Hong Kong, China
Wed. Nov. 11
Hong Kong, once called the barren rock, is an island of entrepreneurial superpower. Skyscrapers shoot from the water’s edge and cover everything except the lush green mountains that creep slowly behind the city of glass and steel. Once a British colony, Hong Kong rejoined the People’s Republic of China in 1997. Its bustling capitalistic economy preserves its democratic tendencies and keeps China from taking complete control. Called the New York of Asia, HK has an energy and electric feel that certainly reminds me of the city that doesn’t sleep. This city does though; people of all ages flock to the parks at 5 am to do Tai Chi. Unlike the rest of China, the majority of people speak Cantonese, not Mandarin, and about 35% speak English. Feng Shui is taken very seriously, especially in expensive construction projects. Thought to make or break a business. Ba gua mirrors deflect evil spirits and buildings lack any floor number that has 4 in it—4 is very similar to the word “die” in Chinese. Fusion of east and west with food too—dim sum, hot pot, and fast food restaurants coexist with haute cuisine.
We booked a trip through an independent travel agency, the China Guide. When we arrived in port, we were picked up from the ship for our Hong Kong city tour. We saw the Man Mo Temple, a Taoist place of heavy adornment and heavier incense. A hundred smoking coils of incense hung from the ceiling and sticks smoldered in sand pots near shrines, making a heady fog of sweet smells. Fruit, flowers, and candles were offered to a Buddha draped in yellow silk and Chinese lanterns gave off a dim glow. One side of the small temple was dedicated to fortune telling. There was one device, similar to an 8-ball, that you ask a question and your answer is revealed in an ancient book. It was a skinny clay pot filled with sticks that all had a number on them. You would shake the pot until 1 stick fell out, and that number corresponds to your fortune in the book. It took a long time to get just one out; if more than one fell, you had to start over. Kinda like Jenga, in a way. My number was 66… it chronicled the life of a Chinese poet that has links to my life. My fortune:
Saying #66: “Tao Fu relaxed in the bliss of spring.”
Message: Very bright prospect
Historical reference: Basically he had a great life… loved poetry and long story short ended up building himself a grass hut by the side of a stream. There, in the bliss of the warm spring air, he relaxed and indulged in drink, poetry, and the scenery. People said this was the most joyful moment of his life. So, can anybody see me ending up by a creek when I’m about 70, reading poetry and having a little wine? I can totally dig it. Thanks Tao Fu. Holla to my Chinese kindred spirit ancestor dude.
Prediction and advice: Sickness heals in no time.
Lawsuits settle quickly.
Wealth grows by degrees.
Travelers return.
Ripe time for marriage. (or not…)
Fortune gained without effort.
So basically I’m going to get married in 5 years and end up in a grass hut by a stream. Sounds ideal to me. I’d like to stretch out the marriage period to 10 years… but we’ll see.
After the temple it was out into the clear air again and up the steep tram for views from Victoria Peak. (Passed a wax Jackie Chan in the tram station… just throwing that out there.) Seeing the skyline from that height was absolutely incredible. So incredible that I bought a $6 ice cream the size of a kiddy cone. Didn’t realize it until it was in my hand. Hey, gotta give it to them though; these guys know their market. Everything was jacked up in price on that hill.
Snaked down the mountain’s steep curves and thrilling drops on a bus and had a traditional Chinese lunch of fired crab wontons, egg drop soup, some assorted meats and greens, and of course, tea! Black and jasmine.
After lunch we saw where it came from—the Aberdeen Fishing Village. We boarded cute little sampan boats used to take people across the Bay to Jumbo, the largest floating restaurant in the world (3 story dinner boat). The very traditional and delicate architecture of the dock provided stark contrast to the high rises just behind it, but was another example of preserving tradition while welcoming the future. Long green tile coated the roof that curved and swooped back up to the sky before it ended. Intricate geometrical latticework and small murals of warriors and women in silk hid between red columns. A fierce dragon head snarled from his illuminated circle atop the roof, and of course, the whole thing lit up like an incessant firefly at night.
Our sampan had about 25 Chinese lanterns hanging from its bamboo roof. Their fringe rocked and swayed as we motored around the fishing house boats of the harbor—yachts on one side, rickety old dingys on the other. Stark contrast.
After the fishing village we went to the most famous beach in Hong Kong—Repulse Bay (which doesn’t sound that wonderful really, but it was cool). It held a huge sculpture garden of enormous tiled buddas, golden fish, dainty gazebos, terracotta horses, and a giant tiled Chinese old man riding a turtle.
