Hong Kong

Just got back from wandering the metropolis of Hong Kong- a shopping mecca for those of you who love to shop. I've been gone about 12 hours and I'm a bit bushed. I've been walking probably 75% of the time. I had coffee at a Starbucks as I looked across the street at a KFC and 7-11 while a Chinese woman read Satanic Verses and talked with an English speaker.

I was going to shop for some photo equipment but after doing more research it seems that the U.S. is still the best place for the type of equipment that I was looking forward. Gone are the days of this being the least expensive option, especially when you consider that there is no U.S. warranty on some of this stuff. Not worth the risk. If you are ever interested there is a great webpage that has been going on for 8 years about this...

The main reason I went into the Central district today was to try and get more than a one month visa. Apparently, that is all that is being issued and they can't do anything for me. They told me to try to do something about it in Chengdu, which means that I may not be successful in getting an additional month on my visa. They said I could try in Chengdu. So, what to do? I can go to Chengdu, Barkham and then back to Chengdu, even go to Lhasa beforehand I guess. I could go to Mardo Tashi Choling for awhile and then go to Chengdu to renew the visa. Another option is to fly back to Hong Kong and get a new visa when this one expires... not an option I prefer. But it is part of the adventure.

When my mother and grandfather used to go to tourist attractions they'd make a beeline for the gift store- first. Even before seeing the attraction. I remember them doing that when we visited Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood in Oregon. Well, the highpoint on Hong Kong Island is Victoria Peak and there are 4 levels of shopping before you get to the observatory. The tram was packed with people and it was like a mass of salmon spawning up a fish ladder. At each level a new set of stores would divert people's attention until I reached the top and it seemed only a few people from my tram stayed on.

Another remembrance is that Grand Canyon National Park hired Disney to help manage visitor flow. They did a study about how long people looked at the Canyon and how much time was spent in the stores... the stores won. I can't remember the exact number but I think the visitors stayed an average of 7 minutes on the rim. Well, most of the people atop Victoria Peak didn't stay long. They saw the view, took pictures of each other, and then headed down.

We can choose to focus on the differences or similarities in people. The more I see, the more I see the similarities- no matter the color of skin, language spoken, or currency used. People laugh, cry, argue, hug, smile at babies, and they consume trinkets/doodads/dust catchers... all part of the memory of some occasion. Here are some things for you to look at that I've seen today: The Peak: http://www.thepeak.com.hk/full/en/index.php http://community.webshots.com/album/22663234jVMWAKXKFl Zoological and Botanical gardens: http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/parks/hkzbg/en/index.php A tour through many neighborhoods and this included the worlds longest escalator. If you have ever walked the hills of San Francisco, then you have an idea of what the hillside is like in Hong Kong, except that it is steeper AND they have this amazing escalator that takes you up. The signage isn't all that great in some places, but it was so convenient. I was sweating just taking the moving walkway uphill. http://www.discoverhongkong.com/eng/attraction/hkwalks/ta_walk_walk1.jhtml Here is one of the many buildings that I wandered through. It is amazing how many walking bridges, escalators, tunnels, and walks through buildings that there are. In the U.S. we don't have signed public passageways that go through commercial buildings quite like this. I imagine there are some extensive ones. Seattle and Spokane have linked buildings, but this was unique. The commercial buildings were meant to be a part of the public movement. http://www.archnewsnow.com/features/Feature23.htm

This Center has a wonderful park right in the heart of the industrial complex: http://beltcollins.com/projects_profile.asp?search=T&id=139

There was a sculpture exhibit celebrating the Olympics and it was only going to be here for 10 days, so my timing was right on. http://www.2009eastasiangames.hk/en/news/news_40.html There is a link to Olympics and Sculpture... you'll be able to see more pictures. Within this park, Hong Kong park, is a pond with lilies, lotus, koi, and a gazillion photographers. It stunned me to suddenly walk into a covey of individual photographers staking out their territory and pretending to not pay attention to what the other photographers were doing. (Maybe they didn't care.) It reminded me of a photography class on assignment. But then I showed up here at a reasonable time of day: 4ish. The light flattens out here quite quickly and there are only a couple of hours on each end of the day when the light is rich. The good news is that it has been clear. I'd been warned about the smog problem, but it has been very nice and relatively clear.

