Be it planning a trekking adventure, attending a fest, or even indulging in a staycation, a traveling break is something that we all look forward to. 

But, while most of us look to our friends or significant others for companionship, for me and my sister, our mother is a regular companion to our excursions. 

My sister and I love to travel, and manage to make time for it with our office schedules because it soothes us. Our mother, on the other hand, loves luxury, so combining our tastes for travel is not always the easiest of tasks, but we manage. 

Because, having my mom as a travel companion, is an adventure in itself. There are good parts of it, but there are things that we miss out on, and then of course, there’s the typical Indian mom drama that almost feels like a fourth companion on the trip. 

So if you also travel with mothers or parents, these are somethings that I feel you will relate to just as well as me. 

There is always an empty extra bag

No trip is complete unless you carry an extra bag. It can be for the shopping she is convinced she will do. Or in case the same clothes that we carry suddenly grow in size and can’t fit back in our suitcases. 

Hell, it might just be for the dead body we’re smuggling back… err, maybe not! Point is, there is always an extra bag that you carry. (It has come in handy many times because, well, moms are always right!)

Khane ka samaan

You have to always carry household food items when traveling with mom, because she is convinced that we will end up in place that serves us nothing but air.

Seriously, we could be traveling first class, staying in a five star resort and have pre-arranged meals. But no trip is complete without a pack of Good Day biscuits and aloo bhujia! 

A day for shopping

When exploring a new city, place or even country, we often look for indigenous things, different adventures, or experiences unique to that place. 

My mom – looks to shop! Any trip we plan needs to have a day included for shopping, because ‘Baki gharwalo ke liye kuch kharidna hai’.

The Mom check

Whether it is a hotel room or a hostel floor you spent the night at, when traveling, all of us do the last check to make sure we’ve not left any important item behind. 

With my mother there is the check we do, and then the check she does. Whether it is looking inside drawers we did not even open or the fridge where we couldn’t have kept anything valuable anyway, there is always the mom check! 

You can’t pack like mom packs! 

I’ve been fortunate to travel alone for a few work trips. I’m usually known for my skills when it comes to packing. My mom still knows better. 

So unless she is overseeing exactly what and how I am putting inside the suitcase, I might as well be carrying my clothes in a potli. 

There are things I can not indulge in! 

The nightclubs are a definite miss, the hukkas or cigarette shops are strongly ignored, and I don’t even know what alcohol tastes like, when in the company of my mother. 

To be honest, my mother is pretty cool when it comes to a lot of things, but call it fear from childhood or respect, I don’t want to partake in the modern life sinning when with her. I don’t mind… that much! 

Photos, and more photos, and photos! 

Yes, we all love capturing our moments of exciting travel. But my mother wants to capture every moment, in close-up details, where I look like an overgrown potato. She obviously does not realize that the world does not view me from her adorable ‘Maa ki aankhein’. 

However, she is also the one who will take that hundredth shot, because I want to change my Facebook display picture, and not complain, even once! 

I am supposed to be a walking Wikipedia.

From telling her why the cab driver was late by 5 minutes, to whether the shopkeeper I met 5 minutes before her is charging the right price, I have to know everything!

Why is the Wi-Fi not working? Why is the hotel taxi so expensive? Why is the guide talking so slowly? Why is the cruise not moving fast enough?

This from the woman who raised me to be independent! It surprises me how much she depends on me when traveling, it also warms my heart that she thinks that I am capable of taking care of her needs. 

Traveling with my mom is at times an exercise in patience, but most times it is a journey where I have no need to be fake for even a second. And she may cause me to sigh in exasperation at times, but she is always a hoot to be around. 

Thank you for all the trips mom, and here’s hoping our all girls trips never end!