The Yacht Club Ball Survivor picture is up, along with other pictures taken that night. If you click on "Most Viewed", the girl in the white dress and her date were with us. Other than that, I guess our group wasn't worthy of taking pictures of!
Thursday, November 25, 2004
MacLehose Trail
Yesterday I went on a hike in the New Territories with my friends from the At Home group. We did stage three of the MacLehose Trail and it was gorgeous. The weather here is nice and cool right now, which is perfect hiking weather. I made it out with just a few mosquito bites so I feel pretty good about that.
Today I getting ready for the Philippines, and I am very excited! I booked our hotel today for our stay in Manila tonight. We have to take two planes to get to Panglao Island, and only one plane per day flies between Panglao Island and Manila, so we have to wait over night. While I was searching the internet for how to call the Philippines from Hong Kong, I came across this website. You can think of it what you will. It is interesting to say the least.
I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving back home! I am really sad to be missing it this year. I am going to try to rustle up some pumpkin pie and turkey for Matt and I to eat for dinner before we get on our plane to Manila.
Hiking the MacLehose Trail
Today I getting ready for the Philippines, and I am very excited! I booked our hotel today for our stay in Manila tonight. We have to take two planes to get to Panglao Island, and only one plane per day flies between Panglao Island and Manila, so we have to wait over night. While I was searching the internet for how to call the Philippines from Hong Kong, I came across this website. You can think of it what you will. It is interesting to say the least.
I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving back home! I am really sad to be missing it this year. I am going to try to rustle up some pumpkin pie and turkey for Matt and I to eat for dinner before we get on our plane to Manila.
Hiking the MacLehose Trail
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Shamian Dao
After a few nights at the Oriental Resort, Matt and I switched to a hotel on Shamian Dao. Shamian Dao is more central to Guangzhou and has restaurants and markets and other things surrounding it. We were invited to a party at the White Swan Hotel by the expats that we had met at the Sasha show, and it was very fun. I met a guy that was in Guangzhou on a business trip and he lives in the La Jolla Farms area! He went to La Jolla Country Day School and to USD. It is definitely a small world afterall.
Other than that, Matt and I just relaxed on Shamian Dao, which is my favorite kind of vacation. It reminded me of when Matt and I went to Yuma, Arizona. We went there on a whim and had absolutely nothing to do. It was fabulous because ther wasn't any pressure to sightsee, it is close to home and fairy inexpensive, so it was just a very low key vacation with nothing to do but relax, see movies and eat. Guangzhou was sort of like this, because there was no pressure to do anything except relax. So we went and cruised the market on Qingping Street, which was pretty interesting. There were tons of stalls piled high with all sorts of roots and herbs and giant bags full of dried seahorse and dried sea stars. I am not sure what you would do with all of that stuff...cook with it? make Chinese medicine out of it? Anyway, someone must ant it because everyone was selling it. There were also alot of live animals for sale, which at first was disconcerting to me because I wasn't sure if they were for eating or playing with. I am pretty confident the animals were for playing with because the puppies were just too cute to eat. There were some straggly-looking cats for sale, and the guangdong province is known for it's taste for exotic animals...there was also every kind of turtle that you could ever possibly imagine as well a wide variety of rodents, some of which I had never seen before.
After the market, Matt and I needed an afternoon snack so we went to a tea house near our hotel. We thought we were just going to have a little snack but it turned out to be quite a nice experience. We had our own private tea room and a tea girl to pour our tea for us and explain to us what all of the rituals mean. First she washed all of the tea equipment with hot water from the tea pot, and then she made us a cup of tea for smelling and then finally the tea for drinking. The first cup we had to drink in three sips: the first sip for life (or was it luck?), the second sip for happiness and the third sip for longevity. The tea cups were extremely tiny and were more like tea bowls. The whole process took us over 2 hours and when Matt and I said we were ready to leave she seemed surprised that we were leaving so soon! The whole thing was very fascinating and I would definitely like to learn more about it in the future.
