The [Victoria] Peak. The Ocean Park.

The Peak Tower

To the Ocean...

The 5^th day marked the day when we first crossed Victoria Harbor to HKG Island from Kowloon. Crossing the harbor since 1880, the Star Ferry ride amidst skyscrapers is said to be one of the must things to do in one’s lifetime!

Star Ferry. Juxtaposing modern Hongkong.

See more pictures of the Star Ferry & Terminal in MY FLICKR HERE!

From the Central Ferry Terminal in HKG Island, the terminal of The Peak Tram is a short stroll going up to Garden Road. Passing through HSBC Building felt so at home – our fellow Pinay’s camp out [even on weekdays] on their day-off.

The Peak Tram (Lower) Terminal

Inside the Peak Tram Terminal

The tram has been amazingly preserved all through these years. Don’t be deceived by its antiquity. It goes fast for its age going up to more than 45 degrees angle to the highest peak of HKG Island. At mid-way and at its steepest, the tram stops for about 10-seconds. Quite scared at first until I thought it really do halt. For whatever purpose it was, it made the ride more exciting! By the way, get a seat on the right going up, no view on the left.

Inside the Tram

The tram stops right inside The Peak Tower, a stunning architectural landmark. To have the best experience of  The Peak, we went up to the view deck of the tower called The Sky Terrace through a series of crisscrossing escalators. The viewing platform that seats at the top of the tower provides a spectacular view of Victoria Harbor. It is an envy for one who have been to HKG but have not gone to The Peak! Buildings around the Harbor appears so tiny when they literally soar down below. Good we got there on a clear day, otherwise, we may not have enjoyed it at much as we did.

From The Peak...

Escalators to the Sky Terrace

The Sky Terrace. The viewdeck of The Peak Tower.

I thought going to The Peak will only take a short time from us but I was wrong. There are a lot to do up there. Aside from The Peak Tower, there is another shopping mall behind it where you can spend all day if you choose to, to have a night view of the Harbor which should be equally great! Have we not planned to go the Ocean Park the same day, we could have stayed longer.

The Sky Terrace

Aside from the tram, The Peak can also be reached by Bus but we opted to take the tram [again] going down to save as much time. Funny but its true, the tram goes down backwards and so did we! Weird but unforgettable.

Inside the Tram. Going down backwards!

Bewildered.

See more pictures of The Peak in MY FLICKR HERE!

From the Peak Tram Terminal, we strolled down to Admiral Bus Terminal and took Bus 629 going to Ocean Park.

Map consultation. To be sure.

Bus 629 to Ocean Park at Admiral Station

Had we known that the park is huge, more than we thought, we should gave gone earlier or even made it as the only place to go for the day. We got in to one of the two main entrances and had to take 4- long and steep escalators to reach the top.

Ocean Park Hongkong. Entrance.

One of the four "raised and enduring" escalators the Park.

Rides for the Big Boys!

We went straight to where the jelly fish aquarium, being one of the latest attractions. Instead of trying some of the more popular rides, we opted to go for more informative and educational attractions instead.

Jelly Fish Aquarium

Giant Panda Adventure

Unfortunately, the Panda was sleeping beside frozen boulders.

The Panda Conservation Museum

To go to the other side of the park, you may take the cable car or the park’s newest attraction the Ocean Express. Having tried cable car on our first day, we went for the Ocean Express this time. It’s a submarine inspired train, with underwater videos at the ceiling complemented with resonance of the underwater.

The Ocean Express

After going to the places we wanted to go, it was time to try some rides. Jordan lined up for the Bungee Trampoline and by the time he’s done, it was already dark and having left Amy on the other side of the park, we decided to meet her and called it a night. After all, we were already tired going around from one place to another. It’s tiring to walk from one attraction to another on a hilly terrain. There should have been shuttles inside the park, no kidding! Too bad there were a lot more to see than the time we had.

Bungee Trampoline

Hot Air Baloon Ride

Hot Air Baloons

By the time we went home, it was already dark and coming from the top, the night view was awesome.

The park at dusk.

Time to go...

Harbor view from the park.

See more pictures of the Ocean Park in MY FLICKR HERE!

For dinner, we went back to Temple Street and tried some local cuisine of pork and eggplant. Great!

Read: Tian Tin Buddha/Po Lin Monastery/Skyrail

Read: Temple Street Night Market/Science & History Museums

Read: Victoria Harbor/Avenue of Stars/Etc.

Read: Ten Thousand Buddha’s Monastery

Read: The Man Mo Temple [Taoist god's for Literature & War]

Rendezvous Records

216-B, Kowloon, City Plaza, Hong Kong

In the corner of a strong-smelling food hall  in a mall which adjoins the  Star Ferry terminal, is a record shop that, according to its billboard, is ‘one of the best in Hong Kong’.

Unlike the hordes of knock-off CDs sold down side-streets and at night markets, Rendezvous Records prides itself on being the real deal – a second hand record store, with all the European trappings (and prices).

We enter the squat, ill-shaped shop to the strains of the Pet Shop Boy’s latest album blaring over the pa system, and make a beeline for the boxes of old vinyl piled up at the back of the store. Here, records are seemingly plopped down anywhere by the staff, and left for nonsensical browsing (no doubt a deep frustration for plenty a Chinese anorak – that is, if they exist).

I salivate in wanton desire as  I stumble across Bob Dylan’s seminal A Rare Batch Of Little White Wonder, which offers a bunch of the artisté’s live performance captured on wax. Elsewhere we find a bootleg of The Velvet Underground’s Unreleased Tracks, a battered 8” copy of Lou Reed’s Satellite Of Love, and a box full of assorted Blondie and Morrissey 12”.

The CD selection is fine, but nothing to be overtly excited about (the prices outclass the majority of the goods), although we do find a interesting concept CD. It is a two disc compilation, with tracks from Fatboy Slim, Portishead and the likes, on one disc, and then on the other the artists whose tracks are sampled with the tracks on the first disc, such as The James Gang and Isaac Hayes. However, it sounds like a far more interesting concept in theory than in execution I fear (after-all what did Discovered teach us, other than what we already knew – that Daft Punk are inspired by funky music).

Somewhere beneath the hordes of new-wave 12”, we find an original US promo copy of Underworld’s Underneath The Radar, the band’s, critically hated, first album. And although it wasn’t cheap (HK$115 – £8.91), and I’m not even sure its going to sound very good, I wouldn’t be the Underworld fan I am if I didn’t pick it up. I pay my money to the friendly and chirpy staff, and, swinging the bag as I walk, whistle a happy little ditty all the way back to my tiny, tiny, tiny hotel room.

Purchase:

Underworld – Underneath The Radar 12″ – £8.91 [Tracklisting]

Total Purchases:

Armand Van Helden – Ghetto Blaster – £1 [Tracklisting]

Club Azuli 1 – Mixed By Dave Piccioni – £0.48 [Tracklisting]

Club Azuli Part 2 – Mixed By Dave Piccioni – £0.79 [Tracklisting]

Chemical Brothers, The: Brothers Gonna Work It Out – £2.77 [Tracklisting]

Defected In The House – Mixed By Copyright – £0.79 [Tracklisting]

DJ Hardy Heller – Mix In Motion – £1  [Tracklisting]

DJ Shadow – The New Collection – £2.38

Elektrik 02 – Mixed By King Unique & Nubreed – £0.59 [Tracklisting]

Fabric 25 – Mixed By Carl Craig – £0.59 [Tracklisting]

Fabric 26 – Mixed By Global Communication – £0.59 [Tracklisting]

Le Le – Breakfast 12″ – £8.24 [Tracklisting]

Moby – Last Night – £0.59 [Tracklisting]

Samim: Flow – £1.98 [Tracklisting]

Underworld – Underneath The Radar 12″ – £8.91 [Tracklisting]

Total Spend: £30.68

Simple eh? Until you get there!

It looked like a short stroll using the map on their website, maybe it was the near 100% humidity and 40°C heat, but it was soon seeming like an unguided tour hiking through back streets of Kowloon in search of City Church International’s meeting place at the YWCA.

Searching for a church in York once I stopped a guy carrying a guitar to ask for directions (I know, a man asking for directions – but I was desperate). He looked like he would know since who else but a Christian carries a guitar around, and wears slightly dull semi-formal casual clothes at 9.30 on a Sunday morning? Turned out he was a Christian and although he was not going to the church we were searching for he ably guided us there. Well, we did ask a couple of people where the YWCA was but they did not know, nor had they heard of City Church International, not surprisingly. I even tried asking “You no weh fine Wa Dub You See Eh?” or “Lob Loofah?” but I just got strange looks. That Church in York and Rob Rufus’s in Hong Kong shared a similar learning need: if you meet in an unpresupposing building, in a fairly hidden part of town and you want newcomers to visit and attend your services you need to provide a) good information about transport links  – the church website map was poor on detail and did not even mention the fact that the Number 8 bus which links perfectly with the Star Ferry terminal, stops just 50 yards away! – and b) proper signage outside.  Otherwise only the really determined will come. And we were really determined.)

