New Year's Day

"It happened so quickly... my last post of 2008," was how this post started yesterday. Then I got a little busy and now it's become my first post of 2009. At least the title came easily. I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas and New Year's. And of course, I must say happy birthday to my hubby. I've known him for 18 birthdays, officially half my life. I know! It doesn't add up to half his life yet because he's older. What? I did not point that out just to say that he's older.

We spent our Christmas Eve at my friend Peggy's. She lives in Sai Kung, in the New Territories, which is about an hour from here by train and taxi. I've visited her there once before. It's very unlike the city. They occasionally have cattle wandering the streets. She has two young children so they enjoy the space of a large house, though she and her husband probably make the trip and go out in our neighborhood more often than we do.

We ate Greek food prepared by a Filipino woman at the home of our Dutch friends from New Zealand. One of my English friends was also there with her husband and his visiting parents, as well as an Australian and a Chinese woman who lives in Japan. The craziest thing to me was that we spent the evening comfortably sitting outdoors in their yard - barbecuing!- without shivering. It was a lovely night and Peggy and her husband were wonderful hosts, the kind who make you feel at home and who prepare more food than you could ever eat. I even helped wrap a few presents for the kids after they went to sleep.

Wrapping a tricycle

I did think about everyone at home but I think it struck me most, strangely, earlier in the day when I passed through one of those international supermarkets and the place was jammed with people picking up their orders. I don't know; I guess it reminded of me of waiting on line for fresh mozzarella and things at Pastosa or for canollis in a bakery on Staten Island in preparation for the big family meal.

On Christmas Day, after sleeping in, we had dinner, just the two of us, at an Italian restaurant called Isola in the IFC (International Financial Center, currently the tallest building in HK, as seen in The Dark Knight). Paul got four days in a row off from work since the day after Christmas is also a public holiday here, and we couldn't have been lazier throughout those four days. Eating and drinking continuously takes a lot out of you.

I sneaked a quick photo of the tree in our lobby

Good thing we rested up. Then came New Year's Eve. We started out at a party at the home of a friend of my friend Maggie's. This friend Jeff actually lives in one of those shiny new luxury high rises on the corner of the street we lived on when we first moved here. It was just scaffolding and building materials and noise at the time. I guess it opened at the wrong time because I think he said he has about seven neighbors in the whole building. He had rented an outdoor area but it got a little chilly this week, so he thought it might be too cold for everyone out there. We ended up in his small apartment, but without any neighbors, moving the couch into the hall for more space was not a bother to anyone. Everyone brought food (and drinks) and the musical entertainment came mostly from the video game people were playing. I don't know the name but it was something similar to Wii's Guitar Hero. I contributed vocals to "Jesse's Girl."

Maggie and Chris, rock stars


Pre-2009 revelry


The Center (Paul's office) and IFC in the background

The view from his apartment was spectacular. If we stayed we probably would have had optimum viewing of the midnight fireworks, but before midnight we proceeded to the club we went to on my birthday. A countdown by the DJ, lots of bubbly, some friends and some others we just met, and that's how we spent the transition from 2008 to 2009 in Hong Kong.

The birthday boy


2009!

Needless to say, we spent a good part of the next morning in bed. We were awake for the countdown in New York so we had to watch it, but what happened to that coverage? I just wanted to see the ball drop and instead of showing it in those final ten seconds, they mostly showed Ryan Seacrest yammering about how exciting it was. Disappointing. The ball reportedly cost $5 million. At that price, shouldn't it stay lit when it hits the bottom? C'mon New York!

Near the end of 2007, I couldn't have predicted what 2008 would bring us. I suppose I pictured another quiet year in Fords, working on the house. Then we were given this extraordinary chance to experience so many new things and meet wonderful people from all over the world, and sometimes it feels like a dream. I hope 2009 brings good things to everyone. I also hope you continue reading the details of our vibrant dream. I write them so that we're never that far from home.

Happy New Year!

Christmas Wrapping

So many favorite Christmas songs, so little time.

You see, I saw your weather forecast in NY and NJ and my last title fit better than it seemed.

I just finished my Christmas shopping and shipping a couple of hours ago. It's typical of me to wrap things up somewhere around the 23rd. The problem is that it doesn't matter to international postal systems that I am finished; they still have to do their thing. So if you're a family member and you're reading this, the estimated date of arrival of your Christmas gifts is December 29. If it's accurate, it's still impressively quick. I wish they were there by Christmas, but it wasn't an easy task shopping here, as you might imagine from my previous descriptions of shopping experiences. I didn't expect to, but I still found myself running around for the last couple of weeks in that familiar frenzy. The additional challenge here is that things seem to cost either $1 or $1000, without a lot in between. Now let's hope that as I was in a rush to pack and seal the boxes as the post office was closing that I put the correct labels on the corresponding boxes. Oh, wouldn't that be a laugh. Just make sure you check the gift tags.

We purchased a lovely artificial Christmas tree the other day. I'm lying. It's entirely made of silver tinsel with fake tree leaves (cause it's a tree?) stuck uniformly all around it. It took Paul about one minute to assemble, so it won his vote there, and it folds into one flat piece so we can store it here in Tinyland. Though if we can't fit it somewhere, we'll get over the approximate $6 we spent on it... half the price from the day before! I say, it has just the right amount of weird tackiness - or tacky weirdness - to make it very enjoyable to look at. I added red bows and the angel on top was a gift. I know it looks a little sad without gifts underneath. That's what happens when you give yourselves the gift of travel. I'd like boxes under the tree, but I'd rather to go to Vietnam in a couple of months.


I didn't put any Christmas music on the computer - and I am a fan of a particular few - in the hours of marathon downloading back in March before we left, but we're not without it. Through the wonders of playlist.com, I found all my favorites. We listened to many on Sunday night and I started to feel a little sad that we won't be home for Christmas now that it's practically here. We'll have to watch A Christmas Story seven or eight times when it's on TBS, on the Slingbox.

Can I share my exciting news that I'm aware is only exciting to me? There are a couple of gourmet, international, i.e. expensive, supermarkets around and on a day of Christmas shopping in Kowloon (alright I'm lying again - I went over to check out the new Sephora), I stopped in one on my way home through Central. They appear to stock up on certain items around the holidays for ex-pats preparing their native holiday meals, so I believe because it was near Thanksgiving... lo and behold... Cool Whip! I bought two. I may never see it again. Also, in my regular supermarket, Louis Rich Turkey Bacon is now making an appearance. I don't think it's holiday-related, so maybe it will remain a regular item; you never know around here. But I know we had a good breakfast last Sunday morning.

Now for actual good news: Paul received a promotion last week. He is now a Vice President, referred to in the HK office as Executive Director. I just call him Sir. Aren't we proud of him? He certainly deserves it and it's another reason to be thankful for all that's happened for us this year.

I'm thankful that I didn't have to shovel any snow, but I can't wait to finally visit home soon. Hey, it got chilly here the last couple of days. It's only 55 now.

Maybe I'll write something quick in the next day or two but if not, we hope you all have a very merry Christmas and enjoy being with family and eating wonderful food and counting blessings. We miss everyone and we'll be thinking of home.

