tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27702298737981823872024-03-13T13:03:47.196-07:00This Learning LifePreviously titled 'what we do all day' this blog reflects the learning life of our Whanau of five, living in New Zealand, with a love of travel and a joy of the small things.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.comBlogger37125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-66132255417386099352015-04-12T01:54:00.003-07:002015-04-12T01:54:39.764-07:00A letter to Miss K and to myselfDearest Miss K<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T24E6thwqWg/VSovVHasEhI/AAAAAAAAC98/BFeRENgReTc/s1600/Momoes%2Bbirthday%2B10-5-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T24E6thwqWg/VSovVHasEhI/AAAAAAAAC98/BFeRENgReTc/s1600/Momoes%2Bbirthday%2B10-5-15.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Birthday party for our cousin</td></tr>
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How are you doing? You've been in Japan for almost two weeks and from the photos you look like you are enjoying yourself, eating amazing food and spending time with special people.<br />
<br />
I miss you lots.<br />
<br />
I ask my eight year old self if I would be as brave you are, exploring an unfamiliar country (with family), without my Mum. She looks at me and says 'of course' (like you did when I asked you about whether you really wanted to Japan last year. back then, the enormity of what it meant hadn't really sunk in for either of us).<br />
<br />
"Besides," says my eight year old self, "there's all that technology stuff now to keep in touch. When you were me, we only had letters."<br />
<br />
She's right - as you often are - your adventures can be photographically shared online (immediately), texts and emails instantaneously advise me if I need to call and we can Skype. That helps close that divide... a little bit.<br />
<br />
I know too that photos are happy moments, capturing a smile because that's how we're socially programmed to document our lives. I know that you are home sick sometimes and that the language makes it hard to communicate and that so much difference can be tiring. I understand.<br />
<br />
I know you are brave and face each day with a smile and chirpy determination.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6WMh50ODzdw/VSovPm5w_4I/AAAAAAAAC9s/sWK00zCn2aA/s1600/k%2Bin%2Bthe%2Bpark.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6WMh50ODzdw/VSovPm5w_4I/AAAAAAAAC9s/sWK00zCn2aA/s1600/k%2Bin%2Bthe%2Bpark.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Miss K in contemplation...what is she thinking?</td></tr>
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But there are things I don't know too, like if this was a good idea (irrespective of how much you wanted to go and how many times people tell me it will be 'good for you' - what do they mean by that?) or whether you'll be put off traveling forever after.<br />
<br />
Yet much of life learning is like that. It's not knowing, and trying and then say oh yes! that was the right thing to do (sometimes immediately, sometimes weeks, months, years down the track); or crap and botheration, that didn't work, this is what we've learnt and this is what we'll do different (sometimes immediately, sometimes weeks, months, years down the track).<br />
<br />
It's being brave enough and curious enough to find out.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dP48iv9QK6E/VSowbzJXxVI/AAAAAAAAC-E/y6xrVrI49hw/s1600/K%2BOkonomiyaki.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dP48iv9QK6E/VSowbzJXxVI/AAAAAAAAC-E/y6xrVrI49hw/s1600/K%2BOkonomiyaki.jpg" height="239" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">K enjoying Okosama lunch in Japan</td></tr>
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<br />
Learning together is awesome, but there is also magic in learning apart - I'm hoping you'll share with me many things you discover on your adventure<br />
<br />
... and I'll share this with you...<br />
<br />
<i>You are my teacher of courage, joy,and curiosity. I am inspired by you.</i><br />
<br />
Love MummyAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-64057859745989068012015-04-06T02:34:00.000-07:002015-04-06T02:47:28.828-07:00Letting goIt's been eight months since I've last blogged.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W8K6H_cGHwY/VSJRYw_fI3I/AAAAAAAAC8w/WkK5jrPSTtU/s1600/DSCF0489.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W8K6H_cGHwY/VSJRYw_fI3I/AAAAAAAAC8w/WkK5jrPSTtU/s1600/DSCF0489.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Friends in Espana - our last day in Vigo</td></tr>
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It's been just over a year since our whanau embarked on an incredible journey (and no, the Spain update still hasn't appeared...sorry!)<br />
<br />
I won't recap the past... and I'm not letting go of the blog...<br />
<br />
But I'm letting go of a bit of stuff this year to make more space for me, the family and our learning-life (this is the new 'home-schooling/education phrase I am testing out)... or life-learning philosophy.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Stuff I'm letting go of includes:</b><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b>taking on too much stuff</b> (other people's problems, staring at stuff on face book, physical stuff...); </li>
<li><b>guilt</b> (for not keeping up blogs, finishing projects, doing what I say I will all the time (mainly to myself)); </li>
<li><b>worrying</b> (about what other people might think about how we do things, judgements for what we do all day, whether I'm enough);</li>
<li><b>unrealistic expectations</b> (this blog should be updated every week and be about our learning-life...it is mainly);</li>
<li><b>control</b>.. (of whatever I can!)</li>
</ul>
<br />
<br />
And in some sense, in the spirit of 'letting go', I 'let go' my daughter from being at my side daily to follow the travel-adventure spirit we value, and return to Japan with her Obaachan (grandma, my mum), her uncle and aunt (my brother and sister-in-law), for three weeks.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YWI4keuLyZE/VSJR_MzUfaI/AAAAAAAAC9A/MR8wDa5LoTo/s1600/baachan%2Band%2BKeilani.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YWI4keuLyZE/VSJR_MzUfaI/AAAAAAAAC9A/MR8wDa5LoTo/s1600/baachan%2Band%2BKeilani.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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It's not been easy. I miss her. Her brothers miss her and her Dad misses her. In her absence we've acquired three dancers who are part of the MOTH's new <a href="http://premier.ticketek.co.nz/shows/show.aspx?sh=TANEMAHU15&v=CTR" target="_blank">dance/kapa-haka/aerial theatre extravaganza</a>, so the house is busy and buzzing... but definitely NOT the same without Miss K.<br />
<br />
From all accounts she's enjoying herself, creating new memories with her immediate and extended family.<br />
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<br />
And to further 'honour' the spirit of letting go - I let go control of my blog for our children to share their learning-life. Soon there may be stories of Japan adventures, lego creations, trips to marine centres, metamorphosis...<br />
<br />
I let go in anticipation.<br />
<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-55522637043383349592014-08-31T04:50:00.002-07:002014-08-31T04:53:53.726-07:00What have we been doing all day?You could be forgiven for thinking that in the last month we've somehow disappeared from the blogstratosphere<br />
<br />
...the last weeks of our four month adventure have yet to be posted, and because I'm wanting to print off the blog as a record for the children, retrospective posts on our adventures in Spain will appear soon...<br />
<br />
But for today I muse on coming home.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hello Sunshine - on the beach in Samil, Vigo with our friend Pedro</td></tr>
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We left Vigo, feeling much love, full of Spanish cuisine, with great tans and basking in sunshine to return home to what was (and most definitely felt like) the coldest day of the year.<br />
<br />
Unpleasant.<br />
<br />
Not recommended.<br />
<br />
Jet lag took about two weeks to get over. We eventually all stopped going to bed at 5pm (for the kids) or 8pm (the MOTH and I) and waking up at 4am. (Except for Master T).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NDIIIARVPsk/VAMGyO05M1I/AAAAAAAAC1I/U0WWOBPJwtM/s1600/DSCF0254.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NDIIIARVPsk/VAMGyO05M1I/AAAAAAAAC1I/U0WWOBPJwtM/s1600/DSCF0254.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tama's sleep may be disrupted by memories of the adorable Carmen</td></tr>
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<br />
The MOTH and I both came down with colds, probably exacerbated by the stress of opening and dealing with four months worth of mail, two cars that needed attention and tentatively peering at bank statements that reminded us we will be paying for our adventure long after the tan has faded. The MOTH appeared in a somewhat controversial<i> Listener </i>article about Steiner education that sucked our time and focus for a bit.<br />
<br />
Master T- turned two, two days after we got home. We had a wee party (jet lagged) - lovely.<br />
<br />
We've started back at work. While I worked during most of the trip, the last three weeks of the adventure coincided with the university's mid-year break and a lull in the work flow. Vigo was an incredible holiday for us, a whirlwind of laughter, sunshine, too much food, late nights, friendship and amazing hospitality. Coming home has been an adjustment.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BEqE2HjGMX0/VAMG862H3YI/AAAAAAAAC1g/4_WH004RklE/s1600/DSCF0373.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BEqE2HjGMX0/VAMG862H3YI/AAAAAAAAC1g/4_WH004RklE/s1600/DSCF0373.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of my best friends, her family and mine lunching by the river.</td></tr>
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Our house had been 'unpacked' enough for house-sitters to live in (as we only moved in three weeks before our departure). On our return a week or so was spent locating winter woolies and other necessities... Master T was ready for his own bed. Rooms have been swapped, bunk beds built and we're slowly making this space home. After 23 different sleeping locations since March (26 since January), we've been somewhere long enough to start to feel and find 'home' and 'normal'.<br />
<br />
The children have rediscovered toys, enjoyed opening boxes that have arrived from our travels and talking with new friends on Skype. We notice they're not too keen on going anywhere too far away (over an hour) and want to be at home, in their space; but are keen to reconnect with their NZ friends.<br />
<br />
They talk about the things we've done on our adventure sometimes. Sometimes they talk about going back to see people. They identify younger versions of their overseas cousins and extended family - they <i>know </i>them.<br />
<br />
We've concluded our hundreds of digital photos need sorting for general consumption.<br />
<br />
Miss K turned eight last week. We had a party (not jet lagged) at a tea shop. She lost another tooth.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
Things are the same. But things are different. It's nothing tangible, nothing you might immediately notice if you walked into the chaos we call our home and see or touch. Maybe you'd feel it. As a whanau (family) we are bonded in a way we weren't four months before. I feel we laugh more and shout less. We are grateful for where we've been, who we've met and how we've become. We are grateful for our friends, family and life at home.<br />
<br />
Would we do it again?<br />
<br />
OH YEAH!<br />
<br />
Would we do it the same?<br />
<br />
OH YEAH!<br />
<br />
Mostly.<br />
<br />
Does it stop here?<br />
<br />
Nope... we'll watch as the weeks and years unfold the layers of experience our family have had. I'll continue to share our journeys and discoveries... and there's still that Spanish retrospective to come. So stay tuned (if you want to... especially if you want to know what these two are up to!)<br />
<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Who knows the places we'll go? </span>(thanks Dr. Seuss)<span style="font-size: large;">.</span></b></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-73532498820324884242014-06-30T15:28:00.000-07:002014-06-30T16:06:07.429-07:00With strings attached<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Being based in one place for an extended length of time means that after the 'must dos' there is time to explore the unusual and out of the way gems a region holds. The last week in Cantabria has been one of finding the magic in small pueblos (towns), particularly in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basque_Country_(autonomous_community)" target="_blank">Basque country</a>. Here's a wee update on our adventure to Tolosa and the more famous city of San Sebastian.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-efYAwmrySks/U7Hc0LyqD4I/AAAAAAAACxc/TXEycxuHJ-s/s1600/DSCF0021.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-efYAwmrySks/U7Hc0LyqD4I/AAAAAAAACxc/TXEycxuHJ-s/s1600/DSCF0021.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">TOPIC is located in a main plaza in Tolosa</td></tr>
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Tolosa is probably not somewhere we would have driven off the beaten (tourist) path to, but with children, who loved the idea of visiting a puppet museum, we made a combined a day's outting to San Sebastian with a visit to <a href="http://whatwedoalldaynz.blogspot.com.es/2014/06/not-doing-much.html" target="_blank">Tolosa International Puppet Centre</a> (TOPIC). This is a world class museum with a decent entry price of €3 for adults and €2 for children five and over. (We've found sights in small towns are really reasonable). <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W3It_KaVVWk/U7HdvZ_n4_I/AAAAAAAACyE/O4G27ZydPYs/s1600/DSCF0039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W3It_KaVVWk/U7HdvZ_n4_I/AAAAAAAACyE/O4G27ZydPYs/s1600/DSCF0039.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the puppet who greets you at TOPIC</td></tr>
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Going into the Museum (once tickets have been purchased) requires the pressing of a button (and indication of which language you require), before a door slides open and a puppet talks you through the rules of 'co-existing' in their puppet house. This includes being able to touch and play with some puppets if you are 'very, very careful' and other normal things like no eating and turning off your cell phones, although photos are permitted. As the puppet waves you goodbye, a curtain is drawn up and you go into a magical room where there is a short presentation on the world of puppets...then you pass through another mysteriously opened curtained to meet hundreds of the many international puppets the museum houses (and not all are on display). There is also a special exhibition room, where the region of focus changes every few months. We were lucky enough to see floating water puppets from Vietnam. Meet some of the puppet friends we met:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OmGC6-fkEGM/U7HdO_YUlII/AAAAAAAACxs/6SoFE4Yu6eU/s1600/DSCF0025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OmGC6-fkEGM/U7HdO_YUlII/AAAAAAAACxs/6SoFE4Yu6eU/s1600/DSCF0025.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Puppets come in all sizes, like this Mexican one behind us.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KKE1wRjvBtQ/U7Hdu6nVnHI/AAAAAAAACyA/V68PvekqaxI/s1600/DSCF0037.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KKE1wRjvBtQ/U7Hdu6nVnHI/AAAAAAAACyA/V68PvekqaxI/s1600/DSCF0037.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master A tries his hand at puppetry with the MOTH</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XEZEh2J1azc/U7HdN-O7TdI/AAAAAAAACxk/ArlnIn0P-S0/s1600/DSCF0033.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XEZEh2J1azc/U7HdN-O7TdI/AAAAAAAACxk/ArlnIn0P-S0/s1600/DSCF0033.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These photos don't do justice to the beauty of the displays</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1CKfvYACfgo/U7Hd9OSfehI/AAAAAAAACyU/JEYjjmvQeZM/s1600/DSCF0056.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1CKfvYACfgo/U7Hd9OSfehI/AAAAAAAACyU/JEYjjmvQeZM/s1600/DSCF0056.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Floating Vietnamese puppets </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
A short wander through Tolosa reflects some of the aspects of smaller towns, typical of the area.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jM4GMz85mZE/U7HcPlje30I/AAAAAAAACw8/QY6kbq7BHkU/s1600/DSCF0063.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jM4GMz85mZE/U7HcPlje30I/AAAAAAAACw8/QY6kbq7BHkU/s1600/DSCF0063.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colourful apartments and narrow streets</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ILV5iQC0W_c/U7HcRZfrnEI/AAAAAAAACxE/xKoNyFG-hf4/s1600/DSCF0064.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ILV5iQC0W_c/U7HcRZfrnEI/AAAAAAAACxE/xKoNyFG-hf4/s1600/DSCF0064.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You cover your laundry not for rain, but for stuff those in the apartments above might toss out!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p9-QnMVKDQI/U7HcMg_n1II/AAAAAAAACw0/Une02GvWi5s/s1600/DSCF0065.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p9-QnMVKDQI/U7HcMg_n1II/AAAAAAAACw0/Une02GvWi5s/s1600/DSCF0065.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A shop window proudly displaying locally made/themed goods.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
After our 'morning session' at TOPIC (morning means opens at 10:30am and closes at 1:30 or 2pm, usually reopening around 4 or 5pm), we headed to San Sebastian for lunch near the famous La Concha (beach area). With overcast weather, and being late in the afternoon (by NZ time, not the Spanish), we mainly wandered the marina, enjoying the ambiance and tossing coins to some young boys who dived for them.</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OQNt3K4ZppA/U7HcvLsJxQI/AAAAAAAACxU/hxe-7o1-Jl4/s1600/DSCF0071.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OQNt3K4ZppA/U7HcvLsJxQI/AAAAAAAACxU/hxe-7o1-Jl4/s1600/DSCF0071.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master A admires La Concha as the clouds roll in.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Two more magical journeys through Eskadi (the Basque Country) followed (posts to come) - tonight we enjoy our last night in Cantabria before heading to Galicia for the last three weeks of our adventure... amazing to think we'll be home in just over twenty days. Let me know if there are any reflections, thoughts, top tips or must dos you might like me to cover off... we have limited internet access over the next few weeks, but will post when I can.</div>
<br />
<em>Gracias </em>(thank you) for enjoying this journey with us...<br />
<br />
