Does anyone have any recommendations or personal expereince, for the easiest pram to use to manouver and navigate the uneven Balinese terrain????? My son is only 11 months old... Thanks in advance
Big wheels, and I mean BIG wheels, the bigger the better. We used a 'Rock N Stroller' for nine months on Bali and although it is a heavy piece of machinery for lugging in and out of vehicles/taxis etc. it was well worth it.
Go for robust as opposed to transportation practicality.
Can't remember the actual make, German origin I think, it also had three carrying devices attached, a huge underslung tray, a net hammock style thingy above that and an insulated/waterproof double pocket bag that came with a detachable shoulder sling.
Oh and a clip on bottle/sippy cup holder rack as well.
We bought it in Jakarta Pasar Raya, Rp6mill.
Just been informed it is stored and preserved in our 'godown' so will get the kids to dig it out later and confirm the make etc. plus post a few pics.
Go for robust as opposed to transportation practicality.
Can't remember the actual make, German origin I think, it also had three carrying devices attached, a huge underslung tray, a net hammock style thingy above that and an insulated/waterproof double pocket bag that came with a detachable shoulder sling.
Oh and a clip on bottle/sippy cup holder rack as well.
We bought it in Jakarta Pasar Raya, Rp6mill.
Just been informed it is stored and preserved in our 'godown' so will get the kids to dig it out later and confirm the make etc. plus post a few pics.
You obviously have this vision of you and sprog gambolling gaily between the rice fields sucking up lungfuls of good oxygen filled air.
Fact is you will be spending most of your (pre) ambulatory time sucking diesel fumes and smoke and thrashing around with 6 lanes of idiots on a 2 lane highway, mixing it up with 4 ton trucks carrying 8 tons of stone, Bachso selllers, Goreng wagons and the occasional motorbike with 3 generations of rice farmers onboard spitting and throwing their trash around.
It is too hot and humid to walk anywhere far here so get the sprog a carry-all and yourself a small whip. When sprog is quickly able to use own legs (due to boiling heat of carry-all) use whip to keep sprog to the trail. Will build character and good, fast legs.
For good advise I accept cheese, and for bad advise I also accept cheese.
Fact is you will be spending most of your (pre) ambulatory time sucking diesel fumes and smoke and thrashing around with 6 lanes of idiots on a 2 lane highway, mixing it up with 4 ton trucks carrying 8 tons of stone, Bachso selllers, Goreng wagons and the occasional motorbike with 3 generations of rice farmers onboard spitting and throwing their trash around.
It is too hot and humid to walk anywhere far here so get the sprog a carry-all and yourself a small whip. When sprog is quickly able to use own legs (due to boiling heat of carry-all) use whip to keep sprog to the trail. Will build character and good, fast legs.
For good advise I accept cheese, and for bad advise I also accept cheese.
My daughter is 4 months :love_heart:, we never bought a pram, and if we were to buy one we would probably just use it for her to sit/lie in if we go out to a restaurant or something, but to actually push her around on these 'side walks', there's too many holes, the sidewalks can be quite narrow, and it seems like it can be quite a hassel navigating around. I see other parents pushing their baby's prams on the actual street which doesn't seem so safe either (and so much flying dust/dirt and exhaust from the bikes and cars). Personally, I prefer to carry her around in a sling or carrier, it's much easier, and to be honest, it's so hot out, you might not really want to be spending so much time out and about on the streets.
Equally as important as huge wheels is overall pram width. The narrower the better.
We got a Phil and ted, cant remember the model, but outside to outside axle width is the narrowest on the market. And still sometimes a bit too wide for money changer signs and other shit that people like to plonk out directly on public walkways.
Also a lot of doorways here are not standard, too narrow for the wider prams.
Carry a FAT red permanent marker pen with you and all the motorbikes, money changer signs, shirt racks etc that are ignoratnly placed on public walkways, covertly expose the tip of the marker under the hand pushing the pram and run a line along the length of the offending obstruction.
It is very gratifying.
You can still get out and about, but do it early in the morning.
Be home by 10.00am to beat the heat (and hopefully the fumes).
We got a Phil and ted, cant remember the model, but outside to outside axle width is the narrowest on the market. And still sometimes a bit too wide for money changer signs and other shit that people like to plonk out directly on public walkways.
Also a lot of doorways here are not standard, too narrow for the wider prams.
Carry a FAT red permanent marker pen with you and all the motorbikes, money changer signs, shirt racks etc that are ignoratnly placed on public walkways, covertly expose the tip of the marker under the hand pushing the pram and run a line along the length of the offending obstruction.
It is very gratifying.
You can still get out and about, but do it early in the morning.
Be home by 10.00am to beat the heat (and hopefully the fumes).
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Thanks again Markit for your insightful advice but due to just having a spinal fusion im unable to hold said sprog in a carry all...hence important need for pram when out and about. What type of cheese do you like ill see if i can bring some with me when we come in June..
Hinakos ill look into Phil and Ted thanks.
Natasha thanks it would mostly be to lie him don in when out for sleeps. After three failed spinal fusion attempts and another next week id love to be abe to carry him in a sling but unfortunately not an option for me.