White Christmas

I know it's been forever and I apologize but we really have been busy. Spending the first two weeks of November in Australia felt like a long time to be away, but it seemed even more so once we came back to Hong Kong mid-November. The weather had changed; the Halloween decorations had disappeared and the Christmas decorations started appearing. Here are some highlights of our last month.

Just before we left for Oz (picked up the Australian lingo), my friend Liz, probably my closest friend here, told me that she was returning to London due to her boyfriend's job. Yes, I'm aware of the transiency of ex-pats here so I should have expected this sort of situation, and I should still expect it in the future, but this news was more sudden than we both anticipated. Just days after returning from Oz, I said my farewell to my friend Liz on Queen's Road, Central. She's back shivering in London now, hopefully settling in and happy to see family and friends again - and driving a car.

In the days leading to her departure we had two lunches at one of our favorite places, Wagyu. We also spent her last night in HK with a couple of other friends at the races in Happy Valley. They take place every Wednesday night most of the year and this was my first time there. Everyone else won at least something; I won nothing. But it was a fun night and a good atmosphere.

Liz and I after our final Wagyu lunch

In wine news, I passed my Intermediate Certificate exam which I had taken just hours before we left for Oz. It was certainly not easy. I already started the Advanced Certificate course. In fact, I missed the first class while we were away. It covers the same type of information but in more depth. It will be quite a challenge. I've already learned some agriculture, the difference between grafting, hybrids and crossings; I know the Latin terms for different grapevines. And France... those people need a talking to about all their rules. The exam is at the end of March. Paul has called me a geek once so far. I think it was when I broke out the Latin.

For Thanksgiving, we ate at a Thai place with some friends and friends of friends. It was a private kitchen, places that don't usually have menus and serve only through reservations. It was low on atmosphere, but the food was good and for once, cheap, especially since it was BYOB. Somebody was kind enough to bring some pumpkin pies, so that helped, but I have to admit that I've been craving real turkey ever since.

Thanksgiving Feast

Thanksgiving curry, anyone?

Maggie and Chris

Kathleen and Derek

Showing off the fine table linens


Random guy who asked for beer and received

It also doesn't feel like Thanksgiving when you're able to wear flip-flops without your toes freezing. Though we never believed it could happen through the hellish steam of summer, the weather has indeed turned cooler over November and December, but it is by no means cold. It's quite lovely, really. I guess the temperatures range between 58 to 72, usually falling somewhere in the mid 60's. On occasion I have under-dressed and felt chilly, but the other extreme is the locals who walk around in their coats and scarves looking at me in plain long-sleeve shirts like I must be mad. I confess that we had the air conditioning on no less than four days ago. I did have my first cold here a couple of weeks ago. I blame the air travel along with the change in weather and that everyone around seemed to also be sick.

Now we're just a week away from Christmas and it feels like it, and it doesn't. There are decorations around; our building's lobby has a big, real tree. It made me happy when I walked in and smelled it the day it went up. I'd try to take a picture, but I'm guessing lobby photos are off limits if rooftop photos are. There's Christmas music playing in stores, mostly choir type stuff, but I have heard some favorites here and there. On the other hand, Paul said that a coworker who was here last Christmas said that it felt odd because on Christmas day everything is open as if not a holiday. Makes sense... you can always go to a Chinese restaurant on Christmas, can't you? Think A Christmas Story... Fa ra ra ra ra.

The thing is, many ex-pats flee the city for home around Christmas. This is why we were booked most nights over the past couple of weeks and why we don't currently have anything going on. A couple of my friends are still in town, but most are leaving or have left for home. As a matter of fact, I'm foster caring for two cats upstairs for my friend Maggie while she's in the U.S. I'm a little envious of those folks, but we'll try to make the most of it here.

On the day of my birthday, I attended a lunch for the American Women's Association (AWA) of which I'm a member. It was kind of a boring event, but there was something interesting about it. I would estimate about 70 attendees. Out of those, I spoke to the one who happened to sit next to me. Her name was Elise. She heard me speak one sentence and asked if I was from NY. As I was about to plead guilty, she said she recognizes it instantly because she's from NY. A few questions later and we established that she grew up in Oakwood Heights, about five minutes from where I grew up on Staten Island. She also bought and lived in a house in Woodbridge, NJ before she and her husband moved to HK. She's been here for nine years and goes back to S.I. twice a year. She said she's only met one other person from there since she's lived here. I didn't ask where her family gets their cars fixed...

On the night of my birthday, Thursday, we went to a comedy club right in Wan Chai with a group of friends. The place has a monthly show with comedians imported mostly from the U.K. This round, there was a Scottish fellow, an Irishman, and a Canadian. They were all actually quite good, so I got to laugh more than I probably ever have on any one birthday, especially once I started to understand Scottish.

The next night, we had a nice dinner with a couple of other friends and Maggie arranged a little shindig at a club afterward. It was fun, but the next day I felt my age - and my head. The important thing is that I don't look my age.

Maggie, Birthday Girl, Kathleen, Chandni

And to finish off the birthday festivities (which typically include a trip to Denino's, sigh) Paul and I finally had a nice dinner by ourselves that Saturday night. I had read about this place, M at the Fringe, and wanted to try it for months so I chose it as a birthday dinner, but I wasn't that enthused because most places I read about that are supposedly fantastic are just not that fantastic. Happily, this place was actually good. Then we ended at one of our favorite old man bars (seriously, there are old men there and I don't just mean Paul) The Captain's Bar.

Last Tuesday I experienced a bit of club life, not of the nightlife variety but of the cricket and squash and tennis variety. There are a number of clubs here, The American Club, The Cricket Club, etc. One of my Brit friends belongs to the Cricket Club and we had lunch there. I had sweet and sour chicken. This may be surprising, but there isn't a lot of sweet and sour chicken available here. It's not exactly a Cantonese specialty. But the Cricket Club restaurant had a large menu with all kinds of cuisines and it was delicious. Refreshingly, no bones or necks or beaks were attached.

Last Wednesday night we went out to dinner with two of Paul's coworkers from the "Business" unit. Two nights later, Paul had another dinner with the "Operations" unit, but I was not invited, so Maggie and I had our own "Work" dinner since her husband also had a company thing that night. In between those two dinners, I went to a dinner at Wagyu (recurring theme) with the girls from my Y group. We did the secret Santa thing and all. Alright, Paul wasn't invited to that, but I did bring home half my dinner for him. And finally, Saturday night we took a junk trip around the harbor (through the AWA) to view the festive lights of the buildings along the water.

Me, Peggy, Victoria - Christmas Dinner at Wagyu

A little blurry but an idea of the holiday lights

So you see, we have been busy! And now... nothing. Though my New Zealand friend Peggy did invite us to her home on Christmas Eve to celebrate with her husband and two kids and a few others, so at least we'll spend the eve with a family, even if it's not our family. We booked a dinner for just the two of us on Christmas day.

Since I have been absent for so long, I missed a bunch of greetings and wishes. We're ages past Happy Thanksgiving, but there are still a few that I should mention like happy birthday to Dad C. and Scott and congratulations to Mark and Dora.