<em>Postscript</em>... two days after visiting TOPIC, on one of our 'down days', the boys produced this:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fmziOKaJViM/U7HsV7EixKI/AAAAAAAACys/J4gMHBpIpKM/s1600/DSCF0036.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fmziOKaJViM/U7HsV7EixKI/AAAAAAAACys/J4gMHBpIpKM/s1600/DSCF0036.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master A with his puppet show: <em>Kokako and Snowman - a New Zealand Oddity</em></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ub9u98VJ3RM/U7HsS5zpqxI/AAAAAAAACyk/OLdiDPzabvU/s1600/DSCF0039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ub9u98VJ3RM/U7HsS5zpqxI/AAAAAAAACyk/OLdiDPzabvU/s1600/DSCF0039.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master T and his puppet show: <em>Chicken and Train: A Tragedy</em></td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-76153225302635645872014-06-26T14:08:00.000-07:002014-06-26T14:10:45.539-07:00Not doing muchSometimes I think, when I look over this blog, that we've squashed a lot into our travels...but there are days when we do lots of 'normal' stuff - like we'd do at home, only we're doing it in Spain. The Man of the House (MOTH) and I have, by the last leg of our journey, recognised the importance of breathing and reflection time and if you're travelling with small people for a substantial length of time, this is something we'd recommend.<br />
<br />
At home, we aim for an un-aptly termed 'project based homeschooling' (PBHS) approach (inspired by the philosophy of <a href="http://www.project-based-homeschooling.com/" target="_blank">Lori Pickett</a>), which encourages reflection and extension of experiences and ideas through long, concentrated sessions of play and creative exploration. This was something I had optimistically hoped to continue while on our journey. <br />
<br />
It has been somewhat challenging. <br />
<br />
But, in the past few weeks, where we've tried for a more 'day on - day off' approach, bought some paints, more paper and other crafty things, and the concept of PBHS, and all the creativity that comes with it, has emerged a little. There isn't so much concentrated focus on one particular area (aside from Master A's life-time project of trains and now planes/rockets and Master T's 'big boats' and 'Gala' (Dali's muse)), but lots of processing is definitely evident.<br />
<br />
So what do we do all day, in Spain, when not out and about?<br />
<ul>
<li>We go to the supermarket and look at (and try) food, books, and household items that Spain offers.</li>
<li>We do the everyday stuff of cleaning, laundry etc, sampling Spanish detergents and tools.</li>
<li>The MOTH works on his next project.</li>
<li>We work with play dough, draw, paint and model.</li>
</ul>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XruqfEG3MRk/U6yCtofR9_I/AAAAAAAACuw/geZ4RGRQbq8/s1600/DSCF0017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XruqfEG3MRk/U6yCtofR9_I/AAAAAAAACuw/geZ4RGRQbq8/s1600/DSCF0017.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master T presents his turtle, the other two have been making bowls and food 'for winter' - perhaps inspired by a visit to the archaeology museum?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<ul>
<li>We talk about stuff we've done and what we want to do. Meals can easily stretch out for more than an hour with discussions.</li>
<li>We reminisce about home, our friends and family.</li>
<li>We reminisce about this adventure.</li>
<li>We build - boats, trains, planes, houses that incorporate all sorts of aspects of things we've seen, heard and experienced.</li>
</ul>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4HNBp8VzwKQ/U6yDJQm6-RI/AAAAAAAACvA/P0RWB3ZfRYo/s1600/DSCF0021.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4HNBp8VzwKQ/U6yDJQm6-RI/AAAAAAAACvA/P0RWB3ZfRYo/s1600/DSCF0021.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tama and his 'big boat'</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VmXYHDf0aZY/U6yDLFHGx3I/AAAAAAAACvI/51p3H4q5zlU/s1600/DSCF0022.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VmXYHDf0aZY/U6yDLFHGx3I/AAAAAAAACvI/51p3H4q5zlU/s1600/DSCF0022.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All the children have disappeared into a tent</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<ul>
<li>We watch a little bit of children's television in Spanish.</li>
<li>We watch the Soccer World Cup with Daddy.</li>
</ul>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RP4B4IPigiA/U6yC0pkh2KI/AAAAAAAACu4/qw_IquEbr14/s1600/DSCF0019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RP4B4IPigiA/U6yC0pkh2KI/AAAAAAAACu4/qw_IquEbr14/s1600/DSCF0019.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nail biting stuff!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<ul>
<li>We kick a ball around outside our apartment.</li>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-94Qukb0YVy8/U6yCMASN5MI/AAAAAAAACug/zXkkcpmZi30/s1600/DSCF0014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-94Qukb0YVy8/U6yCMASN5MI/AAAAAAAACug/zXkkcpmZi30/s1600/DSCF0014.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<ul>
<li>We read and look at books.</li>
<li>We craft and create bringing in all sorts of elements (kiwi, origami, rockets)</li>
</ul>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Td1o0hNK7fE/U6yCLaInyII/AAAAAAAACuc/g2cSFQG83XU/s1600/DSCF0013.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Td1o0hNK7fE/U6yCLaInyII/AAAAAAAACuc/g2cSFQG83XU/s1600/DSCF0013.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master A and his kiwi burrow on a plane that can be a rocket ship in an emergency.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<ul>
<li>Sometimes we go for walks.</li>
</ul>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zS30BrQspNg/U6yCq_YBiaI/AAAAAAAACus/9KubeEHbMYI/s1600/DSCF0002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zS30BrQspNg/U6yCq_YBiaI/AAAAAAAACus/9KubeEHbMYI/s1600/DSCF0002.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Sunday morning stroll around Castro-Urdiales</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<ul>
<li>We rest...</li>
</ul>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Uhin9ioNqlk/U6yCHGKaSvI/AAAAAAAACuQ/wDTHR336KFo/s1600/DSCF0004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Uhin9ioNqlk/U6yCHGKaSvI/AAAAAAAACuQ/wDTHR336KFo/s1600/DSCF0004.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master T, took creativity and rest to a whole new level...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<ul>
<li>We probably annoy our neighbours with our loud shouting and noisy toys/games.</li>
<li>We think about and plan out things to do when we get home. (And I anticipate/hope that the things we've seen and done will creep out over the next five years...stay tuned)</li>
</ul>
<br />
To this extent, Miss K has been talking about collecting fabric, while on our trip, to make a quilt. It's to be our first quilt project but we haven't been able to get to fabric/craft stores (that is we can't seem to find any). <br />
<br />
So... we're asking friends both at home and abroad to search their fabric stashes and see if they have an 'international' bit of cotton cloth, about 20 x 20cm that they could send our way. Embellish it if you like; sew your name or country or add some lace to it -hopefully our 'World Piece Blanket' will come to life! <br />
<br />
Leave a comment if you're able to contribute and I'll email you our home address.<br />
<br />
Buenos noches from us lot and muchos besos! Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-57072848449887643122014-06-21T13:14:00.000-07:002014-06-21T13:15:18.896-07:00Big boats and fish-men<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f1VD6zxkXbc/U6XeOPgJLiI/AAAAAAAACkM/Z1NMqBgs0Ao/s1600/DSCF0018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f1VD6zxkXbc/U6XeOPgJLiI/AAAAAAAACkM/Z1NMqBgs0Ao/s1600/DSCF0018.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daddy and Master T watching soccer</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It's been a historic week for Spain - we witnessed their tears as their soccer team fell from grace (losing two games in the World Cup and consequently won't make it through to the next round) and their joys with the <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/spain/10910089/Spain-coronation.html" target="_blank">coronation of King Felipe VI</a>. <br />
<br />
This is our second week in Cantabria and our third in Spain. We are slowly adjusting to the fact that everything shuts between about 1:30pm to 4:30 or 5pm, the late eating hours, and the heat. We have started to chat regularly with our neighbours, and continue to work on 'quiet apartment living', given that our hosts, who live below, welcomed a new daughter into the world on Monday. With our noisy lot, they'll be looking forward to our departure in just over a week!<br />
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<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8d9UgCrRAK0/U6XeH6cLWCI/AAAAAAAACkE/decF-A0tKsY/s1600/DSCF0025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8d9UgCrRAK0/U6XeH6cLWCI/AAAAAAAACkE/decF-A0tKsY/s1600/DSCF0025.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outside the Maritime Museum</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
We've had somewhat of an aquatic and historic theme this week, kicking off with a day in Bilbao at the River <a href="http://www.museomaritimobilbao.org/mmrb/web/paginas/index.asp?cod=30B0F148-9898-4775-AC34-6FA176BD059A&Reg=2FE5D2A4-B09C-4E16-ACD7-9FF0851B391D&idioma=I&idiomaAnterior=C" target="_blank">Maritime Museum</a>. We went on a Tuesday and it just happened to be free! Cantabria is located next to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basque_Country_(autonomous_community)" target="_blank">Pais Vasco</a>/ Basque country (where <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilbao" target="_blank">Bilbao</a> and the more famous San Sebastian can be found) and it is a short 20 minute drive from our 'home' to Bilbao. Bilbao is located along a magnificent river and the River Maritime Museum provided us with a historical account of the development of city, bridges and river bed. The Museum included games for the children (such as pirate fishing and rowing), a life-size replica of a barge for the upper class and dozens of miniature boats. <br />
<br />
Wee Master T adores boats - possibly an accumulation of experiences of water-taxis, his favourite Dali book with a 'boat' sculpture included and the fact that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castro_Urdiales" target="_blank">Castro Urdiales</a> (the township we regularly visit for food and beach time) is a sea based town - so he was in his element looking at all the ships and nautical paraphernalia. <br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-19FOp8c69Zg/U6XeE_j1CZI/AAAAAAAACj8/iwedW2c1zkU/s1600/DSCF0035.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-19FOp8c69Zg/U6XeE_j1CZI/AAAAAAAACj8/iwedW2c1zkU/s1600/DSCF0035.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dry docked boats</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The most outstanding element of the Museum is the inclusion of the Bilbao city exhibition that was presented at Shanghai Expo in 2010. Developed in conjunction with the Guggenheim Museum, this display combined 'architectural lighting' with audio-visuals for an emotive account of development of Bilbao. The static photos don't do it justice (and I was too in awe to take any), but if you get the time, <a href="http://www.colorkinetics.com/showcase/installs/Bilbao/" target="_blank">check them out</a>.<br />
<br />
Outside the Museum is a dry dock housing a variety of different boats. Unfortunately this area was not open on our visit (perhaps this is why it was free? -although museums in Spain frequently have 'free days'), but we enjoyed strolling around them from above and looking at the massive anchors and chains.<br />
<br />
Museum visit was followed by a good lunch in a cafe by a fountain and exploring a park of amazing sculptures... stay tuned for a post on food in Spain in the next few days...<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pXQMu6b-J_U/U6XeoWiasKI/AAAAAAAACkY/EdnhXiXv5uA/s1600/DSCF0036.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pXQMu6b-J_U/U6XeoWiasKI/AAAAAAAACkY/EdnhXiXv5uA/s1600/DSCF0036.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lunch in Bilbao - despite Master A's face, it was delicioso!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CeZ-U88mXFM/U6XihY_aUyI/AAAAAAAACl0/Uav-UyZWWDE/s1600/DSCF0050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CeZ-U88mXFM/U6XihY_aUyI/AAAAAAAACl0/Uav-UyZWWDE/s1600/DSCF0050.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kids interacting with art.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
We also visited Bilbao later in the week to take in the <a href="http://bizkaikoa.bizkaia.net/detalleContenido.asp?id=68&t=1" target="_blank">Bizkaia Archaeology Museum</a>, tracing the human archaeological history of the area from Neolithic to modern times. While not exactly a 'child friendly' place (the security guard trailed us through the three levels), our lot really enjoyed watching the video footage of early people in the temporary display, learning about archaeological digs and research and discovering the visual differences in tools, utensils, cemeteries, housing and boats over time. The museum is free on Fridays, but all displays are in Spanish and Basque. We purchased the accompanying guide book, which has detailed photos and information (we got the English version) so we've been able to discuss a lot of what we saw in more detail.<br />
<br />
Between visits to Bilbao, we decided to head West towards Santander and visit the small village of Lierganes, where there is a Fluvarium (a river based eco-museum). Many small villages will open their (sight-seeing doors) for two sessions: 10am to 2pm and 4pm (or 5pm) to 6pm (or 7pm), closing for lunch in between. Because our stomachs are still mostly on NZ time, and we have to travel some distance to many locations, when going to these places, we try to get there early to maximise our visit before lunch. On this occasion, the Fluvarium was closed for the morning - no sign posted on the outer gates and we had a some what disgruntled guide inform us we needed to come back at 4pm. <br />
<br />
How does one kill four and a half hours with three children in a small town?<br />
<br />
We had a snack drove another half hour to Santander, hoping to visit another Museum, only to discover, by the time we'd parked and located the building, it was also closing for lunch... so when in Spain... do as the Spanish do... we found a cool little restaurant and ate lunch. By which time the Fluvarium was open.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OE0nWmCca84/U6Xi9DlQ_cI/AAAAAAAACmA/03NL3q124xs/s1600/DSCF0070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OE0nWmCca84/U6Xi9DlQ_cI/AAAAAAAACmA/03NL3q124xs/s1600/DSCF0070.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A great lunch finished in Santander</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The Fluvarium is a little dated and quite small. The introductory film is very informative and reinforces a sustainable message and the otters in fluvarium area are adorable (even if they are practising their mating - nothing like a biology lesson for our bemused children). We were lucky enough to watch the otters being fed with a group of touring Senior Citizens, who adored the children and ensured they got front row seats!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the stars of the Fluvarium</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master T and Daddy check out the turtles</td></tr>
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Our little people were in the Fluvarium for a good hour or more - and we decided to wander the streets of Lierganes to find the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fish-man" target="_blank">hombre pez (fish man</a>). There is a legend of this mythical man dating from the 1600s (makes interesting reading if you have the time) and there is a wee house and sculpture depicting this story. While the house was shut when we got there, the fish man was sitting on the banks of the river and the amble through the cobbled and quaint village was lovely.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"We've discovered a fish-man!"</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"With scales"!</td></tr>
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On our travels we've visited sights where we've queued for hours and been engulfed in hoards of tourists and visitors - thus far, the 'attractions' of Bilbao and Cantabria have been almost void of people (aside from the Guggenheim, but comparative to some places was relatively quiet). It's not that there aren't lots of people, just not lots of people in the museums! I wonder what that says about our choice of activities?<br />
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School holidays have just started in Espana, the sun is shining (with the exception of a spectacular electric storm we had last night) and the boardwalks are coming alive...less of the history and more of the mystery of Spain this week me thinks... ciao guapos!<br />
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<em>A bottom note</em><br />
Carrying on from an earlier blog on loos... Miss K has observed an oddity of toilets in Spain - the toilet paper always seems to be placed in the most difficult-to-reach locations (including in our current residence). She asked me to take a photo of the toilet in the Fluvarium to demonstrate this point...<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-80493447376006404462014-06-15T16:11:00.001-07:002014-06-15T16:11:54.097-07:00Honesty, Ono and OsosI read somewhere that when travelling abroad, around about the three month mark one gets a little homesick. In my own experience, this has been true - you hit some weird slump where you'd just rather be back in your own home (in spite of all the amazing around you), surrounded by your own stuff, food and friends. <br />
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Maybe it's a coincidence that it's about that three month mark... or maybe it's because we've really slowed down, given the Man of the House (MOTH) a break from daily driving and are doing the things we might do at home (the 'home school' project stuff, cleaning house, eating in a lot more) that all of a sudden, I've hit a bit of a rough patch and am homesick. This time the kids are fine. I'm a bit of grumpy mess.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jeff-Koon's flower dog</td></tr>
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And yes, I will get over it - after all there are so many things to be grateful for and to look forward to and to share. But I have intended to be honest about the joys and tribulations of travelling as a family of five in this blog, and there you have it - the adventuring is awesome, but sometimes, you miss 'normal'. So for my wonderful friends and family who have sent emails and made comments here and on FB, <em><strong>thank you</strong></em> - you help my sanity!<br />
