Homeward Bound

It turns out that the title "Two of Us" would have worked for the blog announcing our return home after all. With an unexpected turn of events, we are in fact coming home and there are physically still just two of us.

We fully anticipated having a baby here in Singapore in January. It was such a fact that we were working out flight options for my parents to visit. They even renewed their passports (that I forced them to get when I made them travel to our wedding in Italy 10 years ago). They put aside their reluctance to fly a thousand (19) hours all the way to Singapore to see their baby's baby and I was grateful for their willingness. Paul and I laughed, This is what we had to do to get family to visit us in Asia after four years! But at times, I wished they didn't have to. I thought, wouldn't it be simpler if we were just back home already? I felt alright about having a baby here and we hoped to return home soon after that, but sometimes I wondered what exactly was keeping us here and if the emotional weight of being so far away would have consequences I couldn't fully estimate.

Sometimes I think we are watched over. I was barely unpacked from South Africa when Paul called me on the afternoon of October 13 and said, "How do you feel about moving home in a couple of weeks?" I was expecting a question more like, "What are we having for dinner tonight?"

The person who held the position in Jersey City that Paul holds here had just quit. Paul got a call suggesting this could be his move. We had to decide at once whether it was a process we wanted to set in motion. I've taken longer to decide what to eat. It's unsettling to start an international move when you're six months pregnant, but other than that we couldn't think of a compelling enough reason to remain here. It was an overwhelming proposition yet somehow an easy decision at the same time.

Paul was worried that delays in having the right people approve the move could hurt our chances because I could only fly for so many more weeks. For once, things seemed to align. We had to wait a week to hear, but word came on the morning of my scheduled doctor visit. So an hour later we were asking the doctor how late I could fly.

It's a big upheaval. The timing is inconvenient. We will have a frightening to-do list before we leave here and an even longer one when we get home. But we are at least landing on familiar territory (except for that little we're having a baby thing) and most importantly, we will have family nearby. Now that it's happening, I realize how much I hoped it would. We're only leaving a few months earlier than we had expected to, but the difference is significant. It just feels right.

It's a defined position for Paul and it's in the place we eventually wanted to be. Those factors were far from guaranteed if we waited to see what next year brought us. We were not all that excited to end up in Salt Lake City, UT. And my parents get to tuck those new passports away while sighing relief over missing out on the longest flights of their lives.

And now that the ball is rolling, reality is catching up. We're swimming in details: communications, arrangements, scheduling, rescheduling, reservations, cancellations, deadlines, accounts, tax figures, medical insurance, packing...

By the way, we agreed to all this before it snowed in NY/NJ two days before Halloween. Someone, do something about that.

Here's a preview of the boy who will be born in the USA.

Pata Pata

South Africa Safari Video

Click on the above link if you want to see a 5 minute video of some of the animals we got to see on our game drives around South Africa (the penguins and ostriches were actually outside the reserve).

It's chopped up from a little over an hour of video all shot on a Flip camera, some of it while in a moving vehicle so the quality is not always great, but it gives you a little feel of what we got to see.  Lisa will be posting the official epic blog shortly which has much more high quality and amazing photos.

There is a sound track with actual South African music which made it a bit difficult to get it uploaded here (youtube and their copyright laws!). You will probably need to let it sit several minutes to buffer before it allows you to play it straight through - hang in there - it will eventually work. 

I'll try to get my own post up on the trip shortly as well, but for now,

I'll blog ya' later...

Oh Boy

We had a plan. Paul and I intended on finding out whether we will have a girl or a boy once I had given birth, a baby would be placed in my arms and the doctor would have said, "It's a ...."

I'm aware that many people in the modern world just don't get it. Why wouldn't you find out if you could? Aren't you curious? What about shopping and decorating? I've encountered a handful of like-minded folks who have said, "Good for you. We didn't find out either." As for shopping for pink or blue, I don't care. Decorating... we won't be painting any rooms soon (and it's just paint). Curiosity? Of course! It's like being a kid, eying that oddly shaped box under the Christmas tree, curiosity nearly consuming you. Remember how much fun that was? How many times in adult life do you have to hold out for the revelation of the greatest gift ever?

That was our plan. It lasted 25 weeks, 15 away from the finish line. Then we went to the doctor the day before we left for South Africa and the doctor performed a routine ultrasound. Here's the heart... here's an arm... here's the upper lip... here's the... Oh, you know what the sex is, don't you?