At least I rewarded you all with lots of photos after the long wait. And I'll try my best to write a few more in December just so I can use my favorite Christmas songs. Consider the Drifters a gift.

Lisa, It's Your Birthday

Sound hint: Click the tiny Stop button on the Tunes box on the right to turn off "Down Under." Then click Play on the video above.

Sorry about the flashing things in the video. It was the only clip where the video accompanied the song. Some people can be so fussy about copyright. Otherwise, it says it all.

Down Under

*Click the 'play' arrow to play the slide show. With mouse over the photo, you can use arrows to move back or forward or stop.
*Click on any photo and it will take you to the web album if you want to see the photos larger.

It's about Australia. What else would I title it? I am a purist and I realize that the last blog title is not an exact song title, but Paul had his mind made up and said that he didn't come up with the rule so he doesn't have to follow it. I just reread his post and he did a very good job of summarizing our trip to the land down under, so I'll try to just add a few other things.

It's true that we felt more at home before we even landed because people were Western sized. At first it seemed like Aussies were huge until I realized we've just spent a long time in a place where they they generally come in two sizes: small and smaller.

Sydney was surprisingly cold when we arrived. We were advised to go in spring because summer, which begins in December, can be uncomfortably hot. It was still pretty hot when we left HK so temperatures in the low 60's felt noticeably chilly. The daytime temperatures ranged but were mostly rather pleasant. We were told that it was unusually cool for the time of year.

Our first night there, Sunday, we ended up eating dinner in a random cafe because almost everything was closed. It's surprising that such a major city shuts down on a Sunday. Even during the week, businesses close by 5:30. It made me appreciate that we live in one of the few world cities that more-or-less never sleeps. At least we spent the first day strolling around aimlessly because we didn't seem to have much time in the next few days to do that. How do vacations always end up that way?

So, yeah, this Melbourne Cup thing. I know some Aussies here so I knew it was happening. It might be about as big as the Superbowl, but it's a horse race so it lasts about a minute. And it's held on a Tuesday. Can you imagine if the Superbowl were held on a Tuesday? Who would go to work, you say? Well, nobody who serves wine in the Hunter Valley, I can tell you. We rented a car for the day and drove over 90 minutes essentially to have a quaint lunch, try one winery, give up after seeing the 10th sign that said "Closed for Melbourne Cup" and drove back. The streets of Sydney were so packed with traffic by the time we returned that we almost didn't make it to return the car at all. Unfortunately, it was another day sort of wasted because of timing.

Our stroll around Manly was pleasant and the ferry ride to and from was a good way to see the harbor. It looked like a very nice beach there. As Paul wrote, we did a small group tour of the nearby Blue Mountains on our last day and it was scenic but maybe a couple of hours too long.

One note: while we were in the car being driven around the mountains, the election was wrapping up in the U.S. There was one other older American couple with us and they asked the guide to leave the radio on. The coverage was substantial and it was of great interest, to a surprising degree, even on the other side of the world. People around the world seem to be relieved and hopeful that there is a possible change coming. If only they're right. But I won't forget where I was during this historic event - almost as far away from the U.S. as I could geographically be.

The best part of that tour was the stop at the wildlife center where we got to see the koalas and kangaroos and lots of other creatures. I decided that kangaroos are pretty cool and koalas are adorable in a somewhat surreal way. They almost look artificial, and they are the most mellow creatures alive, barely. There were also some very interesting birds, not just in the park but in Australia in general. You could see colorful ones like parrots or cockatoos just flying around.

Some examples: On our drive back from Hunter Valley, we were stopped at a traffic light approaching the city and we saw a cockatoo land on the wire of a telephone pole. Apparently they have good grips, but they must also be top-heavy. This thing just kept spinning around the wire like it was doing a trick. It was really funny to see. And one day when we got into the car at a winery in the Barossa Valley, a hummingbird became intrigued with the side view mirror and hovered near it for awhile. Of course it flew off just before I could press the shutter on my camera, but it was a pretty little thing. And sadly, in Cairns, just outside our hotel, some baby birds must have been stuck below some grate in the hotel driveway. Hotel workers were trying to rescue them, but the mama bird wouldn't let anyone near them. It was an unusual looking bird - and had a fierce squawk. I think they eventually had to call animal services.

Before we left here for Sydney, I was worried about the Sydney Funnel Web Spiders. There should have only been more spiders in this country! Seriously, the flies. They did seem to have a particular interest in Paul's head. But how come nobody ever mentions all the flies there? Shrimp on the barbie? - there's probably a fly in it too. As a matter of a fact, I did have a lunch with a fly fried right into a potato. Unintentionally, I'm pretty sure. And a salad with a ladybug in it. Coincidentally, these were our two least favorite meals. Otherwise, we ate pretty well. Who knows what else I could have found because there are some crazy insects down under and plenty to go around.

Paul mentioned our cushy hotel in our second stop farther north, Cairns. He didn't mention that our room was at the end of the longest hallway I think I have ever seen, and I am not exaggerating here. There are photos, but I'm not sure you can get the perspective. We were shocked each and every time that we walked to the room by how long it really was, and there was plenty of time for "are we there yet?" and "this is supposed to be vacation!" jokes along the way. They were vacuuming at some point of the day all day, not surprisingly.

We liked Cairns. It's basically a beach town, even though there was no actual beach you could access directly. It's more of a port to other islands and diving and snorkeling sites, but it had a beach town feel nonetheless. The food wasn't extraordinary but there was a good variety, and it was relaxing to walk along the main promenade. We considered taking a boat to a nearby island beach one day, but we couldn't really find any that didn't include some kind of snorkeling tour package for some exorbitant amount, so we spent the day relaxing at the hotel pool instead. Not so bad.

Diving the Great Barrier Reef was indeed spectacular, not that we have much to compare it to, but I think it's safe to say. These were our first trips outside of instruction, so we didn't know what to expect. There were about 60 people on each of the boats, which can be overwhelming, but most of them snorkel. Only about 17 people were certified divers on each of our two dive trips. (Yeah, we're cool. We're divers. Get out of our way.) There were 4-6 people to one guide. We did three dives on each trip, so the log is expanding. By the way, they're pretty serious about post-dive head counts after that stranded divers incident a few years back.

I still get stage fright and I was nervous on the boat, but once I get in the water I strangely feel calmer. Oh sure, from time to time I question what possesses me to think this is a normal activity and my heart beats a little faster and I inhale a good dose of oxygen, and then I let it pass and I try to spot some cool fish. There was a photographer who takes some pictures of people under water and you can buy the pictures if you want, but we didn't bother because I couldn't have posted then online without a scanner anyway. We'll have to live with only memories of possibly the most colorful dive we'll ever experience. Maybe we'll try for photos on our next dive. At least I enjoyed it enough that I'm fairly sure there will be a next dive. And it's a little thrill to say you've seen a shark.

The other interesting thing about Cairns is this giant salt water artificial lagoon. It's situated along the actual water on one side of the island, a few steps away from the main street, and it's free and open to everyone, and it's massive. It's a little crazy. We had to try a dip one night. I took some pictures.