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This past week, irrespective of my slight wobblies, we have had fun. The MOTH wanted to visit the <a href="http://www.guggenheim-bilbao.es/en/" target="_blank">Guggenheim in Bilbao</a>, about a 20 minute drive from Otañes (the fact that the location we are living in looks like 'O Tanes', is not lost on the MOTH :-) However, the ñ is pronounced more 'ny' than a hard 'n', so not quite O Tane). After our Park Gaulle parking debacle, we found a parking building via the GPS <strong>before</strong> we departed, which sped things up considerably!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Guggenheim, Bilbao</td></tr>
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The Guggenheim contains an interesting collection of permanent and temporary art installations. Unfortunately, the exhibit on the second floor of the three story building was being redone/upgraded and was unavailable when we visited. We had somehow missed this on their website and the information wasn't posted at the ticket booth, and visitors still had to pay full price to enter (a tad annoying). However children are free, as are the audio guides, and you can enter and re-enter the museum on the same day, which means you can go for a wander for lunch outside (many places we've been to do not allow this). <br />
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Although we only had access to two levels, there were plenty of exhibitions to see and interact with. Richard Serra's massive steel sculptures play with space and shape and are brilliant for children to run through and explore. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The children tentatively enter one of Serra's sculptures</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"This space makes me feel like dancing!"</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is an aerial shot (from level two) of the steel sculptures - they were huge!</td></tr>
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Yoko Ono's <em>Half-a-wind-show</em> took up the entire third floor and included many interactive exhibits such as climbing into giant sacks and become 'moving mountains' and a video of just bottoms, which the children thought were amusing! I've always been a bit sceptical of Ono's work, but this exhibition really demonstrated her ability as an artist to evoke thought and reaction (photos were prohibited here - I think they may have been in Serra's too, but no one said anything to the dozens of visitors taking pictures).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not Ono's work, but another sculpture outside on the Guggenheim's terrace by Jeff Koons</td></tr>
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And after all that 'art and culture' - a play ground! Parents and children happy all round.<br />
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We followed our day of art with a day of nature at <a href="http://www.spain.info/en/que-quieres/turismo-tematico/parques-ocio/cantabria/parque_naturaleza_cabarceno.html" target="_blank">Cabaceno Wildlife Park.</a> While a little pricey, this drive through Safari park is an incredible opportunity to view wildlife in huge open spaces. Glimpsing animals in the midst of these spaces is sometimes a lucky treat (such as the hippos) and I can't count the number of times I cursed the limited zoom on my camera. Zebras, camels, gorillas, jaguars, rhinos, baboons...only a handful of the many animals we were blessed to spend time observing. Being spring time, there were lots of babies to see. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We were a long way from this Mummy and baby hippo (yay for zoom on camera!)</td></tr>
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The only issues we faced were getting in and out of the car dozens of times (a bit painful with car seats) and the heat increasing over a four hour time span (but hey it's Spain). This wildlife park is worth every penny and a definite must do. Here I've included some long shots of the 'enclosures' and some of the animals my poor pocket camera could capture... We'll leave with you with the Osos...besos a todos...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What can we see here? I've only got about a quarter of the enclosure in this shot.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A family of elephants who did an elephant walk for us! - spot the baby?</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can you see what Miss K is looking at?</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tama points out the Osos to the MOTH - how many can you see?</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adios from the endangered Osos (bears)of Cantabria</td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-59072864439982750982014-06-14T14:07:00.001-07:002014-06-14T14:08:46.460-07:00Barcelona...(sang Freddie Mercury style)A week ago we left Barcelona and made our way across Spain to Cantabria. Our time in Barcelona was incredibly relaxed, with a spacious home, complete with toys for the children, a swimming pool and plenty of slow time.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playing with Lego on terracotta tiles in our Barcelona home.</td></tr>
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I even managed to cook my first Spanish Tortilla in Spain - and it came out pretty well! Often at home it seems to cling to the frying pan... must be the olive oil????<br />
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Before we left, we visited <a href="http://www.parkguell.cat/en/" target="_blank">Park Guell</a>, a stunning display of Gaudi's creativity and brimming with colourful pedlars, musicians and street performance. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We really enjoyed this live reggae band... we even got their CD!</td></tr>
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It's a bit of climb to reach the park, not to mention somewhat of a hassle to find parking (all which is at the bottom of the hill) and we probably spent a good half hour searching for a parking building. The majority of Park Guell is free to the public, but the 'monument area' where most of Gaudi's work can be found, requires a small entry fee. There is a limit of 400 people entering per half hour (for preservation reasons) and we had to buy our entry ticket two hours in advance (which gave us time to have lunch and wander the perimeters of the park). If you book online, the fee is a little cheaper and you can show the PDF on your mobile phone. Take note, the loos are few and far between here and queues are long!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some of the work you can find outside the monument area</td></tr>
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It's difficult to put into words the magic of Gaudi's vision and the beauty of that space - instead a few photos of our afternoon...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Miss K takes a photo of us in front of amazing tile mosaic work</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wdZkx3SwLKw/U5ypCXb7-ZI/AAAAAAAACgM/Qns_OmwAEjg/s1600/DSCF0027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wdZkx3SwLKw/U5ypCXb7-ZI/AAAAAAAACgM/Qns_OmwAEjg/s1600/DSCF0027.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 'washer woman' and some zunda mochi-ers</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 'Hansel and Gretel' style house Gaudi is famous for</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In front of the famous 'dragon' - it's hard to get a photo with so many tourists!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Miss K looks out over the buildings of the park</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daddy and Master T share a moment in the shade of the park</td></tr>
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A day or so later it was 'adios' to Barcelona and a six hour car ride to Otanes in Cantabria. We were armed with iPod jammed with RadioNZ and Storynory tales, food and drink. Spain's Toad roads are dotted with rest stops, most of the petrol stations we stopped at had excellent facilities. There are also park stops (for picnics and cat naps) - they don't have loos, but are equipped with identical climbing frames, that even in the heat of Zaragoza (30 degrees Celsius) can be beneficial to children in need of some exercise!<br />
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We have three lovely weeks here in Cantabria. It's hard to believe week one is almost over. We've really slowed down, sleeping in and little by little adjusting to 'Spanish time' for lunches (around 2pm) - but not dinners (8 or 9pm)... with the heat and long days we may get there yet! Stay tuned for a post on our encounters with the Yoko Ono exhibition at the Guggenheim in Bilbao and an incredible safari park!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-71162544463253937612014-06-06T13:58:00.000-07:002014-06-06T14:03:37.542-07:00The trials and treasures of toilets<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Public toilets found at a rest stop on the Toad (Toll) Road in France.</td></tr>
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<br />
Most parents, I guess, when venturing beyond home, generally keep an keen eye on where the nearest ablutions are for their small people (who usually, when need to go, need to go NOW). This is a wee post of tips and info about what we've encountered on our travels (inspired by a very long queue at Guell Park today).<br />
<br />
<strong>Must haves</strong><br />
<em>These are pretty much essential no matter where you go - rationale to follow...</em><br />
<ul>
<li>a face cloth, microfiber cloth or handkerchief (easily accessible in handbag or pocket)</li>
<li>hand sanitizer and/or wet wipes</li>
<li>a packet of pocket tissues (with enough tissues for all bottoms under all circumstances)</li>
</ul>
<strong>Toilets in Japan</strong><br />
<ul>
<li>In most cases toilets are readily available at tourist attractions, parks and temples. Department stores and shopping malls have plenty available. All train stations have toilets, but their level of hygiene and rating on Miss K's 'good smell factor' is very low.</li>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a class="irc_mutl" data-ved="0CAUQjRw" href="http://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&docid=ZLGYCou8QzU1MM&tbnid=ewbsU_HiIhlFrM:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fvisualioner.com%2F2013%2F03%2F14%2Fjapanese-toilets-1-the-squat-toilets%2F&ei=7x-SU7i5HsSlyASotoGICQ&bvm=bv.68445247,d.ZGU&psig=AFQjCNHzKPR5zGXP9nXWmHeM803ZjM3z3g&ust=1402171757823289" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img class="irc_mut" height="279" src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRexym8bcQekNFnbi_hrcyhhNbDilkUict74tEKQEmiGkENvz_JvQ" style="margin-top: 57px;" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://visualioner.com/2013/03/14/japanese-toilets-1-the-squat-toilets/" target="_blank">This website</a> where the photo comes from includes how to use this toilet and other amusing information.</td></tr>
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<li>Generally speaking, there are western style toilets in most toilet areas; there will also be the traditional 'squat' style toilet that requires some practise (see photo above).</li>
<li>Western style toilets, particularly in department stores and airports can come loaded with a variety of buttons - bidet, bottom washing, some have bottom drying options and real fancy ones include air freshener and 'music' or 'sound' so that others can't hear you while you are busy - it is best to experiment with these buttons while one is seated on the toilet... little people need to make sure their bottoms cover the entire hole when experimenting or it can get rather wet (particularly when the bottom washer comes on).</li>
<li>Toilets tend to be clean; the worst we encountered was at Ueno Koen in the children's area (a bit pongy and a bit dirty).</li>
<li>Most toilets have hand dryers. It is rare to find paper or cloth towels to dry your hands, and some toilet facilities do not have anything to dry your hands with. On these instances, it is essential to have a wash cloth/handkerchief to dry hands, preferably located where you can get to it when you've been caught out and have wet hands, or small people have wet hands and are dripping at you.</li>
<li>Convenience stores, such as 7-11 or Family Mart have toilets available if your child needs to go and can't make the 20 or so meters back home. These are clean and free.</li>
<li>Nappy change and baby feed stations are generally plentiful in shopping malls and department stores. Baby feed stations are usually apart from the toilet (fair enough too) and may include play areas for the 'waiting children', drink vending machines and microwaves to warm formula. Nappy change zones don't always include a toilet, but they are generally nearby. Most toilets will include a nappy change table in the disability toilet.</li>
</ul>
<strong>Toilets in London and Australia</strong><br />
<ul>
<li>Overall, we didn't find too much difference between loos in the UK and Oz with New Zealand. In Primrose Hill there were queues, but the toilets included the expected amenities of toilet paper, soap and hand towels, and were, overall easy to find. </li>
</ul>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">'Relieving' history in the knights' toilet in Dover Castle</td></tr>
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<br />
<strong>Toilets in France</strong><br />
<ul>
<li>The biggest issue we faced in France was finding <em>free</em> public toilets. When we explained to our French host family that we had to pay to use a loo on the Champs Elyse, they advised either going to a bar/café or simply finding a bush (not easy on the Champs Elyse).</li>
<li>Public toilets (such as those found at rest stops along the Toad Road) were without toilet seats (good for strong thigh development) and may have been equipped with soap or hand towels. Not always both.</li>
<li>What is strange is that although there may not be toilet seats (by design), every single toilet I went into had a toilet brush!</li>
<li>One public toilet at a rest stop was a squat one. Miss K gave it a very high pong factor.</li>
<li>We encountered a tardis type toilet box on the street near Montmarte. While free, it required waiting outside for about one minute after the person who had just exited, to automatically wash the entire cubicle. Only one person at a time was supposed to enter, but we crowded in (small people couldn't wait for full cubicle washes) to discover a wet space, but adequate for our needs.</li>
<li>Sometimes there are long lines for toilets at tourist attractions. While the architecture in France is phenomenal, there seems to have been a serious design flaw in the number of toilets available (particularly for women) - this also has been our experience thus far in Spain.</li>
<li>Commercial Centres have free, clean toilets.</li>
<li>Some places have nappy change facilities for baby - Master T has become an expert at being changed standing up or in his stroller.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<strong>Toilets in Spain</strong><br />
<ul>
<li>As mentioned, there seems to be a serious absence in plentiful toilets in public places, although if you ask, staff at businesses are often okay with allowing you to take your small people to staff loos (we found this today at the car park building in Barcelona). Both Dali's museum and the Guell Park had a shortage of loos for the number of people visiting. Miss K and I queued for ages for what turned out to be only three toilets for women in a park that can have up to 25,000 people a day visit!</li>
<li>Toilet paper may not be topped up regularly - always take pocket tissues!</li>
<li>Soap sometimes isn't available - need for hand sanitizer!</li>
<li>Often there is nothing to dry your hands on - washcloth comes in handy.</li>
<li>Big supermarkets have free toilets and restaurants/cafes have loos that are pretty clean.</li>
<li>Bars/cafes are happy for you take small people to the toilet, but generally you would buy a drink/coffee/snack for the privilege. </li>
<li>Some toilets have bidets. Never, ever, under any circumstances pee in the bidet.</li>
<li>There are hardly any places for nappy changes, but no one seems particularly bothered if you change baby in public, with discretion. </li>
</ul>
Public loos have become an area of somewhat trepid exploration: "what's it like?" before one of the children venture in... but they are also a great lesson in cultural differences in something that all humans have to do... we do it the same, but different :-)<br />
<br />
We'd love to hear any of your interesting/funny potty-stop stories too!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-42506865380316129902014-06-04T13:18:00.000-07:002014-06-04T13:25:42.012-07:00Things of miniature importance<em>With only six more weeks of this adventure remaining, the MOTH and I have begun to think there are alterative ways of approaching our days... perhaps that should read, after spending close to three months travelling with three small people, the MOTH and I have come to the conclusion there could be better ways of doing things...</em><br />
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It's no huge revelation that small people have ways of telling you things are not working for them. When you are travelling, or visiting amazing tourist attractions, some of their ways of telling you aren't always ideal. Miss K has had a few major meltdowns when crowds and tiredness get the better of her. Master A's meltdowns can be loud and furious when staying in small-spaces with other people. Master T generally seems to spit the dummy when we're driving long distances.<br />
<br />
<br />
Spain seems to have been a bit of a turning point so far. This may be for a number of reasons (mainly to do with the MOTH and myself).<br />
<ol>
<li>Having lived in Spain for about a year and a half in total, there's a sense of familiarity for me. The supermarket shelves are crammed with good stuff to eat, the language is beautiful and I can understand the signs.</li>
<li>The MOTH and I both speak the language with relative ease.</li>
<li>I've mentioned food, but loving Spanish food and knowing what stuff to cook and how to cook it makes for happy tummies and happy family.</li>
<li>The house we're in is enormous and we feel like we are on holiday (even though I'm still working).</li>
<li>It's just us (and not just us in a small hotel room) - while we loved being with other people, we love having some space to just be ourselves too. </li>
<li>We have reverted to our NZ time routines (in general) - no 9 pm dinners for us (yet).</li>
<li>It's sunny and warm.</li>
</ol>
This bodes well for reflecting on why some things might not be going so well and what we could do better. We realised a few things:<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K9yQRtzgWAQ/U494nZXzuMI/AAAAAAAACcg/VM2BeJ4SRAQ/s1600/DSCF0107.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K9yQRtzgWAQ/U494nZXzuMI/AAAAAAAACcg/VM2BeJ4SRAQ/s1600/DSCF0107.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What do you mean <em>another</em> attraction?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<ul>
