleasant summer climate, without sweltering heat. And of course, Riga is within easy reach, where you can take a walk. There are no language problems, the majority speak Russian, so this place does not cause stress for parents, they can relax and enjoy their holiday.

Paphos, Cyprus

Cyprus is ideal if your mother is not eager to open a Schengen visa. Here you just need to fill out an online form (indicate your full name, passport details, profession and place of residence in Cyprus). In one day you will receive a pro-visa.

For relaxation, it is better to choose not small resort villages, but cities - for example, Paphos. When you get tired of lying on the beach, you can stroll along the equipped promenade and along the local streets in the city center, pop into shops and cafes.

If mom is not ready to go abroad

Consider holiday options in Russia.

Taganrog, Rostov region

This destination is for those who do not want to travel outside the country, but are not averse to diversifying their vacation. You've probably already been to Sochi, but what about Taganrog? The city is on the shore Sea of Azov, which warms up to +26 degrees in summer. There are no young people among the vacationers, which means there is not much noise.

And the prices are good. For example, a trip around the city by taxi will cost 70-120 rubles. Here you can choose either a sanatorium for a recreational holiday or a simple hotel.

Anna tells why she chose Taganrog this year:

Every time we can’t decide where to fly. To Asia - long flight, to Europe - mom doesn’t know English. But there can be no talk about Turkey in general - there is continuous terrorism and explosions there! As a result, the choice falls on something in Krasnodar region or to Taganrog, like this year. At the same time, it is impossible to pull mom out of the sea. So we’re not even talking about any excursions. And what interesting sights can there be in places you’ve been to at least a hundred times...

Sanatoriums of Crimea

Keep in mind that each sanatorium specializes in the treatment and prevention of various diseases, so you need to choose carefully. Thus, people come to Yalta mainly with diseases of the respiratory system, digestive system, cardiovascular system and musculoskeletal system. Sanatoriums in Evpatoria and other resorts West Coast Crimea is good for those who have diseases of the nervous system, gynecological diseases and skin diseases.

And Crimea will certainly evoke pleasant nostalgia for the Soviet past.

Dmitry talks about his mother’s preferences:

I often went on business trips to different countries and sometimes took my mother with me. While I work, she rests. But it turned out that she enjoys visiting places that remind her of her youth and Soviet times. I must say that my mother still lives in a distant provincial town and does not pursue service or fashion trends. On vacation, she prefers resort and sanatorium services - massages and procedures, 5 meals a day, walks and discos in the evenings. So that everything is on a clear schedule. One of these places was Evpatoria - a cozy resort town, still dusty with Soviet and Russian (pre-revolutionary) history.

How to create maximum comfort for mom?

A trip with your mother needs to be thought through to the smallest detail, otherwise your vacation could be ruined. We have collected basic tips for you - what you need to take care of first.

Be sure to help your mother fill out the form and collect documents to obtain a visa. Try to go with her to the visa center. If this is a normal procedure for you, then for your mother all this red tape can become stressful.

Do not buy tickets with transfers. It’s better to overpay, but choose direct flights. Mom won’t say thank you for the extra wait at the airport and one more takeoff and landing.
For your mom, buy a ticket with paid baggage and don't forget to remind her about the maximum weight. Tell us also about the rules for transporting things to hand luggage. It is unlikely that she will be happy if at the airport she is forced to throw away her favorite perfume with a volume of more than 100 ml.
If mom can sleep during the flight, then choose a night flight or early in the morning. If it’s usually difficult for her to “switch off,” then, on the contrary, daytime flights are suitable: this way she can sleep at home and go on a rested trip.
To make it easier for your mother to endure the flight, advise her to get up and stretch her legs regularly. Need to drink more water and exclude foods and drinks that retain fluid: alcohol, salty, smoked, fatty foods.

Accommodation:

It is best to choose a hotel that is not very far from the airport. After the flight, mom will want to rest, and not be stuck in a bus/taxi for a few more hours.
There should be a place near the hotel developed infrastructure: bus and train stops, shops, cafes, pharmacies.

Don't exhaust your mom with long hours walking tours. You need to dose out your physical activity, even if it’s in the country of your dreams, where you want to see the sights around the clock.

Marina Berezko, phlebologist surgeon:

After long walks or excursions, the older generation often experiences heavy leg syndrome. To avoid these unpleasant symptoms, it is recommended to use compression hosiery - knee socks or stockings - when traveling, especially if a person already has symptoms of varicose veins. Now there are even special travel knitwear models. If pain and swelling of the legs does appear, as soon as possible you should lie down, elevating your legs with a pillow.