Well now I do.

I had to take her word for it on the arm and the lip, as with most things she points out - they were white blurs on a black screen to me. But for some reason boy parts appear crystal clear. She made an instant and lame attempt to cover her flub by saying, "Girls can be deceptive." Umm, that would be one crafty girl.

And there you have it; we are having a boy.

This was three weeks ago so my anger at the doctor's carelessness has eased, but I remain a bit sad that we lost the mystery. Not everyone wants to know. It was our choice. I was truly enjoying the experience. Everything about the child was left to our imagination. Everything. Nothing was assigned: a temporary realm in which anything is possible was magical to me.

There will be a certain lack of anticipation and surprise at delivery also. Therefore, the doctor has altered our experience of expecting. We don't do this every day, you know. Of course, within a moment of meeting him, it won't matter what we knew of him before his first breath. But my doctor really should have reviewed her notes.

Now we usually refer to him as he/him rather than it. When he keeps me up at night because he's shadow boxing or parade marching, I tell Paul that he needs to have a talk with his rowdy son, though this is actually one of the best feelings of carrying around a little one. It's my giggling that wakes Paul up. I am still having a great time.

Still feeling good, except for occasional heartburn, though I could often enough prevent if I put the fork down sooner. The boy may take after his mother in two ways so far. I almost always feel movement as soon as I run water. He may just be an enthusiast of long hot showers. Second, he's often more active at night. Me again.

Here's a Singapore observation. Strangers stare at me as if they can't fathom what might be happening to my stomach. It's even more ironic here because Singapore is practically a breeding ground. Expats tend to think it's a great place to start a family and locals, well, the majority are Chinese and they aren't known to slack in reproduction. I lose count of the pregnant women walking around on any given outing. But the local people still stare. They stare but they don't usually give up their seats on the train, even though there are signs posted everywhere asking for such consideration. I sound grumpy about a harmless thing, but it gets annoying after awhile, especially after being away for two weeks in a country where nobody gawked at me, then returning to the sideways glances.

I would have posted another ultrasound photo but the doctor hasn't given me any printed snapshots since 16 weeks. Maybe she owes us one next time.

So if it makes anyone happy, go ahead and buy blue clothes. No, we haven't decided on a name yet. At least we can focus on the boy set now. Got anything good?

At the Zoo

We will be missing the Formula 1 races in Singapore this year since we'll be on our way to Africa, but we got to experience it once already, so the call of the wild is louder than the race of motors this year. Perhaps to ready ourselves for the real deal, we went to the Singapore Zoo last weekend. It was the least disappointing thing we've done in Singapore so far. In other words, we had a fun day there. Of course, we were about the only ones without kids, tangible kids anyway.

We had "Breakfast with the Orangutans." You eat breakfast while orangutans hang out on a platform nearby and then you can take pictures with them. We could have saved a lot of money and effort on Borneo! They're just fascinating to watch, and I felt alright about it because these were all rescued from bad situations and are not fit to be returned to the wild. They appeared well-treated and their roaming area is quite surprisingly expansive. Overall, the zoo was well-planned with appropriate habitats and the variety of animals was impressive.

We were proud of ourselves for finally doing something touristy and being there by 9 a.m. as well as finishing up just as the rain came. We took loads of pictures but I'll just post a few highlights, especially since one includes the latest look at the growing belly. I hope our real safari pictures won't be a letdown now. If we fail to capture the animals in Africa, I'll post more shots of the ones from the Singapore Zoo (or maybe I should have held onto these for awhile?).

 That's me in the green shirt

I love this!

Hope our baby's that cute!

That's character

Banana for your thoughts?

I Hear You Knocking

Just a quick hello as we prepare for our trip to South Africa in two days. It's true that Paul planned the recent trip to Langkawi, the second he's taken charge of since Maldives last year. And it's true that they were both relaxing and indulgent trips, whereas I plan trips where we actually do things. Someone's gotta keep him on his toes (or in a sleeping bag in a cold valley surrounded by cows - but I haven't got around to the Bhutan blog yet).

I really enjoyed Langkawi. I don't know if the lavish resort we stayed at was representative of the rest of the island, but on our drive to and from the airport and to reach our sailboat dock, the island seemed more untouched than many others in the region. The forest are still forests, not palm plantations. I didn't notice the common sights of over-development. Our resort really was in the rain forest, and the wildlife put on shows to prove it. The beach was tranquil and I could gaze at the mountains in the sea for hours, and I did. The evening temperatures were also refreshingly cooler and so pleasant, unlike in Singapore. As a side note, I can eat my weight in baked goods, especially croissants, so multiple buffet breakfasts make the trip memories linger, mostly around my thighs.

