Vacation

Going overseas for vacation formed a significant part of Kenneth's and Eileen's lives. Living in an island called Singapore, through overseas travel, they realized that their view of life expanded and they learnt a lot about life, culture and people.

Now that they have children, traveling became even more important because they strongly believe that children benefited the most from these trips. In fact, Kenneth and Eileen set aside significant amount of resources to ensure that Kendrick and Karis travel for vacation as part of their growing up experiences.

Select a destination:


Japan

Destination 1 - Tokyo

Cost:	Our overall expenditure was around S$5,000 because there were two free adult tickets from mileage claims.
Date:	28 October - 6 November 06.

Day 1 :	We took an early morning flight and arrived at Tokyo about mid afternoon. We rested and proceeded for dinner. Our hotel was located opposite Shinagawa station which made our traveling very convenient. In the evening, we visited the Tokyo Tower.
Day 2 :	Today, we visited Ginza, the shopping area in Tokyo. The place was buzzing with shoppers and we visited Sony building as well. In the afternoon, we made our way to a traditional Japanese Sunday market known as 'Asakusa'. There were many traditional Japanese souvenirs on sales and we had our lunch there as well. In the evening, we went to Shinjuku, another shopping area for dinner as well as visited Takashimaya Shopping Center.
Day 3 :	Today is the day for Kendrick and Karis because we are going to Tokyo Disneyland. It was an enjoyable and memorable day for them as we watched the morning Halloween parade, took rides on Peter Pan, Snow White and even got to meet Snow White herself. For Karis, it was her dream came true, as Snow White was her favorite Disney character. We also took the trouble to look for the 'Chip and Dale' popcorn bucket for the kids. Chip and Dale are also favorite Disney characters for the kids. After dinner, we proceeded to watch the Electricity Parade. It was an eye opener for my family. The night ended with my kids totally exhausted and they fell asleep in the pram one on top of the other. Kenneth and Eileen then took the train back with them on toll. It was a trip worth going even though the Park was crowded and Kenneth and Eileen managed to catch only the children rides. But the kids were overjoyed taking these rides and munching popcorn.
Day 4 :	We took a day tour to Nikko, famous for the autumn leaves. As the place was huge in the middle of the forest, Kendrick and Karis had great time playing 'Catching' during the trip. The outing was present and we got to visit a Japanese temple, Lake Chuzenji and saw many autumn leaves. We bought bento boxes for dinner in the evening.
Day 5 :	This is the day for our kids again as we visit Tokyo DisneySea. The park is bigger and newer with lesser crowd. We took various rides leisurely, managed to catch the morning water parade and got to meet Pinocchio as well. One of the highlights for us was the 'Little Mermaid' performance. For this trip, we managed to convince Kendrick to take the Indiana Jones ride, which he did. After dinner, we managed to secure a place to watch the evening water performance and fireworks. It was so amazing to see a metallic fiery sea dragon emerged from the lake. We ended the day happy with Kendrick and Karis exhausted and slept on the pram one on top of the other. We had a better experience compared to Tokyo Disneyland as we covered the five worlds with ease. We also enjoyed the different flavors of popcorn like sea salt and chocolate.
Day 6 :	Today, we make our way to Hakone, a resort village. On our way, we stopped over at the Mt Fuji fifth station. We were glad that the weather was good and we could take pictures with the peak behind us. Following that, we took a cruise on Lake Ashi followed by a cable car to the mountaintop to view Mt Fuji from a distance. Due to the cloudy weather, we could not see the mountain peak. The next day, we explored the resort followed by taking a river paddle boat and a visit to the lalang field and glass museum. In the late afternoon, we managed to reach the cable car station next to a live volcano emitting smoke and took the cable car to the local train station. When we reached the designated station, we proceed to the bullet train station. This was the highlight of the trip for Kendrick, as he has wanted very much to ride on the fastest train in the world. Of course, he enjoyed the trip and asked many questions during the ride. We managed to reach Tokyo city at night with the kids totally exhausted.
Day 7 :	Today is a shopping day for Eileen as we visited Shibuya, Harajuku, Oriental Bazaar and Omotesando. After lunch, we made our way to Yoyogi Park where we witnessed many street singers and dancers performing at the park for visitors. We returned to our hotel and visited the aquarium and watched the dolphin and sea lion show.
Day 8 :	We continued our shopping trip at Ueno Park and proceeded to Shinjuku again to have our dinner at a famous Japanese restaurant at Takashimaya Shopping Center.
Day 9 :	We woke up early to visit the world famous Tsukjii Fish Market. The Fish Market was an eye opener for all of us as we saw fishes and sea creatures of difference sizes and features. Our most interesting discovery was the tuna that was larger in size than Karis. After our sushi breakfast, we made our way back to the hotel to pack our luggage for home.