HONG KONG, SINGAPORE, ADELAIDE, AND A DASH HOME TO NZ

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I am not sure a feeling of complete relaxation will abound from my next few paragraphs. It seems a long while ago that I penned the last of my updates and a lot has happened in that time; not only have the tans faded due to less pool time but I am in Adelaide as I write this after a week at home in Auckland to see Dad after he became very sick with pneumonia. Thankfully he responded well to the medication they gave him and that, coupled with the most magnificent care from his doctors and nurses saw him make a dramatic improvement. It was while we were in Singapore that we learnt more of Dad’s plight and I made the all too easy decision to head home and see him – a decision that also enabled me to help out my mother and sisters on the hospital visits and to provide a boost for Dad (I hope). My desire to update has been curtailed as my priorities changed but now he is improving I will do my best to remember all that we have done in the last few weeks; you may need to refresh your glass.



Our trip from Dubai to Hong Kong was our first experience of Cathay Pacific’s Business Class. Up front was a treat that was made all the better as there were only 9 people in the 42 seat cabin. They did have a weird seating configuration on the plane with each passenger in a cocoon like area to lie in. It sounds great (and in all honesty is) but it means you have no ability to converse with your traveling companion – not that I needed to as once again Narelle was out for the count soon after the seat belt signs were off. The service from the staff was exceptional and they do go that extra step for you; if I was to compare BA to Dubai with this trip I would have to say that Cathay would come out on top but BA from Boston to London is still our favourite flight. We had booked a driver from the Club to meet us at the airport some six months before so I did have an apprehensive feeling as I collected my bags and walked towards the safest of pick up zones – outside Burger King. I should not have been worried, Tom the Driver arrived, whisked away our bags, said ‘follow me’, and was off. He was quick – I was jogging to keep up. His driving was much the same and we came close to coming ‘off’ the off ramp when three cars tried to fit into one lane. It was all fairly tame though and sorted out by a few honks of the horn and a couple of those universal driving signs I last saw in the winding country lanes near Vary. Our accommodation was at the United Services Recreation Club in Kowloon, which we could not fault for our entire stay. It was ideally situated close to the Jordan Metro station and had fantastic facilities; we spent a great deal of time by the pool, at the fitness centre, in the sauna, and in their restaurants. It was brilliant from start to finish and a great recommendation from John and Maxine.



We were out and about in Hong Kong a few hours after we arrived – we bought our Octopus travel cards for the week and set off to meet a former colleague of Narelle’s for dinner. The travel card is brilliant; it costs HK$150, which buys you the card and gives you HK$100 credit and as an incentive for you to return it at the end of your stay you receive HK$50 back. You can use the card to buy all sorts of things including coffee and cookies at the stations – and they are some of the cleanest stations one will ever visit. Jenny met us at Central and took us to the heights of the Soho area for dinner. I say heights as it entails riding the escalator up through the buildings – a unique way of climbing a hill and a fantastic way to see restaurants, nail bars, spas, and bars from a different perspective. In fact if I am honest we spent a great deal of our time either going up hills, down step streets, or traversing waterways over our week. The Soho district is fun and is packed full of people all out enjoying themselves in the multitude of eateries, wine bars and cafés that dot the streets.