Eventually, overheated (it was very very hot this Sunday morning and the humidity was near 100% again) and somewhat flustered – definitely in need of grace – we found a building which looked like it was a YWCA centre. “I think this is it” I announced. I was at the head of the trail of course (which included Judith, Grace, Emily and Luise) with my trusty iPhone GPS google maps sat-nav – although between tall buildings it was not that useful for detail! We felt like we’d just walked 1000 miles, and soaked with perspiration I declared that even if this was not the right place we were going to go in and hold church there ourselves as it was at least likely to have air-conditioning and refreshment.

Thankfully it was CCI’s meeting place and once we had cooled down and glugged some water we entered the hall. In reality the building is not hard to find when you know where it is!

We were about 10 minutes early and although there were no signs outside the building, as you entered the hall there was a table with posters and some of Rob’s audio CDs. A pre-service prayer meeting had started a few minutes before at the front of the chairs around the worship band. About 30 people including the worship band, gathered around Rob and Glenda and were evidently praying for the service. There were no welcome stewards evident in the hall so we quietly found some seats in middle and sat down.

The hall has a high ceiling conference room with potential seating for perhaps a few hundred, it looked like there was a sectioned off balcony area too. Chairs for about 150 were arranged theatre-style facing the stage, and at the back behind the middle block we were sitting in there were toddlers’ toys on a mat and a 18 inch high children’s paddling pool filled with water, which at first I thought was an innovative touch – the kids could splash around during worship! (Actually it was there to be used for baptisms which occurred at the end of the service, but during our time of worship one toddler ventured towards the sides of the pool – it was not the inflatable but the ‘floppy’ type – and promptly fell in! I had moved to the back during worship to take a couple of photos and saw this happening in my camera lens. Water began to flow out in the direction of the PA and videoing equipment! I ventured towards the toddler to pick him up, but the toddler’s mum, who had been gloriously ‘lost in wonder’ somewhere while her child baptised himself, quickly came to his rescue and helped in the clean up operation which ensued as we appropriately sang a song with a line about “washing me clean”!)

We used to run a prayer time at the front of our meeting hall just before the service started. I was thinking about this as I observed theirs now from a visitor’s point of view. We moved it into a side room when someone suggested that it was not very visitor friendly as newcomers could feel awkward not knowing whether they should join in or not, whether they could talk or should sit quietly. At the time I remember responding with something dismissive like “Of course visitors are welcome to join in – it’s not exclusive!” But you get a new perspective when you’re on the receiving end, and there is a marked difference between visitors being welcome and visitors being made welcome. Actually we did feel a tad awkward and excluded as the group at the front got louder and louder in their excitement in the Spirit; and we were Christians – not sure how an unbeliever or an newcomer would feel (cf. Paul’s concern for ‘outsiders’ and the ‘uninitiated’ in 1 Cor 14:16, 23ff). There were a few other folk milling around, setting up tables for refreshments and children’s ministry stuff, but strangely no-one spoke to us until just before the band struck up when Glenda came over to say hello and introduce herself to Judith, Luise and the girls. She was warm and friendly and made us feel immediately at home.

Worshippers at City Church International

The meeting was scheduled to start at 10am, but there were plenty of empty chairs! Hmm… this reminds me of somewhere I thought. About 5 minutes later the band struck up a song and people stood to join in. The music was lively, Jesus-focused, and heart-felt. The mainly familiar songs ranged from Hillsong to Chris Tomlin. We even sang Jason Upton’s In Your Presence. As with the home-group meeting the participation in this section was all sung; prophetic songs, singing in the Spirit, sung prayers, participants were singers and those leading at the front using the mics – the music continued in the background throughout. After 20 minutes Glenda Rufus invited us to take our seats, then she welcomed newcomers and guests (including us) and shared the notices for the week. She invited a guy who had been with them for the majority of the 5 or 6 years the church has existed there to give his testimony and be prayed for because he was returning home, which I think was somewhere in South Africa. He had been initially drawn to the church because he’d heard there were South Africans there.

By now there were around 70-80 people present and Glenda announced that the children would be leaving with their leaders. There were around a dozen who left for the children’s group which was held in another room.

Rob got up to preach. I will try and give a synopsis of the notes I took because it was a timely preach for the church and also reassured me in some matters we have had to face as leaders. He based his sermon on Romans 5. He started out by saying that this had been a tough year for them as a church. They had lost a young man through suicide, but he reminded us that many have been saved from suicide by the grace of God. Nevertheless Rob had just completed a teaching series on “Dealing with Hardships” in response to the troubled times they had been through. He now wanted to return to the topic of the Grace of God, mainly he said, because it also fundamental to handling issues like this because grace is the only way God relates to us all the time. He emphasised that grace is not about living selfishly but living for the benefit of others. The Bible does not speak of cheap grace – i.e. sinning as much as we want; nor any sort of distorted grace – e.g. seeking our own pleasure at the expense of others. The issue is: the free gift of righteousness. This is not earned, it cannot be earned; it is a gift. But there are still Christians who sadly believe the opposite and this affects the way they relate to God. E.g. They think “When I sin God punishes me; when I’m good he’s gracious.” No! In fact that is the world’s way of relating to us, not God’s.

Rob read again as he had done Thursday night (see earlier post) the prophetic word he’d written out about a new season of revelation on grace and the gift of righteousness. He emphasised a section about being unchangeably, perfectly qualified to rightstanding with God… That some folk are waiting for a greater thing. But that God says “There is no greater thing I have to give you… If there is a greater thing I have to give you it is a greater REVELATION of that righteousness… So I’m inviting you to a further lifting of the veil. A supernatural grace avalanche will sweep the earth as an international tsunami of glory.” In his letters to Timothy Paul makes it clear that prior to his conversion, when he was a Jew under the Law, he was a violent man [I Tim 1:13]. Under the law you are angry, grumpy, self-righteous. Religion is satanic, it’s the same power that deceived Adam & Eve. Violence caused by religion is satanic. Jesus brought a revolution: He was not a wimp. Jesus lost his temper. He was a real man with testosterone. He got angry when it was appropriate: he got angry with religion and religious people. A revolutionary challenges the ruling legalistic Pharoahs who are controlling things for the benefit of a small elite.

Genesis chapters 1-3: In Eden (which in Hebrew means “place of pleasure”) the fruit of the Tree was the Knowledge of good & evil. The deception was about being righteous apart from God – knowing good and evil without God.  i.e. being self-righteous. They were actually already like God (imago dei – made in His image) and with God, in His presence; the Devil’s temptation was to be like God without God. He said they could know righteousness apart from God. To know how I stand with the Father I don’t look at myself I look at Jesus. I no longer have an old nature but now a new nature that wants not to sin. But even if we do sin the Holy Spirit is there to help us out of it.

He pointed out that Rom 5:12.ff makes clear that your sin did not bring sin into the world. Neither did your sin kill you or condemn you. It was through Adam that sin came into the world and condemns us. He argued from v13 that despite the fact that God does not count sin where there is no law, however death still reigned even though they didn’t sin in the same way as Adam by breaking a commandment. They sinned because in Adam all have sinned. This is so because Paul argues in vv14-19 “How much more will those who received the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.”

Rob stated that he did not hate the law of God he loved the law!  But not because it makes him more holy (Col 2 – law is cancelled to those who are in Christ) but rather the law was given to increase sin! (No one is going to stop sinning altogether until Jesus comes again.) The law actually incites us to sin. So he asked the question which sin did Jesus die for? Our sin in breaking the law, or Adam’s sin? It was Adam’s sin [N.B. actually I think it was both - i.e. all our sins, viz. those which separate us from God - our 'conditional' and 'positional' sin we are born with, as well as the sins we commit 'in the flesh' because of this condition - which we do need to continue to confess and repent of as the Spirit reveals. Cf. Isa 53:6, Heb 10:17, 1 Jn 1:9, but his point is valid in this context because it is in Adam that we inherit our enmity with God - Jon]. Because in Adam all sinned and inherited death. But no-onene was aware because we thought we were OK through self-righteousness. v21. The cure is infinitely greater than the problem. Once that problem is cured  people need to be made aware of this fact. But with our new nature we learn new joys and pleasures and we don’t desire to sin. Rob said while he knew a Christian was free to sin without condemnation, he said because of the new nature he had no desire to sin – “It’s like a third shoe” he quipped, “I don’t need it, don’t know what to do with it.”

Baptisms in the paddling pool!

The service finished with a song and then we celebrated the baptisms of three people who had recently joined the church. This is where the paddling pool came in handy although it was so shallow those getting baptised had to sit in it and were dunked backwards, just about getting totally immersed with a little effort! After the service tea, coffee, biscuits and buns were served. We stayed and chatted for a while and I talked briefly with a couple of the worship team members and with Rob and Glenda again.

Rob & Glenda Rufus

It was good to get a bit of background on this church, where they’re at and where they are currently heading. Much falls on the shoulders of Rob and Glenda who really run the place. They suffer from a transient membership which many city churches do – people come, especially ex-pats, stay for a couple of years then move on. So it is not easy to build consistently. In addition Rob and Glenda travel a lot, speaking at conferences and churches in their network New Covenant Ministries International, as well as hosting conferences themselves. Through these means they seek to get the grace message spread abroad, but it does mean that they are not always around which for the only full-time pastor/elder in the church must be tricky, especially when Glenda is basically the church administrator.