The tour we took in the mountains and forests around Cairns was almost canceled because we signed up for a Monday, which I knew would be a quiet day in a resort town. As I guessed, we were the only people signed up and the tour company could accommodate six people and of course they aim to do that, so they tried to contact us, but as I do all the booking, the room was under my name and the credit card we used to book the tour was Paul's, so they couldn't find a Czapalski listed in the hotel, so they had to take us because they couldn't inform us otherwise. Personal tour for the Pirainos! Again, it was scenic but not extraordinarily so.

I do think that one of the reasons I like wine is that the locations where grapevines thrive are beautiful. Our third stop in the Barossa Valley was a good way to end a two-week trip. It did have some similarities to Napa and Sonoma and it had its own feel as well. The food was good, but in that respect it was much smaller in scale than the California wine countries. An Aussie I know recommended three restaurants and we tried all three. Each was very good, one exceptionally good. But we were there for five nights and we asked around at several wineries and they all came up with the same three suggestions because there just aren't many other places to eat at night. Some wineries do lunch and we had a few enjoyable winery lunches. On a Friday, we stopped in Rolf Binder winery for a tasting and they were firing up a big stone oven outside. They said they make pizzas on Friday nights and that we could come back for dinner. We did and it was a fun and different alternative, mostly locals who work in wine plus their families all sitting together at long picnic tables. We spoke to a couple next to us, and we ended up seeing the woman the next morning at the Farmers' Market, as she said we would. Her brother was serving breakfast there.

It definitely completed our trip to spot some well-hidden kangaroos on our early morning drive back to the Adelaide airport.

I always wanted to go to Australia, but I don't know if I believed I really would make it there. I'm very happy that we did. I have to say that one of the best aspects of the country is its inhabitants. No, not just koalas. The people were genuinely friendly and that really adds to a visit. One of our tour guides told us that tourism has been declining for the last several years. I didn't realize until we got back how true it was. I read an article speaking about the film Australia and how the tourism board hopes it serves as an advertisement for the country and brings people there the way Crocodile Dundee did (I swear). Apparently their 2006 ad campaign didn't go over too well. It was, "So where the bloody hell are you?"

The last thing I have to say is that I did enjoy Australia, though it was somehow different than I expected. I'm not sure what I expected, maybe for its vastness to be more obvious, for its nature and wilderness to visually stun me. It is vast and scenic and many other things, but not exactly how I envisioned. I don't mean to under-appreciate the landscapes of Australia. I simply mean that I have taken in landscapes that had more of a visual impact on me personally, blew my hair back, so to speak. North America is a beautiful continent. The American West and Pacific Northwest contain one breathtaking view after another. I have been overwhelmed by ancient redwoods, sparkling coasts, lush forests, all in my home country, and this is only what I've seen so far. Even New York state has some good stuff. And I haven't even been to the Grand Canyon yet!

Cue "America, the Beautiful."

Enjoy the pictures.

Flies In The Vasoline

It's been a long time....

Over three months actually - I had to go back and check. I really can't believe it but as Lisa has said I have been working some insane hours. Leaving around 10 most nights, and well, blogging fell by the way side. With that said my company had layoffs while we were away (I have a new boss now) and there are rumors of 2 more rounds by the end of January. So there is no time to complain. But it's Saturday evening here and I'm waiting for Lisa to get ready so between tonight and tomorrow I can crank out a long overdue super blog.

Since work has been taking up most of the time I'll concentrate on our trips over the past three weeks. I think Lisa covered most of the points from our trip to the Philippines and diving lessons.

• Blind rooster, up every day at 4 in the morning - check
• Seedy but comfortable little town where diving is everything - check
• Spent most waking hours studying or diving or telling hawkers we were not interested in their multiple offerings one after another - check

It may not sound like much of a vacation but just to be sitting on a beach every day and away from the office was a great break and helped decrease the stress before our big trip to another continent. And most importantly we became licensed divers and by the end actually started enjoying it (we were a little worried there).

A few things Lisa did not mention were that while she initially had some difficulties I think this left the impression on the instructor that I was fine. So this gave her much more attention over the next few days and even led me to believe that they forgot I was under the water for about a 20 minute period. In addition my "helper" was a little annoying and would stay thisclose half the time or just grab my fin or something without letting me know to adjust it while we were underwater. I politely let him know that while I appreciated it, grabbing at me blindly from behind may actually impair his own ability to resurface and he may want to work on that. He left me a little more room after that.

Also three misconceptions I think most people may have about diving were revealed:

1. Large sea turtles do on like to pull you around for a ride if you grab onto their shells
2. There is no way to hook up one of those Heineken mini-Kegs to the oxygen tank for a slow drip underwater (regardless of how easy and practical it may seem)
3. The number one rule of diving is NOT every man for himself if something goes wrong

So it was back to work for two long days and then off to the land down under. There were five flights over all on our trip which were for the most part on time and uneventful with only the usual inconveniences and annoyances of traveling.

Unfortunately Sydney left no great impression as a large city. It was nice to be in the western world again with mostly overweight white people speaking English and the beverage of choice is beer. I believe part of the problem was that we landed on a Sunday and the city is basically closed down. Then on Tuesday we drove up to Hunter Valley to check it out but The Melbourne Cup was that day and the country basically closes down (it's similar to their Superbowl). So two days were basically wasted.

Outside of that we took a day to explore Manly Beach, which was a nice quaint beach town. And a tour of the Blue Mountains which included a stop at an animal sanctuary where we got to pet koalas and feed kangaroos and wallabies. The stop here was brief and we did not know that this would be the greatest amount of wildlife we would see with trips through the rain forest and bush still ahead.



One thing we did learn and I am surprised you don't hear more about is Australia is loaded with flies. We traveled most of the east coast and spent an unimaginable amount of time swatting at the small and very bold suckers. This even began to take away from nice walks as it was a constant hassle. Not to ruin any surprises in the rest of the blog but the actual wildlife we saw above water consisted of:

• One baby dingo ("that dingo was a baby")
  
• 4 kangaroos
• 6 Wild Turkeys
• A dozen lizards
  
• About 100 cows and 100 sheep and some goats
  
• 12,369,564,879,342 flies

This did not really live up to my expectations of the outback or the rain forest but it is odd more people don't mention this.

The Blue Mountains were very picturesque but the tour consisted of mainly driving around and seeing them from multiple angles and really ran on a couple of hours longer than necessary. Lisa mentioned several times that the Pacific Northwest back home seemed a little more accessible. Back in Sydney we had a few really nice dinners but it was not someplace I could imagine flying around the world to see. However on Tuesday we were off to Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef.



But since I just heard somebody mention the Superbowl maybe this is a good time to digress from the trip and and talk about the 2008 Superbowl Champion NY Giants. 9 and fricken' 1. Simply unbelievable.

In the Philippines on Monday I was flipping around our tiny television trying to find a score with no luck. Wearing my Giant's tee shirt (as I always do on game day - Lisa loves that by the way) the guy who owned the diving school said that he caught the game and they lost. That night after studying Lisa was flipping around the TV and saw the game was being replayed and asked if I was going to stay up and watch it. Exhausted and knowing the negative outcome I passed.