Jenny gave us a list of highlights and we enjoyed ticking most of them off. One of our favourites was the trip out to Ngong Ping Village to see the Big Buddha. It is a 5.7km cable car ride high above Tung Chung Bay and overlooking the International Airport with many a flight arriving. The airport reminds me of a roost for large homing pigeons with Cathay Pacific stamped down their sides, as during the 25 minutes it took for us to reach our destination we saw only CX flights either taking off or landing. The cable car trip is not for the faint hearted as you are a long way above the bay and the wind puts just enough sway on the car to increase your discomfort levels but it is much the better form of travel out to the Buddha. As it was Golden Week we did share our afternoon with scores of others and most probably spent more time in queues than at the actual site but it was all worth it. The imposing figure of Big Buddha comes into view as you head down the last section of the cable car trip and you also get an idea of the landscape that surrounds the icon. The crowds were ant like figures all scuttling up the paths in the quest to complete their visit in time to ride the cable cars back. Arriving late in the day we were aware that time was going to be limited but we made the walk, climbed the steps to soak in the view, doffed our caps to Big Buddha as we circumnavigated his base, took the photo, breathed in the incense and then retraced our steps back to the already lengthening queue with the sign saying 80 minutes. Being a kind-hearted soul I joined the queue and Narelle set off to explore the shops and see what ‘tat’ was on offer. In reality it was a good 120 minutes until we finally sat down for the return trip – a trip made in complete darkness with the wind whistling through the open louver windows; romantic it was not. It did hide the fact that you are high above the ground suspended from a steel cable, which I am sure was comforting to some. I can only recommend the trip out to see old Big Buddha. He is set within the most picturesque of surrounds with rugged mountains and cliffs towering above you. My tip would be to go early in the day and don’t take the bus as the cable car ride is an event in itself and made our ride down from the castle in Barcelona seem tame in comparison.



Venturing up Victoria Peak was just as enjoyable and somehow I managed to be the only person not to get a seat on the tram that heads up the steep gradient. Thankfully I had a pole to grab on to as we left the station as staying upright as the tram climbs its way to the top is some feat and I did not want to embarrass myself by cascading past Narelle who was sitting comfortably in Row 3. It is not quite Sherpa country and they would scoff at my predicament but all I can stress is that next time I head north on the tram I will forgo pleasantries and just head for the seats as on exiting the tram it felt like my arms were longer than usual. The view at the top makes the pole holding all the more rewarding as you get the most stunning of vistas looking down into Hong Kong with the high rise buildings dominating your line of sight. The harbour and islands are visible and amongst the concrete jungle are large pockets of greenery that break up the grey of the buildings. Commercialism has reached the top of the track once solely used by the elite of the country, with a Starbucks sitting proudly at the top. I must admit a food stop was needed as we then chose to walk down Old Peak Road to the city centre with the words of the tourist office man ringing in my ears – his record was 18 minutes top to bottom. Not sure how he does this but it must be uncontrollable running as it is basically straight down with your toes jammed to the front of your shoes – great for trimming nails as they just get pushed back into your toe. I am not sure I would say that I enjoyed the trip down but it was an experience and one that will never be repeated. And there are other far more accessible Starbucks in the city so don’t just head there on my advice for a coffee.



As I mentioned it was Golden Week in Hong Kong and it was interesting to see how many Mainlanders had travelled to spend the long weekend. Some of the statistics for travel in the week was staggering – especially when you read that 86 million people clogged the motorways during the first days; I will never complain about a tailback on the Bombay Hills. They also appeared to come to shop at all the high end fashion stores. I have never witnessed the queues that stemmed from Louis Vuitton, Prada, or the enormous amount of bags being carried along the streets. This was serious shopping and a large amount of coin was being put through the tills. To celebrate the National Day a huge fireworks display was held on the harbour and every vantage point was taken on the shorefront hours before the start – we tried and failed to get a table overlooking the bay but found most reserved. Even being willing to pay for a drink did not get you closer to the action. So we retired to our room and did the next best thing – we watched on the TV. It was stunning and set to music. Sadly and unbeknownst to us at that point the lights and sparkles of the fireworks were going to be overshadowed by events out on the harbour. We awoke to the news that a major boating disaster had occurred and many were either dead or missing after a ferry had collided with a charter boat carrying people to watch the display. It was a shocking moment for Hong Kong and three days of National Mourning were observed; flags were flown at half-mast and vans drove with huge bouquets of flowers affixed to their bonnets. I don’t think I saw a building that did not adhere to the directive. It seemed so removed from the happy and friendly atmosphere we had witnessed at the harbour’s edge as the people waited for the fireworks only hours before.



