My Younger Daughter and the Expressway

The other day, I drove on the expressway to visit the family graves, a monthly ritual for me. Recently, I’ve been taking my 2-year-old younger daughter along, but during the trip she keeps saying things like “I’m hungry,” “I need to pee,” “I want juice,” so every time we stop at an SA or PA, it takes extra time—about one and a half times longer than when I go alone (it’s really a hassle, lol).

However, it seems my younger daughter likes visiting the graves; she helps clean them and pours water, and when leaving she waves and says “Grandpa, Grandma, we’ll come again~”. Seeing that is heartwarming even to me as a parent… I think, “If I don’t bring her every time, our ancestors would surely be disappointed, lol.” So lately, I always take her along.

In this way, having SAs and PAs conveniently placed along Japan’s expressways is a huge blessing when traveling with a toddler.

Especially the newer SAs are so clean and varied, it’s like a fusion of an Aeon Mall food court and a convenience store, and just entering one lifts your spirits. What’s especially appreciated when traveling with kids is the “toilet” facilities.

Japanese SA toilets are spacious and plentiful. Almost always, there are individual stalls equipped with diaper-changing spaces. Since my younger daughter still wears diapers, being able to change her at the SA and dispose of the diaper right there is a huge relief for me as a parent.

Also, more and more SAs now have nursing rooms. Amazing…!

Another great thing about Japanese SAs is that they sell lots of souvenirs. Our family doesn’t have much of a habit of buying souvenirs when traveling (maybe just because we don’t have many friends to give them to, lol), and often we forget to buy them because we think we’ll get them later. So being able to pick up local souvenirs at an SA on the way home is honestly a big help.

Speaking of which, once when I went to Nagoya for work, I completely forgot to buy souvenirs for the kids and was already on my way back. I suddenly realized “Oh no!” and stopped at the Otsu SA (Shiga Prefecture), where surprisingly they sold Nagoya souvenirs, so I was able to buy them there and avoid any trouble (laughs).

The newly opened Takarazuka-kita SA on the Shin-Meishin Expressway looks like an outlet mall from the outside and has a kids’ play area, making it very well-equipped. I really want to visit, but when I recently asked my husband, “I heard Takarazuka-kita SA is amazing, want to go?”, he replied:

Nope. It’s definitely crowded, so I don’t want to go (-_-)

So we haven’t been yet (lol).

Service Areas in Germany

A few years ago, I drove on the German Autobahn, but there were very few SAs for the distance traveled, and the atmosphere was very different from Japan. Most were like a cross between a convenience store and a kiosk—dark, cramped, with a small space for light meals but very limited variety.

Also, the toilets were dirty and required payment, so I didn’t feel like stopping casually. Some SAs were large and restaurant-like, but most were smaller and dirtier than PAs.

Thanks to Japan’s SAs…

People say things like “Many cars drive slowly in the passing lane on Japanese expressways” and “In Germany, it’s common courtesy to quickly move over when a fast car approaches from behind, making it easier to drive,” and I agree. But on the other hand, I think it’s rare to find a country with service areas as well-equipped as Japan’s.

In fact, the reason my husband and I can drive round-trip (about 1000 km) to Fuji Speedway with our two small children is not only because the Porsche offers a comfortable driving experience, but also because Japan’s expressways have such well-equipped SAs.

There are service and parking areas at key points, the toilets are clean and have diaper-changing facilities, the food courts offer kids’ meals that our children want to eat, some SAs have playgrounds, and sampling local souvenirs is fun… all these well-equipped SAs support us greatly.

Thinking about it this way, every country’s expressways have pros and cons, so it’s nice to enjoy your own style of car life on top of that.