One funny thing to mention - There was another couple at the resort that included a pregnant woman. We saw them often, to the point that I joked to Paul, "I think her baby is following my baby." Then they were on our flight back to Singapore, not so surprising. Then three days later, we saw her in our neighborhood. Amusing coincidence. Then I saw her three more times around Singapore. It's a small country but really???

So the lucky little pre-person I'm carrying around has already been to Bali, China, Hong Kong, Langkawi and soon, South Africa. Pretty impressive for not having a passport yet.

In baby news, I feel good. I have very few of the common symptoms associated with pregnancy. I was never nauseous. No food aversions and no cravings - well maybe one minor one. I am loving fruit and cold sweet things like smoothies. I did have nagging headaches for a couple of months but they suddenly and completely ended last month. I had a sharp pain in my right ribcage, right after Langkawi, that lasted about three weeks as my organs must have been getting pushed around, but that too has ended. I have my normal level of energy, for whatever that's worth, and I'm not so big that I'm uncomfortable yet. I take a prenatal yoga class twice a week and I try to take walks often.

The only illness I've felt was the cold and sinus infection that started on our way home from Hong Kong, the worst of which lasted about two weeks. I had no appetite but it returned thoroughly once we got to Langkawi. I think the sea air honestly did me good. I also had to wonder what the baby thought of me bobbing in the ocean from inside its own miniature sort of ocean.

I started feeling movements about a month ago. I should say I started recognizing them, more precisely, while on a sailboat on the Andaman Sea. I probably felt them earlier and I just wasn't sure enough to identify the soft fluttery sensation as baby movement. Then one late night while I was sitting quietly by myself, I was sure. Looking down at my belly, through my black tee shirt, I not only felt the thumps but I saw them. I exploded with laughter while simultaneously trying to settle down so I wouldn't miss seeing more. It was a thrill.

It wasn't until another month passed that the thumps were strong enough for Paul to feel too. Even though they are strong enough, it's still a challenge of timing. I will alert him, he rests his hand on me, and then... nothing. I keep thinking of the Bugs Bunny cartoon frog who belts out show tunes with top hat and cane when nobody is in earshot except its keeper. Then when the pitiful entrepreneur presents the amazing frog to an audience... nothing but an indifferent croak. Paul gets a lot of croaks. I'm sure that in no time our little froggy will make its presence undoubtedly known to both of us.

So I feel well and happy and I'm enjoying the show. I own exactly one baby book. I read it each week to see what's developing, and I don't obsess over information. There's an awful lot of it out there these days. 25 weeks down, 15 to go. Yikes, that's not long at all. Our lazy weekends on the couch are numbered.

Jungle Love

When you move to a new country it’s important to experience the culture and partake in the regional customs and celebrations. That is why last August when we were still new to Singapore we made plans to attend the National Day Parade.
 

It is equally important to learn from your mistakes and never repeat them which is why with National Day approaching again this year we decided to look into getting out of town for a few days.

Monsoon and rainy season limit the options for traveling during the summer months around South East Asia unless you want to take a chance on a cheaper trip that will just about guarantee to be at least a partial wash out. This is what has driven us to an almost annual trip to Bali the past few years (we somehow make due with these hardships). And once again the conversations started, but having just been there a couple of months ago we expanded our search a bit and decided to take a chance on four days in Langkawi, a small island off the west coast of Malaysia with a fairly consistent climate.

I was able to book the short hour and ten minute flight using sky miles, so with the money we saved I upgraded us to what was recommended as one of the nicest, perhaps even the best, resorts on the island called The Datai. It is located on the northwest coast about a half an hour from the airport and is situated right in the middle of a rain forest. It shares a beach with one other resort and is very secluded.

After a delay we arrived very late and very hungry on Friday night. We were seated in the lounge with a welcome drink as the staff checked us in and explained the lay of the land – such as requests not to feed the monkeys and recommendations on ensuring our balcony doors are locked because they will break in for food. Maybe seeing Rise of the Planet of the Apes on Thursday night was not the wisest idea.