After that I wanted to treat myself to a massage so I went to the massage parlour in our hotel. It was...interesting. The whole thing was a little bit strange and it would take me a long time to explain why. Let's just say that I walked in and my masseuse was a young pretty girl in a navy blue satin nighty with white lace trim. I looked at her, then looked at the wall and saw a painting of a half naked Chinese woman. I made polite excuses and started to walk out, but the girl was freaked and afraid of having angered me and a whole bunch of workers came in and everyone was trying to understand me and in the end it was just too difficult to communicate so I had the massage. It was a nice, normal massage but it wasn't as relaxing as it could have been because the situation was strange.
The other interesting thing about Shamian Dao is that it is the pick up place for American couple adopting Chinese daughters. So, there are tons of American couple strolling along, picking out baby clothes and looking very eager. There are also a ton of American couples looking very excited and somewhat awkward holding their new Chinese babies. I think it would be pretty crazy to adopt a baby because you wouldn't have that 9 month adjustment period of knowing that you have another person with you contantly. You just go from being a single person to Poof! you have a baby. All the new parents looked very excited and enraptured with their new babies though, so maybe it is an easier adjustment than it looks like.
Qingping Street Market
Puppies at the market
Other than that, Matt and I just relaxed on Shamian Dao, which is my favorite kind of vacation. It reminded me of when Matt and I went to Yuma, Arizona. We went there on a whim and had absolutely nothing to do. It was fabulous because ther wasn't any pressure to sightsee, it is close to home and fairy inexpensive, so it was just a very low key vacation with nothing to do but relax, see movies and eat. Guangzhou was sort of like this, because there was no pressure to do anything except relax. So we went and cruised the market on Qingping Street, which was pretty interesting. There were tons of stalls piled high with all sorts of roots and herbs and giant bags full of dried seahorse and dried sea stars. I am not sure what you would do with all of that stuff...cook with it? make Chinese medicine out of it? Anyway, someone must ant it because everyone was selling it. There were also alot of live animals for sale, which at first was disconcerting to me because I wasn't sure if they were for eating or playing with. I am pretty confident the animals were for playing with because the puppies were just too cute to eat. There were some straggly-looking cats for sale, and the guangdong province is known for it's taste for exotic animals...there was also every kind of turtle that you could ever possibly imagine as well a wide variety of rodents, some of which I had never seen before.
After the market, Matt and I needed an afternoon snack so we went to a tea house near our hotel. We thought we were just going to have a little snack but it turned out to be quite a nice experience. We had our own private tea room and a tea girl to pour our tea for us and explain to us what all of the rituals mean. First she washed all of the tea equipment with hot water from the tea pot, and then she made us a cup of tea for smelling and then finally the tea for drinking. The first cup we had to drink in three sips: the first sip for life (or was it luck?), the second sip for happiness and the third sip for longevity. The tea cups were extremely tiny and were more like tea bowls. The whole process took us over 2 hours and when Matt and I said we were ready to leave she seemed surprised that we were leaving so soon! The whole thing was very fascinating and I would definitely like to learn more about it in the future.
After that I wanted to treat myself to a massage so I went to the massage parlour in our hotel. It was...interesting. The whole thing was a little bit strange and it would take me a long time to explain why. Let's just say that I walked in and my masseuse was a young pretty girl in a navy blue satin nighty with white lace trim. I looked at her, then looked at the wall and saw a painting of a half naked Chinese woman. I made polite excuses and started to walk out, but the girl was freaked and afraid of having angered me and a whole bunch of workers came in and everyone was trying to understand me and in the end it was just too difficult to communicate so I had the massage. It was a nice, normal massage but it wasn't as relaxing as it could have been because the situation was strange.
The other interesting thing about Shamian Dao is that it is the pick up place for American couple adopting Chinese daughters. So, there are tons of American couple strolling along, picking out baby clothes and looking very eager. There are also a ton of American couples looking very excited and somewhat awkward holding their new Chinese babies. I think it would be pretty crazy to adopt a baby because you wouldn't have that 9 month adjustment period of knowing that you have another person with you contantly. You just go from being a single person to Poof! you have a baby. All the new parents looked very excited and enraptured with their new babies though, so maybe it is an easier adjustment than it looks like.
