Joyce's Hong Kong Blog #14

Saturday, Dec. 12

Ernest bought us tickets several weeks ago to the final soccer match at the East Asian Games which are being held in Hong Kong. At that time veryone thought the final game would be between Japan and South Korea. Wonder of Wonders--Hong Kong made it to the finals.

The first half of the game, Japan scored one point and they played better than the HK team. However, a few minutes into the 2nd half, Hong Kong scored a point and the game continued to be very exciting. The one to one tie led to 2 overtimes then to a shootout. Hong Kong was victorious with a final score of 5 to 3. The home crowd advantage was quite evident as the fans were ecstatic. We thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It was in the same stadium as the Rugby Sevens that Amelia, Ernest & I had attended in March, so it brought back great memories as well. Sunday, Dec. 13

At church this morning I lit the Advent candle which represents The Good Shepherd and joy, then I led the congregation in prayer. After church we had our monthly dinner, but this time it was to say good-bye to one of our elders and his family. They are moving to Beijing and will be sorely missed.

As we got off the bus in Aberdeen, there was a festival on the Praya. We watched a group of children dressed as fairies (no wings) dance. They were adorable. There were many kids in uniforms that looked like Brownies and Girl Scouts, but the sign said "Girl Guides." Kids with parents in tow lined up by the dozens in front of booths. We were tired so jumped on the sampan and headed home. Monday & Tuesday, Dec. 14 & 15

I stayed home for laundry and cleaning days, but the noise is getting to me!! The flat at the other end of the hall is under renovation. The fine white dust is all through the hallway and covers our security door and is even coming under our door. The constant hammering and drilling is loud. Someone else in the building is also renovating. I'm not sure if they are above or below us, but it's nearby. A jack hammer is tearing up the cement at the base of our apartment, and being up 18 floors doesn't soften the sound much. It would be amusing if it weren't so annoying. Internet radio and itunes music helps combat the noise to a point! When they say that Hong Kong is noisy, they mean it! This is what happens when so many people live in such a small area.

Wednesday, Dec. 16

I headed out the door to meet Sharleen Ortlund at Kowloon Tong. (Her parents and mine were friends from the time I was in high school.) I jumped on a minibus driving by, and when we got to the top of the hill and headed for the other end of Ap Lei Chau, I realized I was on the wrong minibus. So, I got off near a bus stop, then called Ernest to find out which bus to catch. (Thank the Lord for cell phones!!) I was supposed to get off at Admiralty, but wasn't sure where I was because the bus was going along the bay rather than through the tunnel like I'm used to. So, I asked a girl near me if she spoke English, and she did. Yeah! I was in the right spot; we got off together and she showed me how to get to the MTR. I rode the blue line to the red line, then transferred to the green line where I saw Sharleen as I was exiting. Whew! I've never been in Kowloon without Ernest, so I was a bit nervous.

We had lunch in the Festival Walk Mall at an Italian restaurant. We shared a Caesar salad which tasted fishy. Sharleen clued me in that the Italians put anchovies in their salad. I've wondered before why the salads taste like fish! We also shared a pasta dish and enjoyed the wonderful bread.

The decorations in the mall were amazing. The mall is 7 stories high and the Christmas tree is 5 stories high. It's base is a carousel with figures representing the song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas."

There were so many, many expensive stores. Sharleen said that she and her friends don't shop there except for groceries. My take is that, since the flats are generally quite small, people can't buy much because there is no where to put things. So, they buy few items but expensive ones.

Afterwards I jumped on the MTR to go tutor. When it was time to transfer from the green line to the red line, we all RUSHED across the platform to catch the next train. It was so crowded and everyone was running, trying to get on the train before the doors closed.

Last week a man near me got caught in the doors. They closed on him, pinning both arms; he just stood there for a few seconds, then managed to get an arm loose and tried to push one of the doors open. No one helped him, but I think it's because they were all smashed together and no one could move. Finally, the doors opened, then tried to close again. He had moved in enough that he wasn't caught the second time, but the doors were still bumping him, so they opened and closed 3 more times before he finally inched forward enough for them to clear him. My nose was on the outside of the door. I'm glad I didn't try to get on that train!!

I did remember how to get to Dawn's house and had a good session with Arnold and Sophia who are both 7. They had written stories using 4 sequence picture cards. Their stories were long, quite accurate with good sentence structure, and their cursive is beautiful. Of course they had some grammatical errors, but mainly due to the language differences. I'm very impressed. Bruno is only 4 but he payed attention and did quite well during his session.