Of course when we got back I went on the internet to see how it played out and realized he turned the game off in the 4th quarter. Fortunately throughout Australia we had internet access most places and I could keep up with win after win.

But back to Cairns. Lisa booked all of our flights and hotels and somehow got us a really good deal to stay in the club level of the Shangri-La which was situated right in the middle of the marina and included breakfast and evening snacks and drinks as well as one dinner in their restaurant which we took full advantage of and had our first taste of crocodile. I don't know if I need to say it, but it's true - tastes like chicken.

View from our room in Cairns

Anyway we spoke with the concierge and did some research and quickly booked two days of diving and a tour of the rain forest shortly after that.

The next day we set out for a 90 minute boat ride and then into the ocean. After our first dive, though impressive, we were not sure if it was all that much better than the Philippines. By the time we finished with our 6th dive two days later I think we realized we were having a once in a life time experience.

Both days out the operators commented on how calm the water was and these were the nicest days in about a year. That being said on our last dive we actually got to go over the reef wall which even had the dive instructors excited because typically it would be too risky. There you could see the giant wall covered in coral and just sinking into the abyss - it's quite impressive.

Before going out the second day we contemplated renting a camera - we just weren't sure if we were skilled enough to utilize the camera and keep up with the dive. Once we decided to give it a shot they of course ran out. So no pretty pictures for you guys but to be honest it would never really have captured all we got to see. Fish of every shape, size and color. Endless walls of coral equally impressive, giant clams which actually have amazing colors and if you swish the water hard enough on top of them they clamp shut thinking they caught a meal. There were sea turtles; I caught sight of some giant barracuda which were a little intimidating and on our last dive we saw our first shark. It was a white tip reef shark about 5 feet long. He was going one way and we were going the other and thankfully nobody stopped.

It seems like I could go on forever describing what we got to see but not really capture how impressive it was. If you ever see shows on television where it almost doesn't look real it's about as close as you'll get.

As stated earlier the rain forest was not quite as impressive. There were some interesting things like these fig trees that grow over other trees for support and basically eat them. They get so large Aborigines actually used to live in them. But no monkeys or tree frogs like you might imagine. Just some wild turkeys. One interesting thing our guide told us was that the second company we used for diving was actually the same one that lost the American tourists a couple of years back and they made the movie Open Water about. We were glad to find this out after as it may have impacted our decision and these were the most impressive dives we've been on.

Giant Strangler Fig Tree

From there it was down to the Barossa Valley. It is like a combination of Napa and Sonoma in California. Beautiful landscapes and mixture of small to major wineries. There are about 60 to 70 cellar doors you can stop in to taste and we hit over a third of them. This is possible because until recently they were not allowed to charge and most places still don't. So unlike Napa where you'll usually pay around $20 for the tasting and then feel obligated to try everything they offer - here we just stuck to the Shiraz which they are known for - and if we tried one of their best and didn't like it we just moved on.

View from our balcony in Barossa

We've definitely added a few names to our list to keep our eyes out for and the real shame was that it cost a fortune to ship into HK. Because while in general Australia was priced relatively on the high end, the wines were quite reasonable. And in addition we lucked out when we went there because over the past few months the US dollar became quite strong so everything we did was basically at 35% off. I know a few people that were there only a few months ago and complained how expensive it was but the AUD and USD were about even at the time.

By our last day we were actually becoming wined out and decided to take a tour to find the elusive budaguns. We also learned on our tour that kangaroo actually means " I don't understand you" in Aboriginal. When British explorers first went there and saw the kangaroos they asked the locals what they were. They replied "kangaroo" and they went back to England and reported this new strange species of animal they discovered. By the time the misunderstanding was worked out they were already known as kangaroos and now even the Aborigines call them that. But originally they were budagun - which means animal that hears well.

Taking advice from a local we went on a drive where once again we were assured we would see some free range budaguns - once again we were mislead.

The following morning we were up at 5 to take our long trek home. On our drive to the airport we actually spotted three of the hoppy guys out in a field which completed our visit to Australia.

As I said I couldn't see flying around the world to see Sydney which makes me grateful that we are here and got a chance to go. The diving in the Reef was simply amazing and I could see someone flying around the world for that. And, well, wine countries never seem to disappoint.

Overall we had a really good trip and at the very least I can now have a fly land directly on my eye and not even flinch like those kids in the Sally Struthers' commercials.

Well I think that's enough. Work has slowed down a bit so I'll try to get back here a little more often. (Just hopefully I don't end up with more than enough time). Lisa will post a full album later but I just threw in a few teaser shots. So I'll blog ya' later...

Even in captivity they can be quite elusive to the camera

They do exist in the wild!

The Air That I Breathe

Huh? I can't hear you. My ears are still popping.

Last Thursday we took off for the Philippines. The flight was less than two hours, but in that short span a bit of beauty graced us. We saw a rainbow out the airplane window. I noticed the woman in front of me suddenly take a picture and I wondered what could be so interesting out there in the clouds. I've seen rainbows before but never from above. I wish I got a picture but by the time I nudged Paul and got my camera out we were past it. At least we got to see it.

Once in Manila, someone from the resort (let's just call it a resort for now) met us at the airport and drove us just over two hours to a tiny beach where a boat was waiting for us for an additional one hour journey to Sabang Beach in Puerto Galera. We arrived around 5 p.m.

To be clear straight away, this place is all about diving. There are about 25 dive sites all within 5-10 minute boat rides from the beach. The beachfront is one continuous stretch of dive centers and accommodations with some restaurants and bars and shops along a narrow road just behind the beachfront buildings. It's a safe and functional place yet a bit ramshackle and/or seedy in parts. The vibe was sort of Gilligan's Island mixed with the setting of John Candy's Summer Rental.

There were several dogs roaming the beachfront, not strays, just dogs with a lot of freedom to roam. There was even a resident monkey at the dive center next to ours. I totally don't believe in keeping a primate as a pet (ask St. James Davis and Moe, for those who know) but I have to admit that I was intrigued by the monkey. On the last day I took its picture and gave it a little pat on the arm.

Less intriguing was the endless parade of hawkers selling everything including shell jewelry, DVDs, fruit, boat rides, massages, and oddly, guitars. They weren't too pushy, but there were just so many of them that you had to say no to a five or six of them in a row and if you passed the same spot 30 seconds later, you had to say no to all of them again. Really, who goes on a diving holiday and comes home with a guitar? It was impressive to see the guy carrying all of them around anyway. At least the woman selling fruit was practical.

Our room at a place called Angelyn's was basic, as in it had cable TV but the TV was 13". It had a hot shower but the shower was the bathroom (big room with a toilet, sink, and a shower head in the wall and a drain on the floor). The pillows were more like sheets of paper, but at least there was air conditioning. There was a terraced area downstairs where breakfast was served every morning. For no extra charge, there was a rooster that crowed every morning typically sometime between 4 and 5 a.m. We also wondered why there were local kids all over the place all day long. We found out after a few days that they were on a school break, and we learned every morning that the kids get up soon after the rooster and make as much noise.

