Hong Kong Recap and Shanghai Intro

I don’t even know how to start to explain my experiences in Hong Kong but I’ll do my best to capture some of the most interesting parts. We arrived in the city at 11pm local time and weren’t to our hotel (the YMCA which over here is an actual hotel) until about 12:15a.m. After settling in, Andrew Aldrich and my roommate Kyle Foster and I went out on the street and walked around for about 45 minutes. Since we are Caucasian, and obviously tourists, we were immediately solicited by probably a dozen different people for “massages,” “suits” and of course “copywatches” or “rolex watches.” The locals’ favorite lines were “hello rolex?” and “hey buddy a suit for you?” This is something we have experienced everywhere we go night or day and we have learned very quickly to avoid making eye contact and to say “no thank you” or nothing at all even when the person continues to walk with us down the street. While we were out, Andrew bought some sketchy looking meat on a stick for less than a US dollar and we all had our first taste of authentic Chinese street vendor food. It turned out being really spicy but pretty tasty. After walking around for another twenty minutes or so we made our way back to the hotel where we crashed after 16 hours of traveling. Thankfully it was 1:30am so the jetlag wasn’t too bad though it took a few nights to get used to.

The next morning we went on a guided tour to some of the local gems around the city. We first stopped at a temple which was apparently a shrine where the Chinese people visit twice a year to pray to the “gods.” Their first visit is early in the calendar year where they “pray for luck” for the year. Then, they visit later in the year to thank the “gods” for blessing them that year. The temple was super smoky and I guess it is always that way due to the excessive amount of incense they burn as offerings. There was also a part of the temple where people would bring pieces of paper with food, water, and even a house on them because in their culture they believe that their ancestors are in the “spirit world” and need everything that someone would need on earth. Needless to say I disagreed with their theology but was fascinated to hear their beliefs. After we visited the temple, the 47 of us piled back onto our tour bus and took off to “the peak” which is a large shopping and dining area on top of one of the highest areas in Hong Kong that overlooks the city. To get to the top we took the “Peak Tram” which has been running for over a hundred years and goes quite fast up a very steep grade. At the top we walked around and took pictures. It was here that we all learned the importance of being on time to the group’s designated meeting place. One student named Ryan Scott ended up being 5 minutes late and so the bus simply left without him! He was therefore all alone on top of a mountain on a different island than the one where our hotel was located and was forced to navigate his way back to the hotel all on his own. No mercy! (We also ate at one of the nicest restaurants on the peak our last night in Hong Kong – I ate perhaps the best fillet mignon I have ever tasted!)

After taking in the view on the peak, our group headed the “Jumbo Floating Restaurant” which I believe is the largest floating restaurant in the world. Here we had a traditional Chinese meal where the waiters bring out multiple appetizers and then family style Chinese dishes. The food was delicious and the restaurant itself was beautiful. After lunch we went on a half hour boat tour of the fishing boats that were anchored in the harbor. We learned that fishing is dying out in Hong Kong because it is such hard work and few young people want to do it. It was here that I saw two beautiful Mastercraft wakeboarding boats so of course I had to snap a picture or two!

After this tour we headed to Stanley market which was similar to Pike place but with more nock off clothing and trinkets. Nothing really caught my eye but it was fun to walk around and watch people barter. On our way back to the hotel I learned about another pretty interesting belief the Chinese people hold. It turns out they are obsessed with dragons and believe they are the most powerful creature in the world. They believe in the dragon so much that there were huge condo buildings on the hillside overlooking the water (which would cost 2 million or more per unit) where there was a large square hole in upper middle part of the complex that was left open so that the dragon which “lives in the hillside” can fly through it and down to the water to quench its thirst. The people believe that if they take care of the dragon then the dragon will bring water to their land (more shoddy theology in my book but interesting nonetheless).

The next day (Sunday) was a free day for the group. About half of the group went to the island of Macau which is the Hong Kong equivalent of Las Vegas with casinos, clubs, and bars which wasn’t really what I was looking for. Another group of 6-10 people went to the Hong Kong Disneyland. And, while this sounded like fun, I didn’t feel like dishing out US$50 just to get in. Therefore, a group of 9 of us headed to the island of Lantau and climbed the second tallest mountain in Hong Kong!

It took us two separate boat rides and a half an hour bus ride to get there. It was an epic climb in the humid 85 degree weather and we were rewarded with a beautiful panoramic view from the peak of Lantau’s various bays and the surrounding islands.

While the ascent took about 2 ½ hours, the descent was only about an hour and at the bottom we were able to see what I believe is the largest Buddha statue in the world! This was awesome. From there, we had a 40 minute bus ride back to the MTR which is the public railway in Hong Kong that takes you virtually everywhere. It goes underwater too!

The next two days were jammed packed with lectures and company visits at Hong Kong Baptist University (where one of our professors had connections because he had taught there for 4 years back in the 80’s). Here we learned all about Hong Kong and mainland China – especially about the economy and the legal system. We also visited the U.S. Consulate, a Coca Cola plant, the Hong Kong Science Park, a jewelry maker warehouse and an insurance firm. Some of this stuff was interesting but on the whole it was much more fun to explore the city and try not to get too lost.

Then on Wednesday morning at 7am we left the YMCA and headed to the airport to fly to Shanghai. I ate a Popeye’s breakfast at the airport which had great southern fast food and reminded of New Orleans (I miss you guys!). I also of course got a few pictures.

While Hong Kong is heavily influenced by the West, Shanghai so far has been quite different and feels much more foreign. One of the biggest differences is the transportation and traffic here. There are millions of people with bikes and mopeds and they completely disregard the traffic lights which makes walking in big groups across an intersection an adventure every time.

Yesterday I had the most exotic meal yet – bullfrog meat. It was quite boney but actually really good and tasted just like chicken. Today we went on a walking tour of the city. 47 American’s walking through town definitely drew a lot of attention and the street sellers flocked to us trying to sell fake Rolexes and other cheap items. In an hour and a half we are heading to the “Pearl Tower” which is Shanghai’s equivalent of the space needle. I’m pretty excited and will definitely post pictures from the top when I get a chance.

Alright that’s all for now though there are a dozen other stories I could tell. I’ll try to write more this weekend. I hope all is well back in the States!

Kyle



Alright so these pictures are kind of in random order but you get the idea. (I'll eventually use flicker or some program where I can put more and larger pictures.)


Here is a picture from the top of Lantau peak. you can see the trail snake most of the way down the mountain.


Here is a picture in Shanghai of the "Pearl Tower" Space Needle



Popeye's at the airport! Yum yum.





Dr. Labrie and myself immitating the coca cola mouse






A picture from the Peak tower in Hong Kong

The Jumbo restaurant from a boat.

Fish drying on a fisherman's boat

The "Peak tram" started operation in 1888

The mountain we climbed.

The giant Buddha!

The "Peak Tower" view at night.

Andrew and I on the Peak Tower in our business casual attire.

The temple - those cone things are made of one long strand of insense that is always burning!

An altar for the "good luck" gods