Afterwards I rode the MTR to Central where I met Kathie for dinner and tutoring. It was great to hear about her missions trip to Israel. She said that they helped a family to move furniture from the upstairs to the downstairs of their home and vice versa. She was amazed that people could have such large houses with so much stuff that they needed help to move things around. Hmmm.

I finally arrived back home again at 9:30. Sharleen and I were commenting on how much time it takes to just get around Hong Kong!! She had also just returned from The States and the convenience of driving a car.

Thursday, Dec. 17

We had small group at The Makhija's. During dinner, we were talking about numbers and how the Chinese are superstitious. Rajiv said that just because a building has 65 stories, doesn't mean it is really that tall. Some buildings skip all numbers with fours in them. So, there won't be a 4, 14, 24, 34, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, etc.

Then Jenny related that when she lived in Toronto, people could petition to change their street numbers on a block, as long as the number fell within the numbers assigned to that block. People from Hong Kong don't like fours, but they see eights as lucky. Fortunately, the Taiwanese who lived there believed that four was a lucky number, so it worked out quite well when numbers were changed on each block.

Carol told us quite the story. She was coming home from class with a large purse on one shoulder and a large backpack on the other shoulder. As she was coming up an escalator, the lady behind her kept poking and shoving her. So, when Carol got to the top, she moved across the sidewalk to get out of the lady's way. Well, the lady followed her and pushed her several more times, finally pushing Carol into an elderly man who almost fell down. Finally, Carol turned to this older, well dressed lady from India and exclaimed, "What are you doing? You pushed me into this old man and he almost fell over!" The woman replied, "You shouldn't be carrying things that way in Hong Kong." Carol asked testily, "What do you mean?!!" The lady yelled back, "You shouldn't be carrying your bags up on your shoulders but down in your hands," then she stormed off. Carol yelled after her, "I forgive you," which I thought was quite a great response. Guess what our study was on? Forgiveness!!

Friday, Dec. 18

Ernest took a vacation day so we headed out the door to do some sightseeing. We walked up the stairs through the bamboo foliage and up the hill to catch the bus to Causeway Bay. There we hopped on the blue line MTR, transferred to the red line, then to the green line, then onto the light blue line. The light blue line goes north goes through the New Territories and stops at the border of China. This line is above ground so it was interesting to be able to see the scenery. We got off at the first stop, Tai Wai, and walked about 15 minutes to see The Che Kung Temple which is a Taoist Temple. Inside the temple was a HUGE figure, about 35 ft. tall, but it was inside the temple and they didn't allow picture taking. But we did take some pictures outside, as you can see above.

Next we began walking toward the Ten Thousand Buddhas Temple, or the Man Fat Sze Temple. After a half an hour of walking past the Heritage Museum, through a mall, and past a bus and MTR center, we finally found the path up the hill to the temple. There really are that many Buddhas, or more. All along the path of 431 steps and ramps between the sets of steps, there were Buddhas painted with gold leaf.

The temple at the top was quite impressive: inside it was about 55 ft. tall with thousands of small Buddhas on shelves reaching the ceiling. Each Biddha is different from the other. The path continues up the hill with other small, ornate buildings and more Buddhas and other statues. There were also statues related to the year of ones birth. We didn't figure out what they were for, but we did take pictures next to the ones related to our birth years. These figures were not painted in gold leaf.

The view overlooking the city was fabulous. I managed to add pictures, but they have a mind of their own and won't line up like I want.

Afterwards, we rode the MTR back to Admiralty. At that point I had the "bright" idea that we should go to Causeway Bay so Ernest could help me carry our XanGo boxes home. Well, I didn't think about it being rush hour on a Friday evening. We first tried to hop on a tram, but 3 came by already full, and only a few more people could squeeze on. So, we walked back to the MTR. That was amazing. There were MILLIONS of people trying to get on the MTR. We were packed in like sardines, all trying to get on a train car. A train came by every minute, and more people would cram on and we would inch forward. We did have an interesting conversation with a young man I was squished against about how polite Hong Kong commuters are compared to some other countries that Ernest has been in. We also noticed how quietly everyone was waiting, considering how many people were there and how long we had to wait in such cramped quarters.

We finally got back on the MTR and over to Causeway Bay. After picking up our XanGo boxes, we walked 2 blocks to get into the minibus line. We figured we would get on the 4th minibus, since each one carries 16 people. But, we were lucky and a 23 passenger minibus came along, so we only had to wait about 30 minutes. We'll try to avoid downtown on a Friday night again!!

Hong Kong Blog # 13

Hey friends,

I'm back in Hong Kong!!

