Sunrise in Sai Kung

This picture deserved its own post, I thought. Anyways, if you have a free day on your Hong Kong trip and would like to get away from the city...I'm not sure if there's a better place to go than Sai Kung.

Sai Kung

Camping here was amazing. I didn't take a whole lot of photos but some of my friends did. So check them out on my profile...they were posted around mid-November. We were camping on the long beach with our own little tent city just off of the sand.

Gambling Addiction

I've not learned a lot about Chinese culture, but there are a few things that I am certain that the Chinese love. They are: the color red, fireworks, and betting on card games.

The photo to the right was taken at the German-Swiss International School winter bazaar...an annual fundraiser that brought out hundreds of people. Even at this function, the affinity for gambling is expressed in a fundraiser casino. I pulled up to the table with 20 HKD and had to fold pre-flop on the first hand. Next hand, I went all in and the 10 year old with glasses beat my two pair on the kicker. As my friend Lyon said, "it's amazing how sophisticated kids are these days." He bought in for 70 HKD.

East Asian Games Ceremony

Earlier tonight I joined some friends on the terrace at Sevva, a restaurant in Prince's Building. Sevva is on the 25th floor and affords one of the best views of Victoria Harbor from Central.

The fireworks were excellent. My favorite part of a good show is the sound. Prince's Building is right in front of the broad and tall HSBC building which acts as a giant wall for an echo.

The shots of the fireworks didn't come out that well so I decided to post the picture Tsim Tsa Tsui lit up and with a row of Chinese Junk Boats illuminated and in line after cruising out for the show.

Lamma Island

It seems like most websites and guidebooks about Hong Kong will not let you pass through the city on a weeklong tour without hitting up Lamma Island for a day. I don't know if it's a must-see destination, but it's definitely a cheap and easy getaway from the city that will provide some quality fresh air and more relaxed pace.

The photo on the right is the herbal tea menu at the organic herb garden. That was my favorite part of the trip...a hot cup of catnip tea and some shade in a super-relaxed garden with butterflies, rabbits, and every kind of herb under the sun. I know this all sounds a bit crunchy, but one week of Hong Kong hustle will make anyone appreciate this setting.

I took a walk on Lamma's 'Family Trail,' a through the woods, up and down rollercoaster of a walking path that takes 1.5 hours at a shirt-drenching clip to complete. The trail connects the two port villages of Lamma and there are definitely some scenic rest stops between the two. Note: the 1.5 hours was, I think, the time posted as an estimate. I appreciate that 1.5 hours is actually a difficult target to make in contrast to my experience in the US and Europe where estimated walking times are usually designed for the slovenliest to stop to pant at the middle and top of every hill and pick up a McFlurry on the way.

I have been thinking about going back and I would do a few things differently if I do. First, I would check the ferry schedules and time it so as to wait as little as possible. It's not a long ride, but it's a long wait, especially if you roll into town only to hear the horn sound when you're a few steps too far from the boat to sprint your way on deck. Second, I'd dress in clothes that would let me jog then swim. The trail would be a great run, the air quality is great, and a very clean beach make for ideal conditions to combine activities.

Sok Kwu Wan from the family trail

From the above photo, you can probably guess that the trail takes you around the edge of the water and then cuts back to the village pictured. As you continue down the hill from the vantage point of this photo but before you cut back towards the village, there are several caves with one very interesting sign about World War II history. The sign said that those caves were used by the Japanese to store boats packed with explosives that were destined to perform the same mission as a Kamikaze plane but towards Allied ships. Although I'm not sure about the strategic position of Hong Kong during the war, this was an interesting historical fact to learn, which thankfully did not come to fruition.

Gwalo Law Student Boat Trip

Junk boat trips are always a fun way to spend half of one's weekend in Hong Kong. Although they're really only about 8-10 hour adventures, they have on both occasions exhausted me well into the afternoon of the following day.

This Saturday was the birthday of two American U. law students, so all of the US law students except for the Rogue took to the water on a 50' Chinese pleasure junk. (Not sure if I explained this here before but junk is the name of a traditional type of boat here.)

Despite several setbacks, everyone had fun and we even snuck in a cake and happy birthday song ceremony on the ride back - an overwhelming success. Joe and Alison were thrilled. In case you're curious, the setbacks were (1) the coldest, grayest weather in Hong Kong since I've arrived and (2) a red tide that prevented those hearty few who were on the verge of jumping in despite the air temperature from swimming.

About 2.5 hours in, we improvised and persuaded our captain to take us to Cheung Chau, a small island that houses a fishing village and some beaches. This worked out well. We'd gotten a bit bored with our first destination and the conversation had turned to Joe explaining the Minnesota traditions of ice fishing and ice spearing. In turn, most of the passengers were consuming alcohol almost as fast as ice fisherman.

When we got to Cheung Chau, we dawdled getting off the boat at the public pier for about 10 minutes, causing a passenger ferry captain waiting behind us to get pissed off enough to open up his loudest horn on us. We took a look at a map and decided to head to the North Point Lookout. With only 1.5 hours on the island, we had to move quick so we rented bikes at the low rate of 10 hkd per hour!! A few of us even made up to the top...where the view of town was not only phenomenal, but also afforded me a glimpse of one of the best beaches that I've seen here in HK. At the bottom of the hill, the group linked up again and we went back to town, got on the boat, and headed to port. The cake ceremony was on this leg of the journey.

PS: sorry for the gray in the first photo but the weather was terrible.

New Apartment

I've been in a new apartment for about two weeks now. Same neighborhood, same street, a few blocks down, but a huge improvement. It looks pretty small in this photo, which it is, but there is a lot more space where it counts. The kitchen and the bathroom are much larger and much more welcoming. Plus, no dust-> no asthma.