Once settled we quickly made our way to the main Dining Room restaurant and enjoyed a late night dinner followed by a nightcap back in the lounge accompanied by live music and then it was off to sleep.

Keeping a consistent agenda with all of the trips I have booked, the only item on the itinerary was relaxation. So we slept in late and made our way to the breakfast buffet shortly before it closed. It offered all of the western norms as well as a fair spread of Malaysian specialties.

 

Then it was back to the room to prepare for a day in the sun. We started by taking the 173 step staircase (!!) and few hundred meter walk through the rain forest to the beach. As advertised, it was a lovely setting nestled between the hillsides. There were plenty of lounge chairs available either right out in the sun or well shaded by the mangrove trees. “Two in the shade please.”

After a while we made our way down to the water, pleasantly surprised to learn that when an island’s temperature is consistently warm all year, the water is like a bathtub.  And we spent a good part of the afternoon floating around the Andaman Sea.

The resort offered two pool options, one down by the beach opened to all and another at the top of the staircase for adults only. So after a light snack we decided to take the inevitable trip back up and spent the evening poolside, scanning the treetops for local wildlife.

That evening we decided to once again descend down to the beach and had a pre-dinner drink at the seaside bar and watched the sunset. The resort had a restaurant on that level that offered theme buffet nights and we had made reservations for the Seafood Night. A mix of grilled items, made to order pastas and a wide variety of prepared selections were very satisfying if not amazing.  Full enough we decided to forgo the stairs and waited for the available shuttle service to bring us back to the lounge.

 

We closed the night back in the lounge with a cold draft and a nice Cuban cigar for myself. However the music that evening was drowned out by the croaking of frogs in the lobby pond. Where they were the night before is anyone’s guess, but they were making their presence known now. Life in a rain forest.

Heavy rains overnight cleared up for another beautiful day and we basically replicated day one with a stop at the spa for myself to see if I could actually make it any more relaxing. On our way up to the pool in the late afternoon we did get greeted by some unexpected guests. A pack of about 20 macaque monkeys were making their way down the boardwalk as we were making our way up. They strolled right by us with subtle glances but not much of a reaction.  Unfortunately I didn't get any great pictures because there were a few other women on the deck; a French one who tried hiding behind Lisa and just kept saying, “There are too many of them,” and another who had a knack for stepping in front of me every time I snapped a photo. Oh well, they are quite common around Asia so besides the proximity it was far from the first time we have seen them.

For dinner that evening we dined in the Pavilion next to the main pool which had some very good Thai food, though it was the least favorable service we had through the weekend. However we did end up with some other unexpected dinner guests. 

In Southeast Asia newts are quite common. We can see them every day in Singapore and there were even some in HK as well, and as you may imagine there is an abundance of them in the rain forest. They tend to be out at night and hang around any lights and are basically skittish little guys that run at the first sign of motion. I’m not sure if these two were on a dare, just really liked Thai food or we are just that good of company but they kept coming back and hung around for our whole meal. They posed for pictures and came within inches of us – darting away if I moved for something quickly but then reappearing a few minutes later.

We wrapped up the night with a quick stop at the lounge as the frog festival was on once again, and the next day was the only morning we had to get up. 

Once I booked the trip, as Lisa will do, she started researching Langkawi online and came up with a plan for us on Monday. We chartered a sailboat, The Rampant, out for the day. It was about a 45 minute car ride to the port on the southwest corner of the island and Carl and Bea, the owners and crew, were waiting for us on the dock at 9:40 am sharp.

The boat accommodated up to 12 guests but only 7 booked that day and 2 did not show up, making it a very comfortable group of 5 of us going out, the other three being a father and his two daughters originally from Seattle but living in Singapore now as well.

 

There wasn’t much wind so we had to motor our way out and we stopped along the picturesque trip for some swimming, kayaking and lunch. There was an uneventful stop at a beach on a deserted island as well where we did a small trail walk to a man-made lake which seemed a little forced to show you got something extra for your money.

Bea was Swiss and Carl South African and they told us some interesting stories of how they ended up running charter trips out of Malaysia. We asked Carl for some advice on our upcoming trip to South Africa, but he hadn’t been there in about 20 years and I think we offered them more advice on traveling around Asia than we received.

They were able to raise the sails for the return voyage and we got back to the resort in time for our evening at the pool and we were happy to see that we were joined overhead by some Dusky Leaf Monkeys, aka Spectacled Langurs, the cuter of the two types of primates that shared the island. We got to see a mother and baby and some in house arguments settled and ended up with stiff necks from watching all the action.