I had a wonderful trip to The States. I left Hong Kong on Oct 13th and spent several days in Colorado Springs recouperating from the trip. In Canon City I spent hours pulling weeds and dead flowers with the help of Ernest's father and a neighbor, trying to get it ready for the renter who hadn't seen it yet. Yes, we rented our home, Praise the Lord, with an option to own. We're very pleased to have a bit of an income rather than such a large outgo, and since we have a property manager, we don't have to worry about it. I also helped with a going away party for my XanGo sponsors, Stan and Adele Mingus, who are moving to Houston.

A friend and I drove to Lake City Oct. 21 for the XanGo Convention. The trip over Monarch was harrowing since it was snowing and icy, but that was the only snow I had to drive in the entire trip, thank the Lord, and once we hit Monarch, the trip down the mountain was clear. It was wonderful to have a friend with me to share the fun. XanGo has been exploding, and it was great to hear about their new products and to be involved with a business that appears to be recession proof. Driving again was wonderful. And the clear, huge sky made me feel like I'd been living in a tunnel in Hong Kong.

I enjoyed time with Ernest's Dad and his wife in Canon City, was able to attend our Evangelical Free Church again and see many friends there. I also visited with many friends throughout the week. My frustration was that I couldn't see everyone nor spend much time with those I saw. I also shared some of my Hong Kong experiences with the McKinley fifth graders who are my pen pals.

I flew to Phoenix and spent two wonderful weeks with my parents, where I also got to see my sister and brother. We had an active party with my cousins and their families. I was on a winning team for the bean bag toss. It was good to have time for napping there since I came down with a mild case of pneumonia.

After flying back to Colorado, I picked up my car and drove to Tulsa. Listening to books on tape kept me awake and intrigued. It was great to see Nathan again, then I headed for Siloam Springs and spent a week with the girls at John Brown University. Laura shares a house with 4 friends and her roommate, Sarah, graciously gave up her bed for me. Laura is a senior and Amelia is a freshman. Laura is considering teaching English as a Second Language in Korea upon graduation, but she is keeping her options open. Her major is English.

I drove the girls back to Nathan's for Thanksgiving. It was quite interesting to help Nathan get set up for our meal. We shopped for a card table with chairs, knives, pots, pans, pyrex, cutting boards, etc. Laura made homemade cranberry sauce and an apple pie, Amelia made the bean casserole and the pumpkin pie, Nathan fixed mashed potatoes, and I handled the turkey, stuffing, and the yams. YUM!!!

On Friday, after participating a bit in Black Friday, we joined my Uncle Carl's (my Dad's brother) clan, my 8 cousins and their families, for a noon meal. It's the first time I was able to join their annual gathering and with 45 present, it was a great time of reconnecting. Uncle Carl went home to be with the Lord this year, and my cousin Bruce has been home in heaven for longer, and we did miss them. That night Nathan and I drove the girls back to JBU where we had to say good-bye. Nathan and I spent Saturday running errands and purchasing items for my "take back to Hong Kong" list.

My drive back to Canon City was uneventful, and I was grateful that I kept missing the snowstorms. I had some good but short times with friends for a day, parked my car at Bob's house, then Renate picked me up and I spent the night in Colorado Springs with her--closer to the airport. Packing and repacking took hours since I was substantially overweight. I put most of the weight in my rolling carry-on, left some stuff at Renate's, caught 2 hours of sleep, then Dee drove me to the airport at 4 AM on Dec 3. The temperature was 7 degrees fahrenheit and they de-iced the plane for 30 minutes, which made me very nervous, but we made it safely to Denver.

In Newark, NJ. I sat near to a young woman from Argentina's whose English was quite good. We couldn't believe our good fortune when they said they had closed the doors and no one had sat in the middle seat between us. That made for a much more comfortable flight, but I did feel bad for whoever missed the plane.

Ernest met me at the airport Friday night, Dec. 4, and it is great to be with him and to be "home" again. I thought I would have a slow first week back in Hong Kong, but it proved to be quite active. That was great: it kept me from yearning to be back in the states!!

On Sunday after church we were waiting at the bus stop when a family from church stopped and offered us a ride. They ended up taking us out for lunch in Ap Lei Chau at the fish market. We never eat there because I don't have a clue what to chose. Lena took me around while she chose the food. Then we took the food upstairs where there are several small kitchens that cook the fish. Each table has an assigned kitchen.

Here's a view of the community center from our bedroom. It's a block away from our apartment. It not only houses the wet market where they sell fish and some meat plus the cafeteria, but it also has a sports center and a library.

Lena was showing me how to eat the prawns or shrimp. First you rip off the head, then the legs, then the tail, then you eat the meat. Well, when I popped off the first head, this green goop squirted on Ernest's sleeve. So, I tried to be more careful with the second prawn. As I ripped its head off, the green goop squirted all over my blouse. Yuk! But they tasted good. We also had clams and oysters. When they brought out the fish, Lena whipped out her scissors and cut the fish into pieces--bones and all. The women in HK must all carry these fish cutting scissors because I've seen this before! Anyway, we enjoyed the meal and the company.

