In this series…
To make the childless summer happen, we dropped off the kids in early July, and picked them back up mid-August. That required a couple round trips to New York. While there, we also did a road trip down to DC. It had always been great to hangout with family. After the extended COVID lock-down, it was extra sweet to see our folks again. On top of that, there were now new members in the family that we got to meet.
A ton happened during our two trips to the East Coast. I’ll summarize a few most notable memories:
Family
Our family, from New York to New Jersey to Virginia, were the focus of these trips. It was so nice to be with them. What we did precisely didn’t matter so much.
Friends
Most of the people we knew from the first 30 years of our lives live on the East Coast, so every trip back east came with some regret of not being able to meet up with many of them. On the last day, though, we managed to hangout with Yana/Justin and Nancy/Will. Each family grew by 1 during the pandemic, so there was someone new to meet as well.
The pandemic lock down made every human encounter extra precious, and being with these friends brought us back to the younger days.
Rain
Asian parents love telling their children that they don’t know how good they have it in life. In the case of our California-born girls, they have no idea what bad weather is.
Our first chance to say “See? This is what real rain is” was a moment even the locals would be concerned. Along with Vic’s family, we were in Flushing buying some food to bring home. Then the downpour happened. Initially we thought we could wait it out, but 30 minutes later it was still showing no sign of slowing down. Brian decided to retrieve the van anyway – and he was right about the rain not stopping – and I went with him. The garage was half a mile away, and it was a journey in that condition.
We had no umbrella, but one wouldn’t have made a difference anyway. We were drenched within a couple seconds, and both our heads of COVID hair soaked up quite a bit of weight. Streets and sidewalks were flooded, and intersections often had ankle-deep puddles. Drainage pipes from the buildings were shooting out jets of water horizontally. Visibility was terrible without wipers for my glasses. I started shivering.
After finally reaching the van, going back to pick up the family was a whole new journey because of the traffic gridlock the rain had caused. It took forever to go that half mile, and thankfully there was a spot that allowed everyone to get on with minimal dashing through the rain. The roads were severely flooded, and even the freeway had some lane closures.
Heat
Just like how it doesn’t rain, Northern California never gets hot, either. We regularly make fun of the girls when they complain about the sun, but the truth is we have also become heat wimps ourselves.
Aside from the afternoon of downpour, the East Coast summer was unbearably hot. The most memorable though had to be the day when my side of the family visited the National Zoo in DC. The zoo itself, of course, was outdoors exposed to the sun. Adding to the experience was the decision to get lunch at Wooboi in Alexandria. It was a trendy friend chicken sandwich joint offering multiple spiciness levels, and my siblings had plenty to say about their tolerance or the lack thereof. So there we were, three generations of Hou family eating the hottest fried chicken we thought we could handle, at noon in mid-August, under the sun surrounded by concrete because the restaurant’s outdoor space had limited shading.
Swim
Hong and I did not bring swim suits or get in any pool this summer. The kids, on the other hand, went from zero to something under Grandma’s leadership. After several weeks of introductory lessons, they actually managed to swim a little of several styles! We were impressed.
New York
We spent our last night in Midtown Manhattan. After checking in to the hotel, we all agreed to a walk. We went downstairs without an agenda, but were instinctively drawn toward the Times Square lights. The kids were completely mesmerized, and even Ting did not complain about walking 12 blocks or the massive COVID-unfriendly crowd. When we stopped through here late 2019, I hoped the kids would fall for the same NYC “magic” that we loved, but was disappointed by their utter indifference. That spark arrived this time around, and I was really happy to see it.
Flights
Memories of the flights fell into two distinct categories. The first was the outbound trip. We flew mid-week red-eye on the back of the plane. Nothing to rave about, but it was also the first time in 18 months any of us had been on a plane, and oh boy we missed it. The deprivation of travel had been tough for everyone, and the uncertainties around when we could go where again was especially difficult to deal with. Now with travel being possible again, albeit just domestically, was a reminder to be grateful. Even waiting at the gate felt like such a blessing. I wouldn’t pretend to have slept well during the flight, but there was so much joy just being in the air, that it was one of the best domestic flights in many years.
The return trip was another story. Thanks to loads of expiring Cathay miles (that should have gone toward our 10-year anniversary trip), we booked the entire family in AA’s Flagship Business class from JFK to SFO. I had to burn those miles, though my main concern was exposing our children to unnecessary luxury at such young age… the thought actually bothered me the whole summer. When should I tell them? How should I explain business class to them? How much do I need to say “do not expect this in the future”? Most of all, I was afraid they’d randomly tell family or friends about flying on odd-looking lie-flat seats, and end up having people judge us as a spoiled wasteful family. It was comical.
The kids ended up being super chill about it. They had been to plenty of airport lounges already, so that’s that. Extra legroom meant little to them when their feet couldn’t even touch the seat back in economy class. If anything, having to use the entertainment remote control instead of touch screen required a bit of a learning curve.
After six hours of acting completely normal, Xuan finally acknowledged the business class being a unique experience. “Baba, the flight was very nice,” she said, as we off boarded the plane.
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