This issue consists of a travelogue relating a short trip to Hong Kong and Macau. For the benefit of those coming in on a Hong Kong link, Sybil and I are starting out from Singapore.
Learning a bit from our past mistakes, we finally leave enough time to get to Changi airport. We jump on an Airbus on Orchard Road with over two hours before our flight. Of course we can never get to an airport without some incident. This time the driver stops the bus after a point and comes back to tell us we didn't pay enough fare. We're surprised because Sybil thought she read the fare chart correctly, but never mind, how much more do we owe?
It's only 20 cents Sing, but the bus driver won't let us pay the difference. Instead, he wants us to pay the entire fare all over again. Typically, I have a knee jerk angry reaction and mouth off to him. He backs down and drives off, but then Sybil quickly convinces me that we should just pay him anyway. I agree, as it's just not worth the ill will. They can be very silly here about sticking exactly to the letter of the law and never mind how ridiculous the circumstances.
Remember all the time we spent in Changi airport the last time we were here after missing our flight to Bangkok? (See Part Nine) One would think we've seen all the 'attractions,' but nope. Continuing with our tradition of always going to the wrong terminal (tough at Changi since there are only 2 choices, but we manage) we go to terminal one instead of two. No worries as we have plenty of time and get to see some nice fountains along the way. At terminal two we find the 'Science Discovery Center!' It's just a few small displays but we have fun looking at the holograms, the radioactive Barbie dolls, cooing in the whisper chambers, and playing with the electric light art. Great stuff for an airport.
We have Singapore Airlines out and Cathay Pacific back. Both are excellent airlines with in-flight entertainment. (Sing Air has better food but Cathay Pacific gives you more drinks.) The flight to Hong Kong is long enough to see movies so we are content.
The new Hong Kong airport at Lantau is just about to open, so we get a last chance to fly into Kai Tak. This is one of the most exciting landings in the world as you get to swoop down into the center of Kowloon between all the buildings. It's really insane - you can actually see people inside their apartments as you descend - so they clearly needed to move the airport, but some of the thrill of coming into Hong Kong will be lost.
It's been almost 9 years since I was last in Hong Kong. Last visit, I was leaving Beijing right after the Tian'anmen Massacre. Troops lined the street to Capitol airport and machine gun nests were set up at major intersections. I had been stuck in Capitol airport with hundreds of other fleeing foreigners, trying to grab any flight out of town. An incredible stroke of good fortune allowed me to catch a late night Cathay Pacific flight to Hong Kong. When that plane took off the passengers erupted in applause and shouts of joy.
I still have a bit of that feeling coming into Hong Kong. It's always been good to me - very much a favorite destination. Now it is Sybil's first trip there and I get to show her around, assuming I can recognize anything after all that time.
We catch an Airbus to Tsim Sha Tsui and walk to the Marco Polo Hotel, where we have reservations.
OK, those of you who know me are now shaking your heads in astonishment. Did Matt Donath just say he was staying in a hotel (a rather nice hotel too) and did he also say he had reservations?! I know I'm risking my reputation as a rough, tough 'hard' traveler, but wait, I can explain! Well, maybe not much. We just jumped on a good deal from the two airlines. Tourism is way down in Hong Kong, so the airlines are including hotel stays at not much more than the airfare itself. Plus, the cheap accommodations in Hong Kong are not so cheap and not very nice either.
For our first night here I offer Sybil the Temple Street night market or a stroll on the Promenade. She wisely chooses the latter. It's a beautiful night for walking along the harbor, catching the fabulous views and joining the other lovers on the Promenade.
Saturday, I catch the end of the Bulls basketball game on cable as we get dressed in the morning. This is the first time I've seen them all year. They win over Charlotte and I take this as a good omen.
We hop on the Star Ferry, relishing the views on the water. Then Sybil the Researcher insists we take a peek into the Public Library. She wants to compare it with Singapore and for all the fancy gizmos of the new Singapore National Library, the Hong Kong one seems to be more useful.
Cutting through several building, crossing scenic overpasses, we pick up some sandwiches and finally make our way to Hong Kong Park. Wait a second! I've lost my hat! Normally I wouldn't care a bit about losing something so insignificant, but Sybil made this hat for me by hand so we must go back and find it. Retracing our steps, we check the sandwich shop (no luck) before I eventually find it on a library stack. Whew!
Back to Hong Kong Park. Last time I was here it was being constructed. We're very happy with the result. First, they kept the tea museum, and as tea fanatics this is an obligatory stop. Next we sit by a man-made waterfall to eat our sandwiches and watch parents following their toddlers around with video cameras. Then up to a fine conservatory, and back down to an impressive aviary. This park is on a hill, not far from central Hong Kong, so you get impressive views of the skyscrapers from amid the green walkways.