That night we headed back down to the buffet for Italian Night which was surprisingly better than we could have hoped, ending the evening with a cold draft and one more Cuban along with the now ever present croaking chorus.

Our flight on Tuesday was not until 8:45pm and the resort was nice enough to let us check out at 6:00pm so we spent a condensed day that looked an awful lot like Saturday and Sunday ending with an early and tasty dinner in the Dining Room where we ate the first night.

On our way to the airport just outside the resort our car came to an abrupt stop and swung to the other side of the road, making it clear our driver was avoiding running something over. Once past he slowed down to show us the last wildlife we would get to see. There was a giant cobra crossing the road which we were glad we only learned about on our way off the island.

I can't say that it was Langkawi itself that we loved as we were not that adventurous there, but we did have a great long weekend at The Datai and I would highly recommend that to anyone – particularly those in Singapore only an hour away. Bali will always be Bali but this was a really nice change of pace and may be the last tropical adventure we have during our stint in Asia. But then again…

I’ll blog ya’ later…

I'm Going to Go Back There Some Day

What do two travel addicts do when their travel will be drastically curbed come 2012? Pack up the suitcases and pack in the trips! Leaving Asia without seeing Hong Kong one more time was unthinkable for me, so about a month ago we took that 3.5 hour flight from one of the world's most eh-alright cities to one of the world's greatest (in the humble opinion of the author, but trust me). We visited one year ago, nearly to the same date, but we had only moved four months prior and all our friends were still living there, so it felt as if we had hardly left. Paul also worked for two days when we were last there, while this time we went purely for the purpose of being in a place that we love.

After our cramped 6:30 a.m. flight, we had to wait on the non-resident immigration line at the HK airport because our resident cards have expired; no more breezing through with the magic thumbprint. Everything else was instantly familiar. We got into town by early afternoon and checked into our first hotel in Lan Kwai Fong, the crazy busy center of the city. It was a nice hotel, but it's in a tower that also contains bars and restaurants and overlooks the streets of LKF where sidewalk revelry continues late into the night. It was only a Thursday, but when I briefly woke at 2:30 a.m., I could still hear a buzz.

After checking in we quickly headed off to the tailor that has made custom suits for Paul in the past. They have all his measurements on record but they re-checked a few before he chose material and ordered another suit and some pants to be collected on Saturday - two days later. How many ways is this city great?

We hopped on a tram toward Wan Chai, our former neighborhood. To my surprise, my beloved $2 tram (a few cents in USD) now cost $2.30. We were lucky we had some spare change or we'd be fare dodging criminals on the run. We took a short walk before lunch. Much was the same. There were several new eateries that I have no doubt we would have eagerly sampled (sigh). We had a lunch reservation at Rokaku, our favorite sushi place. That's right - I ate sushi, and I and my unborn child lived to tell the tale. Don't tell the pregnancy cops. To Paul's great disappointment, they had no salmon sushi, which he had been imagining since he made the reservation. But it was still as good as always.

Next on the list and just around the corner was Sift, the cupcake shop. Personally, that's what I've been dreaming about... always. We ate them outside and savored every crumb. Then Paul went off to get a haircut while I did a little shopping. The selection of maternity clothes in Singapore is rather dismal and, not surprisingly, overpriced. So I took the opportunity to hit up some shops I knew in hopes of picking up some essentials.

We both eventually ended up at the hotel where we freshened up for dinner. When planning our must-have meals, our first choice was our favorite restaurant Wagyu. Tragically, they decided to close for renovation the week we were in town. But Wagyu Lounge, the smaller sister restaurant/lounge nearby has a very similar menu so we had a suitable back-up. And really, there were no complaints. Service was still as service should be. We shared a delicious appetizer and mmm'd over excellent steaks. We ordered a bottle of wine, of which I had a glass.

***Disclaimer*** My doctor stated that she has no problem with the occasional glass of wine. I didn't even ask. She brought it up, and she has certificates on her wall. I am just a sensible adult, but I agree.

Upon receiving the bill, we realized what perspective can do. We had a truly satisfying dining experience - with wine - and the price seemed reasonable... better than reasonable, almost inexpensive

compared to what we would pay for the equivalent (as if there were one) in Singapore.