<li>Miss K pointed out that we do too much 'stuff' in a day. The MOTH and I thought we were doing one thing a day (with down days scheduled in where possible)... but the last six days involved eating out (often at three different locations), different beds, sight seeing of some monument or attraction and a long drive, not to mention different language, different scenery and different food. Lots of stuff. We need to slow down.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<ul>
<li>Quite often the small people were taken to see sights that they didn't really know or understand because we (the MOTH and I) had some peculiar sense of urgency that since we were somewhere (London, Paris), we had to see something (Big Ben, the Eifel Tower). We've spent some time talking about this - who says we have to do X just because we are in Y? We can do something completely different and it's ok, because then it's our adventure in Y.</li>
</ul>
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<li>We needed to help give our small people context for what they were doing and create some familiarity about it. This is why we think Zunda Mochi is significant to our children - they went twice to the Sendai Castle where they experienced this. It was familiar and had meaning. This is not to say we have to do everything twice, but to prepare/think about/ engage and involve our wee people more for activities (like the Dali Museum).</li>
</ul>
<br />
<ul>
<li> This is <em>our family's trip</em> and <strong>all</strong> members should be involved in discussing and choosing what we do with our time while somewhere.</li>
</ul>
<strong>SO....</strong><br />
<br />
Yesterday I provided the children with ideas for different things that we could do in Barcelona (if they were older they could look up things themselves). Some of them were famous sites (Gaudi's Sagrada Familia for example) and some were less known. We read the information online and saw some short clips. We had four days left in Barcelona; I booked the Saturday for a nearby market, the rest were open. <br />
<br />
One of the attractions I had stumbled across was <a href="http://www.catalunyaenminiatura.com/" target="_blank">Catalunya in Miniature</a> - dozens of attractions of the region in one space in miniature, complete with model trains - the children elected this as their first choice because they could see lots of the stuff in one place and think about maybe going to see some of them for real. I put Tarragona on the table - that got pushed off in favour of <a href="http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.com/en/gaudi/park-guell.html" target="_blank">Guell Park</a> - maybe on Thursday or Friday, depending on how we feel. Or maybe <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Rambla,_Barcelona" target="_blank">La Rambla</a>...<br />
<br />
And the MOTH and I - we're all ok with that.<br />
<br />
So here's our adventure of Catalunya in Miniature in photos - a little pricey (cheaper to buy online), and having a car to get to it is an advantage, but our three enjoyed three hours here... and I have to say, I liked it too!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6kEl9WdPxX4/U495kQCSUPI/AAAAAAAACcw/TjgvemjtOmw/s1600/DSCF0001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6kEl9WdPxX4/U495kQCSUPI/AAAAAAAACcw/TjgvemjtOmw/s1600/DSCF0001.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">WOW it's in miniature and there's a train!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uTAqwNEoyQ4/U495iykowKI/AAAAAAAACco/O0amMCryTCc/s1600/DSCF0025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uTAqwNEoyQ4/U495iykowKI/AAAAAAAACco/O0amMCryTCc/s1600/DSCF0025.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We didn't even have to queue to see this!<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RYqkS037PjQ/U499zh8l-BI/AAAAAAAACdo/TsTztiL-DAI/s1600/DSCF0067.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RYqkS037PjQ/U499zh8l-BI/AAAAAAAACdo/TsTztiL-DAI/s1600/DSCF0067.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The boys love the train</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Yinbuk5E5zI/U499yWTX5pI/AAAAAAAACdg/oIQRxsIs-34/s1600/DSCF0014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Yinbuk5E5zI/U499yWTX5pI/AAAAAAAACdg/oIQRxsIs-34/s1600/DSCF0014.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And it's Zunda Mochi from us in Barcelona!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<strong>Akira's question of the week:</strong> Why didn't Dali make or paint any trains? :-)Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-16227194129461439862014-06-02T13:48:00.001-07:002014-06-02T13:48:52.329-07:00The Toad Road: Travelling South through FranceOne of the challenges we've faced on this adventure is sometimes having to sacrifice budget for convenience. When deciding between an extra hour (or more) in the car to save the cost of a toll road between France and Spain, we always opted for the toll option. There are only so many squabbles parents can survive, and then there's the fighting amongst the kids.<br />
<br />
On our second day of travel, Master A asked if we were going on the Toad Road. It's become one of those 'family things' that happen on a trip. A bit like the 'zunda mochi' pose you see the kids striking in many of our photographs. <em>Zunda Mochi </em>is a Sendai delicacy of green bean paste and sticky rice cakes. Sendai has adopted this phrase as the new 'cheese' for when you take a photograph, and our children, fascinated with the ninja pose they learnt at the same time, have incorporated it into pretty much every photo... but I digress...<br />
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The road from Paris to Barcelona can be driven in around nine hours (according to Google Maps and if you are able to whizz along toad roads without a dozen toilet stops). We decided to break up the trip, travelling on average two hours a day and stopping at little villages along the way. The Man of the House (MOTH) was in charge of sleeping sites, which he arranged via booking.com, with varying outcomes.<br />
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<strong>Day one</strong> - we departed Paris and visited Versailles on what had to be the wettest and windiest day we'd encountered in France. Having started out a bit later than intended (packing for five who have spread out over an apartment is time consuming), we opted to visit only the gardens of the <a href="http://en.chateauversailles.fr/homepage" target="_blank">Palace of Versailles</a>. The queue for the palace was LONG. Usually, visits to the garden are free (except for Sundays and Tuesdays) and as it was Tuesday we had to pay (kids 5 and under are free) and we were also treated to displays of the water fountains. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Weathering the wind and fountain in Versailles</td></tr>
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The gardens are massive and excellent for small people to run around and let of steam. We'd packed a picnic lunch (must be eaten in designated areas) and admired the beauty of the site. Miss K enjoyed the history of the palace, particularly a diluted account of the French Revolution, being in Versailles made history come to life. If doing Versailles without small people, I imagine taking the two day passport to see garden, palace and other buildings option would be well worth it. Miss K suggested in 10 years she and I come back and do so - here's hoping!</div>
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From Versailles, via the toad road, we headed to Jargeau. A small quaint town near Orleans, where we stayed in a small, quaint, but clean hotel (Cheval Blanc), ate ok Pizza at a local restaurant and discovered that Joan of Arc had a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Jargeau" target="_blank">historical moment</a> here. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Statue of Joan of Arc in Jargeau</td></tr>
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<strong>Day two</strong> -We missed breakfast at the hotel (overslept) and wandered hungrily around the village, searching for a wee café. Found a boulangerie and it was croissants for breakfast. Having embarked on discussions about St Joan we decided to visit the city of Orleans. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Miss K and I on a fountain in the plaza near the Cathedral of Orleans</td></tr>
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This township is beautiful. Its cathedral inspired questions about different biblical stories, we saw a peaceful protest march and lunched at a local creperie. There is also a Louis Pasteur Park here, which Master A was thrilled about: "I know him," he announced (we'd read about him last year), although it was too wet to go to the park. A short stop here and we pressed onto a little hotel on the outskirts of Bourges. Our hotel (ACE) was new and clean. A family friendly restaurant was located nearby and breakfast was relatively cheap and plentiful. <br />
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Travelling France reminded me to be grateful for my (and my children's) love of history and stories, my high-school French and the MOTH's fearless driving skills.<br />
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<strong>Day three-</strong> We pressed onto Clermont-Ferraund where I suggested that our two star hotel room reminded me of a hospital. The MOTH's response was that that was an insult to hospitals! Inspired to escape our dreary accommodation, we headed out to explore the volcanic region, taking a train from the base of Puy de Dome to its gusty top, buffering ourselves against the wind and cold. It was thrilling. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Zunda Mochi pose in front of the train for the Puy de Dome</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's cold up here Dad!</td></tr>
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<strong>Day four</strong> - Most hotels have a stand with brochures enticing you to local visitor attractions and <a href="http://www.vulcania.com/" target="_blank">Vulcania</a> in Clermont looked amazing. Touting itself almost as a volcanic Disneyland, we joined throngs of locals to visit this attraction that draws on the natural landscape for its theme. We 'rode' two rides, queued for lunch and watched an ecological film. Unfortunately Vulcania didn't live up to our expectations with very long queues, inefficiency and too many people for two few attractions. Over priced, while we mostly enjoyed ourselves, we wouldn't recommend a special visit.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Zunda Mochi</em> at Volcania</td></tr>
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Leaving Vulcania around 3pm meant we arrived at our next destination of Le Caylar (a remote village in the mountains) a little late for our tired and hungry children. The hotel proprietor was a warm and welcoming lady and directed us to a nearby quirky restaurant for a home-cooked meal. This was probably the best meal we had paid for in France, aside from the reasonably priced breakfasts we'd enjoyed at the hotels (this one included). <br />
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<strong>Day five</strong> - Across the border on the Toad Road to Bascara (<a href="http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/hostal-les-roques.en-gb.html" target="_blank">Hotel de Les Roques</a>) where the food rocked and the host rocked and the price was pretty rock bottom too for two rooms, plus a playground for the children! The sun was shining - bliss!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amazingly good food - 'pica pica' in Catalyuna</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tama discovers 'planking' in a play ground in Bascara.</td></tr>
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<strong>Day six</strong> - Before heading to Barcelona for the week, we stopped at Figueres to fulfil the MOTH's dream of seeing <a href="http://www.salvador-dali.org/museus/figueres/en_index.html" target="_blank">Dali's Museum</a>. While not overly recommended for children (particularly on a Sunday and the place is full of people), our small people enjoyed looking at the various installations and creations for a few hours before becoming tired. Wee Master T (nearly 2yrs) points out his favourite display in his Dali book he chose from the gift store and talk continues about Dali's art and life. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dali would have loved the eclectic Zunda Mochi in his Museum!</td></tr>
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Plans for Barcelona include visiting Gaudi's famous works, but today, we supermarket shop and rest in our lovely casa. Buenos noches amigos!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-8580112760521210682014-06-01T15:18:00.000-07:002014-06-01T15:18:51.367-07:00Bonjour Paris<em>There is a certain difficulty in balancing number and length of posts with travelling, secure Wi-Fi connection, small people's needs, need for sleep, work and fear of boring people with endless travel stories. I'm never certain if it's best to go for a long rambling post and several shorter rambles - let me know and I'll do my best, although I think this is one of those long ones...</em><br />
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The last five days we've been travelling through the South of France from Paris (more tomorrow) and have just arrived North of Barcelona. But I wanted to share some of the highlights and experiences of Paris from a 'family' perspective.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Miss K at the Natural History Museum</td></tr>
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Paris was not particularly kind in its weather while we were there. It rained. Quite often. On our second day, we paid a visit to the <a href="http://www.mnhn.fr/fr" target="_blank">Natural History Museum</a> in the Jardin de Plantes. A mainly 'traditional' museum in its presentation of wildlife, the children adored the interactive children's section (particularly an exhibit where a photograph of the child was taken and included in a short animation of a historical episode of Paris. Master A returned to this exhibit several times over). They were also impressed with the displays of Kiki the Giant Tortoise, the Dodo and detailed visuals on taxidermy. While we spent a good part of a day here, the Japanese Natural History Museum in Tokyo still superseded it (see <a href="http://whatwedoalldaynz.blogspot.com.es/2014/04/from-museums-to-madness-and-mundane-in.html" target="_blank">blog post).</a> Having said that, the gardens surrounding the Museum are beautiful and a full day (in sunshine) can be had adventuring around the <a href="http://www.jardindesplantes.net/" target="_blank">Jardin de Plantes</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On Pont Alexandra III</td></tr>
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Day Three in Paris and our intent had been to visit the <a href="http://www.jardindacclimatation.fr/" target="_blank">Jardin de Acclimitation</a>, but upon learning that a 'rue' on the GPS can lead you to an entirely different location, discovered ourselves in the midst of hundreds of mad Parisians and tourists driving down the Champs Elyse. After several terrifying trips around roundabouts and down side streets (kudos to the MOTH again for awesome driving) we found a car park and decided that serendipity had granted me my wish to meander along the Seine so we'd make the most of it, despite the weather. We wandered down the Champs Elyse spending €2.50 to visit the loo! There is a whole blog posting on toilets to come, but as parents with small children, Paris can be very irritating on the public toilet front.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Notre Dame</td></tr>
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We crossed <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pont_Alexandre_III" target="_blank">Pont Alexandra III</a> (a glorious bridge), admired the buildings and made our way along the Seine where we engaged in some funky interactive art installations. We crossed back along the river and paused at the Louvre. The children we amazed at the crowds of people and very fascinated by hawkers who jangled Eiffel Tower key rings at us. The Man of the House (MOTH) wanted to show us Notre Dame. The gothic grand lady looking particularly striking with the ominous rain clouds above. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playing with the installations on the Seine</td></tr>
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That distance is quite a walk for wee legs and we hopped onto a batobus (water boat) to head back to the Champs Elyse. If you do consider making this journey with small people in tow, it's worth getting a pass for the batobus early in the day as the ticket allows you to hop on and hop off at about eight different sights along the Seine as often as you like for the whole day. It's also a picturesque way to view the city.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Akira admires Paris from the Batobus</td></tr>
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Day four led to the weekend and we decided on a few 'quiet days', popping out for lunch and playing in the park near our accommodation. I visited the local market with our host, Nadia... not quiet and somewhat overwhelming - a real cultural adventure for the senses.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Artists at Montmarte</td></tr>
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On the Monday, our seventh and last day in Paris, the MOTH turned 40. He chose to visit <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacr%C3%A9-C%C5%93ur,_Paris" target="_blank">Sacre Coeur</a> on Montmarte. Many stairs to climb, a breath-taking cathedral, artists offering to paint your portrait, lots of tourists (despite the rain) and some good baguettes! The birthday was topped off with cake, gifts and Moroccan tea with our fabulous hosts.<br />
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The highlight of Paris had to be the beautiful family that hosted us. We discovered Nadia through <a href="http://www.airbnb.com/">www.airbnb.com</a>. Over the week she and her family helped us with our French, shared much of their French and Moroccan culture and fed us well! By the end of the week we felt as if we had arrived as guests and were leaving as family. If you are thinking of heading to Paris, <a href="https://www.airbnb.co.nz/rooms/846160" target="_blank">Nadia's home</a> is one we would recommend.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Miss K adores Moroccan style meals!</td></tr>
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<strong>Mummy Musings</strong></div>
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While the children have been picking up small amounts of French throughout their time here, I think the biggest learning comes in the form of tolerance and cultural relativity. Miss K has commented on the what she calls the 'rudeness' of French people (our hosts aside of course). Cars and people will 'push in' in ways she considers to be unfair and there is a lot of waiting (some systems are less than efficient). There have been many discussions about how and why different cultures have different ways of thinking about and doing things, which I think is kind of the crux of being on this journey.</div>
