HK Journal

January 11, 2009 (Day 1)

When I first arrived at Man Mo Temple I was surprised to see it was right in the middle of high rises and a regular neighborhood. I guess I had this notion that temples were always separate from congested neighborhoods, probably because I have only seen pictures of temples. Churches and synagogues are found every where so I guess temples are no exception. One thing that exceeded my expectation was the color. You always see how colorful temples are in pictures, but it is a million times better in person. The vivid reds and golds were just amazing! The amount of incense took me by surprise and I was certainly not expecting to see large incense coils hanging from the ceiling.

Repulse Bay was gorgeous! I had no idea there was any place like that in Hong Kong. I will definitely go back there one day.

The traditional dinner was quite an experience. I’m not a huge tofu fan to begin with, and this dinner was all tofu! I understand sitting at the vegetarian table meant there was bound to be tofu, but for every single course? I think that was a bit much. The fried tofu was not bad at all, but the shrimp flavor really turned me off. It was the one time I wished the tofu had no flavor. There seemed to be endless amounts of tofu, but where were the vegetables? I was expecting more vegetables and less sauce on everything. I think everyone was very confused and had no appetite by the end.

January 12, 2009 (Day 2)

Chi Lin Nunnery was beautiful! It is such a shame that the free way runs right next to and around it, but amazingly it is quite peaceful. I could have spent all day there. Everything was so perfect it is almost as if was a painting. Not one thing is out of place. Even the workers seamlessly blend in with the gardens. The lotus ponds near the temple were gorgeous. The colors were so vibrant. The lotus is my favorite flower and this is the first time I actually got to see one up close. It was a shame we couldn’t take pictures inside the temple. It was all so ornate I wanted to take pictures of everything. In the end I bought the book with all the information and pictures of all the things we couldn’t take pictures of. It was about US$2. Well worth it.

Lunch at Hollywood Plaza was …well….it was edible. I found it very difficult to find something to eat that did not have meat in it or wasn’t heavily drenched in sauce. I knew there was a Pizza Hut, but I really wanted to try some “authentic” food. (Not too sure how authentic food in the mall is) With such a large Buddhist population I’m surprised there are not more vegetarian options.

The lecture at the Hong Kong Baptist University did not really interest me. It wasn’t boring, it is just not an area of interest to me. I was more interested in the university itself. It was very open and for those who went to the ladies room, it was quite interesting to see all the colors and mirrors. The food we had at the dining hall after the lecture, the French toast specifically, was amazing! At that point it was the best food I had since I had been there. I’m definitely making it at home.

January 13, 2009 (Day 3)

First thing of the day…the Hong Kong University Museum. Well, the first thing was actually the walk, rather hike, up the huge hill to the museum. One thing I was not expecting to find in Hong Kong was hills. Steep hills are usually not something you find in many other cities. The museum itself was nothing spectacular. I felt like it contained everything I could see at a museum back in the states. The one thing I really liked was the special exhibit. The paintings were huge and full of color. I enjoyed walking around the university itself more than the museum. I am always interested to see what other universities are like in other countries.

After lunch was the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra. Now I don’t usually like orchestras or symphonies or anything along those lines, but this was AMAZING! Totally different than anything I have ever heard. My favorite instrument was the Erhu. There was just something about the sound that I really liked.

Victoria Peak was a disappointment. I have heard such great things about it, but didn’t know you have to pay to actually see the view. It’s only about a few dollars, but I didn’t learn that until after I was already back at the hotel for the night. I did get some good souvenirs though.

January 14, 2009 (Day 4)

A large number of us went to Macau today. It was a former Portuguese colony that was returned back to China in 1999. The ferry rider there and back made me a bit sick. I could never do that every for work. The island itself was a lot like Vegas, casinos everywhere! I was expecting to see more colonial influences but the buildings were much like any other city. We had lunch at a Portuguese restaurant. It was not exactly the best food like everyone had been saying, but it beats everything else we have eaten so far.

At night we saw Caligula. I was really looking forward to this because I love theater, but by the end of the day I was so tired I just wanted to go to sleep. I knew there were going to be subtitles, but because they were above the stage it was difficult to read and try to pay attention to what was happening on stage.