Went out to see the incredible light show across the bay that night—the buildings had lights that zig zagged, swirled, and jumped over the tall metal frames. As the lights reflected off the water, they danced to a chimey musical tune. It was hokey but awesome. That night Olivia, Carley, Mary C, Charis, and I went to the Four Seasons HK for a drink ($14 cocktail was amazing) and a late dinner.
Thurs. Nov 12
To Beijing by air today—3 hour ride from warm 70s in HK to the freezing 30s in the north. The city, white with new snow, seemed much quieter than HK. We checked into Huayu Hotel and tried to find a cool traditional Chinese place for dinner but it was so cold that we ended up going to a really weird place. Most people ordered cheeseburgers and paninis and they were terrible. My Chinese food was pretty good though. We then made a strange attempt at going out at this karaoke bar… we were the only people there and our “Love Shack” choice fizzled pretty quickly. We then went to Ho high street, which is a district of really cool bars around a lake, but it was completely dead. Which I found weird on a Thursday night… but I guess Beijing isn’t Oxford. And good luck with taxis… the language barrier is huge. This is the thickest wall I’ve encountered so far because there are no similarities between Mandarin and English at all. You have no chance of figuring out what things mean. We stopped 4 taxis before we found one that knew where our hotel was. Bizarre that we got where we needed to go each time!
Fri. Nov 13
The frosty morning air revealed a beautiful city cloaked in powder. To the girls’ delight, the first item on our day agenda was shopping in Silk Street, a five-story plaza with tons and tons of independent booths selling great knock off everything—North Face, Patagonia, Jimmy Choo, Salvatore Ferragamo, TODS, Longchamp… I mean every brand you could think of. Floor of coats, floor of shoes, purses, and accessories, floor of silk, and a spa and restaurant on the top. I did too much damage in Vietnam to go crazy again, but I did buy black and gold flats ($11), brown flat riding boots ($10), and a really great Ferragamo leather purse ($20). Not too bad right? Got a great deal. Could have done a lot more damage. I took myself out of the game and went to a Starbucks around the corner. After my Christmasy Cinnamon latte, I stopped off in the McDonalds bathroom—a squatter, like the rest of China (except the really nice places). For those of you that don’t know what a squatter is—lucky you. It’s a hole in the ground that you squat over. That was fun.
After we piled on the bus with all of our bags and burdens we rolled off to the Drum Tower where we met Tom Li, an adorable little guy about 23 that said “Ok great” and “awesome” in the cutest tones and said every word he considered important 3 times in case we didn’t catch it. Example “Ok, this is the ancient drum tower that the emperor used to call people together, people together, people together. Got it? Ok Great!”
A tiny little man cycled us around the town on his rickshaw after we trekked down from the tower and Tom Li hopped on the handlebars. We bumped through icy, muddy clay and rock and said “Ne haw” (hello) to everyone we passed. Very entertaining.
We were so glad to duck into an alley and someone’s home after the rickshaw—cold and hungry—best hot tea and peanuts I’ve had. We had a lot of wonderful food that the mother of the home had prepared, and at the end of the meal she introduced us to her pet black bird that spoke Chinese.
The doorways to homes are very characteristic of its inhabitants and what kind of family you will find there. Two posts above a door signify a lower/middle class, 4 posts signify upper class/government… more than that and you are a big deal. Also the doors are not flush with the floor; instead you step over a ledge before you can enter. This is based on the belief that ghosts are kneeless and cannot enter because of that barrier.
After we were toasty and warm we began our journey to the Great Wall—a 3 hour drive through the snowy mountains. We arrived right at sunset and ran up the slick hill to see the sun sink behind the craggy horizon. Absolutely majestic. We had dinner at a restaurant at the base of the wall—JinShan Restaurant. Very good.
We then piled on the bus—only had 1 boy in our group and 24 girls, so everyone strapped on long johns and piled on more layers. Except me, of course, because I never really bundle properly for anything. Carley, on the other hand, wore leggings, jeans, snow pants, 2 long sleeve shirts, a polar fleece, a hoodie, and a jacket. Not exactly sure how she moved! 15 degrees below Celsius on the Wall. Ridiculous.
We were given tiny crank flashlights and told to commence our 45 minute hike up to the wall in the dark. For most of the hike we sang Mulan tunes, and then we switched to Beatles. I’m sure someone wanted to throw snowballs at us. Or rocks. When we finally summated, we followed the wrong guide 2 towers down and hiked about 20 minutes out of the way. When we finally reached our tower, water, beer, and Oreos were waiting on us, along with our very relieved tour guide.
