She Said:

Departure Day:
The journey home began in Shanghai at 5:15 a .m. The alarm went off, and we quietly said goodbye to The Kerry Residence and our friends, the Hurtados. Thankfully, they enlisted Wu to take us to the airport so we didn't have to mess with any cabs, shuttles, trains, or metros. Given the relentless amount of traffic we sat in during our two weeks in China, we left plenty of time to get to the airport. Of course, there was no traffic this morning, and we were one of maybe three people going through security.

We arrived at the gate with an hour and 30 mins until boarding. After one you-woke-me-up-too-early meltdown, Sebastian was pretty much a dream child for the remainder of the day.

The First Leg: Shanghai to Tokyo on Japan Airlines
As soon as we boarded the plane, we knew the booster seat was going to be an issue. Six flight attendants, iPads with Japanese regulations, and a few phone calls later, they determined that Japan Airlines would not allow us to use his seat, and they promptly gate checked it . He was happier than a clam to be in a big boy seat with hardly any restraint.

After this, the service was amazing. The "lady" hooked Sebastian up with headphones and put on a movie for him before we took off. They brought hot towels before the meal was served, and when Sebastian cried for less than a minute after touching something too hot, they were there with ice before we even knew it. He took a catnap but woke up to a crying baby two rows ahead of us.

Prior to landing, one of the flight attendants in the booster seat fiasco came to apologize for the 100th time. In her broken English she asked, "While we looking at chair you take photo. What was the purpose of your photo?" Chad said, "It was funny." The same flight attendant came back when the plane landed and insisted on taking our bags to the gate. When we deplaned, there was a typed sign with my name on it to remind me to pick up the infamous booster seat, and they all waved goodbye from the gangplank . We were no longer in China.

Japan established itself very quickly as organized and orderly in just two hours at the airport. The layover was easy. Sebastian was treated to a kids play area and pictures with geisha-looking women while mommy and daddy enjoyed some mediocre sake (hey, when in Japan!) before boarding for LAX.

Next Leg, Tokyo to LAX:
This was the long flight, and our seats were the last row of the plane, of course. The flight attendant was so nice and offered to take Sebastian for a cockpit tour. I'm not going to lie, this was one of those times I was glad Sebastian wouldn't go anywhere without me. I think I was as excited as him. But he was over the moon when the pilot offered him his seat and told him to "fly the plane". He told daddy when we got back to our seats, "Bubba drive the airplane."

Again, thanks to Finding Nemo, Seb was entertained for the first few hours . He then proceeded to sleep the next seven hours and woke up with only 20 minutes remaining in the flight. I seriously checked him five times to make sure he was breathing. That same baby that woke him on the first flight almost woke him again, but thankfully, he slept through it.

Final Leg, LAX to Denver:
LAX is a huge airport. Two buses and countless people movers later, we got to the gate with a few hours to wait. This was a smaller plane, and of course, shorter duration flight. But, Sebastian stepped up to the plate and slept again for almost the entire thing. Truth be told, as brutal as three legs of a flight itinerary are, it helps to spread it out and offer running around time followed by potential nap time. We landed at DIA and took a deep breath. We made it home.

Final Thoughts: 
I had a great time. I am proud of us for making this happen. I am proud of us for going somewhere out of our comfort zone. All things pointed to the fact that maybe we shouldn't go: finances, people's advice/warnings, concerns for health and safety, extremely long flights, etc . But, we stayed the course, and I think deep down, we knew that no matter what happened we would handle it together, which is exactly what we did.

We were just so ecstatic to be traveling again with passports, and it couldn't have come at a better time for us. I don't judge anyone for not traveling with his or her kids. It's harder and quite exhausting much of the time. But for me, every ounce of extra energy, good or bad, was worth it. 

One of the only things better than the gift of traveling with your partner is traveling with and seeing sights through your kid's innocent and unbiased eyes. I appreciate the Chinese culture so much more now that I've been there. I feel more tolerant of a culture’s customs that in the past I haven't appreciated very much. I still do not enjoy many of them, but I find that I now have patience and understanding since I know that this is just their way. There is no other way in China.

I will continue to enjoy the wonderful memories we made this summer for a long time and make an album for Sebastian to look back on when he gets older . I would like to extend a most heartfelt thank you to JP, Carolina, Tomy, and Vicky for being such wonderful hosts and gracious ambassadors. You helped make our trip wonderful and we are forever indebted to you. "She-she!"

Next trip…..we'll just have to wait and see. But now that we know Sebastian travels well, the world is our oyster!

