Month: March 2006

Categories
Tips

Plan Now For Spring Trips (Yes, There’s Still Time)

Just a thought for you busy parents out there….now’s the time to nail down a family trip during your kid’s Spring Break or the April Easter weekend (Passover is April 13 this year, Good Friday the 14th, Easter Sunday the 16th, and Easter Monday is 17 April for those who might have the day off.)

Most of us find it a bit overwhelming to plan some big multi-week summer extravaganza, but a short getaway over a long spring weekend is just right.  If you’re thinking of Spring Break, consider taking only a few days to travel if you don’t want to deal with schlepping everyone somewhere for the entire week.

If you’re thinking about a beach destination, confirm when the collegiate partyers are going there, so your family doesn’t have to deal with Girls Gone Wild or guys doing Jello shots. 

Draw a 2-3 hour travel time around your hometown, pick a place you’ve wanted to check out but couldn’t do it in a day, and take a….Road Trip!

Categories
Philosophy

Why Take Your Kids When You Travel

This seems pretty basic (why to take kids when you travel) but as we all know, there are some things that we think of as self-evident that are really not so straightforward.

It may surprise readers of BootsnAll travel blogs to be reminded that lots of folks do not travel.  What some of us think of as an activity akin to breathing — you simply have to do it — isn’t viewed that way by many others.  Some people prefer to spend their money on something other than airplane tickets and hotels. Some really dislike being out of their home, their nest, their comfort zone.  Some think that travel is only for “adventurous” types.  This is the hardest thing for me to remember; not everyone wants to do the things that I do.  This seems simple, but it is key to one’s true understanding of others.

Now, as for taking the kids, assuming that you DO like to travel….I must confess, having them along is sometimes a raging pain in the neck.  Children have demands and requirements that are not much of an issue when I travel alone or with a like-minded adult.  For the enjoyment to outweigh the aggravation, you must thrill to the demands of teaching. You must enjoy the delights of discovery.  You must be willing to make up your own lesson plans and be able to appreciate having the entire planet as a classroom. Finally, you have to enjoy being a teacher even when your student doesn’t grasp the lesson immediately, or even that day/month/year.

Patience has never been one of my virtues, but through my travels with two very different children, I have learned that things sink in when you would least expect, and that’s why you must persist, sometimes even in the face of intractable opposition.  Notre Dame morphs from “some dumb cathedral” to “way cool” a year or so later, when a photograph of the basilica in a middle school textbook is not just some building in Paris, but a real place where they speak another language, eat different food and build spectacular monuments to the heavens, complete with flying buttresses.  And you’ve seen it with your own eyes.   

Kids learn that there is no substitute for actually being there.  There’s nothing more magical than being able to say, “Wow, I’ve stood on that spot and met those people and eaten their food and learned about their history.”  The entire world becomes your children’s neighborhood. With enough travel and exploration, they are “at home in the world.”  For me as a parent, that is the finest reward.

It also means that your children learn to think and see and examine and judge for themselves; always a good way to develop thinking citizens. 

I feel so fortunate for the travel opportunities that have come my way, but there is one thing I’ve noted in every community where I’ve lived:  people do not know their own town.  As a former Navy person, I’ve moved into communities the same way every time; knowing that I need to explore and see what the area offers, because I’m only there for a few years at most.  I buy a guidebook and act as though I am a tourist, because I am.  Lists are made, the family is schlepped from one event or attraction to another, because “this is what one does here.”  Many times I’ll hear the comment, “Oh, I’ve lived here forever and never been there/done that.”  Make sure that you and your family get out there and explore your own backyard.  The most interesting happenings are not necessarily in another time zone.

Categories
Asia

Tokyo: Asakusa to Odaiba Itinerary

Asakusa Kannon Temple, Tokyo (Scarborough photo)

This is a nice combination of old shitamachi Edo (Tokyo) and some modern touches.

Take the subway to Asakusa (pronounced A-sak-sa) to see the lively Kannon Temple, the famous giant red lantern at its entrance and the fun Nakamisedori shopping street between the lantern and temple.

There is also a tourist office near the temple, with very helpful staff, maps and the all-important bathrooms.

If you have time, look for the Asakusa street called Kappabashidori; the shops there sell all manner of kitchen gear plus those marvelous fake foods that you see in Japanese restaurant windows.

The bowls of shrimp, seafood tempura, etc. are hyper-realistic and not particularly cheap, but great fun as table displays or gifts. I like my little ice cream cones that look like they’re just about to melt all over the dining room table.