Qingping Street Market
Puppies at the market
Oriental Resort
These are some pictures of the hotel that we stayed in and where the Sasha show was. It was pretty nice, one of the nicer hotels that I have stayed in. Our villa was sort of far from the restaurant and other facilities but the room was big and comfortable and had a huge balcony. I think the place must be packed in the summer, but when we were there it was pretty much empty except for a few Sasha fans. Alot of the facilities were closed for the off season, like the pool and the other restaurants, but it was kept immaculately so t sort of had the feeling of the hotel in The Shining. The retaurant served up some pretty disgusting western food. I ordered french toast and that was a huge mistake. It was white, crustless bread folded in two and deep fried. When you pressed into it with your fork, oil would leak out of it. Of course, I ate it anyway, because the waitresses would get really flustered and confused about everything and I was tired after the show, so I didn't want to deal with trying to explain that I wanted to order an additional meal. I probably should have though, because my stomach still turns when I think of it.
The Oriental Resort in Guangzou
Our Villa at the Oriental Resort
The Oriental Resort in Guangzou
Our Villa at the Oriental Resort
Sasha
Matt and I just returned from our trip to Guangzhou (Gwan-Joe), which is a 2 hour train ride from Hong Kong. The reason for our trip was to see one of Matt's favorite djs, Sasha, on his first tour through Asia. Apparently China is a new up and coming area for electronic music.
Usually, these kinds of shows last all night, so Matt and I didn't get there until after midnight. Sasha went on soon after we got there and he was great. There were a few problems though: first, the hotel staff turned down the volume, and then they pulled the plug at 2 in the morning! That is extremely early for this kind of show. If we would have known t was going to end that early, we would have showed up earlier!
Luckily, on our way in we had met a security guy. When the show ended, he called us back to the VIP area where Sasha was. So, we got to meet Sasha and all of the "cool" kids! It was pretty awesome. Sasha was nice and very laid back and seemed sincere. He was patient when everyone was taking pictures with him and he seemed bummed that his first tour in China got off to a bad start. Unfortunately, Matt and I didn't bring a camera, but to be honest, I would have been sort of embarrassed to ask for a picture with him. It seems cheesy. That is not say that I wouldn't want a picture with him! In the back room area we met some Guangzhou expats, and it turns out that one of them went to school with my stepdad's cousin's daughter! Pretty small world. This guy, Suraj, was really cool and he took some pictures of Matt and I and so I will have to try to get copies of those, and the ones of Sasha.
The Sasha tour photographer took several pictures and videos of Matt and I because he said that we were "beautiful" (haha...must have been slim pickings of people to photograph that night?) so I am going to keep checking the Sasha website to see if they make it on there. If they do I will link to the site from this blog.
Usually, these kinds of shows last all night, so Matt and I didn't get there until after midnight. Sasha went on soon after we got there and he was great. There were a few problems though: first, the hotel staff turned down the volume, and then they pulled the plug at 2 in the morning! That is extremely early for this kind of show. If we would have known t was going to end that early, we would have showed up earlier!
Luckily, on our way in we had met a security guy. When the show ended, he called us back to the VIP area where Sasha was. So, we got to meet Sasha and all of the "cool" kids! It was pretty awesome. Sasha was nice and very laid back and seemed sincere. He was patient when everyone was taking pictures with him and he seemed bummed that his first tour in China got off to a bad start. Unfortunately, Matt and I didn't bring a camera, but to be honest, I would have been sort of embarrassed to ask for a picture with him. It seems cheesy. That is not say that I wouldn't want a picture with him! In the back room area we met some Guangzhou expats, and it turns out that one of them went to school with my stepdad's cousin's daughter! Pretty small world. This guy, Suraj, was really cool and he took some pictures of Matt and I and so I will have to try to get copies of those, and the ones of Sasha.