It so happened that after spending two weeks on vacation last year, I was no longer able to take a vacation and relax, even at home. This year, although not over yet, has been difficult for me. The gradual deterioration of my mother (increasing psychosis, her early wake-ups at 4 and 5 am were doing their job), my son had to go to college, and although he studied well, everything still fell on my shoulders, my husband was on the eve of our 20th anniversary life together also gave me an unpleasant surprise (because of my mother). I was spinning between them all and didn’t even know who needed to pay more attention: a sick mother, a teenage son, or a neglected husband? After the exams were passed, the documents were submitted to the institute and the situation with admission became clear, I immediately arranged a vacation and a trip.

So: mom, me and my son are flying to our beloved Turkey. I don’t want to offend anyone, but I liked the phrase I recently read: “Those who don’t have enough money for Sochi fly to Turkey.”

Before the trip, I, of course, had concerns about my mother, but I have no one to leave her with, my mother is still mobile. Why not? As soon as the ticket was paid for, I began to slowly prepare my mother for the trip. Every day I asked the same question: “Mom, are we going to the seaside, to Turkey?” Mom happily answered that she had already been there and would be happy to go again. But after one evening, my mother categorically answered the same question that she would not go anywhere, but would stay at home, and my arguments that the tickets had already been purchased for her did not work, then I stopped asking her questions, and even her I packed my things in secret, although my mother had always taken an active part in choosing outfits.

Our flight was at night, so I just came at night, woke up my mother, helped her get dressed and told her that we were all going on vacation. Everything went peacefully. Mom tolerates the plane flight well, but just in case, I took with me various sedatives. Mom just doesn’t understand that we are flying, we are just driving a car and get stuck in a traffic jam (these are her thoughts). We flew on a Turkish low-cost airline, and all announcements there were made only in Turkish and English languages. I don’t know what was funny to my mother, but only when Turkish was spoken, my mother always laughed and said that she didn’t understand anything (as if she understood something in English). On the plane, my mother enjoyed looking at pictures from magazines; when they bring food, this is also entertainment for my mother. I went to the toilet with my mother together, one on one, like with a small child. You need to open the door, show where to sit, where the paper is. I did not close the door, but stood in the corridor, in the aisle, and directed the process.

We arrived normally. On the bus that carries tourists, everyone was a little tired after the night flight. Everyone, but not my mother. In my opinion, she was just happy that she was among people and that there was a little increased attention to her. The welcoming guide asked standard questions, the people remained silent and only the joyful voice of my mother always sounded when answering.

Finally we got to the hotel. Since we arrived this year at the height of the season, check-in was not immediate (and even my mother’s advanced age did not speed up this process), we had to hang out in the hotel lobby for several hours. Fortunately, this was not our first time there and we knew where to eat and where to go.

I was calm that everything went well, but after a sleepless night, my mother was apparently already tired, and she began to experience psychosis. She dreamed that her late mother was here with us, and she went to “eat some soup” and did not return for a long time. Mom became all nervous and asked my son and me to go look for her mother, because something had happened to her. Even when we were given the keys to the room, she did not want to leave without her mother. With difficulty and various conversations, we managed to calm my mother down and divert her attention to another topic. On the same day, we also had my mother in a bad mood and her conversation with mirrors, which never happens at home. Another episode happened at night that scared me very much. I woke up from hearing my mother's loud moans. Turning on the light, I began to ask what happened? Mom couldn’t say anything clearly and just pointed at her leg and moaned. She was shaking all over. As it turned out later, my mother simply had a very severe cramp in her leg. And I was already thinking about the worst.

There were no more unpleasant adventures before leaving. Mom swam in the pool with pleasure and for a long time, even at depth. True, she went into the sea with caution, because she was afraid of the waves, although the sea was warm and the waves were not strong, but with her illness she developed a fear of the sea. Mom pestered all the children who found themselves in the field of our location, she asked each of them what his or her name was and told the children different compliments, depending on whether it was a girl or a boy. The children are very spontaneous, and they willingly answered their mother’s questions. In the mornings, my mother, accustomed to neatness, always made our bed. When we went to eat, my mother greeted many people warmly.

Every day I measured my mother’s blood pressure, and what’s amazing is that it seemed like there was heat, a change in climate, but no. The hot sun seemed to be beneficial for mom; her blood pressure was almost always normal. Many compatriots, seeing my mother, asked me about how my mother endures the plane, how I decide to travel with her. She answered that everything is individual. She didn’t even hide the diagnosis from some. Looking at my mother and me, several women said that they would probably also decide and bring their mothers next year. I very much understand their feeling that our mothers, born before or immediately after the war, did not manage to see anything good, and if there is such a financial opportunity and mothers are mobile, then why not?