So rest didn't come easily even though it was desired because this vacation was a lot of work. When we first arrived we spoke to the head instructor at Frontier Scuba, an English guy, about what we would be doing. Then we walked around awhile looking for a place to eat and when we settled on one right next to our dive center, we noticed this man standing nearby smoking a cigarette. I had looked at the web site and saw the instructors' photos so I whispered to Paul that I thought he was one of them. He whispered back, "He's not an instructor. He's a crazy old guy I saw wandering around earlier, staring at people." About 10 seconds later he walked up to our table and asked us if we were Lisa and Paul and introduced himself as our instructor. He was a weathered old German guy nicknamed XC. I quickly estimated that if Robin Williams lost 100 pounds, shaved his head completely bald, grew a shockingly full beard, and threw in a German accent, he could play the part of XC, the weathered old German diving instructor.

The PADI Open Water diving course has a standardized program and content, but instructors may choose to lay it out in different ways; some do all the classroom work first and the dives later. We did a mix of both every day. It includes the reading of a 250-page manual which we dutifully read every night. The mornings started with a video covering the section of the book that we previously read and then quizzes on the material. The first couple of days included time learning tasks in the pool with a dive in the open water following in the afternoon. I guess we progressed well enough because we combined five pool sessions into two days. We had one open water dive each day for four days.

I will say that the way the course was taught, with dives included on the first day, suited our learning. I was nervous about one thing or another the entire time, but I became more comfortable even after the first open water dive because it put things in perspective. We were also very lucky in that we happened to be the only two people starting the course on the day we arrived so the instruction was very personalized, and we didn't have to worry about anybody else either holding us up or about holding anybody else up. I think XC said that they were fully booked in the upcoming week. There were even two students there who were completing the Instructor's course so they were observing our lessons. We had one instructor and two helpers all to ourselves.

I'll admit that if I previewed the manual before we got there, I might have decided that I was not capable of diving. I love being in the ocean, but I also have a healthy fear of it, meaning I'm only marginally comfortable with the ability to save myself if I had to. So when I first put my head under in the pool, I popped right back up because my body refused to believe that I could continue breathing under water. I got used to that idea in the next attempt, and breathing is the easiest part really. As a matter of fact, the number one rule is to never hold your breath while diving. It's the 'airway control' that was a little tricky for me. You must breathe through your mouth but be able to do things like clear your mask through your nose. I did have to try a few times to complete certain tasks because I had never used this ability before, but eventually everything fell into place.

I guess diving is something anybody can do, yet it is not for everyone. Either you're comfortable with the idea of breathing under water or you're not. You don't really learn that part. What you learn in the course is essentially how to save yourself in a variety of emergency situations. If your air runs out, if your mask gets knocked off, if you lose your breathing regulator. Theoretically, these things should not occur, but you practice these scenarios repeatedly so that you don't panic in the case that they do. You learn how the equipment works and how to use it to help you dive safely.

As new divers, we spent a lot of time and attention on managing the equipment and, personally, focusing on the mechanics of staying alive. I wasn't paying close attention to the sights at first but occasionally, one of the leaders would point out something of interest (which is the whole point of diving, of course). We saw a huge tortoise, a shrimp, a crazy-looking orange 'frogfish,' and lots of other fish I can't name, along with coral. On the last dive we only had one or two tasks to complete so we spent most of the time just looking around and it was more relaxing.

Buoyancy control is one thing that takes some time to get the hang of. You wear weights to help you sink, but you also have a device that inflates or deflates your vest. On the last day, we were much better at 'hovering' at the same level as the instructor and following him around smoothly without hitting the bottom or floating too high, but that's a skill that comes with practice. The maximum depth for new divers should be 18 meters or 60 feet. On the last day we went to just over 19 m.

So, honestly, I have no idea what made me think I could manage diving, but I did. We did, and I am proud because it is a challenge. Now when we can go places we can add a new aspect to our destinations. When we get to the Great Barrier Reef, there won't be any tasks to complete, just swimming around and seeing the underwater sights.

I did tell Paul that he needed to write a blog about the experience and he said he would...
Anyway, we leave for Australia tomorrow for two weeks, so I won't be writing for awhile.

Happy Halloween.

Arriving at Sabang Beach

View of the beach and diving boats from the resort

Monkey

Angelyn's Resort

Breakfast

The boat back to the van to Manila

Woke Up This Morning

...Got ourselves some DVDs.

Our loving relationship of almost six months with Slingbox has reached its end. It started doing strange things for a day or so, then it failed to connect at all. In communication with Scott, the Slingmaster, we learned that a Sling software upgrade was available so Scott upgraded his software. This is the shocking part: they only provide an upgrade for PCs but not for Macs. Have they not read any sort of business news over there at Sling Media? This is not 1989. People have Macs. Most software is now compatible with Macs. Tragic, really. With the upgrade, the login process is now different from what it was, so with the older software we have no place to enter the new type of login information. The bottom line is that we don't have TV now. Just in time for the new fall season and the presidential election and for the Giants being 5 and 1 (Paul loves me for many surprising reasons, you know). We're in the process of thinking about alternatives.

My kind friend Liz had lent me the first season of The Sopranos when I was recovering a few weeks ago. I wasn't sure if we'd even watch it. Then Slingbox went and left us. So years after everybody else's excitement, we're hooked on The Sopranos now. We finished Season 1 last night. I met Liz for lunch this afternoon and made the exchange... now we have Season 2 and something to do tonight. Alright, so I essentially know how it ends because if you were conscious and living in the U.S. last year, you had to hear how it ends. But I can say this: the theme song is infectious and the cooking, between Carmela and that other guy who owns the restaurant, well - we're hungry a lot.

This is related good news though. There is no shortage of Italian restaurants here. Some are decent, but they're either the 'finer' sort of Italian eateries that serve seafood and risotto and such or they're places that serve 'gourmet' pizza, maybe with a couple of overpriced pasta dishes or salads in addition. What HK lacks is - pick your favorite pizza place and insert name here - Brothers, Jimmy Max, Joe & Pat's, Sal & Lloyd's, Mama Lena's style joints. You know, the kind where the pizzeria with a couple of red formica booths lives on one side and a casual dining room possibly lives on the other side where they serve the comforting basics like veal, chicken, eggplant parmigiana. Those places are a beautiful, beautiful thing, people, so appreciate them. We knew beforehand that it was what we would miss most as far as food here. There's plenty of choice, but you ain't calling for a chicken parm hero and baked ziti to pick up.

Oh yeah, my point was that a new little place opened only a couple of blocks from us that has good Italian food and... things parmigiana!!! Paul had the veal and I tried the eggplant with no high expectations, and they were good!!! So we don't need to come home now. Of course I'm joking (but maybe you should visit just in case).

The other NY Metropolitan area thing that HK lacks is the pizza slice. If you want pizza, it's a pie (sadly small as they usually are) or nothin'. There was some excitement when a place called Duke's NY Deli opened across the street from Paul's office. Remember that delis are more or less non-existent also. Duke's claims NY style heroes AND pizza by the slice. If only they mastered the execution as well as the concept. Paul tried the slice and said that it was o.k. but that it tasted like pizza that you would buy at a stadium. Enough said. At least they're trying.

