A quick review of Little Buddy’s life experiences so far, at the end of 2015, after ~28 months of life:

• Visited 12 countries (or 14, if you count UK component countries and French overseas territories separately)
  • England
  • France (Brittany in Dec 13, Dec 14, Jul 15 and Dec 15; Paris in Mar 15; Alsace in Jun 15)
  • US (Miami & Denver in Jan 14, Denver again in Jun 14, Miami again in Mar 15)
  • Singapore (Jan/Feb 14, Aug/Sept 15)
  • Malaysia (Feb 14, Nov 14, Aug/Sept 15)
  • Wales (Apr 14)
  • Mexico (Yucatan in Jun 14)
  • Iceland (Aug/Sept 14)
  • Cuba (Mar 15)
  • Grand Cayman (Mar 15)
  • Mauritius (May 15)
  • La Reunion (May 15)
  • Indonesia (Bali in Sept 15)
  • Portugal (Algarve in Nov 15)
• Taken 36 flights(15 in 2014 + 21 in 2015)
  • London-Miami -Denver-London:3
  • London-Singapore-KL- SG – London: 4
  • London-Cancun- Denver-Cancun-London: 4
  • London-Iceland- London: 2
  • London-KL-London: 2
  • London-Miami-Grand Cayman-Havana-Grand Cayman-Miami-London: 6
  • London-Mauritius- Reunion-Mauritius-London: 4
  • London-Mulhouse- London: 2
  • London-Brest-London: 2
  • London-Singapore-KL-Bali- Singapore-London: 5
  • London – Faro – London: 2
• Taken 12 boats/ferries (13 by 3rd Jan 2016)
  • France (Dec 13) – 2 ferry rides
  • Norfolk (May 14) – 2 boats (1 medium boat for seal watching, 1 slow motor boat for Norfolk Broads)
  • Mexico / Tulum (Jun 14)- 1 powerboat
  • Iceland / whale-watching (Sept 14)- 1 big boat (during which Little Buddy threw up, and the Boy and I felt really seasick)
  • Cuba (Mar 15) – 1 row boat ( bird watching)
  • Woburn (May 15) – 1 pedal boat
  • Mauritius (May 15)- 1 glass bottomed boat
  • Bali (Oct 15)- 2 small ferries to/from Bali island/Nusa Lembongan
  • France (Dec 15/Jan 16) – 2 big ferries
• Visited/experienced a wide range of natural environments:
  • Mangrove forests/lakes: Laguna Guanaroca (Cuba), Norfolk Broads
  • Beaches: Brittany (France), Whitstable, Jurassic Coast, Cuba, Iceland, Mauritius, Reunion, Algarve (Portugal)
  • Forests: Mexico, Reunion
  • Waterfalls: Iceland, Reunion
  • Volcano: Iceland, Reunion
  • Rivers: Norfolk Broads
  • Hills/Mountains: Dorset, Reunion,Cumbria, North York Moors, Iceland
• Has undertaken a range of outdoor/nature activities
  • Swimming: swimming classes in London, in hotel/resort swimming pools, in the sea in Mauritius
  • Cycling: New Forest
  • Hiking: Dorset, Iceland, Reunion
  • Fossil hunting: Jurassic Coast
  • Shell picking: various beaches
  • Shell fish picking: Brittany (just this Christmas)
• Experienced a range of other sensory/physical/cultural activities
  • Music/sensory activities
  • Children plays/concerts
  • Indoor soft play playgrounds: he’s now practically flying down ~5m high slides on his own
  • Amusement park rides: vehicle rides, Fun Houses, and even roller coasters!
  • Petting zoos: Queens Park, Coram Fields, Brittany, Odds Farm, Mudchute Park & Farm, deers in Sacred Monkey Forest (Bali)
  • Water play: Centre Parcs (Woburn), Gardens by the Bay
  • Museums: Tate Modern, Tate Britain, Science Museum, Natural History Museum, Denver Children’s Museum
  • Archaeological sites: Fountains Abbey, Riveaulx Abbey
  • Traditional zoos: London zoo (x6), Parrot zoo, Monkey world, Crocodile Park (Reunion), Kelonia (turtles) Park (Réunion), Denver zoo, Denver Aquarium, Sacred Monkey Forest (Bali), Miami zoo, KL zoo, Oceanopolis (Brest, France), Aquaria KLCC
  • Weddings: Bangladeshi and International weddings in UK, Chinese in Malaysia, Indian wedding in Mauritius

Baby-Ao has done and experienced an incredible amount! Way more than I had at his age. I only achieved/visited my 12th country at the ripe old age of 23, one year after I had started working!!

I often look at Little Buddy and sigh with envy, yet hope… envy because it doesn’t seem fair that he is experiencing so much and so early compared to myself… (the Boy says I should be happy rather than envious/jealous… haha), and hope because… I hope all these experiences, all this investment in broadening his horizons, will lead to even an even greater, better and brighter future for him… which is not to say that I’m unhappy with where I am in life. I’m mostly content… but of course I still wish for so much more. My hope is that maybe he will be able to achieve, more easily, what I’m still dreaming of.