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Next post... the journey South! Let me know what you're enjoying and what you'd like to know more about...I'd love to hear from you!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-12790736630771024202014-05-21T14:06:00.001-07:002014-05-22T14:10:15.899-07:00Rest time before EuropeThe Man of the House (MOTH) is a very, very brave person. He survived Paris rush hour traffic and managed to get leased car and entire family from one side of the city to the other in-tact (although it has to be said that I think my life-span has been shortened by a good two years due to stress from that experience!) I should also mention that it was raining and the three children were hungry following an afternoon exploring the <a href="http://www.stay.com/paris/museum/8809/la-cite-des-enfants/" target="_blank">La Cite des Enfants</a> (part of the Science and Technology Museum). Sadly I forgot my camera, so no shots of what as a very cool interactive place for the children. Even wee Master T (22 months) got completely soaked at the water play activities!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting in some play time in Kent</td></tr>
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The MOTH and I have also realised that we are just over half way through this international journey and we seem to be getting into the flow of things. In the past four weeks there hasn't been all that much 'sight seeing', more 'people seeing'. Sometimes it's hard not to get agitated about the fact we're on the other side of the world watching the kids run around a garden or play Monopoly, rather than visiting some must-see monument or building, but these times are must-dos as well.<br />
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Travelling - the physical act of packing up belongings, sending luggage ahead, shedding stuff you don't need and squashing newly acquired 'can't live withouts' into existing luggage space is hard work; the physical act of saying 'goodbye', getting on trains, sleeping in hotels, flying in planes, waiting in line at customs, finding luggage, moving said luggage through security checks (and on and off trains) is tiring. I worked out last night, we've slept in 13 different beds since March (including campervan and our current abode) - unsettledness is to be expected, Recovery time is really, really important. Being conscious of small people's limits and cutting them some slack is something we're getting better at. (Check out Miss K in this photo - even a sunny day in London is not an antidote to feeling displaced and tired sometimes).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hooray for trampolines and cousins</td></tr>
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Because it took almost two days to travel from Sendai to London (two hours via shinkansen, a night in Haneda, 12 hours on a plane (British Airways (AirNZ co-share) was not very child friendly)) and add to that a 3 hour car drive to Broadstairs (Kent) and an 18 hour time difference, it took all of us almost five to six days to find' normal'. The children's jet lag and tiredness manifested in rounds, rather than all three in one go (there's a silver lining somewhere in that), so there was quite a bit of grumpy for a <br />
while.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">New friend</td></tr>
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Yet we relished the time to meet old friends and make new ones. Rita and Willie (family friends) hosted us all with much love and laughter. We took walks on the beach, a windy day at Dover Castle and explored Broadstairs' village. Three days in Norwich involved being cloistered indoors because of the wet weather, reading magazines and a visit to Tane's Great Aunt Pat and her mother Great-Great Aunt Frieda (99). Miss K and Master A made a great many comparisons of nursing homes in Japan and the UK, the first being that they didn't have to put slippers on in the UK. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking out from the London Eye</td></tr>
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The MOTH's generous sister and her gorgeous family opened their home to us in St Albans for a week. We got in one day 'sight seeing' around South Bank in London, where we discovered a fantastic café on street back from the Globe Theatre, rode on a city river ferry and looked over London via the London Eye. The simple pleasures of engaging with street performers and eating an ice cream, before hearing stories of the Tower of London as we crossed the river, were what the children enjoyed most.<br />
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Yesterday we arrived, via Eurostar in Paris. I'd booked Blacklane Services (a private shuttle company) to take us to Orly airport for our leased Citroen. Two important things to note here: 1. A private shuttle, while perhaps more than a taxi, is a stress free way of travelling in Paris with a group of five. We were met at the station, assisted with our luggage and safely taken to the somewhat obscurely positioned car pick up point near Orly airport in a nice big black limo-style van. 2. We're in Europe for eight weeks. It works out cheaper to lease a new car than to rent one for this length of time, particularly as we pick up and return the vehicle in the same country. We arranged this through <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Citro%C3%ABn-DriveEurope-New-Zealand/511652032222960?ref=hl" target="_blank">Citroen DriveEurope New Zealand</a> and so far, aside from driving on the opposite side of the road to that which we're used to, it's been pretty hassle free. <br />
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We were welcomed to Paris, by our host Nadia, with a Moroccan feast for our hungry tummies (photo to come). With much laughter, we are all learning French (Miss K has quite an ear for accents, even picking up a touch of an English one from her cousins) and Nadia's two girls (3 and 2) and her husband are all teaching us new words. Brioche for breakfast, huge chunks of camembert and other cheeses are less than two Euros, bread is amazing... with such wet weather and such good food I think we might come rolling home!<br />
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The children continue to delight us with their observations and questions...Miss K is curious to know why Big Ben got its name, and Master A wants to know why, when travelling through the tunnel between London and Paris on the Eurostar, it didn't feel like we went down a slope under the sea? Responses imagined (preferably not googled (yet)) are welcome!<br />
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Bon nuit!<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-51876167903013049172014-05-19T02:18:00.001-07:002014-05-19T02:18:29.140-07:00Britain in PicturesOur time in Britain is almost over and I was quietly reminded by UK friends that there has yet to be a post on our time here. Mostly, we've been recuperating from a busy time in Japan and a long flight. We've visited Broadstairs, Norwich and are in St Albans. Here is some of our time in pictures and Miss K's words...<br />
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On the way to Kent we saw these kinds of houses. Much different than New Zealand!</div>
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We were so tired from our long flight that we fell asleep on our way to Broadstairs (Kent).</div>
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We are at Dover Castle. It was really windy!</div>
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Having a Knights' meal in Dover Castle.</div>
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This was probably the worst fish and chips we've ever had (in Norwich). Looks good, tasted bad!</div>
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Street artist on the South Bank of the Thames River in London</div>
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I am standing on the London Tower Bridge.</div>
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Our wonderful family we are staying with, took us out for some pub kai.</div>
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This is Daddy's early birthday party at Primrose Hill on Sunday.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-51403479692206810192014-05-05T06:45:00.001-07:002014-05-05T06:45:06.721-07:00Reflections on Sendai<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Since we've begun our travels I've found that the number of blog-posts are directly correlated to the number of pre-readings (my part-time job) I receive and my tiredness levels. While our time in Sendai hasn't followed the tourist adventure of Tokyo, our days have been busy, catching up with family and friends.<br />
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If travel tips in Sendai are what you are hoping for, then it's best to wait for another post; if you don't mind the musings of a sentimental and reflective Mummy, shattering romantic notions of a world-roaming gypsy family, then read on.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NZYDTG_VO4A/U2eN27ges8I/AAAAAAAACNc/gQBWz3FH2vM/s1600/DSCF0001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NZYDTG_VO4A/U2eN27ges8I/AAAAAAAACNc/gQBWz3FH2vM/s1600/DSCF0001.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a>Sendai has been less about places and more about people. We have been treated to the highest levels of <a href="http://www.wattention.com/archives/omotenashi-the-heart-of-japanese-hospitality/" target="_blank">omotenashi</a> (heartfelt hospitality) including food, gifts and an uncomfortable (for us) inability to pay for anything. However, the Man of the House (MOTH) and I have not been adhering to our rule of one-to-two days on, one day off, and there have been consequences of some what frayed tempers and frequent outbursts (parents and children alike), shouting, and poor Master T has come down with a bit of nasty cold.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some of the wonderful relations</td></tr>
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The juggle between seeing everybody (at least twice so that the children can become familiar with my many relations) and keeping a balance of harmony among the family has been difficult. Add to that television (which our kids rarely see), late nights, language barrier and huge cultural shock via instant immersion, I'm surprised that anyone in our whanau is speaking to each other!<br />
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I've been less available to the children than usual. In catching up on almost seven years of news, my focus is on those we're visiting and translating for the family who want to ask the children and the MOTH lots of questions. Juggling work (in English) really muddled my head, so no more until we reach England later this week.<br />
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Emotionally it has been hard. I have visited my elderly grandparents in the care homes where they now reside. Visiting my 90 year old Grandmother the first time was particularly special. We had been preparing for the worst as everyone had told us that she barely responded to visitors. However, she recognised me immediately, laughed and cried over her great grandchildren, and was the Obaachan (grandmother) I remembered. The second visit was difficult as she flitted in and out of being present, but warmed shortly before we left her bedside. My 93 year old Grandfather is still sprightly, despite his faltering eyesight, and he picked up his great grandchildren and laughed with them. The children were impressive, hugging their great-grandparents and waiting with great patience while I chatted with them.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Ojjichan (Grandad) and his great-grandchildren (and me)</td></tr>
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Again, big kudos to the MOTH - he has driven me to visit my family without complaint. Supported me on the hard visits, developed friendships, worked on his Japanese language and tasted every delicacy presented to him. He has been a great role model for the children.</div>
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Driving through the areas close to where my family home was before the earthquake and tsunami that hit in 2011, was a somber and sad experience. The many houses I remember are gone, replaced by eerie spaces, skeletons of abandoned houses and broken cemeteries. Blocks of make-shift housing serve as a reminder that the effects of March 2011 are still ongoing for many.</div>
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I don't want to kick the stuffing out of anyone's plans to travel with children, but be aware, it can be hard when they are dragged around relations. Sometimes it can be hard to remember to explain the different rules of behaviour until they've been accidentally broken, and five-year-olds aren't always well equipped to express and manage their emotions. We are home-staying in an amazing house out of Sendai, but living in someone else's space can also be challenging (and stressful) for everyone concerned.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Akira and his new friend Yuki</td></tr>
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On the upside - we have courageous children. Over the last few days, Miss K has had a sleepover on her own with an Aunt, Master A spent three hours playing with an Uncle on his own, and today another four hours with his new friend, while we went shopping. Miss K went visiting family without me today - all these events have been at the children's request or choosing and it's encouraging to see that a lack of fluency in the language doesn't pose a barrier for them. We can hear them using more Japanese every day. Even wee Master T has been shouting 'Oishi' (Yummy!) when he tastes something he loves.<br />
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We have made new friends, met local Sendai characters like <a href="http://www.samurai-archives.com/masamune.html" target="_blank">Date Masamune</a> and <a href="http://community.japanese-castle-explorer.com/castle-mascots/" target="_blank">Musubiman</a> (although we were as much a novelty to them as they were to us!) If you ever visit Sendai, the site of Sendai Castle is a definite must do.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Date Masamune</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Musubi-man (Sendai's Mascot) at a book signing</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Learning 'ninja hands' at Sendai Aobajo.</td></tr>
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We've learnt, among other things, about Japanese money, when and where to wear slippers and that some Japanese toilets wash and dry your bottom. Mostly we've learnt how to overcome the struggles within our own family brought about by close proximity (sleeping in the same room) and over exposure, and that our Japanese family love us very, very much. We look forward to extending our <i>omotenashi</i> when they visit.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fun, family moments like these, priceless!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our sleeping arrangements :-)<br /></td></tr>
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A tired, but happy Miko-blogger signing off....<br /><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-39626089416897542442014-04-20T08:21:00.002-07:002014-04-20T08:22:49.203-07:00From museums to madness and the mundane in between<em>Tired. But still wanting to share. Resorting to lists today.</em><br />
<h3>
Things we've done this week that we've loved</h3>
<ul>
<li><strong>Disneyland</strong></li>
<li><strong>Ueno Koen</strong> (park)</li>
<ul>
<li>For it's fun outdoor play ground</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<ul><ul>
<li>For the somewhat tired and dated slot machine rides</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<br />
<ul>
<li><strong>Natural History Museum (Ueno)</strong></li>
<ul>
<li>Incredible interactive displays over 5 floors, and an informative Japanese section</li>
<li>Friendly and engaging volunteers who were wonderful with the children</li>
<li>360 degree theatre show of dinosaurs and the deep sea</li>
<li>Required two days to visit (with the children's enthusiastic consent!)</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<ul>
<li><strong>Shopping at Uniqlo</strong> </li>
<ul>
<li>Updating our tired travelling clothes and replacing lost items</li>
<li>So shopping there again, clothes that actually fit me!</li>
<li>Japanese in public so stylish. Kiwi travelling family of 5 somewhat shabby, but not now!</li>
</ul>
<li><strong>8th story restaurant in Shinjuku next to Uniqlo</strong> </li>
<ul>
<li>Fantastic food</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<ul><ul>
<li>Awesome view of trains (kept Master T and Master A 100% amused)</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
<ul><ul>
<li>Y2500 discount from free vouchers from Uniqlo for our big spend up!</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<br />
<ul>
<li><strong>Meiji Shrine in Yoyogi (near Harajuku)</strong></li>
<ul>
<li>Well, the MOTH and I loved this. So serene. Children not so serene.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<ul><ul>
<li>Commemoration of 100 years since the Empress' passing - amazing displays of Japanese History (Miss K enjoyed this).</li>
<li>Dancing with Earthday group (Miss K and I)</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<br />
<ul>
<li><strong>Kiddyland in Harajuku</strong></li>
<ul>
<li>Five stories of everything kawaii (cute) you can imagine. </li>
<li>Despite being absolutely crowded, the children were intrigued with all the characters and want to go back!</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
<h3>
Things we've learnt:</h3>
<ul>
<li>Catch trains between 9:30am and 4pm (before 5pm) in Tokyo</li>
<li>Eat dinner in (so little people aren't exhausted on crowded trains post 6pm)</li>
<li>Get early nights </li>
<li>Say yes more and go slow</li>
<li>Crowds make everyone tired</li>
<li>Changeable weather (we've gone from short sleeves to merinos over one week) can make people temperamental</li>
<li>Paper and pens are fantastic entertainment</li>
<li>Work as a team</li>
<li>Even when being together as a family, each child needs their own time and attention with Mum and Dad.</li>
<li>Children are incredibly resourceful when it comes to play. Kids have been using giant bags of nappies as 'trains' and rearranging our meagre furniture for other games.</li>
<li>Takeshita street in Harajuku is very crowded on Sunday!(Not my photo, but <a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Takeshita_Street_in_Harajuku.jpg" target="_blank">this </a>is pretty much what it looked like. I was too overwhelmed to dare let go of a child's hand and photograph anything down this road!)</li>
</ul>
<h3>