More good news for me... Remember one of my lists of things I missed where I listed Sephora? A store opened here. Ah, experimental shades of eyeshadow await me.

This lack of TV is culturatin' us too. Yesterday we saw a play called The 39 Steps which was very entertaining. And it wasn't like the production of Macbeth we saw awhile back with so-so acting. This was the real thing. And any English major would be excited about this (meaning mostly just me) but next week we're seeing Waiting for Godot. The Theater is even just a five minute walk from our place. It's like we finally live in Manhattan except there are just a few more Chinese people around.

So go watch Saturday Night Fever, see John Travolta order two slices and eat them sandwiched together, and think of us. Except imagine that he's hoping for greater things across the South China Sea rather than New York Bay.

(Hit stop on the blog music player if you want to hear Stayin' Alive.)

Dive

I think it's Columbus Day back there? Two more holidays passed here, one involving fireworks - National Day, and one having something to do with paying respect to the dead. Paul worked both days as usual so he's accumulated many vacation days by now. So many that we ran into a glitch which we then turned into an opportunity.

We have booked the flights for our trip to Australia. We are going on Saturday night, November 1, and we're staying for two full weeks. We are starting in Sydney for four days. Then we're flying north to Cairns, which is a beach town with easy access to the Great Barrier Reef, for five days. Then we fly south to Adelaide where we can travel around the Barossa Valley, Australia's best known wine region, for four days.

One day last week, Paul was informed at work that he must take five consecutive days off by November 1, regardless that he has two weeks away planned from November 1. It was suggested that he move the Australia trip up one week, but the reason we are leaving when we are is because my wine exam is the morning of November 1. So I started thinking of a quick trip I could put together so we didn't waste five days without going somewhere.

At the same time, I had been looking into local courses for PADI Open Water diving certification. We figured it would be a loss to go all the way to the Great Barrier Reef, one of the most beautiful under-water sites on earth, and only get as far as snorkeling. We could take the course there, but it typically takes four days so we would have had to dedicate almost all our time there to learning to dive. I spoke to one local dive shop here and they were not sure they could accomodate us in the next two weekends. Then I started a little internet research and a few hours later we had a diving course booked in the Philippines.

Southeast Asia has many popular dive sites and around the Philippines are some of them. There's a place called Puerto Galera about 80 miles south of Manila that has countless dive options. I found the web site of a place that offers the PADI Open Water course, accomodation and breakfast, and transfers to and from Manila for a package price that cost about the same it cost to take the course in HK. Even with round-trip airfare to Manila, the cost was comaparitively close. And it fit perfectly into the five day timeframe we needed to fill. It was sort of a matter of spending a little more money to save money. We wanted the course, and we needed a five day trip. Conveniently, we have both at once. And it's safe to say that the aquatic sites around Puerto Galera will be more impressive than those of the waters around HK. So we go from October 23 to the 28th. We depart for Sydney four days later.

Regarding Australia, I'm gathering reccommendations from the Aussies I know. I can't wait. Even the guide book is exciting. Yes, I will track down koalas. The book says there's a zoo where you can hold one. I'm there!

Lots of adventure on the horizon. Around here, things have generally returned to normal. I'm still not allowed to run for a few weeks. We'll both be happy to get away. Paul has been working ridiculously late hours so the healing therapy of diving, eating, drinking, and impressive natural scenery are much needed.

Doctor Doctor

No, I didn't call it quits on the blog. I can't be faulted this time for the long absence. If I fancy myself a writer of any quality, I should be able to handle the recounting of my recent situation with finesse, but I've been struggling. You see, something Serious (with a capital S) happened, but the generally light-hearted tone of my posts doesn't fit with the details of the story. I don't know how to ignore it either, so I'll try to summarize as best I can this unexpected and unforgettable thing that we've added to our Hong Kong experience. Many people close to us know the full details, but if I left you out of the loop and you want to know more, just email me.

On Thursday, the 25th of September, I began a one day tour of the hospitals of Hong Kong, starting with the emergency room of the hospital nearest to us. I woke up in pain before Paul had even got up for work. When I realized after a short time that it was unstoppable, I told Paul. We asked the man (I don't know his name) at our lobby desk how to get to a hospital. Bless his kind heart, he chased a taxi down our street and told the driver where to go.

They assessed me fairly quickly in the emergency room: a large ovarian cyst that would likely need to be removed. I was transported by ambulance (they didn't use the sirens so I don't know if it counts as an ambulance ride) to a hospital with the required ward.

There are public (government) and private hospitals here. The hospital I was sent to was a public hospital. This segment is kind of a blur of pain relief injections, tests, and circular conversations, but mostly waiting. Paul wasn't allowed in my room, which had four other patients in it, but he had been in contact with work and someone informed him of a hotline available to us through his health insurance. After communicating with each other by cell phone, many unanswered questions, and a thankful allowance of Paul into my room for five minutes to clear up confusion, it was decided by the hotline doctor that I would transfer to a private hospital and see a specialist.

I arrived at my third and final hospital sometime in the late afternoon. I had a private room where Paul could stay as long as he wanted, and the place had a more comforting appearance. The doctor, Dr. Eric Lee, came to see me that evening and explained my situation - in reassuringly good English - and set up a laproscopic surgery for the next day at noon. He felt confident that everything seemed routine and should be fairly simply remedied.

Things got a little more complicated during the surery and it took twice as long as expected as Paul waited impatiently. I didn't see the doctor again until later that evening. It was frustrating waiting so long for the report, but he brought along entertainment. As he explained the procedure, he popped in a DVD of it. I had no idea that this is typical of surgeries done laproscopically now. I have now seen my insides on a big flatscreen TV, and so has my brave husband who was as non-prepared for the show as I was. Yes, it's strange to see your insides, but it is also fascinating that doctors are now capable of operating in this way: a small camera and two small incisions. I am also grateful that my healing time is a fraction of the time it would have been for a traditional surgery. I also might not have been so lucky to have a doctor trained in this way if I remained at the public hospital. My condition turned out to be less common than it appeared, and I think I was lucky to cross paths with Dr. Lee.

I came home the next afternoon, Saturday. I was very uncomfortable at times for the next couple of days, but I felt better as every hour passed. I saw the doctor one week later and he believes that my situation is very fortunately concluded.

Blinding pain is scary. So is having doctors and nurses run around you speaking a language you don't understand, though they were mostly kind, some particularly kind. It's those small favors that get you through the fear. You start out believing that you could never physically handle the things required in the whole treatment process. Then as each thing happens, you simply become someone who can handle it all, and every discomfort becomes part of a collection of things you've survived.

Of course I'm thankful that I'm feeling better and that I received the "all clear" but I'm thankful for unexpected things also. Do you know that it's surprisingly moving to view your living breathing organs? When healthy, they're beautiful, faithful little powerhouses and it's reassuring to see their pink fleshiness - once you get past the ick factor.

I'm also fortunate that I felt pain - yes fortunate - because it indicated something wrong. When a week passed after the surgery and I felt much better, I realized that it's easy to take being physically comfortable for granted. I decided to appreciate that this past Saturday, I didn't feel the way I did the previous Saturday. It's reason for celebration, even if only in small, quiet ways.