Speaking to those who attended the home group and others on the Sunday morning, the church seems to have what I have sometimes referred to as a ‘Field of Dreams‘ vision. Field of Dreams was a slightly bizarre 1989 movie about an Iowa corn farmer who has a kind of epiphany involving a dead baseball player, and hearing voices he interprets them as a command to build a baseball diamond in his fields. When he does so the Chicago Black Sox team arrive and play there. It includes (apparently) great sporting heroes like Shoeless Joe Jackson (sounds like Baseball’s equivalent of Seasick Steve!) and the immortal line whispered by The Voice “If you build it, he will come.”

In the early days of our church and my experience in what was then called the ‘Restoration movement‘ we had a Field of Dreams vision for the local church; we believed that all we needed to do was to build local church right, with the correct ingredients, Baptism in the Holy Spirit, freedom from denominational structures, New Testament teaching, apostolic and prophetic leadership and no dead religion… If your built according to this pattern then ‘He would come‘ and dwell there, and by implication ‘they would come‘, i.e. the lost would automatically start getting saved, the church would grow and revival would follow.

As a result most of the growth we had at that time was from existing Christians, disgruntled with their dead church life, leaving one church and joining ours which was marginally better. We did some occasional outreach and evangelism but we did not really engage with the culture around us, learning its language in order to communicate the Good News effectively. And so our church life did not really attract non-Christians and the few that ventured in, found it intriguing at best but confusing in the main and difficult to interpret. We were very inward focused – what we did satisfied us and other Christians who were looking for ’something deeper’ but did little to enable us to be salt and light, or to fulfill the Great Commission or impact and transform the world around us.

I was not disappointed by my visit to City Church International, for Rob and Glenda are wonderful warm people; Rob is a powerful communicator who has a gift of putting ideas into pithy little saying often using rhyme, alliteration or assonance, which make them humorous and easy to remember; they are both genuine exhorters of the flock and clearly father and mother the work – a trait which the Lord would impress upon both Judith and me over and over again in Australia; and the congregation is like an extended family, totally supportive of their ‘parents’, convinced of the doctrines of grace and living in the good of this. Nevertheless I was surprised that the church was not larger, given Rob’s inspiring zeal, and not more conscious of the need to be seeker-accessible given that it has been in existence for over 5 years and Hong Kong is a city of several millions.

But we left filled with the presence of Jesus and touched by the love of his people, and caught a passing Number 8 bus back to Central Hong Kong via the Star Ferry.

Downtown Hong Kong

“Hong Kong: An Extended Layover” published in International Travel News, October 2009, Vol 34, No 8, pp 36-42 (http://www.intltravelnews.com/)
Many travelers to Asia find themselves with a layover in Hong Kong, a thriving metropolis of 7 million people where East collides with West. Reclaimed by China in 1997 but still a melting pot of international commerce, Hong Kong is awash in gleaming high rises and blinking neon signs touting some of the biggest names in business.

If you arrive in Hong Kong after a long flight en route to another Asian destination, there are worse places to sleep off jet lag and begin acclimating to the time zone and culture changes. Hong Kong has a reputation for being a very expensive place to visit, but my husband, Steve, and I found some ways to explore, enjoy and not break the bank.

Where to Stay

Double-decker tram

Lodging is likely to be your greatest expense. If you have any hotel points squirreled away in frequent-stay programs, Hong Kong is an ideal place to use them as many Western hotel chains have locations in Hong Kong. We used Marriott points to stay at a lovely Courtyard by Marriott (www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/hkgcy-courtyard-hong-kong) which turned out to be shiny and new, and unlike any Courtyard you’ve experienced in the US. A sleek and modern high-rise, it was upscale, with attentive staff, a full service restaurant which served first-rate food (I gorged on dim sum every morning at the breakfast buffet), and many amenities. Located in the Western District, adjacent to the downtown Central District, it was accessible by multiple forms of public transportation. We took the very convenient Airport Express (www.mtr.com.hk/eng/airport_express/intro_index) train from the airport to downtown, and then hailed a cab for a short ride to the hotel until we could get our bearings with the tram and subway.

We rode the historic, charming double-decker trams frequently, sometimes riding them to the end of the line and back if we were having a jet-lag related sinking spell, just to get off our feet. Running along the waterfront, they are a bargain at HK$2/person (US$0.26).

Discovering Hong Kong (Day 1)

Incense burning at the Man Mo Temple

I stumbled upon the Hong Kong tourism website (www.discoverhongkong.com/usa) while doing some pre-trip research, and was enthralled with the idea of completing the walking tours described there, which include detailed maps. Three walking tours are described in a downloadable format that is easy to print to take with you. I printed all three but primarily used the Central & Western District tour, deviated a bit to catch the Peak Tram, then picked up the Wan Chai tour.

We started the walking tour near our hotel at the Western Market, noting the not-unpleasant mild odor of dried seafood that wafted through the neighborhood. Almost every shop was crammed to the rafters with innumerable varieties of dried fish and it became our wake-up call to pay attention to where we were going when we smelled the fish odor—it meant we were near our hotel. The Western Market is a historical building built in the Edwardian style in 1906. Now filled with shops, it has had a varied history as the Harbor Office and food market.

Proceeding along Wing Lok Street to Des Voeux Road and down Ko Shing Street we passed through neighborhoods specializing in shops carrying specific wares, from ginseng used to ensure longevity and energy, an exotic assortment of dried fish, and finally a dizzying array of dried herbs used in the flourishing medicinal trade. Many shops were stocked with different varieties of bird’s nests, used to make soup, the most valuable “red blood” nests costing up to US$10,000/kg. We then entered the antiques neighborhood, but we were there too early, so most of the shops were closed. More interested in sightseeing than shopping, we headed toward the Man Mo Temple, a fascinating glimpse into the traditional past in this small temple overshadowed by the urban structures surrounding it. This Taoist temple honors gods of literature, Man, and war, Mo, the calligraphy brush and the sword respected side by side. A sensory experience enveloped us as we entered the temple as thick clouds of incense drifted down from huge cones of incense suspended from ceiling, looking at first like ornamentation until our eyes adjusted to the gloom. A bronze bell and sedan chairs from the late 1800’s are also on display.

A Unique Attraction

Restaurants and shops are visible from the escalator

An unusual and well-known feature of Hong Kong is the longest covered escalator in the world at 2,625 feet (800 meters) long. Known as the Mid-Levels Escalator it connects downtown to the Mid-Levels area where many high-rise residences are located. The escalators are in heavy use by residents, who include many expatriates, during commute hours. The escalators run downhill from 6 am – 10 am, then uphill for the rest of the day until midnight. We took the 20 minute ride up the escalators, and observed many shops and cafés located across a narrow sidewalk from the escalators. We deviated here from the walking tour in favor of riding all the way to the top where we encountered a helpful map posted near the exit of the escalator. Signs directed us toward the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens, and the Peak Tram. When we found the zoo, which is free of charge, we walked through a lovely aviary and garden. Heat and humidity were building so we rested on a bench and enjoyed the grounds for a short time.

The Peak Tram

The Peak Tram (www.thepeak.com.hk) is located across the street from the zoo and provides transportation up an exceedingly steep hill, ranging from a gradient of 4 to 27 degrees, to the top of Victoria Peak at 1,817 feet, for HK$49 (about US$6). The reward at the top of the 1.4 km funicular railway is a beautiful, panoramic view of the harbor, downtown Hong Kong, Kowloon and, from the other side, views to the south surprised us with wide swaths of green belt, beaches and expansive views of the South China Sea. We enjoyed the views, but didn’t enjoy running the gauntlet through the multiple escalators wending through an over-commercialized multi-level mall, pulsing with music and jam-packed with jewelry, high-end international clothiers and tacky tourist knick-knacks, to get to the viewing platform, a minor inconvenience. We gazed at some old colonial buildings tucked into the tropical forest and reflected on what changes the walls had seen through the years from the time the harbor was bordered by barren rock and a few fishing villages when claimed by the British in 1842, now transformed into one of the biggest business and financial centers in the world. We took pleasure in the cooling breezes at the higher elevation, a welcome respite from the steaming temperatures as the sun rose higher in the sky.

Wan Chai

Hung Shing Temple

Descending via the Peak Tram, we made our way through the now fetid air and walked toward Des Voeux Road to catch the tram to Wan Chai to pick up the Wan Chai District walking tour. This bustling, crowded neighborhood is described as an endless series of reclamation projects, starting with the creation of the neighborhood, which used to stand in Hong Kong Harbor water. We went down a narrow street buzzing with the activity of the Tai Yuen Street Market, filled with stalls selling food, clothing, shoe repair shops, pipes, toilets and anything else one could think of.

We had some difficulty locating the tiny Hung Shing Temple, probably due to the effects of jet lag taking over, but were glad we persevered as it, like the Man Mo Temple, is enchantingly out of place wedged in between apartments on the busy street, built around a large boulder.

Star Ferry Journey

Star Ferry

We proceeded toward the harbor and passed through the Southern Playground, which was a bit sterile with no trees or grass but with several soccer fields and grandstands. Becoming a bit weary we again became distracted from the walking tour and started following signs to the Star Ferry (www.starferry.com.hk), finding a large ferry terminal on the other side of the huge Convention Center. Feeling drowsy and ready to get off our feet we took a ferry (a bargain at HK$2.20, or about US$0.30) to Tsim Sha Tsui  across the harbor on the Kowloon side, for no reason other than to get out on the water and get another view of the city.