Spicyayam do you know what the make of your pram was.
Thanks for advice guys greatly appreciated..
Make/Model = Infinity/Rock Star ... very apt considering my son's current love of all things metal/anti-social/noise related.
A great piece of kit though Stroller, rocker, sleeper, car seat, shopping trolley, pizza deliveries ... may yet end up as another mode of transport by the end of the week as my son is getting his 'toolkit' out ... duct tape/WD40/cable ties/LEGO
On Bali streets, with a back problem like you have, I suggest perambulating with a pram may produce premature pretensile protrusions and your back will doth protest.
Most people in Indonesia employ a children's maid who wear long khaki shorts and hang a super hammock around their neck to support the child, while walking three steps behind mum...sometimes stopping to stuff spoons of rice down the little one's throat.
Most people in Indonesia employ a children's maid who wear long khaki shorts and hang a super hammock around their neck to support the child, while walking three steps behind mum...sometimes stopping to stuff spoons of rice down the little one's throat.
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Back to the conversation about the quality of education in Indonesia, correct me if I'm totally off base, but could the case of expats coming to Indonesia and dumping their children on hired help be a contributing factor towards the poor level of education? It's great to have extra help, but sometimes I feel that the more the help, the less the parents are involved in their own children's upbringing and that's why the expat kids aren't getting much of an education here. This of course is a generalization, and not everyone is like this, but it does happen, and possibly more than people want to admit!
Sorry OP for changing the subject!
I can see you are a discerning and highly intelligent person with an astonishing ability at character judgement.
I like a well aged Gouda, I love it in kilo bars. If that should be a problem for someone with a bad back - I do pickups, bad advice included (and if you clean up nicely I can throw in a massage).
Natasha....I saw your post #12 was a response to mine.
Sorry.....I have no idea about educating children these days, or the availability of schooling in Bali, but I have a general opinion on the subject.....
Finding a balance is crucial. If a maid is useful so mums/dads can find better ways to contribute to their children's welfare and education, then I cannot fault.
Due to WW2 I didn't go to school till I was 6 and left before my 15th birthday to go to work because my parents couldn't afford to keep me at school. I left home to join the RAF as an Aircraft Apprentice at age 15, never became a burden on their resources, and have since had a relatively successful life.
But I wouldn't recommend that way to others.
IMO....Education is a most important feature but should never be isolated from a proper loving family upbringing....even if education circumstances require boarding or military or university.
Sorry.....I have no idea about educating children these days, or the availability of schooling in Bali, but I have a general opinion on the subject.....
Finding a balance is crucial. If a maid is useful so mums/dads can find better ways to contribute to their children's welfare and education, then I cannot fault.
Due to WW2 I didn't go to school till I was 6 and left before my 15th birthday to go to work because my parents couldn't afford to keep me at school. I left home to join the RAF as an Aircraft Apprentice at age 15, never became a burden on their resources, and have since had a relatively successful life.
But I wouldn't recommend that way to others.
IMO....Education is a most important feature but should never be isolated from a proper loving family upbringing....even if education circumstances require boarding or military or university.
It is bad enough that I mangle Indonesian we do not need two of us doing it here. From now on my store room will become a "godown" as well.
You say potato I say 'cheesy chips' .... go down or godown is a much adapted word of Chinese origin which a lot of people assume is because a lot of godown/go downs are/were on docks and riversides and therefore cargo's and import/export items were required to godown/go down to the trading vessels ... whatever, I am pretty certain Sir Stamford Raffles did not a flying one give either way as he loaded up his schooners with fake Ming vases ...
Now then, is this the appropriate post to add a discussion regarding the difference between a "Hoedown" and a "Ho' down" ....asking for a friend.
Whether a friend will "go down" on you or you "go down" on your friend is a very important difference and should, I feel, be discussed here at great length, possibly with instructive pictures to accompany.
Funny enough this exact topic came up at the AA/Bible Class meeting last week ... and of course the the discussion centered around defining 'friend' a term which previously meant someone more than an acquaintance bit not quite family, nowadays it just means a girl on FB with big tits and a penchant for posting 'selfies' whilst drunk ... but in the original context I can't think of one 'friend' I would share a 'godown' with ...
I hadn't really thought about this before, but I just took my son to a play group here. I noticed the other kids were closer to their pembantus than their parents, who were more interested in their mobile phones. Not expats, but I would say wealthier locals. It made me think back to this thread on education. The teacher asked the parents to bring healthy food for 'snack time'. Our son eats pretty healthy so not a problem for him, but all of the other kids had chocolate biscuits, fried chicken and chocolate sandwiches.
Ill see what i can do Markit re cheese, delivery ive got three kids need to make them strong enough to carry squeegees and buckets in the future what better way than to lug 2kgs of cheese each!!!!! "scrubbing up" may be an issue after next weeks op ill look like a rag doll being stitched back together thou an added benefit of scars is kids can play nougats and crosses on my back!!!
In regards to all other advice thanks...Im amazed that asking about a pram can then be diverted too...... really beginning to enjoy this forum.....