We stopped at a small bar in Soho called 1911 that we used to go to occasionally. Then we walked back to LKF Tower which housed our hotel and stopped in one of the new bars there, Lily, just taking in the variety of old and new. We would probably find ourselves at Lily again if we still lived there, preferably when I could have an actual drink rather than watching others drink. It was great to have so much within walking distance of the hotel. Hitting the bed became the next must-do activity after a long day of travel.

The next day Paul went off on his own while I met friends for lunch at a new place, also by the Wagyu group. Considering how hard it is getting a group of busy girls together, it was a pleasant surprise that all whom I met in the YWCA's "At Home" class my first year in HK were available, at least the six who remain in HK, and we had a lovely lunch. Then my friend Victoria came maternity shopping with me. She's also pregnant with her second, due one week after I am.

Don't feel too bad for Paul being abandoned. He did some shopping of his own and fit in a massage at our favorite Wan Chai place. In the evening we met my friend Peggy and her husband Sander for dinner at W52, another new Italian place which was very good. Peggy bought us our first baby gift, actually our first baby item whatsoever, an adorable little outfit with a rabbit on it since the baby will be born in the year of the rabbit in the Chinese Zodiac. At least it better be a rabbit because if I have a dragon, as cool a nickname "Dragon" is, it means I will have been over two weeks past the due date.

We spent our second and third nights at a different hotel than the first, a Novotel in Wan Chai, because we used credit card points to pay for it. It wasn't as swanky as Hotel LKF, but the room was quieter (and free). It also put us in walking distance of a very important destination: The Flying Pan. Saturday morning started with a satisfying breakfast at our favorite weekend comfort spot. We frequented the place enough that the wait staff always knew that we both ordered iced lemon teas every time and they would practically hand them to us as we came through the door. After nearly a year and a half, they seated us and stunned me as one said, "Two iced lemon teas?" Then I felt guilty that they may think we just don't go there anymore! 

Flying Pan

After breakfast, we went to the Thai massage place where I indulged in one of the things I miss most, a cheap 90 minute foot massage. Paul joined me, but maybe he shouldn't have since he woke the next day to bruises on his legs and a mild rash from the massage oil. It wouldn't be a trip for us if he didn't claim that I try to kill him somehow. My legs were fine.

I had a brief meet-up with another friend, and then Paul and I spent the rest of the afternoon walking, shopping and picking up the finished suit. For a trip that should have been inexpensive, with a free hotel and budget flight, it ended as anything but. Paul bought a camera (long cringe-worthy tale regarding a series of injured cameras); I bought a camera lens, and we both bought clothes. We bought all this there because it's much cheaper than in Singapore, so we continue our questionable endeavors of spending money to save money.

Exhausted, we had a quick rest before meeting our friends Victoria and John at yet another new find, Duecento Otto (208). Excellent food in an elegant atmosphere. Unfortunately I had woken up with a sore throat and by evening felt an oncoming cold, so I had less of an appetite than I should to fully appreciate everything on my plate, though I heroically persevered through dessert. After dinner Paul and I made stops at two of our old spots, MO bar, where I had a glass of orange juice rather then my favorite lychee rose martini, then live music at The Lobster Bar, where I had peppermint tea rather than my favorite chocolate mint martini.

Sunday I awoke feeling terrible. At least the full force of illness struck on the last day, not the first. We decided on a final meal of dim sum at Peking Garden. I had even less of an appetite, and I knew that that would make me sad some time in the future when I may be in the mood for good dim sum. We walked back to Wan Chai and absorbed many familiar scenes, as if I could transport them with us. We paused once more at Ship St., our old residence. I stood and gazed down the street with a lump in my throat. Then off to the airport.

Down on our old corner

I was so truly happy to be in Hong Kong again. I loved every moment, and I said aloud more than once what I felt inside: I am happy. Some of the storefronts, names and places have changed, but the essence of Hong Kong thankfully remains the same. Some friends have since moved, but it was a joy to see the friends who are still there; they are part of what made our experience all that it was. We revisited old favorites yet we were also met with many new delights. It's also wonderful to have cities of the world, once foreign, feel familiar... to walk around without a map, to smile at the best, to grumble at the worst (people still walk straight into you). In many ways it still felt like home. What a privilege.

Sometimes you don't know what you have until you miss it, but I cannot say this about Hong Kong. I'm thankful that I knew that I loved it while I lived it. I hope we encounter its vibrance again one day. 

Two iced lemon teas, on the way!

A little Mac in Hong Kong