We disembarked from the Star Ferry on a mission to find the landmark Peninsula Hotel, still one of the world’s grandest hotels, as it has been since opening in 1928. Located in a majestic colonial building overlooking Victoria Harbor in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, it is world renowned for its luxury, maintaining a fleet of 14 Rolls-Royce limos and their own helipad. Gazing at the throne-like exterior evoked almost forgotten memories of my first trip to Asia. Just four years old, I was being toted around by my mother enroute to joining my father in Lahore, Pakistan, where we would live for the next four years, the beginnings of endless adventures around the globe for our family. Suffering from jet lag, culture shock and general toddler petulance, I reached the end of my rope during a stay at the Peninsula Hotel, diving under a white linen bedecked table and refusing to come out of my safe refuge with my long suffering doll, Chuz. Luckily for us, the polished staff took it all in stride and coaxed me out with beautifully folded origami animals that they made on the spot, to my mother’s great relief. On this trip I was charmed to see an ad for the Peninsula Hotel showing a white gloved, uniformed doorman opening the door for a small child clutching her doll, mimicking our experience so many decades ago.

Kowloon

The area surrounding the Peninsula Hotel has been taken over by international retailers and I felt like we could have been at any one of a number of shopping districts in the U.S.–Rodeo Drive in Los Angeles, Union Square in San Francisco, or Kalakaua Avenue in Honolulu come to mind  Lots of energy but hardly unique. Wrapping up our first day we took the ferry back to the Central District and hopped on a tram to get home. We were ready for a nap, but felt a sense of accomplishment since we managed to stay up all day and see a large chunk of Hong Kong as our friends slumbered through the night back home.

Hiking in Hong Kong? (Day 2)

Tracey, Joe, Inga & Steve on the Dragon's Back Trail

We had a second day and were fortunate to have friends, Joe and Tracey, who have lived in Hong Kong for 15 years. They showed us a side of Hong Kong I didn’t previously know existed. When they offered a choice of shopping or hiking, I quickly chose hiking, not knowing what that might mean in the urban metropolis. Tracey, Joe and their two children, Amy (12) and Neil (8) arrived at our hotel in a taxi and directed the driver to take us to Shek O, which I easily located on our map included in our Lonely Planet guidebook. They have a car and driver but due to the non-existent parking at the trailhead it was easier to take a taxi. The trail head was well marked and we set off on the Dragon’s Back trail, a loop that took us high on a ridge on the southern end of Hong Kong Island, looking down on the same beautiful beaches we had observed from the Peak Tram. We took our time enjoying the green, open spaces, a welcome change from the humid, bustling city we left behind. The moderate trail had many steps, and was graced with several benches along the way so we could pause and catch the cooling breezes. We looked down on an exclusive golf course and huge, multi-million dollar houses. When we arrived back at the trail head it was only a matter of moments before we were able to hail two cabs to take us back to town.

After the hike we went by Amy’s American School and stopped in at the American Club for a bite to eat, both of which evoked more memories, this time of the many schools and clubs I had attended growing up in various parts of Southeast Asia, none of which were remotely as luxurious as the Hong Kong versions. The American Clubs of my past featured a pool surrounded by a basic restaurant and possibly a recreation room where movies were sometimes shown, all rather worn and aging. The Hong Kong American Club had an Olympic size pool, market featuring imported luxury items, 2-story kids club stocked with every manner of plaything and computers, several restaurants and bars, classroom and activity rooms, library, tennis courts, all with expansive water views.

Museum and market visits (Day 3)

Brennan Torpedo

If you have a third day, which we did on our way back to the U.S. from Viet Nam, which again involved a layover in Hong Kong, you might consider checking out some of the many Hong Kong museums. Tracey had been to them all, and was a bit jaded since she’s lived there so long. However, one museum, the Museum of Coastal Defense (www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/Coastal/index), stood out in her mind as unique, so we took that as a recommendation.

The Museum of Coastal Defence, converted from the Lei Yue Mun Fort, was located on the other end of the harbor from the Western District where we were staying, and deciding that the tram was too slow, we took the subway, which is very efficient, clean and modern. From the Sheung Wan station to Shau Kei Wan was HK$15/person (US$1.9) and got us within a short walk of the museum.

There were several highlights from the museum that made an impression.

First, the island is in a very strategic position geographically, being located near the coast in the South China Sea, which led to a long history of invasion. The Lei Yue Mun Fort, built by the British in the 1880’s guarded Victoria Harbor at the narrow channel. The Redoubt now houses the exhibit areas that cover distinct periods over the 600 year history of coastal defense, beginning with the Ming period in the 1300’s to the present. Many restored relics can be seen from a trail that encircles the museum.

Second, the Chinese have an extensive history of archery and we watched a fascinating video chronicling the 18 months it can take to create a handcrafted bow. After seeing the process involving shaping, soaking and stretching of material it became clear how the process could take so many months to produce a bow that was a practical piece of art.

Third, the unique Brennan torpedo, built on this site in the late 1800’s, is on display in its original setting, looking as if it is ready to defend the harbor from invaders entering through the adjacent narrow waterway. The Brennan torpedo was the world’s first functional guided missile, powered by two contra-rotating propellers that were spun by rapidly pulling out wires from drums wound inside the torpedo.

Since our trip was coming to its conclusion, we finally succumbed to the beckoning Stanley Market (www.hk-stanley-market.com), previously a fishing village, now transformed into a shopper’s paradise. We took a cab to the south end of the island and disembarked into a warren of narrow lanes lined with shops where one can find collectibles, curios, silk clothing, shoes, handbags, and more. We found some mementos, bargained a little, finished our shopping for friends and family back home, and didn’t mind carrying it since this was the last leg of our journey.

Summing Up

Bird's nests for soup -- Western District

We found Hong Kong to offer a kaleidoscope of sights and sounds that opened our eyes to different sides of Hong Kong. We peeked into ancient traditions, remnants of colonial times, and drank in the excesses of modern urbanity laced with vast tracts of green space. We left with the allure of the promise of more, and a long list of things we want to experience on our next trip through Hong Kong.

Information:

Courtyard by Marriott-Hong Kong, located between Des Voex Road and Connaught
167 Connaught Road West
Hong Kong, China
www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/hkgcy-courtyard-hong-kong 

MTR: Airport Express Train & Subway Information
www.mtr.com.hk/eng/airport_express/intro_index

 Hong Kong Tourism Board
www.discoverhongkong.com/usa

Peak Tram
www.thepeak.com.hk

 Star Ferry
www.starferry.com.hk

Museum of Coastal Denfence
Closed on Thursdays and the first two days of the Lunar New Year.
From MTR Shau Kei Wan Station Exit B2, walk along Shau Kei Wan Main Street East, cross the road upon reaching Tung Hei Road, then walk up hill for 5 mins.
175 Tung Hei Road, Shau Kei Wan, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong
www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/Coastal/index

 Stanley Market Road, Stanley, Hong Kong Island
www.hk-stanley-market.com

American Club

A very boring video of a short part of my bus journey every morning to show the video quality of the iphone 3Gs as requested by a reader who shall remain nameless. Actually it’s probably the worst sample I could give due to dirty windows and a dodgy suspension.

On Friday we went over to Hung Hom on the Star Ferry from Wan Chai. There is a weird little place called V King Bar on the pier. It shouldn’t really be there; that was my overall impression. And the smoking ban obviously hadn’t made it’s way there yet. Man its been a while since our clothes have smelt like crap. Anyway, it was nice to meet up with a few friends there and to experience a little different side of the pub scene in Honkers.

Iphone photos of getting there. Night time shots are not the iphone’s forte. That’s for sure. Feel the noise.

One of us loves the Star Ferry and one of us does not. ..I love it!

Setting off  from Wan Chai. Would have turned out better with My Casio P&S

The view from V King over to where the Star Ferry docks in Hung Hom.

This barely made it as it’s pretty lame. But there you have it. Looking over towards Honkers island; probably Quarry Bay area.

from http://bonkersinhonkers.wordpress.com

I just completed a business trip to China (my travelogue is posted here) and on the way, had a one day stop in Hong Kong.  My first trip to Hong Kong, obviously a day wouldn’t be enough but it’s all I had.  I arrived at 6 AM in the morning on a Saturday and left the next morning on Sunday at 6 AM.   Here’s what I did in those 24 hours and my observations of Hong Kong.

Morning

I chose a hotel in the Kowloon side of Hong Kong, which happened to be right on the harbor.  After getting settled in and refreshed, I took a walk along the harbor and quickly noticed all of the tall skyscraper buildings on Hong Kong island as well as on the harbor on the Kowloon side.   Hong Kong is full of tall, thin buildings—some very tall and others not so tall, but they are all around you and are used for both commercial and residential purposes.

After my stroll, along the harbor, I walked over to the Hong Hum Ferry station to take a quick ride on the Star Ferry line to Hong Kong island.   I was told by a former resident of Hong Kong that every one who makes it to Hong Kong must take a ride on the Star Ferry…so that I did.    A fairly quick ride between islands, the breeze was very nice on a hot day in Hong Kong.     The views of the skyline and skyscrapers of Hong Kong Island become much more visible on a somewhat hazy day and you quickly notice familiar brands with large building presences there:  Canon, China Mobile, Epson, Panasonic and more.