Japan reminds me to be grateful for:</h3>
<ul>
<li><strong>Space </strong></li>
<ul>
<li>Our own rooms, gardens and a ground level washing line back home</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4LV_FkvoPCQ/U1PiNrUrO_I/AAAAAAAACJo/IriOQ7FxXAE/s1600/DSCF0002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4LV_FkvoPCQ/U1PiNrUrO_I/AAAAAAAACJo/IriOQ7FxXAE/s1600/DSCF0002.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our washing line outside Miss K and Master A's room. That's an air-conditioning unit to the left.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<ul><ul>
<li>We think so many people go out in the weekends because it's too cramped to stay home</li>
</ul>
<li><strong>My own kitchen</strong></li>
<ul>
<li>There are certain challenges to cooking with minimal utensils, not to mention bench space (behind the boys, you can see how much bench space I have to work with - that includes a two element gas stove (of which only one works), and an oversized sink.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eiJ27NQ7p98/U1PiN1-9s_I/AAAAAAAACJ0/hbMQzghtr3c/s1600/DSCF0003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eiJ27NQ7p98/U1PiN1-9s_I/AAAAAAAACJ0/hbMQzghtr3c/s1600/DSCF0003.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our kitchen. The boys made a train!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<ul>
<li><strong>Having visited Japan on my own</strong> </li>
<ul>
<li>Travelling on your own in Japan, there is so much more freedom and ease to access stores, tourist sights and transport. </li>
<li>Travelling with children is much harder. But it's wonderful to share my memories and joys with them and to see them respond to the newness, strangeness and excitement that is Japan.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<h3>
More stuff we've lost</h3>
<ul>
<li>Miss K's polar fleece</li>
<li>Master A's polar fleece</li>
<li>My sunglasses</li>
<li>Am also sure some elements of sanity starting to erode...</li>
</ul>
But we're still smiling!<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-20239440470983108082014-04-16T07:16:00.000-07:002014-04-16T07:16:20.417-07:00The Wonderful World of Disney - Japan Style<em>Apologies for the long post - I had intended to stick up a few pictures, but I thought more was needed. Thank goodness today is a down day - very much required after two Disney days...</em><br />
<br />
Having been at a Steiner school for a good four years before home educating, our family had been somewhat (relatively) under-exposed to the World of Disney. But we'd had enough exposure (recently thanks Air NZ) to thoroughly enjoy the magic of Disney (although the kids had no idea who the Storm Troopers, Indiana Jones, most of the Toy Story Characters and Lilo and Stitch were). <br />
<br />
<h3>
Disneyland, Tokyo</h3>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Yk2IM3FuZbI/U05y0IOwKWI/AAAAAAAABqw/8KgcliJNHt8/s1600/DSCF0003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Yk2IM3FuZbI/U05y0IOwKWI/AAAAAAAABqw/8KgcliJNHt8/s1600/DSCF0003.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a>On a Monday, Disneyland opened at 10am. We wanted to make the most of our day pass, but were a bit worried about commuter traffic (it's around an hour and a half train ride). Although we caught the 8:58 train to Tokyo, it was pretty much standing room only for a good 20 minutes. My biceps will put Rambo to shame after holding Tama for a good part of the past two days! Certainly something to experience and a bit intimidating for the kids. Still, nothing could dampen our spirits... we were off to Disneyland!<br />
<strong></strong><br />
There is something magical about Disneyland. The music, the parades, the characters that have come to life. My first ever visit to Disneyland (in Tokyo) was when I was 28. I loved it and this time I loved experiencing it all with my family. MOTH had to dash off a few times (not for grotty-potty lurgy thank goodness - that's gone) to grab a few thrill rides using the Fast Past. This is a pass that lets you 'book' a ride at a later time in the day with a MUCH shorter queue. This is only on some rides (usually the less family friendly ones), but good for MOTHs who want to experience a quick thrill and their waiting families!<br />
<br />
<strong>Recommendation for Disney with small people #1</strong><br />
<strong>Be prepared to queue</strong><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_qYbYOGo-5Q/U05y14l6FNI/AAAAAAAABrA/kroCXwMCuEw/s1600/DSCF0014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_qYbYOGo-5Q/U05y14l6FNI/AAAAAAAABrA/kroCXwMCuEw/s1600/DSCF0014.JPG" height="200" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This, I have to say, is one of the downers of Disneyland. We stood in a queue for at least half an hour for Peter Pan's flight - lovely ride, done in about 2 minutes and almost a disappointment for such a long wait. The best times to do rides is about half an hour before and during parades (they run at least twice a day - except the light parade- so catch one and ride during the other). Often there are also long lines to meet and greet the characters. When there aren't there doesn't seem to be any rules about letting others who are already waiting go first - it's every person for themselves, we started to get bolshy by day two!<br />
<br />
<strong>Recommendation for Disney with small people # 2</strong><br />
<strong>Rides worth riding</strong><br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QvSAtAGYdoQ/U05y1tL74jI/AAAAAAAABq8/J3ayE6qrNSE/s1600/DSCF0009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QvSAtAGYdoQ/U05y1tL74jI/AAAAAAAABq8/J3ayE6qrNSE/s1600/DSCF0009.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2aFuNNpI5bc/U0539n_QapI/AAAAAAAABsI/-TYytgNY8xw/s1600/DSCF0048.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2aFuNNpI5bc/U0539n_QapI/AAAAAAAABsI/-TYytgNY8xw/s1600/DSCF0048.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a> Most rides are very child-friendly. Master T (age 20 months) sat alongside us on everything from the Spinning cups to the Snow White ride (NOT recommended - it's entirely from the witch's perspective and a tad scary). The rides (usually with the shortest lines and longest durations) we enjoyed the most as a family were: 'It's a small world', the Western Steam Train and the River Boat Paddle Steamer. Toontown is great for little people, as is most of <br />
Fantasyland and the Swiss Family Robinson tree-house absolutely appealed to our children's sense of adventure. The MOTH and Master A bonded over a few little roller coaster rides and one big one (Space Mountain)!<br />
<br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>Recommendation for Disney with small people #3: </strong><strong>Do the parades</strong><br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-juzdzNVvvDY/U0534NNiE2I/AAAAAAAABrc/9SFULW7ioa8/s1600/DSCF0027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-juzdzNVvvDY/U0534NNiE2I/AAAAAAAABrc/9SFULW7ioa8/s1600/DSCF0027.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a>Because it is close to Easter, Disneyland put on a special Easter themed parade, complete with 'bunny dance'. The music just makes you wanna join in and jiggle and jive. Disney Parades are awesome and I <strong>love</strong> a good parade. Most spectacular is the Disney Light Parade that starts at 7:30pm. The MOTH disappeared off to some thrilling attraction (vacant because everyone was waiting for the parade, so he rode twice and ended up standing on the opposite side of the parade from the rest of us), while the kids and I waited 30 minutes, with front row seats for the parade. It was worth it. The parade is a visually thrilling spectacular. Master T was so excited by the Chip and Dale float he gave it a standing ovation! It's a fantastic high to leave on.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mJHRQmksU-g/U054CgJ3xqI/AAAAAAAABss/XKqH3CaYnMg/s1600/DSCF0119.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mJHRQmksU-g/U054CgJ3xqI/AAAAAAAABss/XKqH3CaYnMg/s1600/DSCF0119.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chip and Dale from Master T's perspective</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h3 class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: blue;">Disney Sea - Tokyo</span></h3>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<strong>Recommendation for Disney with small people #4</strong><br />
<strong>Spread out the fun if you're doing two or more days....</strong><br />
Being penny conscious, we opted for the two-day pass (one day Tokyo Disneyland, and day Tokyo Disney Sea), which saved on average about $20 per person. Great savings but not so good for tired small people, as the pass must be used on consecutive days. We certainly could have benefited from a few days between 'lands' to recover, particularly as it's a bit of hike from Shin-Nakano (a metro ride to Tokyo, then a good 10 minute walk to the Keiyo JR line before another train ride. In, all about an hour and a half traveling each way).<br />
<br />
If doing both Disneyland and Disney Sea is on your wish list in Tokyo, with little people in tow, consider either staying in Mahaima (or Chiba - close to the Disney Resort) or swallowing the cost difference and going on different days. The cost-benefit will be having children who aren't so exhausted by the end of day two that the magic could almost be lost...<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gd2St1lk2TM/U06DcbNwdXI/AAAAAAAABtU/GzxzUQF_Odk/s1600/DSCF0126.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gd2St1lk2TM/U06DcbNwdXI/AAAAAAAABtU/GzxzUQF_Odk/s1600/DSCF0126.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from monorail</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
We started off an hour later to Disney Sea so train seating was more available and the children definitely needed the sleep in. From the JR station at Mahaima, you need to catch the Disney Mono rail to reach Disney Sea and that also has a price tag, but we saved a little by buying a round trip. Akira loved sitting right up the front and we got a good perspective of the size of the Disney Resort.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BLbtAoi968c/U06Dcp621dI/AAAAAAAABtc/5KSgRvfjxZc/s1600/DSCF0140.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BLbtAoi968c/U06Dcp621dI/AAAAAAAABtc/5KSgRvfjxZc/s1600/DSCF0140.JPG" height="200" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting for a carpet ride</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<strong>Recommendation for Disney with small people #5</strong><br />
<strong>Best attractions at Disney Sea </strong><br />
I had heard mixed things about Disney Sea, in particular that it was not so suitable for small children. Yes there are some amazing rides there for the more adventurous (the MOTH actually admitted he screamed for the first time on a ride doing the Tower of Terror), but we had a fantastic time exploring the Little Mermaid's World (absolutely no queue for that attraction) and other associated rides like the puffer fish; Sindbad's Tales of adventure was so amazing and queue-less we went twice; the electric train and riverboat rides were fun and Jasmine's carpets also thrilling.<br />
<br />
One of the highlights was seeing the Big Band Show with Mickey and friends in a fantastic revue of the era. A first class show (although Master A said it was too loud, so his recommendation is to take cotton wool). We had to wait a good half hour before it opened for decent seats, a relatively short wait for a brilliant show. We came across people waiting, in the heat, then the cold, almost three hours before an outdoor performance! <br />
<strong></strong> <br />
<strong>Recommendation for Disney Sea with small people #6</strong><br />
<strong>Toilet stops are mandatory 10 minutes before show time</strong><br />
The pinnacle of Disney Sea is their light show set on the water, followed by the fireworks (fireworks were cancelled on our visit due to strong winds). People wait almost two hours before for a good seat. We waited 45 minutes, about 10 rows from the front for not great views, but we could see most of the imagery. In hindsight, we should probably have opted for a standing position slightly away from the front of the performance further round the port. About 4 minutes into what turned out to be a 10 minute show, Miss K had a call of nature, so she and I exited the seating area. We dashed madly to and from the loo, only to discover we were not admitted back in and had to stand on the side. <br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dszkHZMpLCE/U054EJTdUlI/AAAAAAAABtE/eR2FK6m2B6U/s1600/DSCF0133.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dszkHZMpLCE/U054EJTdUlI/AAAAAAAABtE/eR2FK6m2B6U/s1600/DSCF0133.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Miss K explores Ariel's world</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
As the grown up, I had the choice to bibidi-bob-ibidi-boo and make the best of the situation. As it was, I was tired and disappointed and muttered how unfair it was, which sent an even more tired and disappointed Miss K into a hysterical screaming fit (not ideal in a happy place like Disney. Not ideal in Japan. Not ideal in general). After the show ended a sobbing Miss K was consoled with some fairy magic from an attendant (to come back again) and another visit to Mermaid Lagoon, before we made a very late trip home. <br />
<br />
Just a note - the 11pm Marunouchi subway line train is as crowded as the 9am train!<br />
<br />
<strong>Recommendation for Disney in general with small people #7</strong><br />
<strong>Take a bag of all seasons' weather gear</strong><br />
Tokyo Disneyland resort is located close to the sea. It can be extremely hot during the day and it can be difficult to find sheltered spots. Thankfully we had sun hats and sunblock in tow, as well as rain coats and extra layers of merino for when the night set in. There is nothing more uncomfortable than waiting for something and being cold. <br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>Recommendation for Disney in general with small people #8</strong><br />
<strong>Take your own food</strong><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0dfn-ANCn_Y/U054EQLbOXI/AAAAAAAABtI/t0gg_zwQGOI/s1600/DSCF0144.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0dfn-ANCn_Y/U054EQLbOXI/AAAAAAAABtI/t0gg_zwQGOI/s1600/DSCF0144.JPG" height="200" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Disney water </td></tr>
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Disneyland/Sea is a wonderful place to spend money. There are dozens of stores selling every imaginable item of Disney paraphernalia and almost every Japanese person in the park has a Monster Inc. tail or set of Mickey's ears of a Donald Duck on their head. I don't know what they do with it once they get home. Thankfully due to luggage space being at a premium, we did not succumb to this custom. <br />
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The children and MOTH are all rather partial to onigiri (rice cakes) so we stocked up on those, snacks, fruit and bottled water from the local convenience store and took them in with us for lunch. Onigiri keep you pretty full and we only needed a top up of churros and a hot dog in the evening, keeping our food bill very low. To give you an idea of costs, we ran out of water and had to fork out 220 yen for a 250 ml bottle; the 2 litre one we took in only cost us 100 yen (about NZ$1.10). I think the extra charge at Disney is for the art work...<br />
<strong></strong><br />
<strong>Recommendation for Disney Sea with small people #9</strong><br />
<strong>Smile and feel that Disney Magic</strong><br />
There is no doubt that a day at Disney is exciting, thrilling, disappointing, scary, funny and exhilarating. It's unforgettable. It's surprising and it's magic, as Master A's face kinda aptly sums up...<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-44146951288154381582014-04-13T05:53:00.001-07:002014-04-13T05:54:02.061-07:00Bye Bye Australia, Hello Tokyo!<em>As of tomorrow we will begin week five of our overseas adventure! This last week has </em><br />
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<em>been a blur of hotels, airplanes and fast train rides.</em> <br />
<strong>Exploring Essendon</strong><br />
In my last post, the poor MOTH had been struck down by a horrible stomach bug which laid him low for the rest of our stay in Australia. This meant most activities needed to be undertaken either (a) on my own with the kids, or in pretty close proximity to our house in Essendon. On our last few days we discovered mega mall <a href="http://www.highpoint.com.au/" target="_blank">Highpoint</a> and I finally had the chance to wander a Melbourne Market - St Kilda's with my dear friend Jo. She and her husband also took Miss K and Master A on a Tram ride, a special highlight before we left the land of dingoes and kangaroos.<br />
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<strong>Bye Bye Australia, Hello NZ (briefly)</strong><br />
On Tuesday, we set out from Melbourne to arrive back in Auckland. International flight logic made it cheaper to return to NZ first before flying onto Japan, and we found ourselves at the <a href="http://www.jetpark.co.nz/" target="_blank">Jet Park Hotel</a>. If you ever need a family friendly hotel, close to the airport, this is it. They run a free shuttle to and from the airport, have a swimming pool, free lobby Wi-Fi, a small outdoor play area and an excellent collection of indoor toys and books. The restaurant is very child-friendly (ensuring little ones are fed first so parents can enjoy their meal) and the food is top quality.<br />
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<strong>Next stop... Japan</strong><br />
At 4:30am our friendly 'wake up call' had us rousing sleepy children to head to the airport. We had been held up at security (with long lines) in Melbourne and were probably the last people on board our flight. While this has its advantages (no sitting about in departure lounges), from a stress-level point of view, it's not so advantageous and we ensured we got through security with about 10 minutes to spare before our boarding call to Japan.<br />
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I was paid a lovely compliment on the plane by a fellow passenger while waiting for the toilet (as one does, particularly near the end of a 10 hour flight): he said he had no idea that there were young children on board, least of all a one-year old. Yep, our kids travelled beautifully! Miss K and Master A were entertained by all the movies and TV programmes we never let them watch at home. Master T had a collection of finger puppets, wind up toys, stickers and an etcha-sketch to entertain him; but his favourite past time was pushing the viewing screen sending Peppa Pig (which Mummy had to view all the way to and from Australia and for about 7 hours to Japan) into fast-forward frequency. My saving grace was when the MOTH took a sleeping Master T and I watched <em>Saving Mr Banks</em> - now there's a good movie!(Note MOTH somehow managed to watch 3.5 inflight movies.... hmmm go figure).<br />
