My Hong Kong Trip
Tuesday, January 24th, 2006I need to write about my adventures before I forget. Let’s see…
I flew on Friday the 13th (I wasn’t scared, I was happy to be on the plane) and got into Hong Kong around 11 something in the PM. Oh man, I was very lucky because when I came out of arrivals my Aunt Fannie (姜鳳鈴) was right there. I had forgotten to bring my auntie’s cell phone number and address. Aunt Fannie can speak Mandarin so we used that and English, as I don’t speak Cantonese. But after this trip, I would like to be able to speak it (at least a little). We took a bus from the airport to the MTR and MTR to Central. The airport is on Lantau island and that’s where Aunt Fannie lives.
Aunt Fannie is a fast movin’ kind of person. I was trying to keep up with her when we were walking. She took me to meet my cousin Jake (鄧晢平). We met at a restaurant just down the street from Lan Kwai Fong. A minute later she left. I was thankful to be there, but at first the relation between Jake and I wasn’t quite clear, so it seemed a little awkward. (Now it’s clear and they were so nice too) Jake’s mother came, my great aunt or grandpa’s sister (巫惠賢). We took a taxi to their apartment, which is located in a nice villa between Central and Aberdeen. I stayed at their place for the rest of the trip. It’s a very comfortable apartment.
Day 1 - With Auntie Yin Ma (great aunt), we met Aunt Grace, Aunt Fannie’s mother or popo (先錦燕), and my grandma’s younger brother or kaukau (姜合有) for dimsum in Aberdeen. This dimsum restaurant was the biggest dimsum restaurant I have ever been in. The main room was huge. Then there were so many other hallways leading to other good size rooms. The food was good but it doesn’t beat the dimsum I had at an expenisive restaurant that Mattel took us too after visiting their factory close to Shenzhen.
Grace lives on the main street of Aberdeen. At dimsum I gave her a hard time, by making her explain the relationships and writing people’s names and how to say them. I think I got everyone’s Chinese name above correct. After all the explanations I had a better idea but things still didn’t seem clear. Maybe it was because I still just met them for the first time. It’s clear now and I feel pretty close with them as I was treated so warmly.
After dimsum Aunt Grace, kaukau and me went to see Aunt Grace’s mother. Sadly, Aunt Grace’s mother has been in a nursing home for a quite a few years now. Her mind is sharp though. She wonders when she will get a good doctor so she can leave. I want her imagination when I’m her age. She said she remembered me when I was little and that my father was a builder. I met one of Aunt Grace’s cousins, Susanna (梁巧慧), she manages two restaurants in Shenzhen. She told me I can be a waiter in her restaurant. I want to move to Shenzhen, be a waiter and study Chinese. And then travel Southwest China.
After our visit, just me and kaukau went to the cementary. Kaukau can say a few English words, not many. So, communication was tough. We bought some incense and walked to the cementary. We walked this way and that to find the graves. The sun was shining really bright. We finally found my great grandparents grave. My grandpa’s parents. I wanted to be able to read the writings. I could read the surname Li, but not much more. I felt a little confused. I payed my respects (拜拜).
We moved on to find my grandma’s mother’s grave and her brother’s. We couldn’t find them though. There was contrsuction blocking too many paths.
After lunch kaukau went home. Aunt Grace, Jake and I went to popo’s apartment. There were men hanging out and playing mahjong. They used really big playing pieces and it was so loud when they were shuffling them. I had a lot of fun in Hong Kong but the highlight of the trip was the sampan boat (舢舨) ride. (Here’s what one looks like.) One of the men playing mahjong would be the one to give us a ride. He let me drive the boat. Grace for some reason was scared when I was driving. I thought it was great fun. The sun was setting and it was really beautiful.
At nighttime we ate seafood, freshly picked from the live market and cooked at a dining hall upstairs. I ate so much during that trip. Too much. I was told to eat more and more.
Did a lot that day.
Day 2 - Slept in till about 10ish. Took a ferry to Lantau island. Visited the giant buddha at Po Lin Monastary (寶蓮寺). The weather was great again. Just the last day did it turn cold and rainy. In the evening we headed back and ate dinner at home. Jake’s housemaid from Indonesia can cook great Cantonese food. We had a dish with lots of colorful peppers that was sweet, lamb that was cooked rare (my dad would have loved this), jellyfish and some other yummy dish I can’t remember what.
Oh, and at nighttime Jake and I went to Lan Kwai Fong to have a stroll around. The street was really quite compared to the Friday night I saw it. If you don’t know, this is the place to go for some fun nightlife in Central. And if you don’t want to drink, no problem. Get a double scoop of gelato ice-cream (from XTC Gelato), have a seat on the roadside and watch the scene. I promise you, you won’t regret it. The gelato is delicious!
Day 3 - Ate Cantonese style breakfast (Chinese donut and mush as my mom called it or 油條 and 稀飯). Watched the service for the offical wedding ceremony for the city of Hong Kong. Watched the traditional wedding ceremony at Aunt Fannie’s home. Ate lunch at a restaurant close by. Celia (戴佩儀), Aunt Fannie’s 2nd daughter, has a voracious appetite, or she was just a little hungry that day. She doensn’t look her age (you can see in the album). And the same goes for Aunt Fannie.
I met Chris and his now wife. He’s a nice guy. The wedding banquet was grand. It was held at the JW Marriot in Central. 20 tables, 10 guests at a table, an 8 course meal, a bunch of delicacies I may never eat again. Everything was beautiful.
Day 4 - Dimsum at Lok Yue Teahouse on Stanley St. in Central. This place is old style and very hard to find a table. There are three floors. The first one was booked. We walked up to the second one and it was booked. Came back down and after much a do, got a table on the third floor. You order by checking what you want off on the list (see Aunt Grace and Auntie Yin Ma in the photo). All the businessmen come here and it’s expensive.
Traveled the city on my own on this rainy day. Visited Hong Kong Park. It’s really a splendid park. There’s a 36 meter high tower with a nice vantage point. A taiji court (太極園), aviary, lakes and more.
I feel comfortable making my way around the city now. I feel Hong Kong is a prettier place than Taipei. The streets are cleaner, the weather is brighter and it has character. I like the hills. You see very modern skyscrapers and then you’ll spot a mountainside full of trees behind them. Because it’s so compact it feels cozy. It seems there is more order every where you look, like people actually obey the traffic laws. And you can only step into a taxi at certain places. In Taipei, you can hail a taxi four lanes over and there are no designated places. Hong Kong is very dynamic. People of all cultures everywhere. I like that place.
We ate another big dinner that night. The waitress who took our photo couldn’t get it right. She took three, one with Aunt Yin Ma cut off, another with Grace talking on the cell phone and the third was blurred. The first one is posted after some editing. Aunt Fannie took me halfway to the airport. Made it home around 3am.
Crazy fun. I’m really lucky.