Hong Kong Skyline view from Harbor

Also, one of the more notable buildings along the Hong Kong island side of the harbor was the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, which juts out into the harbor more than the rest of the neighboring buildings.  The convention center feels like the centerpiece building of the harbor and visually reminds me of the Sydney, Australia waterfront, where I’ve never been, but have seen on television.

Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre

Some quick observations from the morning:

• Residential buildings suggest small living sized units, I would guess smaller than most large, urban cities.
• Hanging clothes outside the windows was very common.   I saw this in India and very much the same situation in Hong Kong.

Clothes Hanging from HK residences

• Walking around and noticing locals and other Hong Kong or Chinese tourists I assume, you could quickly see the affinity to brands.  Many shirts with brands such as Puma and others were being worn.
• While I may have been in a more touristy part of town so it may not be as representative of the whole area, the area was very clean.   Streets and the ferry stations were all free of litter and well organized.
• At the Hung Hom Ferry station, I noticed many more Apple iphones as a proportion of the phones that the locals and Asian tourists were carrying than I would expect.   Perhaps, another sign of the affinity to brands and latest consumer electronics gadgets for Asians.   I noticed a similar phenomenon with cameras—many more expensive SLR cameras with large lenses as a proportion of total cameras that I saw compared to what I would see in the US.

Afternoon

After the ride on the Star Ferry, I took a bus shuttle to the Tsim Sha Tsui area of Kowloon.    A high-end area, I noticed lots of nice hotels, shopping, and restaurants in the area.  My trip there was centered on one thing: to get good local Dim Sum.   I was told that the East Ocean Restaurant was one of the more popular Dim Sum restaurants in Hong Kong so I found my way there and got settled in for a nice lunch.  A family place, you saw groups of patrons filling up large tables.  Not a very seasoned Dim Sum eater, I ordered some basic chicken and seafood dishes.  Nice food, however, much more of an experience for me than a culinary delight given my limited seafood and meat diet.

Shopping in Kowloon

Dim Sum from East Ocean Restaurant

I then proceeded to leave the restaurant and walk what I thought would be only 5 minutes to the rendez-vous point of a half-day tour of Hong Kong that I found out about at the hotel.  Of course, I found myself getting lost, walking in the wrong direction and in circles and just made it to the meeting spot in time.   The tour had three primary stops:

1) Victoria Peak to see the best, panoramic views of Hong Kong’s skyline

2) Aberdeen Fishing village, where one could see some local fishing vessels, floating restaurants, and fisherman

3) Stanley Market- an outdoor shopping market for locals and tourists

The bus meandered its way through town up to Victoria peak.  Clearly a top tourist site, it had the usual tourist concept restaurants, shopping and tour guides.   While it was a hazy day, the view from the top was quite vivid, all around views of the skyscrapers, harbor and the overall urban scene of Hong Kong.   I was there in the afternoon but realized this would be quite an amazing scene at night time.

View of Hong Kong from Victoria Peak

From there the bus made it to Aberdeen fishing village.   Turned out this wasn’t the most exciting stop, but I did get a chance to go in a small motorized boat through the harbor, pass the Jumbo Floating Restaurant, and see some other fishing vessels with locals who appeared to live in the boats.    Then upon leaving the fishing area, the bus stopped at a jewelry store and factory for some shopping, which I think was really a tourist trap.   I don’t believe Hong Kong’s jewelry business is considered one of Hong Kong’s more unique or important industries, the tour pitched it as such and took the group there for a lecture on the history of the factory, a view of the jewelry making activities and then a walk into a large showroom for discounted captive, shopping.   A practice I’ve seen by tours around the world including Italy, India and elsewhere, appears Hong Kong is no different.    From the jewelry showroom, the bus ventured to Stanley Market.  A vibrant market with food, local trinkets, handbags, clothes, and other shopping options, it was serving primarily tourists and some locals.   I always like going to local markets to get some glimpse of local flavor.

Stanley Market

Some additional observations from the afternoon:

• While driving through the parts of the island to get to Victoria peak, I noticed many more sports facilities than I would have guessed: tennis courts, basketball courts, and soccer fields.  Interestingly, when I opened up the local English language Hong Kong daily newspaper, English Premier League soccer articles were the lead articles in the Sports section.
• The tour was quite prompt; the bus first left probably 2 minutes after the original time listed and at one of the stops, even attempted to leave a couple of minutes early from the stated time to get to its next stop on the tour.
• I suppose based on the UK history of Hong Kong, I noticed that all of the street signs were usually listed in English as well as Cantonese.
• During the drive through residential areas and subsequent walks, I didn’t notice many pets on the roads or parks.   I suppose that is related to where I was at, primarily in residential and commercial areas with small homes and hi-rises where pets may not be allowed or have enough space to live comfortably, but it definitely felt like less pets than other parts of the world.  Of course, if I made it out further to perhaps the New Territories where it may feel more residential, I expect there would have been more pets.
• Many high end brands of vehicles near Tsim Sha Tsui—a good amount of BMW and Lexus cars.   However, some of the stereotypes of Hong Kong mafia and gangs from movies I’ve seen like Rush Hour turned out to be true- I read in a newspaper article about a mafia killing of a Triad gang leader by the opposing Sun Yee On group at the high-end Kowloon Shangri la hotel on trendy Mody Road in Kowloon occurred in the Tsim Sha Tsui area.

Evening

After the tour ended and I returned to my hotel, I went off to dinner with my cousin and his wife, who I hadn’t seen in years and for the first time in Hong Kong.  We went to a nice Indian/Thai restaurant in the Kowloon area by taxi.  While the food was labeled Indian/Thai, I found that the food consisted of either Indian dishes or Thai dishes, but really didn’t fuse the two cuisines together into single dishes.   Good food, but the service was lacking.   While certainly not universal, I think a general observation of Indian restaurants anywhere in the world would be that their service is a bit sub-standard.    After dinner, we then hopped into a public transportation bus around 10 PM and it made it back to my hotel.  On the way, we drove by some still very active street scenes— outdoor food markets, restaurants, and some night time bars and clubs.   Hong Kong certainly is active at night and I understand has a very active nightlife scene.   Finally, back at the hotel, I took one last stroll along the harbor to see the skyline at night—certainly an illuminating sight.

Night time Hong Kong street scene

HK Skyline at Night

Observations from the evening:

• Public transportation buses were quite nice.  Air conditioned on a hot day and from what I’m told, very safe at all hours of the day.  Public transportation is very available and used frequently in Hong Kong, an area with space constraints and consequently, very expensive parking options which limits the amount of vehicles and who has those vehicles.
• I saw some police, more so in the evening—it appeared that the police generally used more vans as the primary vehicle than I’ve observed elsewhere.

Overall, a very nice day in Hong Kong which has wet my appetite for a longer, more intimate visit.   I regret not having the chance to see more local scenes of Hong Kong which would be my primary goal next time.   If I could have done it over, I would have substituted the Sheung Wan area for the Aberdeen Village, which I understand to be more of a local scene of Hong Kong and I would have spent some time on Nathan Road at night, which I understand to be the real center of Hong Kong’s night life.   Overall, Hong Kong had a very strong urban feel and reminded me of a combination of New York, Mumbai, and San Francisco.    As a famous future governor of California once said, I’ll be back.

A continuation of my column on transportation in Hong Kong – planes, trams, taxis, & ferries.

@ Gadling

Some highlights of our whirlwind tour of Greater China.

Tiananmen Square

The Forbidden City

More Forbidden City

Scaled Model of Beijing at Urban Planning Museum

CCTV Tower in Beijing

The Great Wall at Mutianyu

The Great Wall Again

Beihai Park in the middle of Beijing

The Starbucks on Shamian Island in GZ

Hong Kong Island skyline from the Star Ferry

Wanchai Street Scene from the tram

The Grand Lisboa of Macau

Old Macau

I know I’ve been lacking in posts, but it’s been a busy week getting our workflow going, and trying to capture all of our 140+ tapes from Tanzania.

My goal is to start posting one short video per week, on Sundays. This is the first installation – an experiment in soundscapes from the Star Ferry that crosses between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon.

Please use headphones to experience the best sound quality. And follow the link to Vimeo to watch in HD.

Architectural Conservation Programme at the University of Hong Kong

Lynne DiStefano and Ho-Yin Lee continued their talk on cultural heritage conservation by givng the policy context in Hong Kong.  They start with the first post-handover administration starting in 1997.