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If you ever take this flight with small people, ensure you have a good supply of snacks. There is quite a long gap between being served 'breakfast' and 'dinner' (about an hour either end of the journey) and the in-flight meals are nothing to write home about - so I won't.<br />
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<strong>Hello Japan!</strong><br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Wnxf7MNUVT8/U0p-V8_Ao9I/AAAAAAAABeg/4WYogU9v5Nk/s1600/DSCF0002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Wnxf7MNUVT8/U0p-V8_Ao9I/AAAAAAAABeg/4WYogU9v5Nk/s1600/DSCF0002.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a>Our flight landed just before 5pm at Narita Airport. Rather than encounter rush hour traffic, by this I mean people, as much as vehicles in Tokyo, we opted to stay a night at the <a href="http://www.booking.com/hotel/jp/holiday-inn-tobu-narita.en-us.html?aid=7344082;label=gog235ma-review-xu-155b99ad77d5850f-XX-unspec-jp-com-L%3AXX-O%3Aunk-B%3Aunk;sid=50ccfacc4c0c09323e4aebbd903111bf;dcid=1;ucfs=1;srfid=2442d0a36610ed92dfca19876c16ca48e1d809f5X1" target="_blank">Narita Tobu Hotel</a> and face the train system the following day. We also sent our luggage on from the airport to our accommodation to avoid lugging 3 backpacks, two car seats, a stroller and 3 children onto the trains. This hotel offered a free shuttle to and from the airport (a key criteria for me when booking), and while Miss K had her first 'oka-sama meal' here (meals designed for children), the food at the hotel was also nothing to get excited about. Suffice to say the hotel was clean and excellent value for money.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The boys on the Narita Xpress</td></tr>
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<strong>Thursday</strong> found us navigating the airport and railways via elevators (the stroller is a necessity because Master T is too heavy to carry and his legs too short to go fast, but most of Japan travels on the escalators and stairs, and elevators are NOT very efficient), and negotiating with ticket machines. I had intended to buy a cheaper one-way fare for the Narita Express, but the queues at the JR office snaked out the doors with a half hour wait, so we opted for normal prices and speed, reaching Shinjuku by lunchtime, where we found a restaurant with Master A's name - of course we dined there. Hospitality 10/10, food well 6/10... <br />
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After full tummies we successfully conquered the Tokyo Metro and more ticket machines (thank goodness they have an English option) to finally reach our tiny <a href="https://www.airbnb.com.sg/rooms/2263779" target="_blank">apartment</a> in Shin-Nakano (about a 6 minute ride from Shinjuku). We have been treated to fantastic hospitality by our host (this property was also found on airbnb) and for a little over $100 a night (a bargain for 5 people in Tokyo), we are in a cosy two bedroom, one bathroom and kitchen - known as a 'mansion' here. Roomier than the campervan at least. <br />
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<strong>Friday</strong> was supposed to be one of those 'recovery days' the MOTH and I try and build into the schedule, because three days being itinerant is exhausting (for me, never mind the kids!) BUT, we discovered our adapter for the laptops was not suitable and we journeyed into Shinjuku to find a replacement at a local department store. Here, the children had their first introduction to Japanese toys, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gashapon" target="_blank">gachapon</a> and Akira acquired some new shoes. This was also the day the MOTH got himself a haircut. It included an ear trim and a 'vacuum' of his head all for Y1000! (see photo at end of post for his new, improved look).<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rGEeD7neoNk/U0p-ZA4AkMI/AAAAAAAABfA/D170Q15R99o/s1600/DSCF0029.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rGEeD7neoNk/U0p-ZA4AkMI/AAAAAAAABfA/D170Q15R99o/s1600/DSCF0029.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><strong>Saturday</strong> became a rest day with exploratory walks around the area, visiting local stores and hanging (literally) with some children at the playground. As the children played with their new toys and poured over Japanese children's magazines for the afternoon, it became evident how important this 'settling' into their new environment was. We had all become a bit fractious with each other and this 'down day' helped rest the family kindness barometer.<br />
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<strong>The beauty of the Cherry Blossom</strong><br />
When I was in my mid-twenties, my mother and I arrived in Japan during early March. I was struck by the beauty of tentatively awakening cherry blossoms, surrounded by skirts of slowly dissipating snow. It took my breath away. Cherry blossoms were also what Miss K first commented on during the drive to the hotel when we arrived, but today's viewing at <a href="http://content.time.com/time/travel/cityguide/article/0,31489,1897812_1897772_1897715,00.html" target="_blank">Shinjuku Gyoen</a> park was absolutely breath-taking. Photos do not do justice to the beauty, tranquillity and sheer awe we all felt in that park. Late March to mid-April is a spectacular time to visit Japan.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lunching like the locals do on a Sunday in Japan</td></tr>
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Leaving you with some of the beauty we found today... tomorrow it's Disney Magic!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Big sister takes little brother on a bird hunt through the woods</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Check out that dashing man!</td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-34763183454889279692014-04-04T05:11:00.004-07:002014-04-04T05:12:22.158-07:00Terrific Trains, Dashing Dingoes and Lingering Lurgies<strong>Melbourne.</strong> We made it on Monday afternoon. Kudos to the MOTH for driving that hulk of a campervan all the way into Melbourne. More Kudos to him for managing to get one day's free rental out of Britz (after some pressure on his part; they were not forthcoming in <em>offering</em> it). <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Campervan space </td></tr>
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<strong>The space we're staying in </strong><br />
Our first day in Melbourne was one of enforced rest (for me and the kids - I had a migraine and my intention of going to the Victoria Market for produce was foiled) while MOTH went off to file a police report for the missing money belt, get a NavMan and groceries. The kids spread out and enjoyed our <a href="https://www.airbnb.com.sg/rooms/2185039" target="_blank">two bedroom villa</a> in Essendon; a contrast to their space in the campervan (note the photos showing them playing in the area that converted to the MOTH & my bed, and our new - proper- sleeping space).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Essendon space </td></tr>
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We've opted mainly for self-catering options on this journey, this makes meal times much cheaper, although if you are considering doing self-catering on a long international journey, start collecting salt and pepper sachets from cafes (sugar too if you need that) and soya sauce from the sushi cartons. I'm finding cooking without flavourings and fridge fixing (and my thermo-mix) somewhat challenging and it's quite difficult to purchase small amounts that will suffice for between one to three weeks. Jars of herbs and spices are not exactly ideal for transporting around the world in your luggage.<br />
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Self-contained accommodation also means no shared bathrooms, privacy, in some cases space to run around, and a chance to try out the suburbs. The downside is that hiring a car is necessary (and dragging car seats about), but with five of us, it generally works out cheaper than all taking public transport.<br />
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In Melbourne, we have wonderful friends that have kindly lent us their <a href="http://www.toyota.com/yaris/" target="_blank">Toyota Yaris</a> (another contrast to the campervan), which is fantastic. The MOTH has managed to get a botty-vomitty lurgy, which is not. The MOTH has convalesced all day in bed (dispelling any plans of a market visit <em>again</em> today), but before the bug really set in we managed two days of magic.<br />
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<strong>Terrific Trains</strong><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master A drives a train at Trainworks</td></tr>
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Trains are somewhat of a theme for us, spurred on by Master A's passion for all things rail. <a href="http://www.trainworks.com.au/" target="_blank">Trainworks </a>(1.5 hours south of Sydney- mentioned in a previous post) was a world class museum of trains and well worth the visit on that campervan rumble down to Melbourne.<br />
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This Wednesday, we drove out of Melbourne to ride <a href="http://www.puffingbilly.com.au/" target="_blank">Puffing Billy</a> - a steam engine with open air carriages and permission to dangle one's legs over the side. It takes about an hour to drive to Belgrave (Puffing Billy's departure station), and almost double that coming back in peak traffic - but the ride all the way to and from Gembrook was worth it, not to mention the dinner, another pair of friends whipped for us that night too :-)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Akira pretends we're going faster than 24km/ph</td></tr>
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<strong>Dashing Dingoes</strong><br />
Wildlife and conservation also figure strongly in our family's travel activities. Featherdale in Sydney was great, but <a href="http://www.zoo.org.au/healesville" target="_blank">Healesville</a>, about an hour out of Melbourne, is absolutely breath taking. Paying tribute to the Aborigine caretakers of the land, the santcuary is a blend of Aborigine creation stories, conservation messages and stunning Australian wildlife in a relaxed setting. The crowning highlight was the 'wildlife encounter' they offer.<br />
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At AU$12pp for a 10 minute encounter (children under 8 have to be supervised by a paying adult), the MOTH initially was a bit sceptical , when he booked for an echidna encounter. Ms Echidna was not co-operative in coming out to see us (mainly because the 31C heat we encountered on our arrival to Melbourne has dropped to about 20Cand she was cold ). We chose the dingo over a refund - all proceeds go to helping save the wildlife.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wQvaGdQbsFQ/Uz6ObLRGF1I/AAAAAAAAAzE/90150_cAFMA/s1600/DSC_4124.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wQvaGdQbsFQ/Uz6ObLRGF1I/AAAAAAAAAzE/90150_cAFMA/s1600/DSC_4124.JPG" height="209" width="320" /></a>Originally named Tingo by the Aborigine (and misheard by the settlers...), these are beautiful cousins of the wolf. Our encounter allowed us to enter their enclosure with the ranger, touch and be photographed with the animals. At the same time we learnt a great deal about the plight of the dingo - it is anticipated that they will be extinct in ten to fifteen years due to in-breeding, and we heard many positive stories about them.<br />
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Healesville will probably, most definitely, make our Top Ten.<br />
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<strong>Mother Musings </strong><em>-a list of random thoughts...</em><br />
<em>Things I'm glad I packed</em><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Mum who muses...</td></tr>
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<ul>
<li>Lavender oil - great for sore tums, disinfecting, relaxing baths</li>
<li>imodeum (for obvious reasons)</li>
<li>spare microfiber face cloths</li>
<li>spare towels</li>
<li>antibacterial wet wipes</li>
<li>hand sanitizer</li>
<li>cool-store lunch bag, extra zip lock bags and small plastic containers</li>
</ul>
<em>Things I wish I had packed - but thankfully we can purchase</em><br />
<ul>
<li>Tea towels </li>
<li>a few more pairs of socks</li>
<li>scissors (I did pack some, but they've disappeared)</li>
<li>salt, pepper and soya sauce sachets</li>
</ul>
<em>Things we've lost so far</em><br />
<ul>
<li>Money belt</li>
<li>MOTH's shower gel (at a camping ground)</li>
<li>Master A and Miss K's pjs (one set)</li>
<li>One of Master T's shoes (at Healesville - there's probably a wombat wearing it)</li>
<li>scissors</li>
<li>a piece of a magnetic puzzle which now renders it useless</li>
<li>several coloured pencils</li>
</ul>
To date, children and sanity have not yet been lost (almost but not quite - sanity, not children).<br />
<br />
Quiet day today. Visited local park, walked to shops, found Australian animal stickers and sensational patisserie. Nice just to wander around. Hoping the MOTH is mended tomorrow and that I can get to at least one market before we leave Australia on Monday!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-64850396586111315902014-03-29T05:10:00.001-07:002014-03-29T05:11:58.460-07:00Rain, sun and kangaroos in Eden<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thar she blows! (In Kimra)</td></tr>
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Things have some what improved since my last post. The sun is shining and the MOTH and I seem to have finally got the knack of plugging in and out of camp sites. Yes, the toilet in the new campervan sprung a leak. Yes, it only just stopped raining yesterday and yes , yours truly suffered chronic Ozzie-belly for three days (less blogging and more bogging) - BUT - today the sun is shining, swimming togs have been on most days despite the rain and tonight we've had the best fish and chips EVER!<br />
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Our journey thus far has looked like this:</div>
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<strong>Monday</strong>: Sydney to Wollongong; Thunderstorms</div>
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<strong>Tuesday</strong>: Wollongong to Trainworks to Moss Vale; Rain</div>
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<strong>Wednesday</strong>: Moss Vale to Jervis Bay; Downpours</div>
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<strong>Thursday</strong>: Jervis Bay to Bateman's Bay: Drizzle</div>
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<strong>Friday:</strong> Bateman's Bay to Eden; Overcast, glimmers of sunshine in the afternoon; suspected earthquake in the middle of the night!</div>
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<strong>Saturday (today):</strong>Eden to Lake's Entrance; sunshine! </div>
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If we ever plan to do a Sydney to Melbourne drive again (which I'm dubious is particularly high on this whanau's bucket list), we'd probably take two weeks to do it and most likely stay in cabins or hostels. We would have liked to have seen a great many more sights and enjoyed a few more days in each spot, sometimes to rest, sometimes to take advantage of the camp ground facilities, sometimes to just 'be'. With little people we're averaging around 2 hours maximum driving a day, add to that numerous toilet stops three children require and the time it takes to do the everyday stuff (eating, showering, finding food etc), progress is, well, slow.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inspired to dance. Who cares about the rain clouds?</td></tr>
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However, even with the slow drive and the rain we've found some travel magic. I'm grateful for the MOTH's 'why not' attitude that has ensured watching a spectacular blow hole in Kimra (my shutter finger was always a tad too slow to capture the 'big one') and swimming fully clothed on a white sand beach in Jervis Bay. Miss K was inspired to sing and dance while the boys made a 'sand train'. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We're making a train on the beach.</td></tr>
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Miss K's keen eye for nature has ensured we've seen trees dripping with coloured parakeets, cockatoos and bellbirds. She even spotted a toy koala tied to tree as we've driven through the gum tree-lined Princess Highway. This morning, jumping on the 'bouncy pillow' in Eden's camping grounds she spotted something brown and moving. "Mummy, come quickly, I think I've seen a kangaroo or wombat!" (she may have meant wallaby). We were treated to a family of wild kangaroos. In Eden. Go figure.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kangroos spotted by Miss K in Eden</td></tr>
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As a foodie, our travel accounts have been absent of things that tantalize our taste-buds. Partly because my stomach hasn't been up to it and partly because we've yet to encounter much to comment on. The few cafes we've sampled have been over-priced and under-taste. The exceptions have been the Heritage Bakery on the outskirts of Milton, my butter-fried scotch fillet (the things one does and discovers when camping) and tonight's fish and chips. Fish-a-Fare in Lake's Entry does the best, fresh fish'n'chips <strong>EVER</strong> (I know, I said it already but it was SO GOOD). Their sign says they don't do 'fast food but fresh food'. Miss K suggested going back for breakfast!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master T and the MOTH -having gobbled the fish, only chips remain.<br />
Master T's mouthful suggests total approval.</td></tr>
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I'll be the first to admit this week hasn't been plain sailing or always fun. Sometimes it's been unpleasant, frustrating, smelly (campervan, not just my fault) and downright horrible. But like Noah and his flood, after the rain, there came sunshine. Better still, there was a rainbow. This week has been kinda like that :-)</div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-8381982051590820812014-03-25T06:23:00.001-07:002014-03-26T05:38:26.470-07:00Misadventures of the Campervan Kind...<strong>Week two, day two.</strong><br />
<strong><em>Disclaimer</em></strong><br />
<em>Although we are trying to adopt a 'no blame policy' on our travels, I will point out that campervan-ing it from Sydney to Melbourne was the MOTH's brilliant idea. I am not a camping type girl.</em> <br />
<br />
But here we are...five of us in a six berth campervan... <br />
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<br />
<strong>In the beginning</strong><br />
Things didn't start out quite so well... While I was congratulating myself on driving the six minute drive from campervan pick up to rental car drop off through Sydney (and the MOTH had mastered central Sydney traffic and motorways), MOTH, with children in rear seat, had, within twenty seconds of starting the engine, succeeded in crashing the campervan into another campervan. He was still in the Brtiz parking lot. Thankfully damage was minor. No persons hurt (maybe a bit of pride).<br />
