Reflections on Japan - Chris

Japan is a fascinating place. Overall everyone in the clan enjoyed themselves immensely. It wasn't long before Wally said "Wow, they are way more advanced than us! They got their transportation figured out and their toilets are way better." He's not wrong. The train system was tough to figure out at first, but we really became savvy travelers by the end. The train system is completely comprehensive, efficient and well used. And the toilets.... These are civilized people here in Japan. Seat warmers, warm water bidet, courtesy music or sounds of running water. Guthrie may have completely potty trained himself if only we had stayed longer. He sat on the toilet and pooped a dozen times a day and then would come running out yelling "I USED THE BUTT SQUIRTER!" Sadly it was time to go and we are still using diapers some days. *sigh

Being in Japan with the kids, was like being in church with them. I was constantly shushing them. We have loud kids, no doubt. And we're Americans, so there's another level of volume. It was certainly a struggle for me to let go of corralling the children when they are just being themselves. I'm sure most of the Japanese looked at us as we fit perfectly into American stereotypes they may have. Plus the kids have been cooped up on the ship and not able to run for 20 out of the last 21 days. Each time the kids happened upon a green space they just started running, laughing, and tackling each other. They get so much outside time when they're home and we take it for granted. Japan is awesome, but every place that's not a mountain is developed and the population is DENSE. So there ends up being limited green space and places to play. We found some playgrounds and urban parks, but if we ever moved here, loss of green space would be a major issue.

I was also surprised at how well the kids did traveling and adjusting to a new culture. I really thought they were going to be shell-shocked with how different everything was, but they took it all in stride. We couldn't read the signs, the food was so different, there weren't people who looked like us very often, but it seemed the kids hardly noticed. I think there is something to traveling with your parents who are going to provide a safety net. The unfamiliarity seems less when your whole family unit remains the same. In general our kids have done really well with transitions. To ship life, to other cultures, etc. We were worried about one kid in particular with transitions happening all the time and he seems totally grounded. They have earned themselves a new reputation (and maybe higher expectations) with how well they are going with the flow of whatever is happening.

The post of our photos will give you a sense of what all we did. We did a lot, but there is so much more to do. Japan has sooooo much to see and do and in our few short days we couldn't even scratch the surface. It's easy to have regrets if you focus too much on the things you miss. But we keep reminding ourselves that we are not "traveling," we are "traveling with kids," which is a much different experience. I love sushi, but I ate 0 pieces of sushi in Japan. Finding restaurants and things kids would eat was challenging enough, we didn't even attempt a sushi bar with children. The advantage is we get to do this together and we get to see things through the kids' eyes. And we get to celebrate their small victories with them. You miss major tourist attractions and experiences, but you get pulled to the small things and the present moment all the time.

At this stage in the voyage we are 2 ports down (3 if you count missing out on Shanghai). We are far enough into the voyage to have a sense of the routine and the expectations, but early enough to have so much in front of us.