The tram to Victoria Peak is at the edge of the park. Here I note some big changes since my last visit. The tram is modernized and there are hokey 'attractions' at the top of the peak. There's even a mall! Last time I was up, there was just a sleepy cafe (still there but now upscale). Actually, it's not at all bad. They did a good job of creating amenities for tourists without spoiling the atmosphere too much.
If you want to get away from the crowds you can still escape to the Hong Kong Trail, which winds it's way along the western side of Hong Kong Island before shooting back all the way to the eastern side, hitting every park along the way. It's a great path with incredible views of the city below and we happily hike a loop back to the Peak, reaching it just in time for the sunset.
Sunday, we have plans to explore the New Territories with our friend Alfee. (Remember Alfee from our trip to the kelong in Malaysia? No? OK, see part ten.) Alfee has a car and takes us first to City University, where he goes to school part time, in order to see the 'Pillar of Shame,' a monument for the Tian'anmen Massacre created by Danish artist Jens Galschiot. If you want to see it you can find a picture of it on his web page at http://www.aidoh.dk. On the base it says 'The old cannot kill the young forever.' The statue will travel to all the major Hong Kong universities. Alfee says that most of the school officials want to place it in an out of the way place but most of the students want it in a prominent position.
Alfee asks me where I want to go and on a whim I pick Fung Ying Sin Kan Temple in Fanling because I've heard it has a nice cemetery and I want to show Sybil a Hong Kong cemetery before some in Macau. Alfee tells us that his grandmother is buried there so he can pay his respects to her memory. Then Alfee's friend Michelle calls Alfee on his car phone. Michelle is also a friend of our good friend Peggy; we met her briefly in Singapore once. She wants to joins us. Turns out she lives a stone's throw from this temple! Even more surprisingly, she hasn't been there yet. Two big coincidences so it must be a good choice for our first destination in the New Territories.
Fung Ying Sin Kan is a Taoist temple known mostly for its cemetery. Several famous Hong Kong movie stars have their remains there. We see a picture of Yan Kim Fai, who was a noted Cantonese opera star - a woman who often played male roles. Like most Hong Kong cemeteries, this one consists of rows of boxes where cremated remains are interred. The box is sealed with a ceramic plate that usually includes a picture of the deceased. Alfee's grandmother's remains are housed inside a small building. He buys some incense, lights them, and dutifully says some prayers while waving them in the direction of her box.
As I've mentioned in another episode (remember my conversation with my friend Yew Chong?) some Chinese have a tradition of burning models of items that will be useful to the deceased in the afterlife. So here at the temple they have models of houses (complete with servants and guards), automobiles, and even airplanes. They also have a small altar house to protect the souls of the unknown dead.
Just as in the Kwuan Yin temples that we've visited, this Taoist temple has bamboo fortune telling sticks. Since our coming to this place seemed so fortuitous, Sybil and I decide to ask the local deity what our fortune will be. Coincidentally, we both wind up asking about our upcoming Big Trip around the world.
We each shake out a stick and collect our fortune paper. Alfee and Michelle both try to translate but it is a rather complicated affair. Many locals use a professional fortune teller to interpret the paper. Fortunately, I later show the paper to Peggy and she gives me a pretty good translation.
Sybil's fortune says that she is in the early stages of her wish. She's only half ready now but she will soon be ready. She can expect a lot of help from others because she is popular. Her destination is promising. If she does good things she can expect good in return. She is advised to take the easy, comfortable path and to check timing of events. Everything should work out well for her in the end.
My fortune says I'm at the end of a bad situation. If things should not go smoothly at first then I should not be unhappy. I can recover from a broken relationship and forge strong ties from the same source. It says I am a dragon among carp.
I can see several things in both fortunes that make sense to me. We'll see what happens.
Next we visit the Fortune Trees at Lam Chuen (sometimes written as Lam Tsuen). Again, it is a chance location because Alfee was telling us about these trees and Sybil spotted them as we were passing by. So, we turn around to have a look. They are a bit to the northwest of Tai Po. Many people stop to buy oranges and fortune paper. Alfee gets one and writes down the names of his friends and what he wishes for each of them. Then he tosses the paper, attached to the oranges, up into the branches of the tree.
There's also a small temple here where a woman inside yells at Alfee and Sybil because one of them paused atop the threshold of the entrance instead of walking over the entrance board on the floor. Remember this when entering Chinese temples! Actually, this is true in Thailand and a few other places as well. Best to always avoid stepping on entrance boards.
Outside the temple is a path into the surrounding countryside. It's very rural, with orchards and a small stream. To me it looks a lot like the countryside in Guangdong province in the PRC. Very peaceful, but it's rather hot so we don't walk long.
Michelle uses the Cantonese phrase 'lou king' after taking a photograph and she and Alfee attempt to explain it to us. It seems to mean saying something bad to someone who is down in order to cheer them up. Yes, I know, I'm confused about it as well. Somehow I think she was saying something bad about her photography skills in order to improve them. |
