Hong Kong

You never like the places you have to go as much as the places you choose to go; all the same I am enjoying Hong Kong a bit more than the first time. Since I was only legal in China for another two days I had to make a trip out and the Fragrant Harbour was the most likely candidate. I had an agency take care of the visa this time, which is the smartest way to do it I think - no hours of waiting or forms to fill out at the official visa office. I had planned to stay at the infamous Chunking Mansions but ended up bargaining for a deal up the street. I did stroll down to Chunking Mansions, which is a fascinating but slightly unnerving place to walk around alone in the evening - money changers, electronics, Indian groceries and movies, lots of SE Asian and African people around and, um, hardly any women. The place is full of touts trying to get you to eat or stay at one of the many hostels or guest houses. I have a policy of not staying at a place that someone on the street comes up and sells after dark - I always have the prickly feeling that they don't have my best interests at heart. (It was less than half the price of the other place though.) I stocked up on Indian movies from a little shop in the back and got out of there.

Since I had a day to kill I headed up The Peak, a small mountain in the middle of Hong Kong Island. On the way I met this lovely, retro, elegant building - my favourite so far in Hong Kong. Sorry I didn't get the name or address, but it was between the Peak Tram and Central.



Views from the Peak:



At the top of the Peak is a Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum. I didn't go in since I am not that up on Hong Kong celebrities but Bruce Lee holds court outside in his famous striped yellow suit. Visitors strike martial arts poses to get photographed with him.



I walked down the Old Peak Road down from the summit, which is a wide concrete trail that would be pretty easy if it was not so steep. The grade kept my quads and shins in permanent clench. I was passed by many very fit, light, middle aged Hong Kong residents making the trip up, including one guy with leg problems whose walk was a bit wobbly but who was serenely keeping a pretty good pace. Somehow I ended up in the Botanical and Zoological Garden and had fun looking at the animals. The cages made it hard to get good pictures, but this is an emperor marmoset.



Last time I visited Hong Kong I was very unimpressed with the food. This time I did some homework and did a bit better. Food post coming up.

Underground Malls

Underground downtown is a maze of shopping stalls. This is a good place to get very cheap stuff, though if you are foreign you will be quoted an astronomical initial price. Pretty irritating to be quoted 4X a fair price for shoes which appear to be factory rejects fixed with rubber cement. The underground malls are a good place to go if you are caught in the rain and if you have an hour or so to kill you can stop for a manicure or pedicure - simple or intricate pictures and designs can be painted on your nails for 10-20 rmb. A set of acrylics is rarely over 25 rmb, and the precision of the little paintbrushes as they work is really amazing. I think it must come from Chinese calligraphy practice.



Tattoo parlours' highly graphic advertising. The buzz of a tattoo needle is also common here, and sometimes the customer is getting worked on right out in the open.

Holiday Time

Wen Shu Yuan is an ancient temple site northeast of downtown that has become a community place and tourist attraction. There is usually a lot going on around there during holidays so I went over during Spring Festival week to check it out. The little figures in the decorations are China's Olympic mascots.



The street snacks out today are definitely a big draw. The white vegetable wraps are spring rolls. Various kinds of chilled noodles (liang mian, liang fen, shui mian) look appetizing but I like them better in the summer.



Candy made from bean, sesame, and other kinds of flour.



There were some carnival games going on as well. Here the players stand behind a line and can win a toy or figurine by tossing a ring over the prize.



A melted sugar artist makes a teddy bear.

Winter

News and weather reports from Canada tell of extreme temperatures this week. Here we had a week of 'very cold' weather too - almost down to zero. There were a few days of big snowflakes falling, though they melted on the ground. It may seem like we have nothing to complain about, but our heating units (which only a few houses have) are dual purpose and are more for A/C in the summer. We supplement these with portable heaters and electric blankets (btw, an electric blanket has to always lay flat - if you bend an electric blanket here it stops working. I'm on my third of the season).

This means it is cold inside constantly. The floor is cold, the chairs are cold until they have been sat in for a few minutes, the toilet seat is cold, and all the plates and cups are cold. If you forgot some food out on the counter overnight you don't have to worry - it's been at fridge temperature anyway. Hot food put on a cold plate starts to congeal really fast. And if you are visiting someone who does not have heat your feet have no feeling after a fairly short time.

On the other hand, one big positive about winter is that the street food is prime right now. People are hauling around their ovens, steamers, and pans to make roasted sweet potatoes, dan hong gao (little crepes folded around your choice of fillings), shao bing, ye'er ba (steamed rice flour dumplings with spicy fillings), and dan bao (egg mcmuffin like fried sandwiches). These things mostly disappeared over the summer.

The flowers pictured (some kind of plum) are another nice feature of winter here - they only bloom in this season. The school has a bunch of these trees that smell wonderful when you walk by - cool, wintery, perfume-laden air is quite distinct and lovely.