We visited two of the market areas in Hong Kong. Both are tourist traps but that could be the only comparison I could draw. The Stanley Markets involved a 45 minute trip on the Number 6 bus, which was thrilling. We sat on the top floor of the double decker bus and rode every curve and ducked as every overhanging tree came into view. It is a windy ride heading up and over the hills to Stanley Bay and we made it even more exciting by sitting in the front seats on our way back. I could have missed the markets and just done the bus ride – even when we met another bus on a corner the drivers managed to make it look easy to avoid each other. It cannot be the route they give you on the first week as driving with a sheer cliff on one side and overhanging branches on the other is not my idea of easy. But it is all worth it as the bays on the far side are stunning with sparkling water and huge modern apartment blocks seemingly perched on the sides of cliffs defying all sense of Newton’s Law of Gravity. How they build them is beyond my Fourth Form Tech Drawing skills. However, I would like to get the bamboo scaffolding contract. I am staggered by the amounts of bamboo we saw surrounding floor after floor of buildings – there appeared to be no steel poles in sight. There must be acres and acres of the bloody stuff growing somewhere; no wonder pandas always look so well fed.



The Temple St night markets were within walking distance of the Club and were exactly the type of image one conjures up when the word market is mentioned. Dimly lit alleys, a fine mist of smoke, unbelievable food smells, racks and racks of pirate DVDs, every imaginable knock off label available, bargains galore, oodles of cash, 50% bartering, and some ladies of the night. Apparently my naivety meant I mistook a wink towards me as a girl having problems with her contacts – I was all ready to help until Narelle told me I may have woken up with my pants on my head and my credit card gone; they don’t put that kind of travel advice in many books.



So apart from our final activity of getting our shoes cleaned to within an inch of their lives by a nice lady near Central Station (my nice shoes too Carolyn) that was Hong Kong – a great week in a great location with the accommodation at the Club a highlight. The service was exceptional and nothing was too hard for them and even when we sat eating our final breakfast we watched our ever expanding suitcases (we are now just under 60kg) being carried by the porters past the window and placed in the car – there was no sign of Tom this time so I hope there had been no repercussions from the three cars going into one lane incident or he had taken the hand gestures too personally.



Flying from Hong Kong to Singapore we avoided the large typhoon that was making landfall in Vietnam – why they tell you a tropical storm is off your port window I will never know but I guess it makes the flight deck feel better. I think we could have guessed something was up as our flight path resembled a bow like track that at one stage was facing away from our destination. The Cathay Business class set up was different again with seats that faced each other and for once Narelle stayed awake long enough to enjoy all that was on offer. In hindsight we should have been flying Singapore Airlines as our dinner companion for that night was another of my Ellesmere tutees, David Pinches who is working his way up within SIA and is on his two year placement at Head Office. Our hotel was situated on Havelock Road and we arrived with much trepidation as we had stupidly reread some Hotels.com reviews, which were fairly blunt in their praise. How wrong they were. The bad location was on the river with magnificent walks all the way along to the Marina Sands area, the surly service was actually rather friendly, the poor breakfasts were feasts, there was a pool, sauna, and the rooms were clean – what more do some people want? The fact that Orchard Road was within walking distance also dismissed the rumour that nothing was nearby and that we would be lucky to see anything without getting into a taxi – we took two taxis in Singapore; one from the airport and one back to it. Copthorne Hotel, Havelock Road – so much better than the reviews!



Dave met us at the hotel and took us to a restaurant across the river to share in the Singaporean delicacy of Chilli Crab. This is ‘put a bib on’ territory as it gets pretty messy as you crack open the crab legs and claws but you get an incredible feed, which you wash down with a few Tiger beers. It was great to see Dave and hear how well he is doing – he was in the tutor group with Ben and Barcs mentioned in a previous missive. He treated us to a good night out and would not let us pay for much – in fact he may have to work a bit of overtime after our stay. After walking off the chilli crab we ended up back at an Australian pub near our hotel watching the All Blacks play South Africa and drinking Steinlager Pures; can’t get much better than that and all topped off with a good win. We also met up with Neil and Jania who met us at a fantastic restaurant called ‘Open Door Policy’. It was great to see them and hear all about living in Singapore. We looked after Neil on his Gap Year in 1997 and have kept in touch – it was funny to retell and embellish many of the Ellesmere moments we shared in with the likes of James, Fi, Antony and Amanda; all of whom we had met up with in the UK earlier in the year. Neil and Jania are enjoying life in Singapore and are ‘contemplating’ buying an apartment but with house prices fairly high renting is still a good option. Neil had been playing a bit of golf and was telling me about the golf course on Santosa Island – a beautiful course with stunning facilities; with a subscription of HK$250k one would hope so.



