January 9 2009 A Week in Hong Kong with Sarah

Daniel had to leave to go back to work in Taipei last Sunday, but Sarah has been here all week and we have been having fun. I thought she would start to go a little stir-crazy being with her parents all week, but she is either putting on a good face or decided that a 50’s (age not decade) lifestyle suits her just fine, at least for the short-term.

What have we done this week? Well of course shopping has figured highly on our itinerary. Hong Kong shopping is thrilling for Sarah because everything FITS. She still has some trouble with things being too big (the Chinese are getting bigger, it’s all those McDonald’s fries) but she can find pants that don’t need to be altered. One day we went to Causeway Bay, to the little boutiques on Fashion Walk. My friend Sherry, of wonderful traveling blog fame, was also visiting in Hong Kong, and went with us. Both girls were delighted with the selection and prices in Causeway. Everything and I mean EVERYTHING was heavily discounted. One of my favorite boutiques, Three Ring Circus, had everything marked at a 50% discount. I bought a little summer blouse and Sarah found some jeans that fit perfectly. We found another store that couldn’t really be classified as a boutique because it was huge. It just went on and on, further and further back into this building. I bought scarves; Sarah bought a little blue coat. It was hard to tear ourselves away!

I thought the crowds in Causeway Bay would alarm my guests (they often bug me, even now) but it wasn’t that bad along Fashion Walk. It got intense as we headed for the MTR but it didn’t last that long. I need to go back there more often, especially as we get closer to Chinese New Year, since the sales will only get better.

We ended the day at Happy Foot. We both enjoyed our foot massages. We might even decide to go back one more time. I was getting a lot of foot (and face and body) treatments this summer, but as the economy started melting this fall I pulled back from pampering myself so much. But foot massages don’t really cost that much and they really do feel good, although sometimes I have to tell them to go a little easier on me.

On New Years Eve Lee and I went to a party at one of the new 3Mers. We had a good time; this crop of 3M expats is really nice, both and husbands AND the wives. We made it to New Years too, but just barely. Sarah went out with Sherry and her friends, so she didn’t have to hang out with middle-aged engineers and thirteen-year-olds. She went to a party in Lan Kwai Fong and watched the fireworks. She saw them shoot fireworks off of the IFC Tower, which made it look like the building was on fire. When I talked to Daniel yesterday he said they did the same thing in Taipei, shooting fireworks from 101. He said the building looked like it was exploding. I think that’s kind of creepy, although the pictures certainly looked cool.

Yesterday (New Years Day) we decided to go to Lamma Island for a little walk. Apparently so did half of Hong Kong. We’ve never seen that island so crowded. It wasn’t exactly what we expected (a nice, quiet walk on a little island); instead it was a fairly crowded amble on a nice little island. But Sarah (and Sherry’s friend Veronique who joined us) had never been on the inter-island ferries, or to one of the little islands, so they were happy. Also the cool sunny blue-sky weather has returned to Hong Kong so it was a perfect day for a walk, even if that walk was a little more crowded than we were expecting.

We’ve had fancy Chinese food (Lumiere for dinner, Bo Innovations for lunch). We’re going to try the scary dim sum place (aka Lin Hueng Tea House) today for lunch. That’s where Sandy my Cantonese teacher took me several years ago and I ate chicken feet and fish stomach. Its also one of the places Anthony Bourdain tried when he visited Hong Kong on his “No Reservations” TV show.

Today we’re going to go purchase a Tibetan Chest at Horizon Plaza (one of the things Lee and I want before we leave Hong Kong) and possibly go over to Mong Kong and wander through some of the markets. We may even go back to the crazy lingerie store, for nothing else except the chance to watch my daughter be man-handled by the fitters!

December 27 2008 Christmas in Hong Kong

My children are both in Hong Kong. Daniel flew in from Taipei the afternoon of December 23^rd. Sarah arrived later that night. I am feeling just happy and content and FAT! We haven’t had a Nill Family Christmas Eve, or a Nill Family Christmas morning, or lit the Hanukah candles and said a blessing together for many years, at least since one Christmas in Austin. We are all grown ups now, so it’s not like Christmas or Hanukah when they were little. Nobody is staying up late playing Santa Claus and putting together drum sets and dolls houses. Nobody is waking up at 5 am to see what Santa brought. Nobody is complaining about not getting presents for both Christmas AND Hanukah! Ha.

But some traditions persist. Many of the same ornaments grace our tree. We ransacked Hong Kong for the correct velvet ribbon for our wreath. I made all the requisite cookies and a few new ones too. Our apartment is filled with love and happiness. I am content.