I find myself walking and thinking about this precious human birth, contemplating the ways to use this life and seeing how people live their lives. Staying present and using this as a walking meditation- remembering Rushon and trying to understand my motivations.

The Central/Soho/Midlevel portions of Hong Kong are a study in contrast when comparing it to the place where I am staying with at my friends flat. On Lamma Island, it is quiet village life. I am staying at Yung Shue Wan. The only motorized vehicles are these commercial rigs that about as wide as a big go-cart. Well, there are the backhoes and other industrial sized construction equipment, but they are pretty small compared to what we see in the U.S. No personal cars, motorbikes, or scooters.

Here is a link to some of the happenings on this island. (http://www.lamma.com.hk/)

Lamma Island is reached by ferries from Central Hong Kong. It takes about 20-30 minutes. There is a specialness to unwinding from the busyness to island life. The language may be different but there is still that specialness of letting the sea rock you into a relaxed state. My reference point is from having lived/worked on different islands in Washington State: Whidbey, Orcas and Lummi. It is probably more like people who work in Seattle and commute to Baindrige Island.

This morning I had dim sum for breakfast. They didn't speak much English and I speak no Cantonese. I had some shrimp and chicken filled dumplings after he pointed out some things. One thing I learned: They gave me a bowl, a tea cup, pot of tea, and a small eating bowl and only after watching another person did I learn what that bigger bowl was for: the person walked over to the giant hot pot and filled it with the hot water- they then washed their teacup, chopsticks, and bowl. Sure hope my Hepatitis B shot is strong.

Here are a couple of other sites if you want to see the village and the surrounding area: http://www.hkoutdoors.com/outlying-islands/lamma-island.html
http://www.12hk.com/area/Lamma/What2do_Lamma.shtml

This flat is away from the village, about a 5 minutes walk. Most of it is lit pretty well. But it is when the sidewalks gets dark and the vegetation overhangs the walkway that I remember my first trip to HK in 1981. During the middle of the day I took a walk along a concrete drainage line. As I walked past this tree, a snake dropped down in front of me. People have asked me what kind of snake it was... damned if I know because it was a moment of pure terror. There are cobras, vipers, and biting centipedes, but the crime rate is extremely low. People have told me to not worry about walking anywhere in HK. There are so many movies showing the Triad wars that I think we get a skewed view of what is going on here.

I was having breakfast with a new friend and we watched hundreds of school children get off the ferry and wander into the village and to the beach... with very, very few teachers/chaperones. In the U.S. we'd have a required number of adults helping out. So different.

It is warm and humid here. My clothes stick to my body, my forehead runs with sweat, and I'm clammy most of the time when I'm outside. The people who live here are having the same thing go on for them. They are sweating through their clothes, they are fanning themselves to stay cool. It dawned on me that even though I don't come from a warm very climate (I'm from Oregon), that it was my mental state that was going to cause me more of a problem. We are all humans and we sweat when it gets warm and all I need to do is not complain about it. Sweat happens!

One thing about traveling these days is that I don't carry travellers checks. I brought some U.S. dollars to exchange, but I bought a prepaid Visa travel card. The credit union would not authorize the use of my debit card in HK or China because there has been so much fraud. Once they explained the prepaid Visa, it made sense. However, there are fees. Just like the banks charge fees for exchanging U.S. dollars (the cheapest I have found is $50 HK- which is about $7 U.S.); well the Visa card has it's own feeds: there is a percentage of the withdrawl due to it being a foreign currency; their is the withdrawl fee; then their is the ATM fee. It was much cheaper in the days when I cashed Amex Traveller's checks. We'll see how it goes when I get into mainland China.

BTW- Hong Kong is a part of China, but it has a special designation. It was handed over to the Chinese by the British ten years ago, this year. There were fireworks the night I arrived, and thought I appreciated their thoughtfulness of welcoming me that way, I actually assumed it was part of their continued celebration. You do not need a visa to get into HK- just a passport.

I'm hoping to find a way to post photographs so you can see images of some places that I've been. We'll see if I can get them loaded on a site. I've used Snapfish and a couple others, but I don't like the fact that people have to register,etc. I may load them on Smug Mug. That way if there is an image you like you can order it from them too.

Well, I'll close for the night before my eyes do.