Minor rant: in Europe with completely useless in laws and a toddler

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very curious to see if Italy is better or worse for them. My guess is worse. Keep us posted!

OP here. I’ll let you know. I’m concerned about the relative chaos of Rome. The food will be fine, but getting around is obviously more chaotic than London.

Why don't you ask them what is the point of traveling to eat burgers and spaghetti? Why not try an awesome Indian curry like a tikka masala that is part of Britain's culinary heritage?

We suggested it and they refused, so DH and I got Indian on our own while they babysat DD. They got pizza delivery.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP. You could've just stayed home if all you were going to do is complain about your IL's on DCUM all day. What a waste of time and money.

Not all day. Just while I’m in the hotel on nap duty during the afternoons.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very curious to see if Italy is better or worse for them. My guess is worse. Keep us posted!

OP here. I’ll let you know. I’m concerned about the relative chaos of Rome. The food will be fine, but getting around is obviously more chaotic than London.

Why don't you ask them what is the point of traveling to eat burgers and spaghetti? Why not try an awesome Indian curry like a tikka masala that is part of Britain's culinary heritage?

We suggested it and they refused, so DH and I got Indian on our own while they babysat DD. They got pizza delivery.

They sound very whitebread to me OP. Btw, you should know that you're quite exceptional in terms of the amount of traveling you've done. How did you end up spending summers in rural Thailand?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very curious to see if Italy is better or worse for them. My guess is worse. Keep us posted!

OP here. I’ll let you know. I’m concerned about the relative chaos of Rome. The food will be fine, but getting around is obviously more chaotic than London.

Why don't you ask them what is the point of traveling to eat burgers and spaghetti? Why not try an awesome Indian curry like a tikka masala that is part of Britain's culinary heritage?

We suggested it and they refused, so DH and I got Indian on our own while they babysat DD. They got pizza delivery.

They sound very whitebread to me OP. Btw, you should know that you're quite exceptional in terms of the amount of traveling you've done. How did you end up spending summers in rural Thailand?

I went on a trip with a community service company there the summer after freshman year of HS. Wanted to go back but parents weren’t going to pay for another trip, so I talked my way into a job with them. Lived in small villages helping the locals out with projects. Did some side trips to Cambodia and Myanmar, too. Made friends with monks. It was truly awesome!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, you sound like an entitled twit. You went to Europe with a toddler. Deal with it! Don't expect your inlaws to be babysitters.

It wasn’t an expectation. They offered. We’ve gone to Europe with our kid without any help multiple times.

What trips have you done with your daughter so far, and how did they rank in terms of ease? It sounds like Scandinavia may have been easier than London?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, you sound like an entitled twit. You went to Europe with a toddler. Deal with it! Don't expect your inlaws to be babysitters.

It wasn’t an expectation. They offered. We’ve gone to Europe with our kid without any help multiple times.

What trips have you done with your daughter so far, and how did they rank in terms of ease? It sounds like Scandinavia may have been easier than London?

Scandinavia was easier than London because the ILs weren’t there. We’ve also taken her all over the US and she’s done great.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, you sound like an entitled twit. You went to Europe with a toddler. Deal with it! Don't expect your inlaws to be babysitters.

It wasn’t an expectation. They offered. We’ve gone to Europe with our kid without any help multiple times.

What trips have you done with your daughter so far, and how did they rank in terms of ease? It sounds like Scandinavia may have been easier than London?

Scandinavia was easier than London because the ILs weren’t there. We’ve also taken her all over the US and she’s done great.

She also did Germany and Austria. The ILs have been the aggravating factor. We know how to pace things well for our kid.

[Anonymous]

If it were me, I would have lectured them by now about their deadweight attitude. They really sound like ugly Americans. So OP, did MIL go to Kensington Palace?

[Anonymous]

Good luck for Rome (I am Italian so I know what I am talking about). Make sure they are really careful about their belongings, in the streets and on public transportation, or you may have to enjoy a visit to the US consulate to get a copy of stolen passports to get back home

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If it were me, I would have lectured them by now about their deadweight attitude. They really sound like ugly Americans. So OP, did MIL go to Kensington Palace?

basta with the ugly americans thing! They are just old, and some older people are good with experiencing new things and some are difficult to be around. If you think it is only Americans who are like this when they travel, you should go to more touristy places and listen! People - not just old people - can be asses! (Helps to know other languages, because they assume Americans do not.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Good luck for Rome (I am Italian so I know what I am talking about). Make sure they are really careful about their belongings, in the streets and on public transportation, or you may have to enjoy a visit to the US consulate to get a copy of stolen passports to get back home

YEs rome can have a lot of crime. I think the food will be easier though. I found food in Rome to be much easier than London. I grew up in the US with traditional English food (my grandmother was from London) and still found eating English food in London to be challenging. Rome will be easier because of spaghetti, pizza, gelato (you should have it at least 2x per day!). I don't know about ice in Rome.

[Anonymous]

I’m really proud of MIL because she did end up going to Kensington Palace! She griped about it beforehand but did it and enjoyed it!

Thanks for the tips about Rome — I will tell them to be very careful. I recall that in Madrid and Rome there’s a big problem with people getting scammed by Roma. My friend had a Roma woman practically throw her baby at him and then as he was trying to catch the baby her kids tried to rob him. Luckily he got away!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m really proud of MIL because she did end up going to Kensington Palace! She griped about it beforehand but did it and enjoyed it!

Thanks for the tips about Rome — I will tell them to be very careful. I recall that in Madrid and Rome there’s a big problem with people getting scammed by Roma. My friend had a Roma woman practically throw her baby at him and then as he was trying to catch the baby her kids tried to rob him. Luckily he got away!

That's great! Hopefully she gained some confidence through successfully going to KP and that will help her on the next leg of the trip.

OP, I'm from London and my English ILs are here staying with us right now and it's absolutely awful - I feel like our situations are reversed but similar! A lot of complaints about how no one can make a proper cup of tea!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Good luck for Rome (I am Italian so I know what I am talking about). Make sure they are really careful about their belongings, in the streets and on public transportation, or you may have to enjoy a visit to the US consulate to get a copy of stolen passports to get back home

YEs rome can have a lot of crime. I think the food will be easier though. I found food in Rome to be much easier than London. I grew up in the US with traditional English food (my grandmother was from London) and still found eating English food in London to be challenging. Rome will be easier because of spaghetti, pizza, gelato (you should have it at least 2x per day!). I don't know about ice in Rome.

I completely disagree with this. London has way more food choices than Rome - lots of restaurants from other countries so if you're sick of the English food, there are many different foods to eat (Indian, Thai, Japanese, even Mexican). When we were in Rome two summers ago, we loved the pizza and pasta, but that was really all there was. Very few ethnic restaurants to choose from, and we really got sick of Italian food after awhile.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If it were me, I would have lectured them by now about their deadweight attitude. They really sound like ugly Americans. So OP, did MIL go to Kensington Palace?

basta with the ugly americans thing! They are just old, and some older people are good with experiencing new things and some are difficult to be around. If you think it is only Americans who are like this when they travel, you should go to more touristy places and listen! People - not just old people - can be asses! (Helps to know other languages, because they assume Americans do not.)

Yes but which other nationality likes to subsist on pasta and burgers and are significantly overweight?