Of course, being in Hong Kong, some things are very different. They do celebrate Christmas here, but for most people it’s not a religious holiday, or even a family holiday. The younger Chinese join their friends on Christmas Eve and go out and party like it was New Years Eve. On Christmas Day many people go out to eat. We were told not to try to go to a Chinese restaurant on Christmas!

After eating our traditional German pancake Christmas morning we decided to take the kids on one of the most famous Hong Kong Island hikes – Dragon’s Back. There were lots of people hiking, since it’s a public holiday and the weather was beautiful (sunny and 60’s). Many of our fellow hikers wished us a “Merry Christmas”! The Minibus driver wore a Santa hat. The MTR was packed and it appeared that most stores were open and people were busy shopping. That seemed very different of course, since in the US everything would be closed on Christmas Day.

Yesterday, the 26^th, was Boxing Day, another public holiday in Hong Kong. We can’t quite figure out what Boxing Day is, although we know it’s a British Holiday. Lee says it’s when the royalty would box up things they didn’t want and give them to the peasants. Maybe so. We decided to go shopping instead; box things up and give them to ourselves!

First we went to Wan Chai Computer to buy Daniel a camera, one of his Christmas presents. He decided on a Casio Exlim, in a nice blue color. It has a large LCD and some interesting features, including one where it waits to take a picture until the subject smiles (fortunately this is OPTIONAL). Of course Lee and Daniel had a great time with this, Lee refusing to smile, Daniel with the camera right in Lee’s face. Those boys!

After Wan Chai Computer we took the kids to Nga Trang for lunch. We were all glad to eat something besides turkey and cookies for a change! Then we did a little bin shopping, but neither child was impressed. That’s one way I have really changed. I definitely used to turn up my nose at rummaging around in piles of miscellaneous clothing looking for bargains, but now that I’ve seen the possibilities I’m game. I guess that’s an adjustment that will pay off when I return to the US, since Marshall’s has become one of my favorite haunts!

Then the girls and the boys split up – the boys went off to the mall and Zara’s, the girls to Soho and the little boutiques. Here we ran up against Boxing Day – all the British and Australian boutiques were closed, so Sarah and I will have to go back another time. Lots of the locally-owned boutiques were open however, so we had fun browsing around. Of course Sarah hasn’t bought anything yet. She is more like her father and will have to look at everything Hong Kong has to offer before making her purchases.

Last night the kids went to Lan Kwai Fong, after going out to eat with their parents. LKF was VERY quiet; I guess most people were nursing their Christmas Day hangovers! Even the Feathered Boa is closed until the 29^th. Alas! Sarah and Daniel are still sleeping this morning of course, like any good young adults after a night of adventures in Hong Kong. I’m not sure what we will choose to do today and I don’t really care. I’m just happy that we are together.

Sunday December 14 2008 From the Stars to the Gutter - Spicy Crab Under the Bridge

What a crazy life we seem to be leading lately! A few days ago we were sipping champagne and chatting up the social scene in Hong Kong. Last night we decided to sample the other end of the Hong Kong culinary spectrum.

There’s a restaurant in Hong Kong that sells the Cantonese version of chili crab. Now chili crab is one of the most wonderful foods I’ve ever eaten, but it’s a Singaporean specialty and you pretty much have to go to Singapore to sample the real thing. This restaurant is located in Causeway Bay, on the Canal Street close to Lockhart Road. This is almost to Times Square, just past the girlie district in Wan Chai. From the outside it looks like a million other Hong Kong Dai Pai Dongs – a small place with the kitchen outside, plastic tables inside, and little plastic stools to sit upon - nothing glamorous. The name of the restaurant is “Under the Bridge Spicy Crab”. It used to be a floating restaurant run by people that lived on sampans, but they were forced ashore twenty years ago and there they remain.

Three years ago Lee could probably not have gotten me in that place, but nowadays nothing much scares me. Besides this place is “very famous”, with pictures of Canto-pop stars on the walls, and long lines outside. We got there relatively early (8 pm) so the line wasn’t too bad.

We sat in chairs on the sidewalk waiting our turn. We could watch them sorting the crabs, but couldn’t for the life of us figure out their system. Old vs. new crabs? Big vs. little crabs? They all looked about the same to us. They waved one of the crabs at us, asking if it met our approval. Lee said if we were Chinese we would follow our choice into the kitchen to make sure they didn’t try to pull a “bait-and-switch” but since we’re just trusting gueilos we didn’t bother.