The Sasha tour photographer took several pictures and videos of Matt and I because he said that we were "beautiful" (haha...must have been slim pickings of people to photograph that night?) so I am going to keep checking the Sasha website to see if they make it on there. If they do I will link to the site from this blog.
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Feels Like Spring
It is definitely one of those days...I am sure everyone has had a day like this, or at least I hope so. It has that euphoric, expectant, excited sort of feeling. Like...that day when you finish finals and you are excited and happy but you still have to pack up your stuff to go on break. Or like the first day of spring in Davis, when it has been grey and cold and dismal and all of sudden you can feel the weather changing and you know that soon it will be spring, sunny and clear and warm but not too warm. Or like when you are working and it is the Thursday before a three day weekend and you can't concentrate on any of the stuff you know you need to get done so you end up chatting with your coworkers the whole time.
I am not exactly sure why I am having this feeling. Nothing has changed in my life since yesterday. It could be because Matt is taking Friday (tomorrow) off of work so that we can go see dj Sasha spin in Guangzhou this weekend, and we are staying at the Oriental Resort which looks very nice. It could be because I am finally back on a normal schedule after our all nighter at the Yacht Club Ball. It could be because I picked up my plane ticket to come home for Christmas yesterday, and it is free due to all of Dad's frequent flier miles and I get to fly Singapore Airlines rather than United. It could be because today the weather here in Hong Kong is brisk and cooler than usual, so that you can wear jeans comfortably, but still perfectly sunny and clear. It could be because I had 7 emails in my inbox this morning. Or, it could be because I had chocolate chips and coke light for breakfast. Whatever the reason, I am doing my best not too analyze it to much for fear of ruining it.
So what am I doing today? Not much, considering all of the excited energy I have...I am packing for Guangzhou, and will probably do some laundry later. I ran around this morning opening every single window and cleaned up the clutter around our house. I walked through the park and picked up some odds and ends at the drug store and then sat in the park reading The Princess Bride. I will leave in a couple of hours to meet Matt in Shenzhen. I am listening to Sublime. So, pretty uneventful I guess.
On a side note, I am much more excited to come home for Christmas than I thought I would be. It is going to be so great to see everyone and I am really looking forward to the familiar tradition of skiing in Utah. I am also eager to get back to San Diego, cause I am looking forward to the great Christmas weather that San Diego has, sunny and clear and wonderful. And mexican food and pancakes. And swimming with my little sisters. When I was in the park this morning there was a field trip of kids about Marissa's age and I realized that I really miss my sisters! They make me feel so loved.
I am not exactly sure why I am having this feeling. Nothing has changed in my life since yesterday. It could be because Matt is taking Friday (tomorrow) off of work so that we can go see dj Sasha spin in Guangzhou this weekend, and we are staying at the Oriental Resort which looks very nice. It could be because I am finally back on a normal schedule after our all nighter at the Yacht Club Ball. It could be because I picked up my plane ticket to come home for Christmas yesterday, and it is free due to all of Dad's frequent flier miles and I get to fly Singapore Airlines rather than United. It could be because today the weather here in Hong Kong is brisk and cooler than usual, so that you can wear jeans comfortably, but still perfectly sunny and clear. It could be because I had 7 emails in my inbox this morning. Or, it could be because I had chocolate chips and coke light for breakfast. Whatever the reason, I am doing my best not too analyze it to much for fear of ruining it.
So what am I doing today? Not much, considering all of the excited energy I have...I am packing for Guangzhou, and will probably do some laundry later. I ran around this morning opening every single window and cleaned up the clutter around our house. I walked through the park and picked up some odds and ends at the drug store and then sat in the park reading The Princess Bride. I will leave in a couple of hours to meet Matt in Shenzhen. I am listening to Sublime. So, pretty uneventful I guess.