Mary C brought 2 bottles of wine, and watching her try to open them with cumbersome mittens and a black guard covering her face was hilarious. We made a huge pile of bodies outside and watched shooting stars for hours. The close night sky was more expansive, luminous and breathtaking than I’ve ever seen it before. Our laughter kept us warm as we huddled together with our backs against the crumbling ancient stones and snow. We slept inside 2 sleeping bags and were relatively warm, thanks to body heat.
Dawn came early and we shook the morning chill off with difficulty. The morning sun touched the rugged landscape and revealed the wall to us in all its glory for the first time. Whoever said the Great Wall was overrated didn’t see this morning. Your eye could trace it for miles into the distance; the extensive expanse is astronomical.
We climbed, scrambled, and slid up and down the crazy angles of the wall for about 2 hours (some of the hills were covered in snow and ice and looked like 60 degree angles) before we took a zip line across the lake and had lunch.
After returning to Beijing we put our stuff down in the hotel and saw the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, the Summer Palace (where I got roasted chestnuts for the first time—pretty good… different from what I expected. A very meaty nut, the chestnut). Naked branches of weeping willows lightly kissed the huge frozen lake beside the Summer Palace. The sun glinted off the ice as towering trees made long shadows and dappled light spots on the ancient walls and walkways.
After the Summer Palace we stopped at the Beijing Olympic sights to see the Bird’s Nest and Swim Cube. Really crazy architecture. After we were chilled to the bone we stopped at a tea house to sample the local delicacies. Tiny women taught us to drink and eat properly. Some tea you slurp, some you sip, and some you smack, surprisingly enough.
Time to depart Beijing! To the train station to catch the overnight sleeper to Shanghai. It was MCA’s 21st so we had a good time together. Very comfortable sleeper compartment—4 to a room (MCA, Charis, Carley, me). Arrived the next morning to a chilly, rainy Shanghai and went back to the boat for a nap. Our boat was delayed half a day so we had a bit more time to play around there but it was nasty out and we just stayed in and watched movies. Too exhausted!
I loved China. The government was a little strange at times… Facebook and a few other major sites are blocked in China and the Tiananmen Square Massacre is a taboo subject that nobody every touches. One American student googled it when he was studying abroad in China and the police showed up at his door 2 hours later with a warning. It’s just kinda weird. But everything else was so cool. It’s such an ancient country with rich traditions and strong culture. Hard to not be impressed.
Hong Kong, China
Wed. Nov. 11
Hong Kong, once called the barren rock, is an island of entrepreneurial superpower. Skyscrapers shoot from the water’s edge and cover everything except the lush green mountains that creep slowly behind the city of glass and steel. Once a British colony, Hong Kong rejoined the People’s Republic of China in 1997. Its bustling capitalistic economy preserves its democratic tendencies and keeps China from taking complete control. Called the New York of Asia, HK has an energy and electric feel that certainly reminds me of the city that doesn’t sleep. This city does though; people of all ages flock to the parks at 5 am to do Tai Chi. Unlike the rest of China, the majority of people speak Cantonese, not Mandarin, and about 35% speak English. Feng Shui is taken very seriously, especially in expensive construction projects. Thought to make or break a business. Ba gua mirrors deflect evil spirits and buildings lack any floor number that has 4 in it—4 is very similar to the word “die” in Chinese. Fusion of east and west with food too—dim sum, hot pot, and fast food restaurants coexist with haute cuisine.
We booked a trip through an independent travel agency, the China Guide. When we arrived in port, we were picked up from the ship for our Hong Kong city tour. We saw the Man Mo Temple, a Taoist place of heavy adornment and heavier incense. A hundred smoking coils of incense hung from the ceiling and sticks smoldered in sand pots near shrines, making a heady fog of sweet smells. Fruit, flowers, and candles were offered to a Buddha draped in yellow silk and Chinese lanterns gave off a dim glow. One side of the small temple was dedicated to fortune telling. There was one device, similar to an 8-ball, that you ask a question and your answer is revealed in an ancient book. It was a skinny clay pot filled with sticks that all had a number on them. You would shake the pot until 1 stick fell out, and that number corresponds to your fortune in the book. It took a long time to get just one out; if more than one fell, you had to start over. Kinda like Jenga, in a way. My number was 66… it chronicled the life of a Chinese poet that has links to my life. My fortune:
Saying #66: “Tao Fu relaxed in the bliss of spring.”
Message: Very bright prospect
Historical reference: Basically he had a great life… loved poetry and long story short ended up building himself a grass hut by the side of a stream. There, in the bliss of the warm spring air, he relaxed and indulged in drink, poetry, and the scenery. People said this was the most joyful moment of his life. So, can anybody see me ending up by a creek when I’m about 70, reading poetry and having a little wine? I can totally dig it. Thanks Tao Fu. Holla to my Chinese kindred spirit ancestor dude.