TAKE 1

Tung Chee-Hwa was the first post-colonial Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (Hong Kong SAR).  Under all of the new policy in the new SAR, there was only one minute line on heritage conservation:

The concept of preserving hertiage is incorporated into our developing our old areas. (paraphrase)

There was a lack of political will and support.  Conservation projects during the first administration did not necessarily have socially relevant purposes.  Some heritage buildings were preserved, but were often converted into other purposes that did not match the original purpose.  According to Lynne and Ho-Yin, these were not socially relevant uses of these sites.

photo by Jerry Crimson Mann

One of the turning points in public opinion with respect to heritage preservation was the renewal of Lee Tung Street (利東街).  This street was well known to all of Hong Kong as “The Wedding Card Street.” All the little shops provided all the props necessary to have a happy and prosperous Chinese wedding.  However, the urban renewal authority had targeted the whole street for renewal.  Many of the shopkeepers were not happy to be pushed out of the area.  There were many protests and banners expressing the unhappiness of the shopkeepers.  The issue seems to still be unresolved at the moment, although many of the shops have already closed.  According to Lynne, there is a law in Hong Kong where if 90% of the people accept the cash offer to move, then the remaining 10% are forced to accept the offer and the project can then go through unobstructed.

photo by Henry Li

Another turning point is the destruction of the Star Ferry pier in Central, Hong Kong (aka. the Edinburgh Place Ferry Pier, or Queen’s Pier).  The pier along with its iconic clock tower was demolished in December 2006. There was a public outcry that the government had not anticipated.  The pier was a “young” 49 years when it was destroyed and was not considered old enough by the authorities and, therefore, it did not have enough heritage value.

TAKE 2

In 2005, a new Chief Executive was selected and a new administration started.  Donald Tsang rose up from the civil servant ranks and became the Chief Executive.  The government was restructed and a new direction in heritage conservation started.

The new direction was less about dead buildings and more about lthe living heritage of established communities that give Hong Kong’s urban experience enchanting qualities.

There was a new political will to support this new direction.  There was now an entire branch of the government devoted to heritage conservation and that branch of the government in charge of heritage conservation.  A Google search turned up a new government website devoted to heritage conservation: Conserve and Revitalise Hong Kong Heritage.  The government seems to be allowing the community to take the lead in conservation now.  They are developing partnership schemes with private companies/investors to create good adaptive reuse of historical buildings.

This new direction is partially inspired by the Hong Kong public.  Lynne and Ho-Yin pointed out that a new identity in Hong Kong has emerged over the past 12 years since the handover.  More and more people identify themselves as Hong Kong and less as Chinese or British colonist.  People are defining themselves as Hong Kongers and conserving Hong Kong’s heritage is part of that self-defining.  There is a change in societal expectations.  Hong Kong used to be a developers dream because there was little opposition to “progress.”  Now people feel that they are losing parts of their lives and speaking out on preserving what they grew up with.  Teachers and parents seem to be taking the lead in mentoring the next generation about Hong Kong’s historical and cultural heritage.

The next post will cover the importance of Intangible Heritage.

From the footbridge linking IFC and Star Ferry terminal

Central Pier

Star Ferry set for Tsim Sha Tsui docked

Star Ferry Terminal entrance

Pier at dusk

Just before docking

Skyline #1 at dusk

Skyline #2 at dusk – 1830ish hrs

Central Pier is a lovely place, its exquisite charm and colonial-esque beauty often overlooked by most people. Its function takes away one’s attention from its form, but if you could spare a few moments to slow down and admire its facade, explore its surroundings and inhale the salty scent of the sea in the air, you’ll be surprised by how amazing the pier looks. But don’t be fooled by its old-English facade, it is actually rebuilt by the government in recent years. The current Central Pier is already in its 4th generation, having undergone 3 relocations due to urban planning and reclamation projects. I particularly enjoy the spectacular view of the skyline on Hong Kong Island, arguably the most beautiful or best skyline in the world (according to this website).

These 3 oz. mugs are adorable! I especially love the fact that they have their small flipboxes! You know, collecting these mugs would be much easier if all the mugs came in this size (attention Starbucks!).

Jenny was in town and brought me back all four Hong Kong City Mugs. I really wish Starbucks kept this design instead of converting to the 2008 design. I suppose, all good things must really come to an end.

Nach einem Strandspaziergang in Mui Wo nehme ich wieder die Fast Ferry nach Central Hong Kong, dann die Star Ferry nach Kowloon.

Die Fähre ist mit High Speed auf Kurs. Neben anderen Schnellfähren sind auch riesige Container- und Kreuzfahrt-Schiffe unterwegs. Dazwischen versuchen mutige Fischer ihr Glück. Container werden mit speziellen Schiffen auf dem Wasser umgeladen. An all diesen Hindernissen steuert der Kapitän sicher vorbei.

In Central Hong Kong wechsle ich von Pier 6 auf Pier 7 und nehme die beliebte Star Ferry über den Victoria Harbour nach Tsim Sha Tsui. Es wird empfohlen, die Star Ferry am Abend in die entgegengesetzte Richtung zu nehmen, um die beleuchtete Skyline zu betrachten. Diese ist momentan mit ziemlich kitschiger Weihnachtsbeleuchtung verziert.

Im Westen von Tsim Sha Tsui befinden sich gestylte Shopping Center und Läden bekannter Label – wohl eher für grosse Budgets.

Ich pausiere im grossen Kowloon Park. Ein Teich ist besonders spannend: Stolzierende Flamingos, sich in der Sonne räckelnde Schildkröten und bunte Fische. Die Parkbesucher und auch der Parkwächter sind am relaxen.

Jetzt bin ich wieder fit für Mong Kok. Rechts von der Nathan Road reihen sich zahlreiche Läden aneinander. Hier kann auch mit kleinem Budget eingekauft werden. Besonders interessant finde ich einen Abschnitt der Sai Yeung Choi Street. Es werden Haustiere angeboten – vom putzigen Hündchen bis zu winzigen Schildkrötchen. Zudem eine beeindruckende Vielfalt von Zierfischen und Pflanzen für das Aquarium. Statt die Star Ferry nehme ich die Subway und fahre unter dem Victoria Harbour zurück nach Central HK.

After we had dim sum, we took the ferry across the harbor with Ramya to explore Central Hong Kong. We quickly got lost amongst all the freaking boutiques in the confusing enclosed walkways. It’s like they’re forcing you to buy designer clothing or else…

We finally emerged out of the financial district and ended up in SoHo, which is a very cool arts and antiques area. If we had more time, we definitely would have hung out there for happy hour (it seemed every place had food and drink specials). Checked out some art including a Vietnamese art gallery. They were charging absurd prices for things we saw in Vietnam for 1/4 of the price two years ago. Pretty sure the Vietnamese art market hasn’t gone up 400% in two years.

Then we walked to the tram to go up the peak. It was a long walk there, and I (Larry) was not pleased. We went up to the top. I was finished with the view in about 15 seconds. Brent needed more time to take it in. Anyway, here’s the video of our day in Hong Kong:

Interview about HK identites; clips of interview with Chimo

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Where is my sea?

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“當某些事情被反覆論述時, 這些事情其實和原來所指距離了多遠? 變成了甚麼? 擴展到甚麼? … 集體回憶中的集體是怎樣構成的? 我(地)有無份? 我(地)是個體, 還是集體中的個體, 還是…??”

:: Introduction to my project

My original plan was to collect allegories about Hong Kong and through collecting and analyzing, to investigate how Hong Kong stories are interpreted and represented, as well as what symbols are being used and concerning about what lied behind the constructions of such narratives. The initial idea is definitely promising, but as what I foresaw, the scale was too big and I had to slim it down.

I started with browsing videos in youTube which are search results of keyword “Hong Kong” or “香港”. Most of them are tourism promotion videos, history documentaries and advertisements. My observation is they are full of stereotypical Hong Kong “icons” or “images”, for instance, a sailing boat in the Victorian Harbor, or a middle-aged chubby Chinese guy showing the audience a langouste.

I focused on identifying stereotypical icons of representations of Hong Kong, and then discovered that there is always a way of speaking lying behind these grand narratives of Hong Kong stories. Hong Kong is portrayed in a particular way which we all Hong Kong citizens are familiar with, in and only in representations. The portrayed Hong Kong images are imaginary ones, somehow is not really the Hong Kong we are living in.

Several terms are being over-used without careful considerations. “Collective memories” and “Hong Kong local identities”, etc. “Memories of Hong Kong” become no more personal, but discourses. Some ways of speaking are suppressed, while some are being dominant.

I then decided to confine the scope to only two overt symbols, “the Queen” and “the Star”. Obviously, these two symbols would be connected to current hot cultural issues which are the fight about conserving the tower of Star Ferry (天星鐘樓) and the Queen Pier (皇后碼頭). Meanwhile, these two symbols are embedded with a strong impression of the colonial period.

I interviewed five Hong Kong local citizens, beginning by asking them whether they would identify themselves as a “Hong Kong-er” (香港人) or not, then gradually went into their personal memories of lives in Hong Kong, towards “the Queen’ and as well as their views upon “the Queen” ’s issue. A collection part is also included. I invited the interviewees to provide me something representing “the Queen” and select from a batch of pictures which are representations of “queen”. Then I asked them to recall if any more “queens” are still remain in Hong Kong. The last part of the interview, I gave the interviewees several passages I abstracted from the internet which people wrote about “the Queen” ’s issue, and asked them to select a short piece and read.

Based on the interviews, I then went to take photographs and collect videos of what the interviewees recalled as the remaining “queens”.

In the following part, I will discuss how the process is and what my discovery is of the research.