On a side note, I am much more excited to come home for Christmas than I thought I would be. It is going to be so great to see everyone and I am really looking forward to the familiar tradition of skiing in Utah. I am also eager to get back to San Diego, cause I am looking forward to the great Christmas weather that San Diego has, sunny and clear and wonderful. And mexican food and pancakes. And swimming with my little sisters. When I was in the park this morning there was a field trip of kids about Marissa's age and I realized that I really miss my sisters! They make me feel so loved.
Wednesday, November 17, 2004
Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club Ball
Saturday was the annual Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club Ball. Since the Club is, of course, members only, we had to be sponsored by a member in order to get tickets. Now, I am not sure exactly how that happened, as our friend Michele invited and had the connections to get us some tickets. We got the after-midnight tickets since tickets were very expensive, and were even more expensive if you bought the tickets for the full ball which lasted from 7 at night until 7 in the morning. Once you bought tickets though everything was included, all the food and drinks and everything frm the bars was free. It was a black tie event, which meant that Matt had to dress up (!), or you had the option of dressing according to the theme of the ball which was Arabian Nights or something like that. It was pretty fun, and had several different bands and djs spread throughout the RHKYC building. We danced all night and Matt got WAY too drunk.
At the ball, it was confirmed for me once again that being rich does not make you cool in any way. The old men that lasted into the morning were pretty scummy and were obviously preying on the younger women. I am getting sick of the elitist attitude that is so prevalent here but I suppose that comes with the territory of attending an event at the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club. I bought my dress at a place called the Pedder Building, which is a discount place with ton of little stalls and the clothes all piled together in baskets, and I think the dress was a great find. So, when people asked me where I got my dress I thought it was fabulous and amusing to say "The Pedder Building" but people just sort of laughed awkwardly and looked the other direction in response. Matt got his suit made in Shenzhen and frankly, we looked great together, and we didn't need prove ourselves by wearing expensive or designer clothing. (By the way, I had never seen Matt in a suit before and I thought he looked very good. He has spent years telling me he doesn't look good in a suit but he is wrong.) One of the things I love about the US is that we are not as preoccupied with designer clothes and hand bags and we don't seem to need to be so haughty and conspicuous about our money. (At least in California...the east coast prep school/ivy leaguers are a different story. Actually, maybe that is just my experience with the US.) I can tell you, ne of the first things I will be doing when I get to San Diego is making a run for Ross and Target.
Anyway, we had a great time at the Ball and we lasted until the "survivor photo" at 7 in the morning, and then even went to an after hours club called Home until 9 am. Sunday we slept in till 5 pm, so my sleep schedule has been pretty messed up, hence the delay in posting the photos and blog entry.
Hot Stud
At the ball, it was confirmed for me once again that being rich does not make you cool in any way. The old men that lasted into the morning were pretty scummy and were obviously preying on the younger women. I am getting sick of the elitist attitude that is so prevalent here but I suppose that comes with the territory of attending an event at the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club. I bought my dress at a place called the Pedder Building, which is a discount place with ton of little stalls and the clothes all piled together in baskets, and I think the dress was a great find. So, when people asked me where I got my dress I thought it was fabulous and amusing to say "The Pedder Building" but people just sort of laughed awkwardly and looked the other direction in response. Matt got his suit made in Shenzhen and frankly, we looked great together, and we didn't need prove ourselves by wearing expensive or designer clothing. (By the way, I had never seen Matt in a suit before and I thought he looked very good. He has spent years telling me he doesn't look good in a suit but he is wrong.) One of the things I love about the US is that we are not as preoccupied with designer clothes and hand bags and we don't seem to need to be so haughty and conspicuous about our money. (At least in California...the east coast prep school/ivy leaguers are a different story. Actually, maybe that is just my experience with the US.) I can tell you, ne of the first things I will be doing when I get to San Diego is making a run for Ross and Target.
Anyway, we had a great time at the Ball and we lasted until the "survivor photo" at 7 in the morning, and then even went to an after hours club called Home until 9 am. Sunday we slept in till 5 pm, so my sleep schedule has been pretty messed up, hence the delay in posting the photos and blog entry.
