Hung Hom

Here to accompany my previous post are a few photos I snapped this evening after work.  You're lucky that I missed the 6:35 ferry and had to wait for the 7:05 one.  Enjoy!

North Point across the bay

People fishing on the pier

The rains are moving in

Just look at the crowds on this ferry!

Raining in Central but not in North Point

Ferry

I have to say, its pretty incredible to be able to see rain over one part of the island while a short 3 MTR stops away the skies are cloudy but not even near raining.  The mists rolling in over the water and gathering around the mountain tops warning us of the rains to come and bragging their ability to work in ways that we are unable to control.  Its also funny, in a way, when I get into the MTR and ten minutes later I get back out and the rain has already been and gone. 

Lunch Break on the Hung Hom Pier

The skies are clear today, by Hong Kong standards anyway. Between the clouds that cling to the bushy green mountain tops, I can glimpse a muted version of the bright blue hue that was so common back home. I miss that blue. I have traded my Midwestern skies for the South China waters that lap at the pier calmly and quietly this afternoon. One couldn't refer to this water as blue, or clear, or even dirty for that matter, but dense and dark and green and smoky, like a fine piece of jade. The pier is lined with fishermen this afternoon. Some have proper poles, but most simply have fishing line baited and dropped into the water. I really have no idea what they're fishing for; I've never seen anyone catch a fish or even seen a fish in the water larger than my thumb. Little sparrows are cautiously gathering around my feet, casting sideways glances at me to see if I have any food to offer them. I do not. They skitter along in search of a more promising friend and scatter abruptly as an old man scuffles by. On the other side of the patch of greenery that I'm sitting next to, there is a little old man sitting on a bench with two small birdcages. Two tiny, frantic birds that resemble goldfinches are frantically jumping from bars to floor to perch and back. I had heard of men gathering together at a designated spot to talk and smoke and let their birds soak in some sunshine and breathe some fresh air, but this is the first time I've even born witness. A constant breeze of the water makes sitting out in the humidity tolerable. And the air is fresh, by Hong Kong standards; I can smell freshly cut grass and the salt from the ocean. I wish I could capture the view of Hong Kong Island with a panoramic camera, for as densely populated, stark and urbanized this city is, the view is still lovely. The residential buildings of North Point stand tall and crowded right on the water's edge.  Bus after bus after car after car drive past my eyes on the busy highway in front of those buildings.  A ferry breaks the mostly quiet atmosphere followed by the grinding brakes of a city bus. One would never know, during the quiet times, that a bus terminus and bustling ferry port encompass this scene. I can see my neighborhood from here, my home of Causeway Bay. The sun would feel nice on my skin, if I could ever get myself to a beach or pool. I wish I could nap for the rest of my break here on this breezy pier on a towel in my swim suit. Quiet, clean, fresh, warm, peaceful.

Its been an uneventful few days here in Hong Kong.  The rains are here and so is the humidity so long excursions through the winding streets of the city are few and far between.  I was able to make it out today, as the humidity did let up a bit, to take a few photos of a fountain near by.  I had set out intent on making my way to a huge cemetary that I've noticed on my way to Happy Valley before, and a bit of searching I ended up doing.  Finally, after retracing my steps down wrong turns and traipsing up and down the hilly streets, I found it, The Hong Kong Muslim Cemetary.  Unfortunately, as I arrived at a little past 6 pm and the park closed at 5:30, I chose to save the photographs for another day out of respect.  A little research has uncovered that this particular cemetary (one of five, apparently, in the Happy Valley area) is said to contain the grave of one individual from WWI and at least seven from WWII.  The graves span hillside after hillside in various levels and its just awe inspiring.  Hopefully I get a chance either Wednesday or Thursday to get back over there, now that I know where it is, and finally take some photos.  Not only are the mountains of grave stones beautiful and inspiring, but I'm sure the views of Hong Kong, including the Happy Valley Racecourse, will be incredible.  Anyway, here is the fountain that I mentioned before.  Public Art in this form, among many, can be found literally everywhere in Hong Kong.

