Holiday Time!

We're off to Denmark today to spend a long weekend with family. We're celebrating some birthdays while we're there but mostly it's about catching up with family that we haven't seen for a year. That's right, a WHOLE year! No one has met Zachary yet and this will be the first time that both boys have been on an airplane (we drove to Denmark with E and T last year).

Truth be told I'm a little apprehensive. Not because of who we're seeing but because of how we're getting there. We're flying to Copenhagen and then relying on public transport to get around. It's too expensive to hire a car for the weekend as with three very young children, we need three car seats and a car big enough to fit them all. Not cheap. So trains and buses it is. We've tried to make things easy for ourselves; where we're staying is right next to a train station and a short(ish) walk from family members. We can get a train from the airport to Copenhagen, then switch to arrive by our apartment.

The apartment is worth a mention actually. We didn't want (for various reasons) to use a hotel or B&B for our stay and we can't crash with family so we're trying AirBNB. In case you've not heard of them, this is from their About Us page:

Founded in August of 2008 and based in San Francisco, California, Airbnb is a trusted community marketplace for people to list, discover, and book unique accommodations around the world — online or from a mobile phone.

Whether a flat for a night, a castle for a week, or a villa for a month, Airbnb connects people to unique travel experiences, at any price point, in more than 34,000 cities and 190 countries. And with world-class customer service and a growing community of users, Airbnb is the easiest way for people to monetise their extra space and showcase it to an audience of millions.

So we're staying in an apartment where someone actually lives. They won't be there of course! It's a little weird but it allows us to see our family because we couldn't afford it otherwise (or we couldn't have another holiday later in the year that's just us).

Jumping back to the car issue, due to relying on public transport, we're having to pack fairly light and only take what we really need. Two smallish pieces of hold luggage (one is a hiking backpack) and minimal hand luggage and it's been a challenge! It has made me realise that we can get by on a lot less than I usually take, and I usually try not to over-pack anyway. It's the nappies that take up all the space - two different sets for two different children - but at least we won't be coming back with them.

We're all really excited about our trip. Elizabeth is ridiculously excited about going on a train - it'll be her first time - and it's going to be such an adventure for the children. I've never 'travelled' so this is going to be an experience for me too!