Friday, July 21, 2006
VIVA HONG KONG!!!

We love Hong Kong!!! We are having a blast, although our legs and feet are a little sore from trying to keep up with our agenda. Last night after posting our update, John and I headed out to explore the Night Market, which is not too far from our harbor view hotel…after a few hiccups on the subway, we soon found ourselves in Heaven…oops, I mean the marketplace! We roamed for a couple of hours, picking up a few little things and enjoying the time to browse. It was cram packed with shoppers and diners, and was so lively! And there were no mosquitoes, to our surprise. Hong Kong is incredibly clean and efficient and just an amazing city to explore. After our shopping expedition, we headed back to the harbor to spend a few minutes appreciating the Avenue of the Stars and magnificent lights of busy, beautiful Hong Kong.

This morning we awoke to the unpleasant surprise that my flat iron did indeed die. I don’t know what happened! It worked great yesterday but today, nothing! No heat at all. So after some breathing exercises, I decided to just “embrace the wave” as Stefanie encouraged me, and put it back in a ponytail and went out to grab some breakfast. That cheered me up a great deal as we found in the hotel bakery one of my all time favorites, Char Siu Bao. After inhaling that, we were ready to explore some more. My dear friend Naomi had put together a perfect day’s agenda for us, complete with bus routes and seating assignments, that was so fun. We caught a double decker bus right in front of our hotel, grabbed an upstairs upfront seat and were off to see Stanley Market. The bus route took us right through all of Hong Kong Island, so we could appreciate the gorgeous scenery and incredible architecture. It teetered so closely to the edge of the drop off cliff down to the South China Sea that I know Mummy would have been saying, “Lawd ha’ mercy!” if she had been with us! Several times overhanging branches hit the windshield directly in front of us, or we would be sure the bus was going to go into someone or something, but we arrived at the market intact and thrilled with the ride. After some shopping, we headed back to the downtown area of Hong Kong Island to meet up with Naomi at the US Consulate where she works. It was the greatest treat to see my old friend and catch up! She was just as beautiful and gracious and charming as ever and was the perfect hostess. She advised us to spend the rest of the afternoon seeing Victoria Peak from the tram which stopped right outside the Consulate, and then come back to the consulate to meet her for dinner….the peak was breathtaking! I just can’t say enough how lovely Hong Kong is. It is really unusual and a total gem. If you ever get the chance to go, you must!!!!

Naomi took us for a special treat to a private yacht club that she is a member of which opens right out onto the harbor and is the only restaurant on the harbor. It was delicious and we spent four and a half hours, just enjoying the view and the food and her company….it was beautiful to see the sun go down over the harbor and watch the light show right from our table on the deck. During our time together, Naomi coached me in my mandarin, helping me to remember phrases that will come in handy with Gracie, we hope. Invaluable tutoring! It was a night we will never forget…..After taking the ferry home, we feel like we have really experienced a bit of true Hong Kong today and absolutely enjoyed ourselves. Off to Nanning in the morning! Only three more days now to Grace’s Gotcha Day and we can’t wait!