When it was our turn we took our place at a tiny table in the corner. We ordered chili crab, medium spicy, garlic clams and sautéed shrimp with cashews. Oh and beer of course. The menu had English descriptions and pictures so we were okay.

We washed our bowls and chopsticks in hot tea nonchalantly, another action that would have creeped me out several years ago. First the garlic clams arrived at our table. They were pretty good. When the chili crab came it was piled high with fried garlic and spring onions. It turned out to be more like Singaporean pepper crab than real chili crab. It was cracked, but our gueilo status was made obvious by our need for some pliers to speed things along. The locals just crack the shells with their teeth. Lee has progressed to the stage where he can do that to a certain extent, but I still haven’t mastered that technique.

It’s a messy business, eating crab this way. This restaurant provides a roll of toilet paper in a convenient plastic case on your table. That was better than Singapore at least, where they don’t seem to think you need “tissues” to eat this gloppy mess.

This was good crab, but it wasn’t great. I’m glad we had the experience but I don’t know that I would necessarily go back. I’d rather go to East Coast Seafood in Singapore I guess. You know how first loves can be!

But this was fun, and a great contrast to a couple of nights ago. Today we were on a tour up in Sham Shui Po and part of the tour included sampling street food. I finally got to try the little red bean puddings on a stick I see them selling in Central by the Escalator sometimes. We also tried some medicinal Chinese tea that was made with honey and was very, very sweet.

I think my tummy has had enough strange food for a couple of days now. Good thing we had steak soup for dinner tonight! Made in preparation for the kid’s upcoming visit, steak soup is true comfort food for our family. I’ve also made lots of Christmas cookies and decorated the tree today. The tree looks very nice, as long as all of the needles don’t fall off before Christmas!

Friday December 12 2008 Lee and Lynn Go Hob-nobbing

Remember our adventure at the Chef’s Table at Bo Innovation in September? Well at the time I mentioned that restaurant was up for a Michelin star. Well this week the first Michelin Guide for Hong Kong came out and Bo didn’t get just one star, but two! This is an amazing honor for any restaurant and we couldn’t have been more pleased to find out that one of our favorite restaurants anywhere was recognized in this fashion.

I actually got on their website and sent them a little email, just telling them congratulations. A couple of days later I got a response, which included an invite to a cocktail party celebrating their new location AND their stars! I almost felt like we had received this invitation in error but I still gladly accepted.

I was kind of nervous about this. I’ve hardly ever been to a cocktail party, let along one where it wouldn’t be surprising to run into Hong Kong socialites and business tycoons! The invitations said “dress smart casual with a bit of spice”. Smart casual is the standard Hong Kong dress designation. It means “don’t look like a slob and you’ll probably be okay”. But what was “a bit of spice”? Hmmm…

So last night was the big night. I decided on jeans, heels and a sparkly top. Lee looked spiffy in a dark jacket and a red silk shirt. Off we went. My first worry was that they would look at their list and refuse to let us in! Maybe it really was a mistake…but no, we walked in, they asked our names and in we went! First off we went to a big board, signed our names and got our pictures taken. Will we end up in the society pages? Who the hell knows!

Next we plunged into the crowd. We shouldn’t have worried about what to wear in Hong Kong…like anywhere else, 90% of the people there were wearing business black. There were a few people dressed resplendently though, including one woman wearing what looked like a gold breastplate with an entire fox draped around her shoulder.

We found a good place to hang out and watch the proceedings. They handed us champagne, and kept our glasses full. The handed out cigars (Alvin Leung the “demon chef” is a big cigar smoker) and soon we were surrounded by wreaths of smoke. Normally I would be annoyed by this, but instead I just kept drinking my champagne. I was going to enjoy this experience no matter what! Lee even took a cigar, although he didn’t light it. I’m not sure what he plans to do with it, save it in a Ziploc bag?

We could see Bo’s awesome canapés going by, and occasionally we could grab one, but it was hard. Lee went over to the bar and got a very minty delicious mohito. I decided to see if I could get one too. I went to the bar and the bartender was making a very mysterious looking martini. First he poured liquid nitrogen in a martini glass and got it very cold. Then he put some milk tea in the martini glass. Finally he poured some crunchy things like dip-n-dots into the milk tea. I decided I had to have one. I’m not sure there was even any alcohol in it, but it was delicious!

Finally Alvin arrived in splendor, beaming and wearing a long black trench coat. He walked around greeting old friends and random guests like us. I said something about being happy for him and wanting to bring our kids there when they visit but it would cost too much so we’ll bring them for lunch (something really dumb right?) and Alvin said “call me when you come and I’ll make sure they have something special”. Gee!