I started traveling to Turkey when my son had not yet gone to school, we left him at the table and brought food with his mother, and now we take a table, leave the mother, like we once had a little son, we punish her not to go anywhere and queues bring food for us all.

Mom quickly got comfortable in the room. I had no problem remembering where the toilet was. At night I got up on my own. I remembered where the door to the balcony was, but what’s amazing is that during the entire stay, my mother could not remember where the exit door was and kept banging on the door, where the toilet was, or on the door to the balcony.

Every evening we went to evening shows (first for children, then stayed for adults). Mom sang along and danced. And it was a complete blow for me: when one evening, three popular youth groups came to the hotel and performed and a disco concert was held under open air, how mom LIT!!! I really regret that the video I shot turned out poorly. Two elderly, respectable foreigners simply did not take their eyes off mom.

But now, the vacation is over. Time to go home. We are already at the airport, but then the unexpected happens and our regular flight delayed indefinitely. Considering that we were already brought to the airport several hours in advance, but here 4 hours had already passed and no information: what, when, complete unknown. I don’t know what affected my mother, but she began to experience real psychosis. Mom began to rush home; she did not accept my explanations that the plane had broken down and the flight was delayed. She tells me that if we need it, then you fly, but she won’t fly anywhere, but will go home. The pressure is off the charts, my mother refuses to take the pills, she swears at me, tries to push me away from her and even starts to fight with me. I am very ashamed, but fortunately it is a night flight, many are tired and are sleeping or walking around the hall. There aren't that many people. Mom doesn't want to sit or lie down. She walks around the hall with furious screams and tries to approach the doors that usually lead to the field where the planes are parked. These exits are fenced off with red tape, but mom doesn’t care. She climbs under the tape and starts knocking on the window door. I vividly imagine the picture of us being taken to the police station for violating the rules of conduct at the airport. Veselukha!!! More than 4 hours have passed, we are invited to have a snack in a cafe. I manage to give my mother some pills. After some time, mom calmed down a little. Several more hours passed. A small riot begins among people to finally find out when our plane will arrive, since until this moment no one cares about us. The people are screaming and this mother is being revived. She joyfully joins the screaming. I feel calmer, my mother has somewhere to burn off her energy. They announce to us that the plane has already arrived. The journey came to an end with virtually no casualties or incidents.

The sun and water had a very good effect on my mother. For almost a month she was calmer and did not jump up very early. I easily tolerated trips to the dacha for one or two days. It was quite adequate.

But then autumn came, psychosis began again, banging on the door and other joys. I’ll write about my mother’s condition a little later.

You want to go to the sea with your child, but no one can fly with you. Or you can’t fly for the entire period and part of the time you have to live alone with your baby at the resort.
Is it even worth planning such a vacation, and what should you consider?
I’ll say right away that for mothers who actively travel with children on their own, there is unlikely to be anything interesting in the article, and some things will seem like “Captain Obvious”. However, what may seem self-evident to experienced “momstravel” sometimes becomes a complete discovery for a mother going on vacation with her child for the first time. Let's get started.

1. WE CONSIDER OUR OWN EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS
If you traveled extensively around the world before having a baby, this experience may help you, or maybe... quite the opposite. Because many habits resort holiday that you had before the baby arrived no longer work. And yet, if you have already been to the place where you plan to vacation with a baby (or maybe not a baby at all), you will be able to appreciate some things better from the point of view of now a mother.
If you are in your ordinary life If you cope with a child without help, then it won’t be difficult for you here either. Because you can organize your life on vacation in exactly the same way as you are used to at home, especially if you rent an apartment rather than live in a hotel.
When reading reviews about specific vacation spots, certain hotels, beaches, etc., pay whenever possible attention to the problems and difficulties that other mothers describe, and when reading rave reviews, check what experience and habits the one who vacationed with her child in this the location is good.
There are super-moms for whom a holiday with three restless children can seem like an exciting adventure, even if it’s three days to get to the beach and a steep hill to get back. And there are those who are accustomed to round-the-clock help and with one calm baby, and for them any practical problem that needs to be solved alone can turn a vacation into a quest for survival. At the same time, neither one nor the other mother deserves either admiration or blame, since our perception of rest, as well as of life in general, is very subjective. Your job is to organize pleasant stay specifically for yourself and your child, and not understand “how they do it” by looking at the happy faces of other mothers on Facebook and Instagram.
So evaluate your own skills, the limit of your patience for inconvenience, make your own “must have” list for a vacation with your baby and choose the most comfortable vacation option for yourself.
My advice in this regard should also be read through the prism of your own preferences and prohibitions; they may be different for us. I have only tried to summarize some of the wishes and fears of first-time mothers traveling independently who turn to me for advice on holidays in northern Greece (Chalkidiki, Pieria).

