More camping thoughts

Time for contemplation

I have some other random thoughts about camping that didn't make it into yesterday's summary.

It was great to see Japanese families out camping together. It is easy to generalise about how bad a state Japanese families are and how bad fathers are at being with their families. It was, therefore, really lovely to see dads out camping with their families.

We had two older guys camping on the next plot to ours. They did little else except talk! From dawn to past dusk. A short silence while they fell asleep, then they snored! But it occurred to me as I lay in the tent that the noise wasn't much more than at home in Tokyo. Actually we don't hear much of the neighbours here, despite being only centimetres from houses on both sides. In summer with all the windows open our bedroom is the place when we hear the most noise at night-time. Often we hear conversations and occasionally an older lady going off about something! Usually at about 9.45 we hear a man blowing his nose very loudly, probably in the bathroom.

It was very satisfying seeing our most conservative child relax and enjoy camping. He doesn't cope with new experiences easily. On this occasion his biggest beef was the insects, but that faded as the time went on. Actually you could tell we have city kids who don't have a backyard to play in. As soon as the tent went up they were inside. They weren't really sure what to do with "the great outdoors" that surrounded them. Again, that improved a little over the two days. We're hoping that next time they'll be even more bold in exploring and enjoying the outdoors.

Next time it won't be as new an experience, the boys (and their parents) will know more of what to expect and we'll be starting to establish a routine. Our kids are always easier to handle when they're in a routine and not confronting different experiences. I know they are already looking forward to the BBQ and cooking marshmallows and Doughboys again! 

This is what I slept on!

I'm know I'm looking forward to it, we just need to find me a more comfortable sleeping mattress. Just a plain old air-bed would do, but we haven't found a single single air-bed yet!