You can hear the voice recording for the diary.
暦上は年末だけど、年末感はまったくない。
Even though today was the last day of the year, it didn’t really feel like it.
いつも通り、子どもと新幹線に乗って電車を見てきた。今回の冬休みから新しく追加されたルーティン、上野駅で新幹線を見てからのさいたま新都心駅で在来線の鑑賞。
As usual, I went to watch the trains in Tokyo with my son. This winter vacation, we added a new routine—watching the Shinkansen at Ueno Station before heading to Saitama-Shintoshin Station to see regular trains.
最繁忙期なので、上下線が４分おきに来るので、待っているという実感がない。新幹線を見送っていれば、また次の新幹線がひっきりなしにやってくる。子供にとっても、わたしにとっても楽しい場所である。
Since this was one of the busiest travel seasons of the year, a Shinkansen arrived at the station every four minutes on both lines. In other words, there was never a moment without a train. For train lovers like us, Ueno Station was an exciting place to be.
帰りは、大宮駅で今晩、家族みんなで食べるドーナツを買って帰った。けど、新幹線が思っている以上に混んでいてびっくり。通路はおろか、デッキまで立ち客が出る繁忙期の新幹線にはじめて乗車した。
On the way home, we picked up donuts for dinner to share with my siblings. I was surprised by how crowded the Shinkansen was—it was much more packed than we had expected. This was my first time riding a Shinkansen with such heavy congestion, with people standing in both the aisles and at the ends of the cars.
ドーナツはあるし、子供は抱っこしてほしいっていうし、とてもつかれた。でも、通路で立っていると、席を譲ろうと提案してくれた人が２組もいて、温かみを感じた。子供がいるのも悪くない。
I was exhausted during the ride because I had donuts in one hand, and my son kept asking me to hold my arm. However, some of the seated passengers kindly offered us their seats, which warmed my heart. Having a child isn’t so bad after all.
To be continued.
