Weeks 3 + 4 - Junk Boat and Mid-Autumn Festival - Kowloon, China
Kowloon, China
So, it's been a few weeks since I have updated my blog so I thought it was time to do so. Week 3 was fairly quiet, so instead of bore you with my post, I figured I would wait until week 4, and post something exciting. For the most part, week three consisted of class, squash, market shopping, and relaxing. The first couple weeks were busy so it was nice to take some time to recuperate. However, on Saturday we had some fun..
One of the things you have to try in Hong Kong is a Junk Boat trip. A "modern" junk boat is one that a group of people rent out for the day and travel to some private island. A group of us rented two junk boats for a total of 50 kids; 25 on each. That morning was an early wake up call so we could make a pit stop at the grocery store to stock up on beer, chips, and other snacks (yes they sell beer at the grocery store here, and it's dirt cheap too). When we were done there, we headed to the pier. Our boat was ready instantly and the party started right away. A heavy surround sound system kept the music going, and a massive cooler kept the drinks cold. It was about a 20 minute ride out to where we dropped anchor. We stopped in the middle of the water along with approximately 10 other boats as well. We got to jump off the boat, swim to other boats, drink, and even make it down to the beach if we had the determination. Included in our trip was an All U Can Eat Seafood lunch! It was actually quite good! After lunch we had the option to go banana boating or wake boarding! I chose wake boarding. Yeah, I couldn't even stand up. Following this we enjoyed the rest of the afternoon socializing before heading back home. By the time our 6pm departure came I was exhausted, and long story short, I didn't make it out that night! It was an amazing day that yielded lots of great views, and tons of good fun!
Unlike week 3, week 4 had much more going on. Only 3 relaxing days and 4 fun filled others. Monday was a relaxing day. Class, Dim Sum, and Squash. Dim Sum here is addicting, and I could eat it 100 times over. So much variety, and so so tasty. Tuesday brought a little bit more entertainment than Monday. A group of headed to the Happy Valley Horse Races. Jockey racing is quite famous in Hong Kong and being apart of the experience was a lot of fun. It's more than just a night to gamble but rather a social outing altogether. The venue was massive, with the skyline as it's stunning back drop. There were many beer and food vendors offering drinking contests and samples. There was also the option to bet on the horses. I decided to make a few 5HKD bets, and unfortunately came out with nothing. The atmosphere was great though, it was extremely bright, live and upbeat, and it was nice to share an evening with people of all classes and ethnicities. Also to note, it was super cheap to get in; only 10HKD which is approximately $1.13 CAD. Not too shabby. Overall, a really fun evening and i'll definitely be going back.
Wednesday is always my much anticipated day off from class. I decided to catch up on some homework, write up some post cards, and spend some time with my room mate before squash that evening. It's kind of nice knowing I get some amazing squash training here every Wednesday and Friday. Also this week, a low key Wednesday was important as that weekend was set up to be one with little down time, starting Thursday.
Thursday marked the day of the second largest festival held in China commonly known as the Mid-Autumn Festival or the Moon Festival. This festival falls on the 15th day of the 8th month in accordance to the Chinese Lunar Calendar. It is always celebrated in the middle of the autumn season; the time of year when the moon is at its roundest and brightest. On the day of the festival family members gather to offer sacrifice to the moon, appreciate its shape/colour, eat moon cake and express strong yearning towards friends and family. The moon cake is a monumental symbol of the festival as it is sacrificed to the moon, and eaten by families across the country. The moon cake is round symbolizing the reunion of a family. Residents often present their friends and family with moon cakes for this festival to demonstrate that they with them a long and happy life. Moon cake giving for this festival is is similar to the way we send Christmas cards. For me, I got to ring in the festival at Victoria Park, downtown Hong Kong. The park was elegantly decorated with lights and lanterns and was equipped with many traditional stage acts and musical performances throughout the night as well. It was extremely crowded but the sights were amazing. I also got watch the Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance it's way into the park. The dragon is over 125 years old and is made out of a wicker like material. The head is constructed with a new design each year. The dragon's wicker body is then plugged with over 24 000 incense sticks and lit to dance. It danced for about 30 minutes while performing many traditional "acts" in the Chinese culture. It was quite a sight to see! On top of that, I also got to enjoy many different flavours of moon cake provided by my room mate and different people that I met here. The festival was fun, and definitely an experience I might not get to re-live ever again. I'm so glad I was apart of it.
Although Thursday was the official day of the festival, students and staff got the day off on Friday. Many of the festivities took place the night before, so 3 of us decided wake up at the crack of dawn and head out on a hike to Lantau Island. We hiked with Will's uncle and a group of his friends/coworkers. Man, were they intense. They planned at 17.5 Km hike across the island. It was extremely hot this day as Typhoon Usagi was making it's first impacts on Hong Kong. We started in a small village and quickly hiked up many high hills, down many steep hills, through rivers, tight bushes, narrow walkways, and rough patches. Many beautiful views were yielded along the way, so it was nice to stop and grab a photo every now and then. After a 4 hour hike, we ended up at a small town at a beautiful beach where we ordered many pints of beer and snacked on a perfectly refreshing lunch. I was exhausted by the end of it. The only thing missing was a trip to see the giant Buddha at the top of the mountain on the island. Unfortunately the cable car to reach the peak was closed for maintenance (of course). So, a trip back to Lantau is definitely on the agenda. For tonight though, a night sleep was all I could think about.
On Saturday a few of us decided to head back over to Hong Kong Island to visit Hong Kong Park and the Hong Kong Squash Centre. I got to witness a pretty tournament final squash match at a pretty awesome facility. So many courts, with so many players! Following the match, we ventured out into Hong Kong Park. The park was large and beautiful. It offered many wildlife features. The park is home to some exotic birds and a large bird cage viewing gallery. We took a walk through and saw some really neat birds, both big and small! It's the best when you stumble upon things that you had no idea even existed! It was a nice day to follow the extreme hike from the day prior! Saturday night we kept it relatively low key and went to see the new JOBS movie. It was actually, I recommend giving it a watch. When we left the theatre, winds were slowing starting to pick up as Typhoon Usagi was supposed to make landfall on sunday.
For those people who know me best, they all would know what I did on Sunday. I did absolutely nothing, except stock up on groceries. The largest typhoon in the past decade was set to hit Hong Kong dead on that night. I was paranoid. I loafed, and loafed and loafed all day, and all night. Luckily enough, the typhoon changed directions just slightly when it was about 60 km away from the city. The typhoon ended up going more North into mainland China than originally expected, and Hong Kong got the outskirts of the storm rather than it's full force. Much less damage occurred than what was expected. A few trees down here and there but nothing extremely severe. Classes were canceled on the following Monday though so although I was paranoid about the storm, I got an ultra long weekend! :) I TECHNICALLY survived a typhoon, sort of..
Overall, it was an amazing week. So much happened, and it was great to experience a real part of Chinese culture. Stay tuned, as a trip to Macau is on the agenda for Week 6 !