LP Records and PC Files: 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.