I am grateful for the people here who have become my friends who brought me bread, soup, ice cream, DVD's, flowers, and a lot of kind wishes.

And I'm most grateful for my other half who thinks he didn't do that much for me but who made everything a little easier. Sitting next to my bed doing a crossword puzzle in the long, heavy-feeling hours is a lot more than it seems. This is where I faulter... there's no way to express enough appreciation of his actions and his presence, so I'll just say this: thanks for bringing me fresh bread that Sunday morning. It was the best bread I ever tasted.

My welcome home flowers
(it was either that or a still of the surgery video)

Pressure

My wine class was canceled for this evening because there's another T8 signal in effect. I was out in the afternoon and it was at least windy this time. I still don't expect much after the last few.

Our Mandarin class is canceled for tomorrow evening because... we bailed on them. I really wanted to try the cultural enrichment thing and learn a new language, but when you don't hear it around you and there's no need to speak it, it's difficult to feel inspired to memorize vocabulary and tones and such. After four of five weeks, neither of us had opened the book except for when the teacher arrived. It was becoming increasingly embarrassing that we had trouble with the simple vocabulary exercises. We canceled last week because Paul knew he would be stuck at work. Before this Wednesday came around we decided realistically that we're just not that interested in putting the time into a difficult language right now. We still have the hours available to us if we want to pick it up again at another time. I feel a little bit like a failure for not even trying, but let's face it - we dreaded Wednesdays and that book was never going to be opened for practice. It wasn't that easy for Paul to run home at that time each week either. Oh well.

In the meantime, I've been under pressure from a few friends to do something I have long resisted. First, years ago back home, it was myspace. I prevailed. Now, it's facebook. For the readers who don't know, these are "social networking" web sites where you put pictures and blogs and stuff and you "connect" with your friends. I would know more details if I had ever actually done it. At first I thought it was age that separated me from those wanting to inform every one they know about their 'current mood' or what their favorite bands are or whatever, but I know so many people on facebook now that I can't argue the age factor.

I'm still not sold on what people claim is the fun of locating people you knew from lifetimes ago, like from high school. If I met someone in the past who is still worth keeping in contact with, I probably haven't lost touch with that person anyhow. I don't know. I'm still fighting it, but I might lose because it seems like something more logical to do when you're far away (even though it's friends here that are insisting I join). I guess I'll never be comfortable with the public display of... well, me. I appreciate genuine interactions more than shallow electronic ones, but I guess I could try being someone who still writes letters - on paper - with a pen - and someone who dabbles in modern online social relations as well.

I know a couple of people, if you've still been reading, who most definitely have an opinion here. Let me have it! If I create an account, I'll surely inform you all.

Not much going on otherwise. Oh, my friend Liz and I decided we will now rate everything we do according to the lantern festival I last wrote about. For example, we went to an outlet mall last week: better than the lantern festival. Lunch the other day: better than the lantern festival. Paul's cheeky example was, I got mugged: better than the lantern festival.

Be My Lantern

Lots of revelry in the last week... I'll start with last Thursday. My friends and I went out for dim sum in the afternoon and then for one last drink later in the evening to wish our friend Sheyla farewell just hours before she and her husband departed for home, which is London. It was my first taste of having to say goodbye to someone I enjoyed knowing, and I don't like it. This is a place with a lot of expats who are just passing through, ourselves among them. I don't look forward to others leaving or to when it's me waving goodbye.

But ignoring that future day, I went to my second baby shower in six months here. One of the girls from my Y group, Britta, is due next month. We were able to surprise her with an afternoon tea at the Mandarin Oriental, and she was very moved. She's from Boston and she hasn't had any friends or family visit her (Can you imagine how sad that is???) so some baby gifts from a few girls were really appreciated.

Saturday, we met up with a couple of the same girls and their husbands at a nearby bar to watch an Australia v. New Zealand rugby final. New Zealand won. Go All Blacks. I don't know what that means; I just know my NZ friend Peggy mentioned it once or twice.

Today is a public holiday known as the Mid-Autumn Festival. Over the weekend there were different events at various venues. Two of my friends and I thought it was a "must-see" to check off the list while we are here. This is the description from the web site of the HK Tourism Board:

The festival commemorates a 14th Century uprising against the Mongols. In a cunning plan, the rebels wrote the call to revolt on pieces of paper and embedded them in cakes that they smuggled to compatriots.

Today, during the festival, people eat special sweet cakes known as "Moon Cakes" made of ground lotus and sesame seed paste, egg-yolk and other ingredients. Along with the cakes, shops sell coloured Chinese paper lanterns in the shapes of animals, and more recently, in the shapes of aeroplanes and space ships. On this family occasion, parents allow children to stay up late and take them to high vantage points such as The Peak to light their lanterns and watch the huge autumn moon rise while eating their moon cakes. Public parks are ablaze with many thousands of lanterns in all colours, sizes and shapes.

Thousands of lanterns! Sounds like a sight to see, doesn't it? The largest celebration was set to take place in Victoria Park in nearby Causeway Bay Sunday night. We met at a local bar and took the train one stop over and followed the signs for the carnival entrance. Uhhhhhhh, we should have stayed at the bar. First, it was uncomfortably hot. Second, Causeway Bay is always ultra-crowded, so a festival just threw some more people on the pile. Third, three unenthusiastic men were following three enthusiastic women with hopes of seeing the light of hundreds of colored lanterns filling the night sky. There were a few lanterns. There were a few stages with indechiperable things going on. One I could see was Flamenco. Yes, Flamenco. There were some large inflatable lanterns set up here and there and a few strings of lights. It was the lamest thing we've ever seen. Needless to say, we didn't stay long and found ourselves back in an air conditioned bar watching more rugby a short while later.

Mid-Autumn Lantern Festival: check.

Oh, we also passed up a party on the roof at J residence with a full menu of tasty-sounding items like giant prawns in butter and garlic because I thought we should do the more cultural thing. Ignore your instinct to choose buttery treats over all else and you always regret it. Today was the actual holiday, but Paul worked as usual so I met him for a leisurely lunch. I was looking for vodka with my club sandwich as I've had some for four days straight. That hasn't happened in a really long time. Ooh, by the way, my new favorite is simpler than vanilla vodka and tonic; it's vodka, soda and fresh lime. I adapt well.

We also had massages Saturday afternoon. There are so many places around that we thought we'd be having weekly ones once we moved here. So far, we only went to the spa in Bali and the spa at the Mandarin Oriental on our anniversary. We tried a place nearby that a friend recommended. I'm not sure if it was Thai or not; it was sort of like one but not totally. Either way, it was pretty good. These tiny Thai women could probably wrestle a bear and win. The place is very no-frills. Paul didn't like that you could hear conversation from outside the curtained spaces we were in. It was a little distracting, but for HK$88 (about US$10) I'll bring my iPod next time.

Just in case I don't write before Friday, happy birthday, Dad.

Dim sum and good-byes at Dragon-i

Tea at the Mandarin

Thousands of people, or was it lanterns?