Dragon Boat Races

The Dragon Boat Races are part of a larger festival held in basically any country with a significant enough Chinese population (from what I've read, thats about 60 countries) but the largest and most extravagant of the festivals are held right here in Hong Kong.  Legend has it, as I'm told by Nicholas' and my friend Mr. Eric Ma, that thousands of years ago, a great Chinese official in the Ming Dynasty stood up against the Emperor and the other officials and demanded that the corruption stop.  He was ignored and scorned and so he drowned himself in the ocean as a protest to the corruption and evil of the government.  The people were greatly distraught that one of the only officials who had tried to work for their good was dead, and so was born the festival of the Dragon Boat Races.  The paddles of the boats, along with the beating of ceremonial drums, were meant to scare the fish away.  During this festival, people make rice dumplings; rice and whatever other ingredients they want (the one I had was filled with pork fat, nuts and some other bits and pieces that I was unable to identify) all wrapped up in bamboo leaves.  Tradition has it that the dumplings were dropped into the water as food for the fishes, to prevent them from eating the body of the people's hero. 

The Dragon Boat Races were yesterday down at Stanley Beach.  I did not attend them because it was a 45 minute bus ride from my home and I didnt want to get lost in that crowd alone (festivals like these tend to bring a long of the Chinese Mainlanders over and they can be a LOT more pushy and grabby than Hong Kong natives.) I did, however, borrow some photos from google just to give you an idea of all the ruckus.

(http://blog.easytobook.com/tips/dragon-boat-festival/)

On another note, here are some photos that I did take the other night for our friend Heather Hughes going away party, so to speak. She'll be back in a few weeks after her sister's wedding.

Best Spicy Squid Ever

O...M...G...

There comes a time, in everyone's life, when life seems as if it cannot, in any possible way, get better than it is in that one, beautiful moment.  Tonight, Nicholas and I experienced such a feeling.  Food-Gasm...  Again, I kick myself for not having my working camera on me... I had my little point-and-shoot with me, but had unfortunately left my SD card in the D-40... I know, worst blogger ever; on to the sushi though!

Gin Sushi is literally the best food of any type I've ever put in my mouth, hands down; and I've eaten some phenomenal food from some phenomenal places made by phenomenal chefs...  Being that tonight is a Friday night, and a Friday night right after pay-day for millions of Hong Kong-ers, all the fashionable people were out and about clogging the streets and spending their hard earned money on the most fantastic of things; Gin Sushi was no exception.  Being that Nicholas is a tall and commanding personality, he stepped to the hostess and demanded to sit at the bar, and only the bar, and right away... Being that the hostess spoke absolutely no English, and the restaurant Manager, Jimmy, spoke barely any, we had to rely on our friends who worked the sushi bar to tell the staff that they wanted us there as much as we wanted to be there.  (We have been to Gin Sushi once before and sat at the bar, really the only place to sit at a good sushi restaurant, and had made friends.)  The previous time we had been, we ordered the octopus sashimi and were so blown away that we'd been craving it all month long.  It was so fresh that it was almost transparent... not so on this occasion; it was still delicious, just a tad chewier.  The red snapper was to die for, the scallops were fantastic, the yellow fin was incomparable... but only the foie gras was orgasmic.  We had the luck of coming on a night where the evening's special was Hungarian grade A foie gras sashimi.  The foie was marinating in some sort of oily deliciousness and we hadn't even planned on ordering it at all.  That all changed when Nicholas commented on the head chef teaching one of the other chefs how to slice the foie correctly so that it looked appetizing atop the rice.  Head chef then gifted us a cube of the foie each and was adamant about not dipping it in the soy sauce.  Neither of us had been planning on dipping the foie in soy, but I always appreciate a chef who wants the customer to experience the food he's creating exactly the way it’s meant to taste.  After that first taste of the sweetest, fattiest, most delicious foie that has ever touched my lips, I knew I had to have more. Nicholas agreed.  For every other customer, the chef carefully sliced three thin slices of foie to sit atop the rice, for Nicholas and I, he sliced five.  A bit of the oil was drizzled on the foie and it was complete. ORGASMIC!!!!!!!!!  Mr. Head Chef noticed that I had kept a butterfly cut-out that had accompanied one of our previous courses and set about to make one, by hand, just for me.  He whipped out a ridiculously awesome Japanese knife of some sort and a banana leaf and got down to business.  Here is the end result (which he wrapped up in cling wrap with a wet-nap so it wouldn’t dry out on my way home.)

Two more orders of the foie sushi and three bottles of hot sake later, we were on a protein buzz and a fatty high.  An exchange of business cards were made, which is a sign of mutual respect.  All I can say is that it was one hell of a walk home; we were walking on clouds and impervious to all the hubbub and ruckus on the streets around us.  If you ever get a chance to visit Hong Kong, this is one place that you absolutely must visit.