Sebastian Said:

About the flights - "Go on three airplanes."
About the 777 - "Bo-ba drive the airplane."
About the movie on the flights – “Find Nemo.”
About arriving in Denver – “We made it. See Grandma.”

He Said:

The moment we stepped onto the Japan Airlines plane, everything changed. For as much as a nation's airline can represent its culture, I suppose you could say the difference between mainland China and a JAL jet could be a case study. The crew was overly polite and by-the-book, especially when they sensed our frustration over the drama that became Sebastian’s booster seat . Moral of the story? It was funny more than anything.

At the Tokyo airport we were greeted by two Geisha women and two cold bottles of sake. Maybe it was our drive to keep going, to keep exploring, but I instantly attached myself to the idea of touring Japan. After all, our first dip into Asia has been so great, I think we were both interested in learning more – especially while Sebastian is of the age when he’s the center of attention in many Asian cultures.

China. Not really what I expected, while at the same time being exactly what I expected. We look at them through the lens of pooping and peeing in a hole with splashed-on ankles. They look at us through the lens of why would you share a toilet seat with everyone else (don’t kid yourself with those flimsy paper things, guys). We think they’re communists, but in reality, in many ways they’re more capitalism-driven then we are. They think we’re the nation of cars when we’re making a push for more bicycles. They’re a nation of bicycles morphed into exponential ownership of cars. They don’t have road rage because there’s no façade of pretending to obey the rules. Everyone knows that no one will follow them, so no one gets mad. Personal space isn’t really important, or at least its importance is ignored. They have cities that are far more advanced and with a level of infrastructure that we could only dream of in the United States because they have the conviction to develop their infrastructure.

At the same time, there are immigrants in those cities from the outer reaches of China who are earning paychecks much greater than they could at home. They’re sending that money back to their impoverished families while the citizens in the eastern cities live the good life. There are even major sections of those cities dedicated to western businesses with corporate apartments that put NYC rents to shame. It is truly a nation of dichotomies unlike I’ve ever personally experienced.

The Chinese people. They are happy and helpful, curious about westerners, especially western children. They love fresh fruit juices, including watermelon, which quickly became a Stamm family favorite. The food is fantastic. There is this particular smell I will always associate with China, a certain spice and taste that was in the hot pot potato chips, as well as many of the dishes we ate. The traditional tiling will always be a vision in my mind, especially in Suzhou with the charcoal-colored roofs and whitish-colored buildings. The deafening sound of the summer cicadas and Wushifu’s van music will always be my China soundtrack.

It’s important to me to find things out on my own, to see things with my own eyes and formulate my own opinions. I’m glad I did this in China because it’s not what you think it is, even though it’s exactly what you think it is. I’m glad I didn’t take a lot of expectations to heart, especially when those expectations were provided by assumptions and opinions not rooted in first-hand knowledge. At the end of the day, that’s why we travel. That’s why I’m an avid supporter and volunteer for the Rotary Youth Exchange program. We should all do this, especially young people. That’s why we put ourselves out there in new and often uncomfortable situations where we don’t know what to expect, where we don’t know the language or customs, where the belief systems are vastly different from our own. That’s how we grow as people and ultimately as societies.

(New People and Places + an Open Mind) > (Ignoring the World + Taking Everyone Else’s Word)

We always said we’d still travel regardless of whether or not we had a child in tow, and in fact, having Sebastian only deepened our experience and opened doors to more interaction with the locals. This was something I actually expected based on my friends' first-hand knowledge. It was amazing to watch him adapt and enjoy. He was curious. He was joyful. He was enthusiastic. He was a great addition to the Challi touring experience, and I’m only looking forward to showing him more, to letting him form his own opinions and find his own avenues of fulfillment, regardless of what those things are.

After the last several years of no international travel, it was also great for us as individuals and as a family to get back out there and do what we really love doing. It was a reminder that we really should live every day – even at home in our day-to-day lives – like we’re traveling. We should always look for new places and experiences to share with the ones we love. We should learn something new about the people we don’t know much about, even in our own cities. We should slow down and eat; try something new at our favorite restaurants. We should be punctual so we don’t miss things, and always consider “tomorrow’s tour” so we set ourselves up to get the most out of it. In the end, these are the things that make us happier when traveling, so why should we ignore them at home?

Thank you to the Hurtados for making this an amazing trip. JP, it's always great to share the birthdays. Caro, you are an amazing travel guide and ambassador. Vicky, I'm expecting great things out of you and your Chinese language skills! Tomy, it was fun to see you open up, and I'll miss the bear hugs! It was also great seeing Frank, Darrah, and Brea. Stay in touch everyone! Ganbei!