Meticulous planning, months and months of making bookings, changing the itinerary, and apologising profusely to various Japanese establishments when changing and/or cancelling bookings has culminated in this, our fourth family trip to Japan. Again, why go back? There is almost literally an entire world out there which we haven't explored, so why do we keep on going back to Japan? A country which, let’s be honest, we’ve seen our fair share of. When t...

I'm currently sitting in the Cathay Pacific Reef Lounge at Cairns International Airport. I must say, compared to sitting in the crowded and limited food court just outside, this isn't half bad. A full bar, and a selection of cold meats, cheeses, dips, fruits, breads and other nibbles I didn't pay much attention to was a welcome distraction in the 4 hour wait for the connecting flight. Feeling fairly drowsy at this point. I've been officially "out of bed" for 9 ...

So we're heading back to Japan. Since booking it in August, I must admit the holiday has come around fast. Having Christmas, New Years and half a dozen birthdays in between might have had something to do with that. Lots of people have asked why we're going back to Japan. Not surprisingly, nobody that has been over there have asked that question. To be honest, I'm not sure why we're going back. Is it to see the sights we haven't seen yet? Yes, partially. Is it no...

The trip is officially underway. Japan here we come. Eventually. Firstly, to anyone actually reading this, let me apologise for all of the inevitable typo's. I'll be typing these blog posts up on my trusty Eeepc 901, which is fine except for the fact that the entire keyboard isn't much bigger than a drink coaster, and my fingers aren't what you'd call dainty. I've already used delete key more than all of the other keys combined and I'm only on the 3rd paragraph...

Awoke to a decent downpour. Luckily a shuttlebus service was operating but unluckily it had the worst driver ever to obtain temporary citizenship (or enter the country illegally. Either seems feasible). Nice guy though. He gave me a $5 discount for some reason, so that made up for the mortal fear for my family's life. We decided to forgo the $13 continental breakfast at the F1 motel, and get gouged at the airport instead. All went smoothly through check in. We ma...