Japan trip, Part 1

Dear Maya,

We made it! We're in Japan! Here is the breakdown of our trip so far:

January 29th-30th
Uncle Matt drove us to the airport at 6am to catch our first flight. It was only a few hours and you were pretty well-behaved. Then we had a short layover and rushed to our gate on the other side of the airport. Our flight to Tokyo was over 12 hours and you only slept for about 2 and a half hours of that. The rest of the time you spent snacking, watching videos, jumping on your seat, plastering stickers everywhere and whining. Thankfully there were no prolonged tantrums, but you were still a handful. We were so glad to arrive!

Tired as we were we still had to exchange some money, send the bulk of our luggage to Nagasaki, and take a train for an hour to get to Shinjuku. There we walked about 10 minutes to our hotel, during which time you fell asleep and became much heavier and harder to carry. Once there we put you right to bed and went to sleep shortly afterwards ourselves even though it was only about 6pm. Jet lag got the best of you and we were awake again at 1:30am until about 6am, when we went back to sleep for a few hours. Whew!

January 31st
Once we were really awake for the day we headed out to explore (and get mommy some much-needed coffee!) We walked to and around the nearby park and took in the sights--skyscrapers, flowers and sculptures. We got back to the hotel and shortly afterwards went to the restaurant downstairs. There we had lunch with 3 of your great-aunts and great-uncles. Later we all took a nap, played, watched TV and admired our awesome view of Mt. Fuji. That night we had dinner with your Aunt Rimi. It was a full day!

February 1st
We took a bus to the airport and arrived early enough to catch an earlier flight than the one we were scheduled for. You were very rambunctious on the flight and we were so thankful there were several other kids on board. When we arrived in Nagasaki you had apple juice all over you,  needed a diaper change and were screaming your head off. What a great first impression for your loving grandparents who came to pick us up! Once you were in the car you were pretty good for the hour and a half ride to their house.

February 2nd
After going to bed pretty early, we were up and ready to go out and explore. Our main objective for the day was to go buy your grandparents a new laptop, and once that was accomplished we went to a famous local site--the Spectacles Bridge in Isahaya. There we trekked all the way up the hill to a clearing that was surrounded by beautiful old moss-covered trees and rocks. On our way back down we also walked through the adjacent shrine. Finally we checked out the mini-version of the bridge before heading home.

Well, off to make more memories! Love you!