:: Research process and discoveries – interview part

I started the interviews with asking the interviewees that, if they would declare themselves as a “Hong Kong-er”. Following this very first question, I then asked them to recall significant issues or memories they would put as highlights to signify their teenage lives in Hong Kong. As the framework was set to discussions about Hong Kong identities and collective memories, in the following parts the interviewees automatically direct themselves to think of and respond to my questions within the field. I actually just used the term “queen” in stead of “the Queen Pier” until the interviewees used the term themselves, but all of them made connections themselves already. As the frame applied, we were speaking in common language which “queen” was signifying issues about “the Queen Pier” and moreover, topics about cultural conservations, collective memories and also space politics.

In the interviews, I actually played with “the Queen” in different levels, cultural and semiotic. One question was, “Where else can we still find ‘queens’ now in Hong Kong, as you could recall?” There were diverse responses.

Colonial histories

“The Queen” icon obviously represents the whole period of colonial history to Mrs. Kwok as she focused on mentioning places about the colonial period.

For Chimo, he mentioned some share places as Mrs. Kwok, but he focused more on the figure of queen. For example, he mentioned the sculpture in the Queen Square and Victoria Park.

Monica made associations based on colonial period’s memories and geographical relation, as she mentioned the journey on Star ferries crossing the harbour, while pointing that the pier she often used is near the Queen’s Pier.

Carol jumped from memories of Hong Kong to the United Kingdom. She described the ambiguous identity of Hong Kong-ers being in UK and the strange intimacy between the colonial empire and the citizens of the colony.

Big Jump

Maze, which is a very special one, associated varied examples as she took “queen” not only as representation or symbol of colonial history, but to more extents. For example, she mentioned the “queen” in Disney cartoons and the “Queen’s Cake Shop” in Festival Walk. Also, she mentioned “Queen’s Road Central” and “Queen’s Road East” because of linguistic connection, then she further associated to a song of Law Tai Yau, and more she linked to a film which the protagonist sang the song in. This is certainly a good demonstration of lateral-associative thinking and also a game of semiotics, which one signifier can actually signify diverse signified(s).

Maze’s association is also revealing how complex the symbol of “queen” is embedded in our cultural knowledge network.

Besides questions and discussions, I put some activities into the interviews, which is the second part of it. These activities have their own significance and stirred different kinds of discussions. They are also creative-collecting activities collaborated with the interviewees and I.

:::: Pictures of “Queen”

In the second part of the interview, I gave the interviewees a batch of printed images, which are search results of Google using keywords “皇后”, “女皇” or “queen”. Google’s search results are not only confined to those of Hong Kong, so “the queen” here is of more representations from all over the internet. Pictures tagged with “queen” differ a lot from “queen” in discourses of “queen” in Hong Kong, but here I bring these two aspects together by asking the interviewees to select picture(s) to represent their “queen” in such context.

::::: Collecting “Queen”s

I asked the interviewees to provide me some materials which could be collected by me as a representation of “queen”. I actually had a idea of collecting coins with icon of Queen Elizabeth bear in mind, but I did not suggest to the interviewees. However, all of them thought of the same idea with me. It is so strong to see that coin with “queen” is a shared deep memory of Hong Kong-ers from different ages and backgrounds.

The collecting activity stirred discussions from interviewees and rouse memories of everyday lives with coins. The coins are ordinary things we used almost every day but seldom pay attention to. Interestingly, Carol joined the interview with Monica after I interviewed her and they two discussed about the coins. Monica said she thought that coins were with “queens” as she had used for years and did not notice that now most of the coins have been changed into “flowers” [the Bauhinia]. She could not find even one coin with a “queen” in her purse. Then Carol made her contradicting comment, which she always thought that coins were with “flowers” in stead of “queens”. It is obvious to notice that Monica was born and grown up in colonial period while 1997, the year of handover, is just Carol’s.

::::: Reading about “Queen”

The passages I gave the interviewees were mostly abstracted from blogs where Hong Kong people wrote about the Queen Pier’s issue. All the interviewees said they did not read these passages so as the blogs before, and the main source to know about the issue is from TV news or online newspapers. I provided them an opportunity to read these passages but meanwhile the availability of articles is restricted by me. I then asked the interviewees to select one or more short paragraphs which they had strong feelings or they thought it is important to read. This is a multi-layered-selection and read-re-read process. The articles were selected by me and then by the interviewees, and then read by the interviewees, recorded and watched by audiences.

After reading-out, I asked them why they chose such paragraphs. Through the above activities, interviewees made dialogs to the writers. Reading-out others’ writings is like an echo. Audience will perceive the writings through the interviewees’ mouths, which consist of multi-layers of interpretations and performances.

::::::::: interviewing as an actively provoking activities (event level)

The interviews were not merely “collecting views”, they were events.

In the interviews, personal memories were raised upon the grand narratives of collective memories. Individual voices were preserved. The interviewees expressed their own interpretations on the same issue which were really diverse and surprising.

The interviewees got opportunities to articulate themselves. All of them reflected that they seldom talked about such issues, but they are actually full of opinions waited to be discovered. They did mention that they thought they were “powerless”(Monica) and “had no rooms”(Chimo) to speak up.

In front of the camera, the interviewees spoke more formally and really dug into the issue which I had not had such discussion with some of them before. So here the camera’s presence is significant, it provoked.

:: My interventionist game

Based on the interviews, I did some follow-up works. I took what the interviewees recalled as “Queen” and then went to sites they mentioned, to play a generative game.

Photo-taking adventure

I took pictures of what they mentioned and also during the walk, took pictures of things or scenes consist of symbols or printed words of “queen” or “star”.

I tried to locate the places where I might not pay attention to before and really went there to take a photo. Then I marked on the map where I took the pictures and the map will be shown in my installation to let the audience connect the taken photographs and the geographical positions.

Through such activity, I locate the “memories” mentioned by the interviewees into the living real places through my act. I really experience the places (or things) which previously were something heard from others, and turned into my own memories.

Also, the adventure was completed by me, so the photos taken were the  interpretations of their memories by me, the ethnographer. It is shared authorship. In the interview, I first decided questions and directions to work with, then the interviewees’ responses became my rules and drove me to somewhere totally unexpected.

I and the interviewees, we together constructed alternative interpretations of “the queen” and becoming subversion of the discourse of collective memories of the Queen Pier.

Video : “Where is my sea?”

Passing through the new Star Ferry pier, walking alongside the harbour, I saw blockades which prohibited me from seeing the Victorian Harbour. I then took my DV camera, started from the first blockade, walked along the coast until I could see the sea without blockade again. With the help of the apparatus, I recorded the whole journey and turned into a video called “Where is my sea?”. Audience can experience the whole walk with me which surprised me that it took so long to see the harbour again. Also, scenes of the sea coast road were preserved. And for me, I created my own memory of the Queen Pier and Victorian Harbour .

:: Final output and my creative decisions

The final output will be an installation, an assemblage of my collectibles and my responses, which consists of video of interviews and “Where is my sea?”, photos taken in the generative game, a map with marks, collection of coins with “queen” and a small booklet with my own reflections.

The installation comprises of different interpretations rooting from the symbol  “queen” and “star”. Dominant discourses are re-considered and challenged but there is not a given new answer. So the title of my work is called “The Queen(s) and the Star(s)”. The “(s)” is emphasizing open-ended answers and questions.

- video / interview ( in DVD + booklet) : archives + my reflections (reflexivity)

I put the interview footages into a DVD within very simple editing, aiming at preserve the entire interview and make it accessible to audiences. I added few texts as my highlights instead of full transcript. Those highlights were keywords or sentences caught me most when I second read the footages. I wrote my reflections and printed into a small booklet to be put beside the television for audiences to read. The writings of mine expressed what I thought as a researcher and emphasize the presence of the researcher. Instead of single-channel video broadcasting, I choose the DVD format as I would like to leave room for audiences to surf through the DVD on their own choices, sequences and skip or pause or fast forward if they want. Also, they could refer the DVD to the booklet, to surf through these two media and choose what to read.

- video / “Where is my sea?” + map : highlighting

The video “Where is my sea?” is also put into the DVD. The coast line I walked through to shoot the video was highlighted on the map shown in the installation. Such setting let the audience to refer my representation to the geographical position of the pier and the harbour.

- photos displaying : archives + performative

As the above video, the photos will be shown and also marked on the map where they were shot. Varied kinds of images suggest diverse ways to interpret what “queen” and “star” could mean.

- collections

Collections of coins were put in plastic conservation bags and will be shown in the installation. The collections are input of the interviewees, in which they become participants, a more active role. Also, the act of putting the coins into bags is an act of conservation. Meantime, coins in bags can be symbolizing the suppressed, buried or dust-laden memories of colonial period.

:: Conclusion and evaluation

Operations during research

Camera skills should be enhanced and recording style and framing should be considered more carefully for the sake of editing and creative treatment. Some backgrounds of interviewees were too noisy, which caused difficulties in adding texts and diminished the visual qualities.

Cultural level

Beginning with interviews I gathered lots of information about how my interviewees thought of Hong Kong identities and issues about the Queen Pier. I gained knowledge of what other aspects of Hong Kong is like which I do not know from their memories and share views with them.

The collecting activities led to surprising results as the interviewees actively recalled memories and expressed views which I do not expect from my decided questions.