The canapé trays were still drifting out of our reach and we were getting a little drunk. We needed some food or we would have to leave! We moved inside the restaurant (we had been out on the patio to avoid the worst of the smoke) and inched our way closer to the kitchen.

Ah HA! That’s what was going on! As the trays left the kitchen a little horde of foodies stood right there grabbing the canapés before they could make it very far into the crowd. We decided to do the same – yum! We ate little dumplings. We ate tiny sushi rolls made with crunchy rice paper, eggs, garlic and chilies. We ate a little pumpkin squares with lemony foam and a salty taste. We ate little almond cookies with a creamy filling. It was all fantastic, and free!

Finally we decided we’d had enough, party animals that we are. We went home, ate a little bit more to try to absorb some of the alcohol and fell into bed.

That was certainly an experience I would never have imagined I’d ever have. Now I’ve got to watch the society page in the South China Morning Post for the next couple of weeks and see if we show up!

Thanksgiving 2008 and Some News

Last year on thanksgiving we signed up to have servicemen from a US ship join us for our Thanksgiving Day meal. But China wouldn’t let the USS Kitty Hawk enter Hong Kong waters, so our plans were all for naught. This year we were luckier, as were the servicemen. Chris and Shawn, sailors on the USS Blue Ridge, joined us, as did Beth and Pat Hall, their son Jim, AND their grandson, the adorable Brian!

It was a great thanksgiving. The servicemen were happy to be with us for a home-cooked meal. They even asked if they could request us for next year! And we had so much fun entertaining a 4-year-old. It’s been a long time since I’ve spent very much time with a child that age. Brian brought a little backpack with him that contained his favorite electronic toys, but he much preferred building towers with the Jinga blocks I retrieved from our games closet. He managed to get every one of our guests to build a tower with him, and I took pictures to prove it!

Cooler weather has returned to Hong Kong, and this makes me laugh, since cool right now means lows of around 60 F. But like any long-term Hong Kong resident this has caused me to get out my sweaters and jackets. I’ve even purchased a fur-trimmed sweater recently and wore it out to dinner the other night. I’ve actually looked at the temperatures in Austin, where it sometimes goes down in the 30’s and 40’s and thought “wow, its COLD there!” What will I do if we really end up in St. Paul? I will be hauling out my long underwear I’m sure!

We had planned (and booked) a trip to Thailand for the 10^th of December; then this week protesters took over the Bangkok International Airport and shut it down. Even though their siege ended today, we’ve still decided to cancel our trip. For one thing there is no guarantee that the airport will open back up in time for us to go. For another, it doesn’t sound like much fun there right now. We’re thinking about trying to go to Beijing or somewhere else this winter. The problem with going to Beijing now is that it’s really cold there in the winter-time. But I guess the rates would probably be really good, and I could get out the above-mentioned underwear and my ski coat, and I’d be fine.

One of the reasons we’re considering Beijing is that it looks like we will be returning to the US in March. It would be kind of shameful to have lived in Asia for 3 years and never made it to the Forbidden City! Lee has spent so much time in China for work that the thought of going there for a vacation just never really appeals to him. But maybe now is the time.

I’ve been kind of blue, thinking about leaving Hong Kong. I’m not sad to be returning to the US, although I wish our situation wasn’t so uncertain. Its unsettling in this economic downturn to not be sure what Lee’s next job with 3M will be, or where we will live. We’ve gone through all the “what’s the worst thing that could happen” scenarios though, and no matter what that might be, we will be okay. It’s just like Tom Petty says though, “the waiting is the hardest part”.

Even though I’ve known all along that this day would come, and even though it comes at what seems to be the typical length of an expat stay, I’m still sad. I will miss the people that I’ve met. I will miss living in a big city. I will miss having so many different activities to choose from, every day. I will miss the pride I feel in having learned to live comfortably in a foreign country and make it my own. Part of me will always carry a bit of Hong Kong with me, where-ever I go.

I’m sure I’m going to have more to write on this subject as time goes on. It will take awhile to process it, not to mention that it won’t seem real until we have the official paperwork in hand and some definite dates! In the mean time, life in Hong Kong will go on as normal on one level, while on another I will be silently saying my goodbyes.

I don’t want to do what a lot of people here do, however, and kind of drop out of things before they go. I know why they do it, because the thought of going that way is tempting to me as well. It’s painful to say goodbye. But I’d rather hold my head up proudly, and hug my friends, and not be afraid of my feelings. I’m going to try anyway.