The Trip That Wasn't

This is a long holiday weekend here so we decided to take the bullet train to Osaka.  But first we planned to spend the night in the Tokyo Station Hotel, which I first mentioned here.

They've finished the construction on the hotel and it is rather swanky.  We had wanted to order Domino's Pizza delivery for dinner (we can only get it in Tokyo and it's the only real American pizza we can get over here period) but once we got there we decided we would feel like a couple of teenage rednecks having a pizza delivery.  Plus it was one of those places where they would've left it at the front desk and I already felt like the front desk staff was giving us the stink-eye.

At any rate, here are some more photos (courtesy Chad).  No, I didn't get any of our room.

completed station & hotel

very incongruous to the left

the dome in the main part of the station

more dome

So...how was Osaka, you ask?  Well, I don't know.  We never made it that far.  Chad and I smacked head-long into the realization that we can no longer travel as we used to when we were awake between 11pm and 3am trying to convince Cora-chan that she could sleep in a strange place. 

Yes, I know we're fools.

For the record, after we returned from the US holiday trip, I launched a sleep-training regimen with her that has been wonderfully successful.  She now naps and sleeps exclusively in her crib (in her room) and is capable of both putting herself to sleep and keeping herself that way throughout the night (with one scheduled feeding -- for the moment).  It's freed up a lot of my time that previously was spent rocking and soothing and keeps us from tiptoeing around the house trying not to make any noise while she naps.  I consider it one of my greatest achievements.

Or rather I considered it a great achievement until I realized that she can't keep herself asleep anywhere else yet.  Add that to the fact that we took a late train and didn't get to the hotel until just after bedtime.  At which point Cora was absolutely wild-eyed with all the disruption to our normal routine.

I wish I had gotten some photos of our room.  It had lovely high ceilings that echoed nicely when she let loose her newly acquired banshee shriek.  And there was a beautiful chandelier over our bed that I'm sure she would've been swinging from were she able.

So by 4am we were discussing packing it in and heading home which while boring, is a place where everyone is guaranteed to be well-rested.  Also, for the record, I would've been willing to stick it out and go on to Osaka and be sleep-deprived and potentially miserable for three days but Chad was a little more gobsmacked than I was and wanted to beat a hasty retreat and regroup.

Next time (oh yes, there will be a next time --we're beaten but not broken) we are going to try just staying in a Tokyo hotel for a night with some better scheduling and a new plan.  (In case you're wondering I did have sense enough to take as many "sleep association" things as possible and try to implement the same routine as at home.....it did not help at all whatsoever).

But we will not be staying at the Tokyo Station Hotel.  It was beautiful and I would recommend it.....just not if you are traveling with kids.

Yes, I know we're fools.