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Published: December 16th 2009
Stuck in a cloud
so much for the viewIt was time for another trip to Hong Kong. I don't get there as much as I'd like (it's a tad expensive) and there's so much to see yet! I don't want to kick myself down the road because I didn't see parts of the city. I went with my friend Candy. She's got a visa to go (Chinese Nationals need visas to visit) and had only used one of the visits (the visa is good for two). Her first trip didn't go as well as she'd hoped, so I put some extra planning into this one to make sure it was special. Hong Kong is fun not only because it is an amazing city, but the reason I keep going back is because I treat it like it's special and not just another city. If I do that, it will lose its magic.
We met up at 9am and then traveled to the border, crossed after a short wait in line and were then speeding through the next 3 subway line changes to Lantau Island. I realize we probably could have taken an easier way, but after consulting 3 maps, this way seemed the shortest and therefore the fastest.
We had a full day ahead of us.
We stood in line to get our cable car tickets out to the Big Buddha for about half an hour. Candy had wanted to go to the beach to relax and destress, but this seemed like a less windy option and came with the bonus of seeing something famous in Hong Kong. When I had visited in May, it had been rainy, but I could tell that the views would be spectacular on a clear day. Sunday was fairly clear with a few clouds in the sky.
And up we went...into a cloud! We rode in a cloud the whole way up. We had less of a view than when it was rainy! I felt terrible and disappointed, but luckily Candy was so excited it didn't matter. Seeing the Buddha through the cloud felt mystical and the 10 of us in the cable car were excited. We chatted with the people in the car. One man was traveling alone from somewhere in mid to eastern Europe and he asked Candy if she was from Canada. Apparently her English fooled him!
We wandered around the area and climbed the
steps to the Buddha. We circled around it a few times. It was nice to see him in light--he is so detailed! The sun shone through the clouds in such a way that I almost expected someone to cue the music--you know, the moment where the movie's lead character has a moment of profound clarity because they've found God or realized that the world really does make sense.
By this time it was about 2pm so we headed back down the stairs, passing monks along the way. When we were back down half an hour later we stopped for lunch at a little chain restaurant I like that serves hot, creamy soups and a really good tuna melt. Candy had her first-ever loaded baked potato. I had to show her how to mix it all up so she wouldn't accidently just eat all the toppings and be stuck with plain potato.
On our way back to the metro, we stopped at a Falun Gong information booth. They also had information about the CCP and its leadership. Obviously it was biased. But Candy was curious since she'd never seen any of it before. It was interesting to
Big Buddha
Last May it was too foggy to see how detailed Buddha is. read.
Next on the list was the Museum of Tea Ware, located in Hong Kong park. I'm a bit of a nerd and I have really come to love tea while living here. When I was in the US I even started collectin tea sets, but was careful to not get carried away--buying tea sets in the US that are made in China is not the same as buy a tea set in China.
We stopped along the way to admire the skyscrapers downtown. I've only ever admired them from across Victoria Harbor. Some of them have amazing architecture. Candy particularly liked one of them and probably took about 20 photos of it. I kept taking photos of the Bank of China building (the one they used in Batman Returns). I like to send a photo of it to my friend, Claudia, every time I see it just to tease her.
Hong Kong Park was hosting a flower show of some kind and there were also many university graduates walking around in their caps and gowns taking photos. We ran past all of them for the museum since it was only open for a little more
Falun Gong display
Information about Falun Gong and the info about the CCP. Clearly, this is not the mainland. than an hour more.
It wasn't a large museum, but there were over 9 rooms with various tea wares, histories, Cantonese and English language videos, and information about tea. I learned more about the health benefits of different kinds of tea (black, green, flower, etc) and I learned about the proper methods for making tea, how they've evolved over the years, and compare across the different regions in China.
You can keep your Lipton tea bags, thank you.
We left at 5pm and wandered through the park taking photos and trying to stay out of other people's photos. It was beautiful. The water in the pond was so clear I could see several turtles swimming in addition to all the brightly colored koi fish. The park is in the middle of the city and I was surprised by how quiet it was. Truly, it is a retreat from the hustle and bustle of the city.
The next stop on our whirl-wind tour was St John's Cathedral. It was built in the mid-1800's. Candy had never been to a church before. I think there are only 2 or 3 in SZ and at least one of them
I liked this building a lot.
So did Candy--she couldn't stop taking photos of it! is in a school. Most Chinese "go to church" in people's homes. The Cathedral was beautiful. I was glad there wasn't a service in session so we could sneak in and look without interrupting. There was a choir practice in session and they sounded beautiful. I whispered to Candy about the different parts of the church (where the pastor stands, where the organ is, the batismal pool, etc) since she was curious about that, too. We quietly left out the main door, turning to look back in at the majesty of the space.
We detoured briefly enroute to the subway to take photos at the Bank of China. Then we headed to my favorite bookstore. There was a book I wanted to get. Luckily, they had it and it didn't take long. I was afraid they wouldn't have it and I'd have to order it and make a special trip back. I did have to ask for help, but luckily the whole process took less than half an hour and we were on our way. The schedule was a bit tight and I was worried.
We went to a pub by the Avenue of the Stars
in Kowloon for dinner. This was Candy's first pub experience. She didn't think it was a restaurant, just a bar. (Bars don't tend to serve real meals in China, at least not in SZ.) She had her first American-sized burger, fries, and salad. I briefly enjoyed watching her try to eat the burger whole before suggesting she cut it in half. Even then she had trouble because it was so tall. The salad didnt' have much dressing on it, so she dipped it in her ketchup. As you can see from the photos, I had vegetarian lasagna. I haven't had lasagna since the winter before I left Minneapolis (and I used to bake it quite often). I also had my most beloved of drinks. I'd call it a perfect meal.
Ironically, at the table next to us were two gentlemen I'd never met. Okay, that's not really ironic. But they were American and their accent was familiar. Most of the Americans I encounter are from the NE or the NW or on occassion the south. It was relaxing to hear a mid-western accent again. They asked us what we were eating since we were clearly enjoying it so much.
Then they asked me where I was from. I told him Minnneapolis and he said, "Minneapolis, MINNESOTA?" as if there are many Minneapolises. I nodded. Turns out both of them are from Minneapolis too. It IS a small world.
At 8pm Candy and I went to the light show on the pier. With so many buildings lit up for Christmas the show seemed different. Then we wandered around taking photos of the twinkling holiday lights before heading back to the metro one last time.
"Ready to go back to China?" I asked her. She smiled, laughed, and we crossed the border again.
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