<br />
Things could only get better... hmmmmmm.....<br />
<br />
<strong>Wet in Woolongong</strong><br />
With an ominous looking sky, we headed out along the Pacific Coastal Highway, paid our $11 to go into the first National Park and sought out somewhere to eat. The friendly folk in the park recommended Bundeda. Quirky place. Pricey food, nonchalant café staff and gossipy locals, with a stunning beach. Well it would have been stunning if it wasn't raining. We carried on our expedition towards Melbourne.<br />
<br />
Admist torrential rain, we pulled into Woolongong. Basics from the supermarket were needed (everything from loo rolls and scrubbing brushes to milk and bread) and the MOTH expertly parked nearby. It suddenly dawned on me then, the impracticalities of parking the Britz beast. No just 'popping out to the shops' on this journey (duh Miko).<br />
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Corrimal Beach Tourist Park, in Woolongong is where we parked up for the night, plugged into the mains (electricity and water) and got completely drenched doing so. Nothing like starting a camping journey in the middle of thunderstorms, during which the power shorted out and the campervan started to leak from about three different points!<br />
<br />
This morning - the sun is shining and I'm optimistic about what the day will bring. We've planned a trip to Trainworks in Thirlmere, with hopes to be further along the coast. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....<br />
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<br />
It turns out that the electricity issue is not the power cord shorting out, but some greater fault with the campervan. The toilet is leaking and there are also puddles of water in the living compartment and the sink is slow draining (mostly into the drawers beneath it). When we finally figure out how to drain the grey water, we discover that the previous hirers hadn't drained it (as required) hence the water issues... the MOTH has been on the phone for what seems like hours, before finally, we're offered a replacement vehicle. They will meet us at Trainworks. Could our luck be turning...?<br />
<br />
Almost.<br />
<br />
<strong>Missing and Moss Vale</strong><br />
New Campervan. We switch luggage over. New Campervan looks good. We go into the amazing Trainworks Museum. It suddenly dawns on us that the MOTH's money belt (with money) hasn't been seen in the move. Frantic phone calls to Britz and searches all over the new (and the old - by Britz) campervan turns up nothing. Mysteriously it has disappeared... I find out later that night that the children forgot to move their pjs from under the pillow and the orange juice in the fridge. I'm praying things will come back. <br />
<br />
And thinking I'll buy the MOTH a St Christopher - patron saint of travellers and lost things.<br />
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Trainworks which deserves its own post (tomorrow) is a much needed respite after the events of the day. <br />
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We left Thirlmere, and were advised in Mittagong (I really rate the lady in the information centre there) to carry on to Moss Vale Village Park Camping grounds - which is where (again in the rain) we've settled. Thank goodness for the locals in the park who helped sort out our water issues (Britz did not include the right hose attachments...*sigh*). We were going to get Pizza, but the one within walking distance is closed on Tuesdays - this was evident once we walked there from the park...<br />
<br />
So we dined on leftovers of cheese, crackers, salad, pistachio nuts and ginger biscuits with milk (for the kids) and coffee for us.<br />
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And will start tomorrow with another smile :-) It can only get better...Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-61853613983250730152014-03-22T19:24:00.000-07:002014-03-22T19:39:57.610-07:00Woeful Markets, The Wiggles and Wobbly TummiesPhotos are funny things. As an anthropologist I'll tell you that holiday snaps are culturally constructed to capture happiness and 'good times'... most 'personal shots' are... don't we look like we're having a fantastic time.<br />
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<br />
Yes we are - but with highlights, there are sometimes things that don't quite meet expectations, and you have to peer through the disappointment to find the fun stuff. <br />
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<strong>Paddington</strong><br />
Yesterday Miss K, her 16 year old cousin Miss Geordie and I headed off on a bus adventure to <a href="http://www.paddingtonmarkets.com.au/" target="_blank">Paddington Market.</a> I love markets. I love the hustle, the smells, the quirky items and the bargains. I love originality and the thrill of finding 'something a little bit different'.<br />
<br />
Paddington Market was disappointing. Lots of women's clothing and jewellery, a few artists and very high prices. But on the upside, I spent some time getting to know my niece, hanging with Miss K and seeing the landscape from a bus. Miss K chatted merrily about things that were different to home, particularly the speed of the bus, the heat, the buildings and being a big city. We found a copy of <em>Anne of Green Gables</em> in an op-shop, a fart-making gadget (which Miss K thought hysterical - of all things to find in up-market Paddington) and wandered through the Victoria Building before another long bus ride back home. We discovered that there are no toilets in the public library in Paddington and talked about homeless people and beggars.<br />
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<strong>Power to the boys</strong><br />
The MOTH took the boys on an excursion to the <a href="http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/" target="_blank">Powerhouse Museum</a> which was a huge hit. I've head about the space exhibition, a real steam engine that you could stand in, a train that made ginger beer and the <a href="http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/wiggles/" target="_blank"><em>Wiggles</em> exhibit</a> from Mr A.<br />
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<a href="https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSwGo5K3aKxQ4I8HAWnlXcIUZnHneYp9qodaujDSEkMdSHq_jCcuQ" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" class="rg_i" data-src="https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSwGo5K3aKxQ4I8HAWnlXcIUZnHneYp9qodaujDSEkMdSHq_jCcuQ" data-sz="f" name="gjidJ5gdRebD5M:" src="https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSwGo5K3aKxQ4I8HAWnlXcIUZnHneYp9qodaujDSEkMdSHq_jCcuQ" style="height: 160px; margin-top: 0px; width: 185px;" /></a>A: There was a Wiggles exhibition in the museum, Mummy<br />
Me: What was in the exhibition?<br />
Cousin Gatsby (14): The Wiggles. (<em>duh Miko - not verbalised of course)</em><br />
Me <em>to Akria</em>: Were there <em>Wiggles?</em><br />
A: No.<br />
Me: What was there?<br />
A: Wiggles.(<em>duh Mum).</em><br />
<em></em><br />
The MOTH absolutely rated the Powerhouse and was super proud of the two wee men who visited it with him. Admission is reasonable and parking also validated. Mr A said that playing spacies was the best thing!<br />
<br />
After such a big outing yesterday, Mr A is very tired and in need of some Mum-time. We had planned a trip to Manly today, to visit friends and see the sights, but the dreaded travel-belly has paid me a visit, so Mr A and I are just hanging at home on our own, while the others headed off. Sometimes the body enforces rest especially since we begin a <strong>campervan</strong> adventure tomorrow morning. Heading to Melbourne via the Coastal Highway!<br />
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If you've ever done that stretch and have suggestions where to stop/camp please leave a comment! I'd also love to know what you'd like to hear about on our travels :-)<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-10460162680444507642014-03-20T18:25:00.000-07:002014-03-21T02:59:05.490-07:00Close encounters of the Koala kind<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Play time!</td></tr>
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<em>Wildlife is encountered and it is revealed this is not all plain sailing</em><br />
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<strong>Day five, Sydney</strong><br />
<em></em><br />
Thus far the kids are enjoying a daily swim in the housing complex's pool and getting to know their extended family better. Miss K has in-grained herself in the morning ritual of walking Duchess with her aunt and much pleasure to be had kicking soccer balls and chasing their teenage cousins when they're home from school.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meeting Mikey the Koala</td></tr>
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We've visited <a href="http://www.featherdale.com.au/" target="_blank">Featherdale Wildlife Park</a> where we petted koalas, spotted joeys, admired wombats, Tasmanian Devils and many other Australian indigenous wildlife species. Featherdale is wonderfully quaint, absent of the cash-making intrusions (cashing in on opportunities to pose with animals) other tourist attractions seem to bombard you with. There are no gimmicks, little flashy advertising (aside from sponsorship), just a relaxed, casual chance to encounter animals (including nosey emus), many whom are bouncing about the walk ways. It's a good place to take a young family. <br />
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<a href="http://www.sydneyaquarium.com.au/official-site" target="_blank">Sydney Aquarium</a> was on the agenda yesterday. Since we've hired a car the MOTH thought it would be a good idea to maximise the hireage and drive into Sydney (rather than catching a train or a ferry), particularly as the Aquarium validates parking in some buildings (to less than half price in some cases), which was less than the cost of public transport for all of us. Going in, no problem - coming out (at around 3pm) we hit traffic, which made for somewhat of a slow trip back to Bella Vista where we're staying. <br />
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I am grateful for technology that allows for pod casts and exciting stories to entertain siblings who might otherwise have gotten rather titchy on that journey. <a href="http://www.storynory.com/" target="_blank">Storynory</a>, the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/genre/childrens" target="_blank">BBC</a> and <a href="http://www.radionz.co.nz/collections/storytime-treasure-chest" target="_blank">Radio NZ</a> have fantastic podcasts for kids! You don't have to be travelling to enjoy these either :-)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VUpmfV8LSsU/UyuQ-CLC8hI/AAAAAAAAAuk/bKJCNxJQMlk/s1600/DSCF0241.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VUpmfV8LSsU/UyuQ-CLC8hI/AAAAAAAAAuk/bKJCNxJQMlk/s1600/DSCF0241.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a>The Aquarium presented an astounding array of wet water life. Kids' highlights were the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dugong" target="_blank">dugongs</a>, rays and sharks. If you do go, by pass the staged photos in the centre of the building (fun, but costly) and just purchase the family photo book at the end ($35) - a good souvenir with information about the wildlife.<br />
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<strong>Costs...</strong><br />
There are great discount tickets/coupons which can be found online, and passes for multiple attractions also offer good value for money in Sydney. The Aquarium website offers discounts (often at specific times). We booked online via Adrenalin for heavily reduced tickets and no time specification for the Aquarium.<br />
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<strong>Behind the smiles</strong><br />
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There is much to be grateful for on this trip. Good weather, kind family, amazing opportunities...but it is also challenging. Small people feel somewhat displaced and not at all sure as to why we're travelling. Mr A wants to go home and ride his bike and Miss K misses her bed. It can be stressful sharing a room with your entire family (although a great portion of the world live this way, this means little to a seven year old when they're tired and grumpy). The rationale about how amazing this chance is, can be quite often lost on children who are tired and irritable. <br />
<br />
The MOTH and I are also tired; we're juggling work and small people (which at the best of times is hard enough), add travel to the mix and tempers can get frayed. <br />
<br />
I'm struggling with the balance between 'tourism' and 'travel' and 'parenting'...<br />
<br />
So I'm working on how I conceptualise this journey and what is realistic. I'm working on my own expectations and desires. I'm focusing on being with the children and being a family. Where we are kind of becomes secondary. What we do isn't that important. It's the <em>how</em> we do it that is. We're going to focus on fun and togetherness.<br />
<br />
It's a journey that I want to make worth taking :-)Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-24654412691737094642014-03-17T17:04:00.001-07:002014-03-18T04:57:05.876-07:00Week one, day two...After a 3am start, three backpacks, a stroller, a car seat, a booster seat, two laptops, two carry on bags and five very tired Grays arrived safely in Sydney. I'm astounded I managed to fit pretty much everything into such a small about of luggage (essentially the three backpacks, as carry on luggage contained food, inflight entertainment and Girl Guide biscuits for Tama's godmother)... have discovered I successfully managed to forget to pack:<br />
1. sun hats (packed warm hats for London, but no sun hats)<br />
2. deodorant (sitting next to bathroom sink) - essential!<br />
3. case for my normal glasses<br />
<br />
Thankfully nothing you can't buy in Sydney - so we're off shopping.<br />
<br />
<strong>Recommending</strong><br />
First day recommendations for anyone else planning to travel with a seven, five and one year old...<br />
<br />
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" style="margin-top: -1px;" title="http://hubbards.co.nz/what-we-make/51" width="113" /></a>1. Taking your own food is good on a plane - we boarded armed with blue berries, crackers, peanut m'n'm mixed in with some Hubbard's cereals (<a href="http://hubbards.co.nz/what-we-make/51" target="_blank">Rumbles</a>)... anything small that takes time for little fingers to gobble.<br />
2. In flight TV is great for 5 and 7 year old (especially when they see none at home). Take lots of 'new' toys for baby - we had stacker barrels, small planes, car, finger puppets, stickers and crayons.<br />
3. Get more than 3 hours sleep the night before and make sure the MOTH is not completing his GST at this time!<br />
4. Antihistamine is a good thing - wee Tama had a rash last night, liquid antihistamine is a god-send <br />
5. Rescue remedy (we have the drops to suck) - fantastic for relaxed and happy flight to Oz, and for frazzled children at the end of the day.<br />
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<strong>Highlights so far</strong><br />
Tane's brother and whanau... their lovely house and their fantastic hospitality. SO BLESSED.<br />
Swimming - Akira's belly flopping may migrate to diving before we leave.<br />
Duchess - the pet dog and Keilani have bonded.<br />
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<strong>The saying goes:</strong><br />
"This is the longest day ever, Mum!" <em>Keilani</em><br />
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Having a quiet day today - go buy missing essentials, swim and hang out.. tomorrow adventures (aka sight seeing)!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2770229873798182387.post-54213252704195096662014-02-18T02:04:00.002-08:002014-02-18T02:25:00.438-08:00Ready, steady, jet-set... school...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OdvVaQaQeKo/UwMrtQRKYYI/AAAAAAAAAt0/qxGIjRwc22E/s1600/Plane-Around-the-Earth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OdvVaQaQeKo/UwMrtQRKYYI/AAAAAAAAAt0/qxGIjRwc22E/s1600/Plane-Around-the-Earth.jpg" height="145" width="200" /></a></div>
Being February it's probably sufficient time to re-start the blog without appearing like a New Year's resolution. Last year, my blog attempts were thwarted by having house "sale ready", house-hunting, working out approach to educating the small people, employment and general busy-ness/excuses.<br />
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Ring in 2014: House = sold. New house=bought. We move in this coming Monday. Educational approach=sorted. General busy-ness/excuses = I'm working on it.<br />
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Seemingly, not ones to understand the concept of sitting still, we've decided to jet-set off, as a family, on an international adventure for four and a half months! Destinations include Australia, Japan, England, France and Italy. We leave in four weeks.<br />
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Responses from friends: "Wow! How exciting!" "What a good experience it will be for the children." "You're brave."<br />
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Actually, I'm really tired (the advanced planning with three kids is mind boggling) and just a little bit worried (that we'll get lost, lose the children or just be generally grumpy)...but yes, I'm excited. <br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.fishpond.co.nz/Books/Family-OE-Luke-Williamson-Karen-Williamson/9781869661854" target="_blank"><img alt="Family OE: A Really Useful Kiwi Guide to Travelling Overseas with Your Children" border="0" class="photo" src="http://rcdn-3.fishpond.co.nz/0012/067/245/3885710/4.jpeg" data-zoom-image="http://rcdn-1.fishpond.co.nz/0012/067/245/3885710/original.jpeg" height="200" id="product-image-9781869661854" jquery1830844179870311129="23" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title=" Family OE: A Really Useful Kiwi Guide to Travelling Overseas with Your Children " width="147" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Laptop will come with us, so if you're interested you can catch up on what we're going to be doing all day (some days between jet lag, travel and working out how to buy things in another language!). On the right hand side bar, you can subscribe by email, become a member of the blog or join the RSS feed. Would love you to travel with us.<br />
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And if you're feeling a little bit inspired to journey with kids, check out the <a href="http://www.fishpond.co.nz/Books/Family-OE-Luke-Williamson-Karen-Williamson/9781869661854" target="_blank">Williamson Family's book</a> on their six-month OE.<br />
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<a href="http://www.fishpond.co.nz/Books/Family-OE-Luke-Williamson-Karen-Williamson/9781869661854" target="_blank"></a><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13243010927929165680noreply@blogger.com1