Prediction and advice: Sickness heals in no time.
Lawsuits settle quickly.
Wealth grows by degrees.
Travelers return.
Ripe time for marriage. (or not…)
Fortune gained without effort.
So basically I’m going to get married in 5 years and end up in a grass hut by a stream. Sounds ideal to me. I’d like to stretch out the marriage period to 10 years… but we’ll see.
After the temple it was out into the clear air again and up the steep tram for views from Victoria Peak. (Passed a wax Jackie Chan in the tram station… just throwing that out there.) Seeing the skyline from that height was absolutely incredible. So incredible that I bought a $6 ice cream the size of a kiddy cone. Didn’t realize it until it was in my hand. Hey, gotta give it to them though; these guys know their market. Everything was jacked up in price on that hill.
Snaked down the mountain’s steep curves and thrilling drops on a bus and had a traditional Chinese lunch of fired crab wontons, egg drop soup, some assorted meats and greens, and of course, tea! Black and jasmine.
After lunch we saw where it came from—the Aberdeen Fishing Village. We boarded cute little sampan boats used to take people across the Bay to Jumbo, the largest floating restaurant in the world (3 story dinner boat). The very traditional and delicate architecture of the dock provided stark contrast to the high rises just behind it, but was another example of preserving tradition while welcoming the future. Long green tile coated the roof that curved and swooped back up to the sky before it ended. Intricate geometrical latticework and small murals of warriors and women in silk hid between red columns. A fierce dragon head snarled from his illuminated circle atop the roof, and of course, the whole thing lit up like an incessant firefly at night.
Our sampan had about 25 Chinese lanterns hanging from its bamboo roof. Their fringe rocked and swayed as we motored around the fishing house boats of the harbor—yachts on one side, rickety old dingys on the other. Stark contrast.
After the fishing village we went to the most famous beach in Hong Kong—Repulse Bay (which doesn’t sound that wonderful really, but it was cool). It held a huge sculpture garden of enormous tiled buddas, golden fish, dainty gazebos, terracotta horses, and a giant tiled Chinese old man riding a turtle.
Went out to see the incredible light show across the bay that night—the buildings had lights that zig zagged, swirled, and jumped over the tall metal frames. As the lights reflected off the water, they danced to a chimey musical tune. It was hokey but awesome. That night Olivia, Carley, Mary C, Charis, and I went to the Four Seasons HK for a drink ($14 cocktail was amazing) and a late dinner.
Thurs. Nov 12
To Beijing by air today—3 hour ride from warm 70s in HK to the freezing 30s in the north. The city, white with new snow, seemed much quieter than HK. We checked into Huayu Hotel and tried to find a cool traditional Chinese place for dinner but it was so cold that we ended up going to a really weird place. Most people ordered cheeseburgers and paninis and they were terrible. My Chinese food was pretty good though. We then made a strange attempt at going out at this karaoke bar… we were the only people there and our “Love Shack” choice fizzled pretty quickly. We then went to Ho high street, which is a district of really cool bars around a lake, but it was completely dead. Which I found weird on a Thursday night… but I guess Beijing isn’t Oxford. And good luck with taxis… the language barrier is huge. This is the thickest wall I’ve encountered so far because there are no similarities between Mandarin and English at all. You have no chance of figuring out what things mean. We stopped 4 taxis before we found one that knew where our hotel was. Bizarre that we got where we needed to go each time!
Fri. Nov 13
The frosty morning air revealed a beautiful city cloaked in powder. To the girls’ delight, the first item on our day agenda was shopping in Silk Street, a five-story plaza with tons and tons of independent booths selling great knock off everything—North Face, Patagonia, Jimmy Choo, Salvatore Ferragamo, TODS, Longchamp… I mean every brand you could think of. Floor of coats, floor of shoes, purses, and accessories, floor of silk, and a spa and restaurant on the top. I did too much damage in Vietnam to go crazy again, but I did buy black and gold flats ($11), brown flat riding boots ($10), and a really great Ferragamo leather purse ($20). Not too bad right? Got a great deal. Could have done a lot more damage. I took myself out of the game and went to a Starbucks around the corner. After my Christmasy Cinnamon latte, I stopped off in the McDonalds bathroom—a squatter, like the rest of China (except the really nice places). For those of you that don’t know what a squatter is—lucky you. It’s a hole in the ground that you squat over. That was fun.