Mailing attends our small group; her daughter is Lena and her son-in-law is Stanley. They have twin 5 year old boys who are very active! On our way out, Lena had someone chop up some meat for us so that I can make meatloaf. Ground beef isn't very common here and we didn't know how to ask to have it made.

Monday, Dec 7, I recouperated and unpacked from the trip. Unpacking took forever. In order to put things away, I had to completely empty 3 shelves, reorganize and consolidate, so that I could fit everything on the shelves.

On Tuesday, Dec 8, Sunitat invited me out for lunch with 4 other ladies so we could plan for our church's Christmas Eve carol sing and potluck. She took us to a brand new, 10 day old restaurant run by 3 young men from New York City. One of them was her former neighbor in Montrose, CO, and had baked for her there. Since they knew her, they kept bringing out dishes that weren't on the menu. The beet greens salad was amazing. We had 3 salads, 2 pasta dishes, then the main chicken dish and dessert and lattes. Wow! The food was outstanding. It's a completely organic, locally grown ingredients restaurant. We had so much fun eating that we didn't do any party planning. The restaurant was fairly noisy and everyone's cell phones kept ringing, so it was a noisy luncheon!

Afterwards, Sunita, Christine, Katherine and I went to a Christmas bazaar. It was fun being out "with the girls" and getting in the Christmas spirit. I purchased a cute, 10" snowman with a bright red jacket, a green "jester's" hat, and a carrot nose. He's sitting on our tv and reminds me that Christmas is coming--even if we don't have room for a Christmas tree.

After the bazaar, Christine and I went to Sunita's clubhouse with her to help plan the party. Yes, we finally did get to the party-planning part. I had left home at 11 AM and didn't get home until after 8 PM. It was a fun day.

Wednesday, Dec. 9, was the Christmas dinner for the "Ladies' Oasis" Bible study group. There were 50 ladies there and I knew about a dozen of them. I got there early and began drinking tea. It seemed a bit strong. When the other ladies arrived, they filled their cups only half full of tea, then they added water from a different pot. Live and learn!

We began eating, and since there were only chopsticks, I had to quickly relearn my chopstick skills--which were never great in the first place. The food was abundant and the servers continued to bring out dishes, even after we were all stuffed, they were still bringing out more food! Welcome back to Hong Kong.

Thursday morning was my final Island Evangelical Community Church Bible study on Daniel with Beth Moore. Unfortunately, I missed most the lessons on DVD, but I have continued to do my homework in the workbook. Afterwards we helped the children's leaders decorate for a "Night in Bethleham" program they were preparing for the kids, then 6 of us went to Ruby Tuesdays for lunch. One of the ladies, Beverly, raises money for a mission to refugees in Cambodia, so I bought two of her necklaces which have Christian words in Chinese.

That night was our small group at Sunita's and Rajiv's. It was good to enjoy the Indian meal and the fellowship again. They began a new study on the life of Joseph while I was gone. A new lady (whose husband suddenly died last month) and her two children also attended. The kids were amazingly mature and friendly: she is 12 and he is 14.

Friday night, Dec. 11, I began tutoring Arnold and Bruno again, and a friend, Sophia, joined them. This time Tony, the dad, picked me up at 4:30 and we drove to their house in Kowloon which is across Victoria Harbor from the north end of Hong Kong Island. We live in Ap Lei Chau, an island just south of the south end of Hong Kong Island. Dawn really wants me to continue tutoring, and their house is a much nicer venue than the office we were using, but it is so far away. If I ride the buses and the MTR, it's an hour and a half each way. I began tutoring at 5:30, finished at 7:00; Tony walked me the 10 min. to the MTR afterwards. I sure hope I can find my way back next week.

I met Ernest in Causeway Bay at about 8 PM. Once again I was shocked at how many people were rushing around in the evening. It sure isn't like Canon City at night!! We went to Ikea and purchased a full size comforter and cover. We had been using a twin size comforter, so we couldn't make it through the night without "stealing" the cover from each other. The Europeans (Ikea is a Swedish store) use the comforter in place of a top sheet, so the cover is washed often. We still use a top sheet, though, because it is easier than pulling the cover on and off the comforter each time it needs to be washed.

Well, that's it for now. Ernest and I purchased a Wii as our Christmas gift to each other. Time to go bowling!!

Joyce

P.S. My very first try I got a strike. I think I'll like this game. It's the perfect activity for us in our tiny home.