And then we had the curveball. We knew Dad was sick when we got to Singapore but things took a turn for the worse on the Sunday when his pneumonia worsened and suddenly being many hours from home was not that much fun. Modern communication was a godsend in this situation and we made use of most – Skype calls, texts, Viber calls and emails were bouncing across the airwaves; but it could never substitute being there in person. So the easy decision was made to head for home bypassing our fortnight in Western Australia. Once again Gerald our wonderful Travel Agent in NZ made it all seem easy for us and soon had us booked on a flight back to Adelaide with an onwards flight to Auckland for me. Logistically nothing was that easy as Narelle’s parents were out of contact in Burma and the house keys were with a neighbour. However, with a few ‘phone calls we had everything sorted and I could rest easy that Narelle would have a bed to sleep in while I was away. So after a last day wandering the streets of Singapore and enjoying the markets at Chinatown, the riverside café and clearing the heads somewhat we embarked on our long trip home. We made more friends in the lounge before flying and now have another place to stay when we make our future trip to WA – this was a nice retired couple who with their medical background were able to share some advice and direction to my questions about Dad. By 10am next morning we were at Adelaide airport, Narelle was heading home to Myer Road and I had rechecked into my Air NZ flight to Auckland. By 7pm I was standing next to Dad’s bed all masked up to ensure I was not the provider of any Asian flu that had hitched a ride on my body. It was comforting to see him and it brought a sense of relief to me that he was making progress with the new antibiotics they were filling his body with. His room was bedecked with many of Claudia’s colourful pictures; she seems to be knocking out the artwork at quite a rate and even I got a Welcome Home picture of me and a suitcase. Dad was hooked up to an oxygen line that kept his lungs working and Natalee’s worry levels high when he unhooked it to venture away from his bed. Getting him up and about was brilliant for him as it relieved a lot of pressure from his lungs and he could wander down the corridor and sit and read in the sun while watching the golfers at Royal Auckland across the hedgerow.



It was lovely to see family and be able to help out a bit – seven months of gallivanting around the world had seen me out of the loop for a while. Everyone looked great in the circumstances and it was nice to have some contact time with Mum, Natalee and Rachel who had been on an emotional rollercoaster for days. We shared many a welcome laugh – the bizarrely named FUKU Sushi shop in the lobby being the brunt of much of our mirth. Dad’s health improved every day I was at home and gradually our bedside conversations became longer. We have always been great communicators and debriefed many an All Black game over the years and I like the fact that we will get to debrief many more. His care at Middlemore was exceptional and I could not fault any of the attention he was given. It is times like this that you find out how good the national healthcare system is and how diligent the many doctors and nurses that work in the wards and HDU are; they were stunning and we could not thank them enough. Their positive energy and will for Dad to get better was a joy to watch and I am sure transcended into Dad’s own optimistic outlook. And all this was echoed at Auckland Hospital where I visited my cousin Chris who had been rushed to hospital too – I picked one hell of a week to head home!



Thankfully both Dad and Chris were at home recuperating by the time I made the decision to fly back to Adelaide. And that is where we are now. Dubai seems a long time ago, in fact so does Hong Kong and Singapore but it has been quite a few weeks and we have travelled a few miles. We are definitely on the homeward stretch and in a few short weeks we will reach our final destination – Melbourne. Next week we are heading away on a houseboat up the Murray River and then off to Mt Gambier to catch up with Colin and Kerry who have moved there from Shropshire - we have not seen them since July at the Corner Café the morning after the Ellesmere Ball. I am sure we will have plenty of stories to share by the end of the week!

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