After we piled on the bus with all of our bags and burdens we rolled off to the Drum Tower where we met Tom Li, an adorable little guy about 23 that said “Ok great” and “awesome” in the cutest tones and said every word he considered important 3 times in case we didn’t catch it. Example “Ok, this is the ancient drum tower that the emperor used to call people together, people together, people together. Got it? Ok Great!”
A tiny little man cycled us around the town on his rickshaw after we trekked down from the tower and Tom Li hopped on the handlebars. We bumped through icy, muddy clay and rock and said “Ne haw” (hello) to everyone we passed. Very entertaining.
We were so glad to duck into an alley and someone’s home after the rickshaw—cold and hungry—best hot tea and peanuts I’ve had. We had a lot of wonderful food that the mother of the home had prepared, and at the end of the meal she introduced us to her pet black bird that spoke Chinese.
The doorways to homes are very characteristic of its inhabitants and what kind of family you will find there. Two posts above a door signify a lower/middle class, 4 posts signify upper class/government… more than that and you are a big deal. Also the doors are not flush with the floor; instead you step over a ledge before you can enter. This is based on the belief that ghosts are kneeless and cannot enter because of that barrier.
After we were toasty and warm we began our journey to the Great Wall—a 3 hour drive through the snowy mountains. We arrived right at sunset and ran up the slick hill to see the sun sink behind the craggy horizon. Absolutely majestic. We had dinner at a restaurant at the base of the wall—JinShan Restaurant. Very good.
We then piled on the bus—only had 1 boy in our group and 24 girls, so everyone strapped on long johns and piled on more layers. Except me, of course, because I never really bundle properly for anything. Carley, on the other hand, wore leggings, jeans, snow pants, 2 long sleeve shirts, a polar fleece, a hoodie, and a jacket. Not exactly sure how she moved! 15 degrees below Celsius on the Wall. Ridiculous.
We were given tiny crank flashlights and told to commence our 45 minute hike up to the wall in the dark. For most of the hike we sang Mulan tunes, and then we switched to Beatles. I’m sure someone wanted to throw snowballs at us. Or rocks. When we finally summated, we followed the wrong guide 2 towers down and hiked about 20 minutes out of the way. When we finally reached our tower, water, beer, and Oreos were waiting on us, along with our very relieved tour guide.
Mary C brought 2 bottles of wine, and watching her try to open them with cumbersome mittens and a black guard covering her face was hilarious. We made a huge pile of bodies outside and watched shooting stars for hours. The close night sky was more expansive, luminous and breathtaking than I’ve ever seen it before. Our laughter kept us warm as we huddled together with our backs against the crumbling ancient stones and snow. We slept inside 2 sleeping bags and were relatively warm, thanks to body heat.
Dawn came early and we shook the morning chill off with difficulty. The morning sun touched the rugged landscape and revealed the wall to us in all its glory for the first time. Whoever said the Great Wall was overrated didn’t see this morning. Your eye could trace it for miles into the distance; the extensive expanse is astronomical.
We climbed, scrambled, and slid up and down the crazy angles of the wall for about 2 hours (some of the hills were covered in snow and ice and looked like 60 degree angles) before we took a zip line across the lake and had lunch.
After returning to Beijing we put our stuff down in the hotel and saw the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, the Summer Palace (where I got roasted chestnuts for the first time—pretty good… different from what I expected. A very meaty nut, the chestnut). Naked branches of weeping willows lightly kissed the huge frozen lake beside the Summer Palace. The sun glinted off the ice as towering trees made long shadows and dappled light spots on the ancient walls and walkways.
After the Summer Palace we stopped at the Beijing Olympic sights to see the Bird’s Nest and Swim Cube. Really crazy architecture. After we were chilled to the bone we stopped at a tea house to sample the local delicacies. Tiny women taught us to drink and eat properly. Some tea you slurp, some you sip, and some you smack, surprisingly enough.
Time to depart Beijing! To the train station to catch the overnight sleeper to Shanghai. It was MCA’s 21st so we had a good time together. Very comfortable sleeper compartment—4 to a room (MCA, Charis, Carley, me). Arrived the next morning to a chilly, rainy Shanghai and went back to the boat for a nap. Our boat was delayed half a day so we had a bit more time to play around there but it was nasty out and we just stayed in and watched movies. Too exhausted!
I loved China. The government was a little strange at times… Facebook and a few other major sites are blocked in China and the Tiananmen Square Massacre is a taboo subject that nobody every touches. One American student googled it when he was studying abroad in China and the police showed up at his door 2 hours later with a warning. It’s just kinda weird. But everything else was so cool. It’s such an ancient country with rich traditions and strong culture. Hard to not be impressed.