2. FIRST SOLO FLIGHT WITH A CHILD
Whenever possible, you should choose direct flights with a child, ideally day flights. On the Moscow-Thessaloniki route, for example, the choice of such flights is quite wide, as well as in many other directions. It would be very nice if you were escorted from the departure airport to the check-in counter, and then to the passport control area. Don't forget to go to the bathroom, eat without holding your baby, and take care of your other needs as much as possible while you're not alone. Such seemingly basic things are often forgotten by nervous mothers who independently decide to travel with their child for the first time.
At the airport and on the plane, do not hesitate to ask for help, if you really need it, and vice versa - politely refuse help if it is offered at the wrong time. For example, a person who is eager to help you may genuinely not understand that your child is afraid of strangers and is doing you a disservice by engaging in intrusive contact with him. A polite refusal with a smile most often works in such cases. But no one will guess what you need in the same toilet except you, so if you ask a flight attendant or a friendly neighbor passenger to look after the baby for a couple of minutes, it will not be difficult for them, and you will not have to endure it and then take out your irritation on those around you or the child himself.
In addition to a comfortable stroller and the help of friendly people nearby, it is very helpful for a mother traveling independently a good sling and/or ergo backpack. Literally frees your hands. However, I do not advise you to buy this invention of progressive humanity right before departure. Learning new means of transportation while traveling can only add stress to you and your baby. Buy it in advance so that the child has time to get used to traveling “on mom”.
Upon landing in Greece, at least at Thessaloniki airport (I assume at others too), try to approach one of the staff and ask you to skip the queue at passport control, Most often, the Greeks meet halfway in this, seeing a mother and baby traveling alone.
Make sure you are met in advance. Of course, with a child it is better to have an individual transfer with a car seat, but if you have a tour package and have to travel on a shared bus, then this is also possible. The rule about the toilet and other personal needs is the same as before the flight, take care of this if the transfer is long. In general, when traveling alone with a child, the main rule is “don’t forget about yourself,” and not just about whether the child’s diaper is clean and whether he wants to eat and sleep.

3. WHERE TO LIVE: HOTEL OR APARTMENT?
My personal choice with babies under 2-3 years old is always on the side of apartments or small apart-hotels with a kitchen, and always away from the center of resort villages. So there is much less chance of putting your baby to bed under a “celebration of life” in the form of screaming music, animation or the roar of motorcycles of young people frolicking until the morning. And eating with your child according to the hotel hours may not always be convenient. If you're tired of cooking yourself, taverns and cafes in Greece are more than baby-friendly, so you can always find a place to eat without standing at the stove. With the children's menu, of course, things are not always good, but finding rice, vegetables, pasta or other simple food in catering in Greece is not difficult. It’s worse with soups and cereals.
When choosing an apartment or hotel room, if you are traveling alone with your child, it is preferable:
- access to housing WITHOUT climbing stairs (this criterion rejects many of the proposed options), if you plan to actively use a stroller,
- a large comfortable balcony, always with child safety nets, if the child can already stand up and crawl on his own (and if he can already climb obstacles, the first floor is generally better),
- ideally - first floor with access to the lawn, WITHOUT stairs,
- no townhouses or other two-level housing (no matter what protections are placed on the stairs, this will become your headache),
- a minimum of “trinkets” in the apartment, which are dear to the owner, but can be potentially dangerous for the baby,
- provision of a crib or playpen (in which you can put the child in to at least go to the toilet or shower, even if at night the child does not sleep in a separate crib, but with you),
— availability of additional sets of linen (it’s great if there are waterproof sheets on the bed under the main ones) and a washing machine,
— dishwasher as an additional advantage,
— check, perhaps they can provide you with a blender and some other necessary little things,
- a high chair for gathering, if needed,
- a potty, if the child already needs one (although it’s easy to buy upon arrival, but if you’re going to a tiny village, it may not be within easy reach),
- in the private sector, most likely, the owners will provide you with some beach toys - ask for everything that may be useful to you.

