Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Why?

When my husband and I were trying to decide where to go for dinner on our 8th wedding anniversary, we decided that for our 10th anniversary we should go away, just the two of us, for a weekend to someplace romantice. A few weeks later, we got pregnant with Natsuki (Coincidence? I think not!) and even then, one of the first things I tried to figure out was how old would she be on our 10th anniversary. Could we still go away? She would be one year and three months. Yes! It would probably be fine.

Last year, we started defining the trip more. Where would we like to go? We narrowed it down to Guam or Okinawa. Both destinations were short plane trips (we didn't want to waste time flying), tropical and romantic, etc. Due to Gina's reports on her trips there, I decided that I wanted to go to Guam because it had the added benefit of feeling like being in the States (Taco Bell here we come). Perfect! Chikara was really up for anything so over the summer that became our plan.

Then last month I started to research how much the trip would cost and it looked pretty affordable so yesterday we started making calls to reserve airline tickets and this is where the dream turned into a nightmare.

Our anniversary is on November 15th, which is a relatively cheap time to fly since there are no national holidays. We decided to go from a Monday to a Wednesday to avoid the extra charges of going on a weekend. BUT, the cheap flights (JAL ANA) to Guam from Osaka-Kansai International Airport leave at 9:40pm and arrive in Guam at 2am (!). The returning flight leaves at 3:55am and arrives at 6:35am. Seriously, this is a WTF moment. If we left on Monday and returned on Wednesday, we would only be in Guam for 26 hours. The more reasonably timed flight (NWA) costs a lot more and is therefore too ridiculous. Sigh...

Our other option would be to go a day early but that would mean that our kids would spend three nights away from us. Now my friends have volunteered to watch our kids, which made me feel so good because either they really like our kids or they really like us, but three whole nights watching two extra kids can be a lot and I don't want to impose upon their good graces. I might want to do this again!

So I guess we're going to look at going to Okinawa. Hopefully there will be no surprises there.

8 comments:

Heidi said...

Awww! What a letdown. But maybe your friends really would not mind just 1 more night.

Gina's posts on Guam are really something. I keep telling my hubs that we should go too.

Tigermama said...

If you come to Okinawa, check if there is a special at the Marriott hotel. It is an awesome hotel with heated outdoor pools that are open all year round. It is one of the only places that keep the pools open after October! We found a deal there for the off-season that was 10,000 yen per night (per person) and included breakfast. I know it`s still expensive but it`s such a gorgeous hotel that it`s totally worth it! Also, it`s located in the North of the island, near the aquarium and lots of beautiful beaches/hikes. There are also lots of plane/hotel packages to Okinawa. My mil actually booked one of these once when coming to see us because the flight was way cheaper than if she had booked the flight only. Let me know if I can help you with anything!

Gina said...

Oh no Sarah, that's a real bummer and a half. I'm so sorry to hear that. I had no idea the other airlines, like ANA and such, fly at such wonky times out of KIX to Guam (I'm sorry). And NWA flights are really high to Guam, right now? Curses on them! Ha ha ha.: ) No specials? Man, that sucks! Too bad you can't extend it another day and go to Guam. But then I know how it is with kids. Besides, I think Okinawa sounds beautiful, gorgeous and everything else! What matters most is the time away you and Chikara will get in the end anyway (which I am sure you know that, lol) Thinking positively and I *know* no matter where you go, you two will have a romantic getaway no matter what the destination is.

Kim said...

Oh, Sarah! I really hope it all works out for you both to get away! It would be so fun for you, I'm sure. I haven't been to Guam or Okinawa, but they both sound so great! I look forward to hearing how the trip plans go!

Anonymous said...

this vacation is reminding me of your fabulous vacation to Victoria, remember? Either you two should never take vacations, or you don't take enough vacations, and you need more vacation skills......

Anonymous said...

Taco Bell.

MMmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....

Hannah said...

I was talking to a lady in my office today about Taco Bell and I couldn't stop thinking about it for TWO HOURS! Remember when you were pregnant with Misaki and we used to walk to the Taco Bell a few blocks from our apartment? Good times...

Christelle said...

You SHOULD get away. My husband and I went on a honeymoon to Langkawi, Malaysia. We used my airmiles (got us both to Thailand first class and then we used a discount airline- Air Asia). It was only 20 000 airmiles per person to Thailand and I can do that in two trips home! We had less than a week off and spent only two full days on the island, but man was it worth it! Honestly. Make sure you go somewhere. Think outside the box on how to get there- use airmiles if you can or leave it to destiny and see what discounts they're offering to various places on the days you want to travel. Sometimes there are awesome deals to Hawaii or Bali or Thailand. If you go somewhere like Thailand, you can also get your hotel cheaper too. If you use airmiles, then you only have to worry about your hotel. On my blog are links to some useful travel planning websites. I spent hours trying to find a way to go on a honeymoon with only a few days of and basically no money. If I can do it, you can too! Good luck!
http://canadianinjapan.blogspot.com/