I’ve been discussing packing lately with Fleur. This post reminds me to not bring carseat if you travel alone with kids! I’m also reminded of how much I obsess with sleep (because well rested children means less whiny children, my pet peeve) and my posts tend to be peppered with how much sleep the kids get or don’t get.
Itinarary today: 8am flight, 1:30pm checkin at Ramada Plaza Waikiki Honolulu, Sangkee lunch, ABC store run, failed nap, beach!, Ala Moana dinner, THUD.
Short Version:
Woke kids up at 6am, good flight, they won’t take naps, had a lot of fun at beach, LONG walk to dinner, SO tired.
Long Version:
The lesson of the day when traveling with two children by yourself is, check in your two solidly packed carryons. Don’t try to save that $25 baggage fee.
Last night I bypassed the last minute packing. Instead we had dinner with our good friends, came home, took baths, dressed the kids in today’s clothing in lieu of pajamas and went to bed at 9:30. I’d only had 4 hours the previous night due to packing and couldn’t keep my eyes open.
This morning the alarm didn’t wake me up because I accidentally set it to 4:40pm instead. Thank goodness Astroboy’s snoring woke me up. I only had time to finish packing before we woke the kids up and put them in the car at 6am. We ate SangKee bread in the car.
I somehow managed to lug 2 carryons, a carseat, and 1 suitcase myself with 2 kids. We checked in, said our goodbyes to Baba (who had gone to park the car)and waited to board. One great thing about traveling with children is you bypass the harder airport screening process. We went on the “pre” line where we didn’t have to take out our 3-1-1 bag or laptop or shoes. Astroboy was very excited to watch the planes take off or see planes in general.
The flight was pretty good. They were preoccupied with beverage service and drawing and playing with train before I gave them their iPad. I then made them listen to music and audiobooks instead. After that both kids slept. However, I, being overly zealous, had the bright idea of taking off Astroboy’s earbuds, at which point he woke up after his 15 minute nap. He was unruly the rest of the day. Thumper, on the other hand, slept till the plane was landing.
We met a 9/11 firefighter on the plane. I feel somehow more chatty and friendly with the kids in tow and said hi to him while he was waiting in line for the bathroom. “Are you a firefighter?” I asked him when I saw his New York Firefighter uniform. he offered that he just written a book. And now, thinking back, I realize that maybe he deliberately wore that uniform.
9/11 was so long ago and happened on the other side of the continent. It was horrific watching it on the news. I still remember my disbelief that morning when I saw the planes crash into the tower. But it still feels like one of the many terrible things I watch on TV and is not really connected to me or my life. So when I actually meet someone who has experienced it, it’s disconcerting. I didn’t know what to say to him when he gave me his business card for the book other than “Thank you.”
When the plane landed, Astroboy said he wanted to go on a plane ride again, now. I met a couple on the plane who did not speak English and had helped them fill out agriculture forms. I was not looking forward to asking strangers to help me take my carryon down so it was so very nice when the husband offered in exchange to showing them where the baggage claim was. He also took it off of the carousel for me and helped me lug it to my reserve taxi. I was so glad then I knew another language and thought about how it enables you to meet and talk to people you would otherwise not.
Hawaii was mildly humid, breezy, and slightly warm today. A real perfect weather for vacation. We took local streets partly from the airport to the hotel. I had never seen this part of town before. It’s very run down, full of apartments that you know have low-income housing people, and constructed all very differently from each other. One building could be facing the street at 20 degree angle, and another 20 degrees the other way, with no uniform setbacks from the street. It’s obviously a reflection of its history. It’s vastly different from the other parts of the island, where houses are in the more familiar rows and streets are in grids.
After checking in, we ate a quick lunch and then walked over to the local ABC store for some water and more food. I tried to make them take a nap but Astroboy was having none of it though Thumper did. Finally, after an hour or two, I gave up and we walked the long way to the beach in front of Hilton Hawaiian Village’s beach. The kids had some much fun playing in the warm water. Astroboy wouldn’t let go of my hand in the beginning. But by the end he was imitating Thumper., building sand castles, throwing sand, letting the water nip at his feet. 
Finally at 5pm, we took another long way back to the hotel. My cellphone had no battery the whole day and I didn’t really have good maps. We took a shower and then started for the Ala Moana Shopping Mall. The guy at the Front Desk, and even Google maps, said it would take 10 minutes. I think it was more 20-30 for us. Because as usual, we got lost and took yet another long way to get there. By that time, the kids were hungry and tired. So they had pineapple and vanilla soft serve for dinner. I bribed some curry and udon in them. I was so very tempted to take the taxi back but we didn’t have a car seat. So we trekked the long way home, changed into PJs and watched some Grey’s Anatomy while I iced my back. The kids fell asleep in 5 minutes right after I turned off the lights.
Montessori talked about the mneme and engrams in her writings. To her, there are experiences in your childhood that are imprinted in you. It’s why we long for chicken noodle soup when we’re sick as adults (or porridge in my case). The roar of the buses and motorcycles, their honking, that soft warm breeze and slight humidity you feel, they remind me of my childhood in Taiwan. Walking around Waikiki yesterday reminded me of that childhood as well. There is a familiarity and nostalgia.
This morning as I’m cleaning out my wallet I thought about why I like to travel. You’re forced, for that 2 or 3 or 4 weeks, to really simplify your life. I won’t be needing all those credit cards and membership cards for awhile, and life still goes on pretty fine. It always makes me wonder if these are also things I don’t really need day to day. There is something quite appealing about living without so many things.
The children are traveling even better than I expected, other than the constant questioning. “When are we taking off” (every minute). “When can we take off our seatbelt” (every minute). “I want juice” (every 30 seconds). Over the last 6 months they’ve learned how to ask instead of demand from each other, to offer “lets share” instead of “it’s mine!”, And Thumper has really matured when it comes to her willingness to protect her brother, to hold his hands while I’m busy with the luggage, to watch out for his safety. I just need to remember to not do carryons!