4. CHOOSING A VACATION DESTINATION.
If you do not plan to rent a car, your ideal is the outskirts of a fairly large resort village (or even a little beyond the borders of the village, but then there should be a safe asphalt road leading to it, but NOT the main city highway), convenient for walking with a stroller). It is desirable to have at least one chain supermarket in the village. Then you won’t have to carry a supply of diapers for the entire period (although if you use, for example, only Japanese ones, then there is no such luxury in Greece, you will still have to take them with you), and it will also be easier to buy groceries. Selection of ready-made baby food in Greece it is not rich, since good quality vegetables, fruits and meat are available all year round. Formulas and dairy products are available.
When choosing a village, see if there is a path along the sea for walking with a stroller, and also if there are any sharp descents and ascents on the way to the beach, otherwise you will be provided with free daily fitness, and in the heat of the day you will have to climb up the road from the beach up the mountain, it’s good if there are no steps.

5. BEACH.
Your baby may equally enthusiastically prefer both sand and small pebbles for lunch; you can’t tell in advance. I would still prefer sand. I remember how I pulled small stones out of the mouth of my one-year-old firstborn when we first found ourselves on a pebble beach with him; it was not the most pleasant experience. And the pebbles were beautiful and probably very tasty to look at)))

Entry into the sea must be without sharp depth.
Although armbands, along with baby sun cream, should always be with you on the beach if your baby is already moving independently.
Speaking about what you can expect with a child who sees the sea for the first time, prepare for the fact that he may not even want to get close to this sea. And, of course, don’t drag him there by force (I, alas, see such scenes here every summer). There may be a reverse reaction: you can’t pull a child out of the water by the ears. In this case, do not leave him unattended for even a second, even with armbands. Only swim with him. If you go into the water alone, swim near the shore and face the shore, so that the child (for example, sleeping under an umbrella on a mat or in a stroller) is always in sight. Ideally, of course, find company on vacation so that you are not alone on the beach with your child. But it’s possible to cope with it alone and even enjoy it at times. It largely depends on the child and on your own zen.

6. MEDICINE.
In any major resort village There is a private doctor who accepts most travel insurance. But the level of qualification of such a doctor may be different, you can’t guess in advance. If you are an anxious mother, do not go into particularly remote places, try to Big City was no more than an hour away by car. If you are holidaying in Halkidiki, there are a couple of emergency centers there, but if a serious problem arises, you will need to go to the hospital in Thessaloniki.

7. COMPANY FOR RECREATION AND HELP WITH A CHILD.
If you are not adventurous enough, go alone “to the village, to the wilderness, to Saratov” (even if this wilderness is very beautiful beach), probably not worth it. If you still really want to, then even before the trip, try to enlist the support of other vacationers or mothers living in the same places, so that if there is a problem, you won’t be left alone with it or search in confusion for who can help. Anything can happen - you may feel bad yourself, your child may get sick. And even if everything goes well, at some point you just may want company or a break from 24-hour communication only with your child. Facebook and others social media provide unlimited opportunities to search for both travel companions and local mothers living near your vacation spot. You can also often find paid services babysitters, which can be relevant both on an ongoing basis and in emergency cases.
When staying at a hotel, this is easier in this regard - you can always contact the staff. Some hotels provide babysitting services for a fee. But when choosing a hotel, read the reviews especially carefully. Unfortunately, not all large hotels in Greece they are distinguished by that friendly atmosphere and willingness to help tourists, like many ordinary local residents. Among the latter, you can often receive unexpected help even from those who are in no way obliged to provide it to you.

8. OTHER GREEK FEATURES
In Greece, your child will receive constant attention, this has both good and bad sides.
When buying groceries at the market or in butcher shops, point (if you cannot communicate with the seller in words) directly at the baby sitting in your stroller or walking next to you. There is almost a 100% guarantee that they will choose the best for you, some may even be given as a gift))) But at any moment a curious Greek grandmother can climb into your child’s stroller, a passing grandfather can quite sensitively pat your baby on the cheek in a fit of emotion, and the seller without asking put some kinder surprise in the hands of your six-month-old child. You can be annoyed by this, or you can simply smile politely and physically remove the hand reaching out to the baby, calmly saying “no” (in Greek it will sound like “Ohi”, but everyone will understand the English No too).
In general, the fact that everyone is happy about your child (if you are prepared in advance for the fact that this is normal) gives more positive emotions than negative ones. Moreover, Greek grandmothers do not give tourists instructions on how to raise their babies left and right (unlike local new mothers, who may receive full program, since the concept of personal boundaries among the Greeks is very conditional))). I advise on individual trips to Greece, ask anything you are interested in. A universal practical assistant for Russian-speaking mothers and non-mothers in Greece.
I organize women's and family trips together. With and without children. You can join my travels, write!

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