Processing materials and documenting

The process of making documents is not done quite well. I was over-optimistic and overlooked the workload I was going to encounter, so I was running out of time after the first stage of the research. I actually have not yet tagged and coded all my documents, as well as analysing them. This led to the difficulties I faced in the creative intervention part. So the output can only be considered as an assemblage of my research process and creative activities I have gone through. But this would be an excellent lesson for my graduation thesis and other research-based projects.

Materials gathered are to be made into documents in more careful decisions afterwards, in order not to minimize the lost of details.

But yet I like the diversity of materials that I collected, and displaying such diverse materials is a worthy activity for audiences and I.

After the process of making documents, detailed analysis is to be done. Drawing graphs and creating hyper-text documents would be helpful.

Getting up on Sunday was harder than on Saturday, but at least I got to sleep in a little (to about 7 a.m.) After watching live updates of the Cal/OSU football game back home on ESPN GameCast, I decided it was time to leave the hotel and forget about the disappointing result. However, it was only 9:30 a.m., and no dim sum places were open yet.

We headed back down to Tsim Sha Tsui to catch the Star Ferry to Central on Hong Kong Island and eat proper dim sum over there. After crossing the footbridge over Connaught Street Central, we found that walking through this part of the city is all on footbridges. It’s like walking in a city over a city. One thing I found slightly surprising was that this was the congregation site of the overseas Filipino workers in Hong Kong, as they all gather here on Sundays and sort of “picnic” on along the bridges. I noticed other tourists found this sort of strange as they didn’t stop staring, but my mom said they gather here together on their day off because they’re more comfortable being around people from home. Plus, it helped when we kept getting lost because my mom asked a few of them for directions.

After stopping in the Marks & Spencer to check if they had strawberry trifles (NONE, but they had some other imported desserts which just didn’t look as good), we headed for Stanley Street at got dim sum at Luk Yu, recommended to us by a local storeowner. After barbeque pork buns, chicken spring rolls and pan-fried dumplings, we were again stuffed. Then we stumbled upon something I’ve never seen before anywhere. We were going to walk up a hill in the Mid-Levels district, a trendy neighborhood with cuisines from all over the world and a SoHo of their own, my mom saw an escalator and insisted we take it since she was tired. This first escalator was flat, a sloped version of the moving walkways at airports. But then there was another one, and another one…and another one. It turns out it goes way up the mountain. We kept going for at least 20 minutes from one escalator to the next, zig-zagging up, but after awhile, my mom got tired of our adventure and said we should go back down. Unfortunately, there are only stairs going back down. 

We headed back for the Hong Kong MTR Subway Station for one attraction I needed to see here: Hong Kong Disneyland. Before you get all, “Wow, why are you bothering with Disneyland in Hong Kong when you’re from California, blah, blah, blah,” I need to see this as after HK Disney, the only park I have not been to is Tokyo Disneyland (which I will be going to in a few days…), and I want to see all of the ones in the world. (Don’t judge me. We all have our oddities.) Well, I can tell you that Hong Kong Disneyland blows the American parks out of the water. Perhaps because its newer, but it’s also calmer. First though, we had to take the subway there, which was extremely easy. The stations are easy to navigate, and both the stations and trains are immaculately clean. There’s also a transparent fence between the platform and the train tracks to prevent anyone from falling in. We really need that in the United States.

Transferring to the Disney train line at Sunny Bay station was simple…and very hard to miss. All of the windows are shaped like Mickey Mouse. But it doesn’t stop there. All of the handles on the ceiling are shaped like Mickey Mouse, and there are bronze statues of Disney characters all over the train. I was amazed to see so many people on the train, considering it was 3 p.m. in the afternoon already, and I was also surprised that most of the people going were older. When we stepped off the train, it was obvious we were in Disneyland from the usually glitz and “magical” signs everywhere, but there was something else strange about the landscape. I could swear that once I stepped off the train, I left Hong Kong and was not in Anaheim, but somewhere more like Palm Springs. Disneyland here isn’t littered with screaming children. I speculated that many people come out here for leisurely walks in the promenade as there is a nice large park and pier outside of Disneyland. My mom also pointed out how much easier HK Disney is to get to, compared to the one in Orange County as that one is ONLY accessible by car. 

After awhile, my mom and I got tired and wandered into the Grand Salon of the Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel. I bought a bottle of Sprite and sat on a plush, Victorian-style green couch in the air-conditioned room for about 30 minutes. Too tired to walk back the MTR station, my mom tugged me over to the hotel shuttle, not really knowing where it was going, and we just hoped that would take us back to the station – which it did!

After making it back to Mong Kok station in Kowloon, I had to stop at Hui Lau Shan, a mango dessert chain that my friend Victoria recommended to me and I couldn’t pass up. I got a mango-strawberry slushie, with a layer of fruit chunks at the top and yogurt and ice at the bottom, while my mom got something with mango and coconut. The busy streets of Mong Kok were irking my mom, as she was exhausted from walking and large crowds all day, so we walked back to the hotel. The only way to cap off the day was with more take-out food from the local restaurant since it was so good and cheap the day before.

Between the MTR and the Mid-Levels, it’s obvious that Hong Kong is truly advanced and a model for cities around the world. It’s a city of the future. Maybe being a day ahead really helps.

On Saturday morning, I was very reluctant to get up at 6 a.m. Although I’ve gotten used to waking up at 5 a.m. on this trip, this was the first night I’ve spent in a comfortable bed in over a week. But the idea of taking a piping hot shower for the first time in over a week was more enticing. Plus, I had to get rid of the cigarette smell that seems to loom over our room.

After getting ready for the long day ahead, my mom and I got aboard a half-day city tour bus of Hong Kong Island. First stop: Victoria Peak. I’d say this was the attraction I wanted to see most, and we definitely lucked out on the weather. Picture perfect skies. Plus, it’s 3 degrees Celsius cooler up there than down here. On the zig-zagging roads up, reminiscent of those on the Pacific Coast Highway, our lovely and very hilarious local guide, Vivian, gave us some info on Hong Kong, including the fact that 7 million people live here. High-rises are the architecture of choice here and land is extremely expensive. She said jokingly, that’s why they’re all so small. She made a lot of jokes referencing the petiteness of Chinese people compared to Westerners, which the bus full of Britons, Australians and Canadians (I think my mom and I were the only Americans as I didn’t hear any other American accents…) just found adorable about her. Next stop: Aberdeen, where the local fishing village is and the home of the Jumbo Floating Restaurant (As Vivian noted, you’ve probably seen this place in any Jackie Chan movie.) Jackie is pretty popular around here, and we even saw his seaside home on the way to Repulse Bay, which looked like a small English castle. Repulse Bay, named after the HMS Repulse that used to be docked here, was gorgeous, with the first sandy beaches I’ve seen up close and not from a plane window this whole trip. Last stop, at this point on completely the other side of mountains of Hong Kong, was Stanley Market, a series of outdoor stalls selling everything from knick-knack souvenirs to local artwork, more knockoff designer handbags. I was sort of surprised at the lack of these bags, and Manila seems to be bursting at the seams with them, and I’ve heard from many people that Hong Kong is too. Although I didn’t do much shopping in Hong Kong (only a package of nice wooden chopsticks and a small jade elephant for myself), HK is, as Vivian said, “a shopper’s paradise,” nearly everything here is tax-free. Only four goods are not: cars, gasoline, cigarettes and alcohol.

After getting back to our hotel in Kowloon, my mom and I quickly changed into more sophisticated attire and hurried down to the hotel shuttle for tea at The Peninsula Hotel. Tea is served in the decadent lobby of the grand old hotel between 2 and 7 p.m, and the dress code supposedly prohibits flip-flops and beach sandals. That didn’t stop anyone, as I looked down the long line and most tourists were wearing said shoes or tennis shoes. It’s a good thing we went at 2, considering we only waited about 30 to 45 minutes in line, and when I looked back as we were being seated, it was then already out the door (it’s a long hallway). Over $400 HKD (~$50 USD) including 10% gratuity (that’s the standard here), the tea-for-two selection was extremely worth the wait. If you go, I recommend getting the “Peninsula Blend.” The lobby, once a site just where local Britons and many American ex-pats relaxed in colonial times, is now THE place to go when on holiday here. My mom noted that the lobby had been sized down, however, since her first visit here in 1964. (Pause, and think about that.) Now half of what used to be the full lobby of the hotel is ritzy, top-of-the-top stores like Cartier and Prada.

After tea, it was close to 4:30 p.m. and almost sunset, so we headed for the Star Ferry to Hong Kong. At $2.20 HKD ($0.28 USD), as my mom says, it’s the best buy in Hong Kong. Much like I do when I’m on the Staten Island Ferry, I got off the boat and got right back on to head back to the other side. Not because I didn’t want to see Hong Kong, but I wanted to take pictures of the sunset on Victoria Harbour (and I was really tired and wanted to go back to the hotel). After getting back to shore and walking around Nathan Road (the main thoroughfare and shopping street in Kowloon) we headed back to the hotel. After a full day of walking, we were exhausted and hungry. So we got take-out Chinese food at the restaurant two doors down from the hotel: Teresa Coffee Restaurant. I highly recommend this place as well if you ever stay at the Metropark. Not only was the food (chicken with cashews, pan-fried noodles and fried rice) all delicious, the portions were huge and we got all of it for $90 HKD ($11.60 USD).