The kids will have fun finding fairly inexpensive touristy stuff in the little Nakamisedori shops that lead to the Kannon Temple (don’t be alarmed at shop proprietors shouting “Irrasemase!!” when you walk in; they are just saying “Welcome.”)

Look for the little cell phone decorations that hang on a small string off of your phone; it seems as though everyone in Japan has a cluster of these netsuke-like items jangling off of their mobile, to personalize it. They make fun gifts to take home. This area is also famous for senbei rice crackers in all sorts of flavors.

I’m partial to the peanut version.

Asakusa Temple pagoda at night, Tokyo (Scarborough photo)

The temple itself is full of people and you feel as though you are walking into a postcard of quintessential Japan.

Step up to the cauldron in front….the smoke is supposed to help cure what ails you, so do as I did and waft some towards your face (to make you pretty) and rub the smoke on your head (to make you smart.)

I’ll let you know if it worked.

Asakusa Kannon temple entrance, Tokyo (Scarborough photo)

The fountain over to your right is for ritual purification, so before entering the temple you can follow this tradition by pouring water over your hands and wiping a bit on your mouth.

Clap your hands and toss in a coin to the offering box once you are inside, if you desire.

There are also small amulets to buy (one to help with driving or examinations for your teen, perhaps?)

After wandering about and enjoying the temple grounds, get ready to head over to the Sumida River for a boat ride.

Right next to the Azuma Bridge is the Suijo-Bus boat pier. Another landmark is the Asahi Building nearby across the river. Atop the building is a giant gold decoration that is supposed to be some sort of flame, but has become known as the Golden Poop.

Sure makes ME want to drink Asahi beer….

Sumida River Suijo-Bus, Tokyo (Scarborough photo)

Take the swoopy silver futuristic-looking craft for a 40-minute ride down the Sumida to the riverfront entertainment and shopping complex at Odaiba, which is quite a contrast to Asakusa.

There are restaurants, video arcades like none you’ve ever seen, tons of shopping, a Starbucks if you’re jonesing for that, and for manga fiends there is a Jump Shop.

Parents, if you don’t know what that is, your kids probably will.

By the time you’re ready to leave it’s probably night, so for some great views, hop on the Yurikamome unmanned monorail. It will take you from Odaiba across the Sumida under a dazzlingly bright Rainbow Bridge, ending with some Blade Runner-ish scenery as you are deposited at the Shiodome subway station.

Categories
Asia

Family Travel in Tokyo: An Overview

Prayer Cards, Meiji Shrine, Tokyo (Scarborough photo)There is a reason that Tokyo is not normally listed as a “family destination” (whatever that is.)

It is a sprawling metropolis, more a collection of distinct towns than a coherent city, and it has no real city center to help you get your bearings. It is crowded, with over 12 million people hurrying and jostling and crowding themselves into every micron of available real estate.

Despite the tourist brochures and other assurances that you may have heard, it is often difficult to communicate in English. The usual fallback to the language barrier is being able to at least guesstimate signs and other written items, but here you are again stymied unless you can understand kanji, hiragana or katakana.

Still, for those who persist, the rewards are tremendous.

The Japanese are unfailingly polite, and they are courteous and kind to children. Even the drunk salarymen on the subway at 11:00 p.m. are polite. The city is safe, if not always easy to navigate.

The culture is rich and rewarding for those who take the time to understand it. Japan seems to hold a particular fascination for pre-teens (or ‘tweens as I call them) and teenagers. They are huge fans of Japanese serialized comics (manga) and animated movies (anime.) Many kids have taken karate in their hometowns, and sushi has become commonplace in US supermarkets. Even the pervasive Power Rangers have helped spread Japanese pop culture (I think Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles might be a stretch example, though.)

The Navy posted my family in southern Japan (Kyushu) when my daughter was young, and she joined me in Tokyo this past summer when I was there on temporary Navy duty.

I am very fond of Japan but also quite realistic about its challenges for family travel. If you are thinking about a trip there, or perhaps considering taking family with you on a business trip, I hope my thoughts on this blog can help.

Categories
Philosophy

Here We Go, Gang.

I’m ready to start properly using this blog. Over the next week, as promised awhile back, I’ll post detailed ideas for things to do with ‘tweens (ages about 9-12) and teens in Tokyo. I’m working hard to structure the site so that info is easily accessible, and I have a lot of material coming up on destinations all over the world. My efforts to sell some of my travel writing work have been unsuccessful so far, but I am optimistic and will keep launching my stuff out there. Meantime, this is my space to do with as I wish, so I’m looking forward to making it fun and useful for my readers. You can semi-flame me if stuff doesn’t come up fast enough; in fact, I’d be flattered by the attention.