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You know how you’d always envision about how perfect a trip is going to be when you’re in the midst of planning for it? You set out to experience the adventure of a lifetime, to be in a place that’s the reality of the photos and videos you’ve drooled on for quite some time, you’ve done all the necessary research, and meticulously tailored out an itinerary – what could go wrong right? Well, the answer to that question is fate. Most, if not all, of the time, fate would have other offbeat plans for you. And once you start traveling with kids, the term ‘perfect trip’ will excuse itself entirely from your vocabulary.
Here are five things that went wrong on our recent trip to Tokyo. Make yourself comfortable, why don’t you.
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We forgot to activate our ATM cards
Five minutes after the plane took off, we came to a sudden realisation that we had forgotten to activate our ATM cards for overseas use. What soon followed were panic attacks from two helpless adults in midair. Due to the lack of international roaming on both of our mobile phones, we had no way of activating our cards from abroad.
We had to strategise our daily spendings so that we didn’t end up spending all our cash half way through the trip. But since neither of us are that big of a spender, we ended up leaving Tokyo with quite a hefty amount of extra cash (along with some neat souvenirs and protruding stomachs). Phew!
Lesson learned: do not wait until the very last minute to activate ATM cards.
Qaleed’s pooplosion episode
This deserves a post of it’s own, to be honest. The three of us were contentedly indulging in our bowl of freshly made ramen noodles after a super long day when Qaleed decided that it was time to produce something fresh of his own (poop guys, it was poop). We were actually relieved because he hadn’t pooped in two days. We finished up what was left of our meals before commencing on a baby room hunt. After walking for a few hundred meters and entering several train stations, and department stores, we still couldn’t find ourselves a baby room. And the smell was getting more and more pungent by the minute. I suggested that we take the train to the main station where there will definitely be a baby room, but Hafiz said he couldn’t bear the thought of putting other people in misery by trapping them in a train with a diaper full of poop.
And so we walked, and walked, and walked until we finally found a baby room at one of the many department stores in Shinjuku. But we were too late. Much to our dismay, Qaleed had pooped so much that some of it had oozed out of his diapers and got on his pants. And if you think things couldn’t get any worse, we hadn’t packed any extra pants for Mr Poopypants. Thank God we were at a department store, right? Nope. That particular department store didn’t have a children section. It was just one thing after another… We ended up carrying our pants-less two year old around Shinjuku before finally stumbling upon a Uniqlo. It was already dark by then, and it was raining, and utterly cold, but our half naked son still managed to fall asleep in the midst of the whole fiasco. The parents on the other hand were completely distraught.
Lesson learned: always, I repeat, always, bring a set of extra clothes for your kid. Do it until they turn 30 (JK. Maybe.. I don’t know.).
Hafiz’s hypothermia attack
Hafiz has always had a low tolerance for cold weather and/or surroundings. This trip was actually his first time experiencing winter. Due to the fact that it was almost spring time, we hadn’t invested in a proper winter jacket for Hafiz as we thought that it wouldn’t be that cold by the time we arrived. But the first few days of our arrival were in fact quite chilly, and the fact that it rained for two days without a halt didn’t make things easier for him. On our third day in Tokyo, Hafiz had somehow developed hypothermia, something I thought was only possible to get when exposed to a blizzard and/or extreme climates. We’re convinced that our irregular eating schedules and us getting frequently wet from the rain played a big part of it.
It started with Hafiz shivering uncontrollably even when he’s all wrapped up in a thick blanket with the heater on full blast. We thought a hot bath would help, but it didn’t (and we only found out later that you’re not supposed to immerse yourself in hot water when experiencing hypothermia). Throughout the whole night Hafiz fell in and out of sleep, and suffered mild hallucinations. Things started to get rather scary when he started murmuring gibberish, and talking about not surviving the night. I stayed awake most of the night, forcing him to drink mug after mug of hot water and feeding him various types of food from time to time. The hypothermia attack thankfully only lasted the night – although Hafiz did suffer through some mild side effects the next morning.
Lesson learned: Probably everything there is to know about hyperthermia. That, and Hafiz’s tolerance for cold weather is lower than we expected.
We left for Disneyland without Qaleed’s formula milk
… and survived!
We had already arrived at the train station near Disneyland when we realised the horrific mistake we had just made. Qaleed was already crying for a bottle, and the both of us just paced back and forth at the station lobby frantically thinking of what to do. Our apartment is an hour away so going back means we’ll lose two hours of our Disneyland time, and we were already late as it is, hence turning back is not an option. The nearest supermarket was 13 kilometres away, and we couldn’t afford (and didn’t want) to spend so much on a cab. The Disney enthusiast within me got the best of me, and I shamelessly teared thinking about all the things and fun I’m about to miss out on. I was on the verge of losing hope when Hafiz suggested that we buy fresh milk from the convenience store as a substitute.
And that was exactly what we did. Qaleed knew something was amiss, but also knew that it was the only choice he had so he submitted, and just accepted what was offered. Lucky for us the baby room at Disneyland had a milk warmer. We had also packed a bunch of Qaleed’s favorite snacks along so we used those to keep him distracted, and his stomach full. But then again, Disneyland was distraction enough as Qaleed had barely asked for milk whilst we were there. Phew!
Lesson learned: Always pack your baby bag the night before, and double check a million and one times.
Fat swollen ankles
A day before our Disneyland trip, I started feeling throbbing pains on one of my ankles. Didn’t think much of it and thought that it would be gone by the time I woke up, but the unpleasant sensations had in fact worsen the next morning. Obviously I wasn’t going to let it come in the way of the happiest place on earth and I. I stubbornly persisted through the injury, and spent the whole day mostly standing up and/or walking (more like limping). The majority of said day was also spent carrying a 12-kilogram child whilst queuing for multiple rides.
Needless to say, I overworked my already injured ankle to the core, and had also managed to injure the other one in the process. Yes, I woke up the next morning to not one, but two elephant sized ankles. I could hardly walk, as I couldn’t put any weight on either one of my ankles without being in agony. It got so bad that we had no choice but to give our day trip to Mount Fuji a pass /sobs.
Lesson learned: I want to say listen to your body, and take things slow, but come on, it’s Japan! But if you happen to injure your ankles like I did, just head to the nearest pharmacy and get yourself some heat patches, and ankle guards.
You know what? It is okay if things don’t go exactly like how you have planned. From our personal experience, these accidental ‘tragedies’ are the things that make our trips more memorable than they should be. They also make the best stories to reminisce and laugh about with your other family and friends.
Just be free in the now, and view your decisions as the best decision you can make in the moment. What happens next and how it turns out, doesn’t matter. No expectations.
I for one can’t wait to tell Qaleed about his pooplosion episode when he’s older!