Hot Stud
Monday, November 08, 2004
Doctor Visit
Today I went to the doctor here in Hong Kong for the first time. I needed to get a Hong Kong prescription for my medication, so I got a referral from another expat lady here. It was such a great experience. First of all, you don't need insurance. It is affordable to pay for the doctor consultation and medicine even without being covered. Second of all, I called up today to make an appointment and they told me to come in 2 hours. How great is that? I am not sure if I just got lucky with a good doctor or what...Dr. Cheung spent alot of time with me, and didn't make me feel rushed at all. He spent alot of time figuring out what the Hong Kong brand names were for the prescriptions I needed and asked me about my situation in Hong Kong. Of course, the cholesterol medicine I take lead him to ask about my family history, and then to talking about my father, and then of course I am sure you can tell what the result was. I started crying and crying, but the doctor was very nice and referred me to a counselor. Then he gave me 50% off of the price of my visit that day. He carried my prescriptions to the pharmacy for me, gave me his business card and said, very sincerely, that if I ever needed anything that I should call him. I feel very lucky that I was referred to such a kind person, and it is when things like that happen that you realize that there alot of very good people in this world. I really can't imagine a doctor acting like that in the US. Maybe I just haven't had nice doctors in the past.
Saturday, November 06, 2004
Wake Boarding (or at least trying)
Today Matt and I had the good fortune of being invited on a junk boat trip. It was excellent: lots of food, good weather and swimming. It was a day of personal triumph for me because I forced myself to jump off the top of the boat. Matt says the top of the boat is not very high, but my knees tell me that it is. You see, whenever I am standing and looking over the edge of something and my knees start shaking uncontrollably, I know that it is "high". But, since I didn't jump off the top of the boat on our last junk boat trip, this time I decided I had to do it. So, I climbed over the railing and then clung to it for dear life. The problem is, whenever you climb over a railing and look like you are going to jump but are too afraid to do it, people start cheering for you and stuff, and then you really just have to do it. So, I jumped off when my mind wasn't noticing. (That sounds strange, but yes, it is possible to distract yourself so that you can do something you don 't want to.) Of course, once I actually jumped, my mind noticed again and thought, "OH MY GOD! WHY DID YOU DO THAT!?" and I screamed a quite a scream.
After lunch the opportunity arose for Matt and I to go wake boarding. It was sort of the same situation as last time. We were on the last trip out on the little speed boat, it was getting dark and everyone on the big boat was watching us. Around that time is when people were sort of getting a little restless and so they turned their attention to things outside of the big boat, mainly Matt and I trying to wake board on the small boat. Matt went first and he did very well. After a few times he got it and was wake boarding around the little alcove we were docked in. Then another guy went, and then I was last. Last was not a good thing to be because then everybody is waiting for you to finish so they can get home and it is almost dark. Now, I had never gone wake boarding before and I was proud because I could get out of the water so that I was standing. The only problem was, once I was up I could not stay up. I tried a few times and then one of the expat guys took a kayak out and paddled next to me, explaining what to do. Our boat driver was trying to pantomime how to wakeboard and even the guy in the sailboat that was next to us was yelling instructions. It was pretty funny. I decided that I need to go again when there is more light and less people staring at me! I didn't have it as bad as Matt did on our last junk boat trip. That was his first time wake boarding and it was sort of the same situation: he was in the last round of wake boarders, it was almost dark, and everyone was waiting for him. It was worse though because he was drunk, and all of the other people on that boat were young single guys. Somehow that makes it worse. Guys are much more competitive with that stuff. Plus, we didn't know those people at all, we had just met them in a bar a few nights earlier.
I love going out on the junk boat trips. You take the boats out and dock them in a some little alcove in one of the islands that surround Hong Kong Island and play around for the day. The water is warm and there is a boat attendant guy to get the lunch ready while everyone is swimming. The alcove we were in today was particularly nice, with very steep hills and huge boulders all around and a pretty, clean, empty beach in the middle.
After lunch the opportunity arose for Matt and I to go wake boarding. It was sort of the same situation as last time. We were on the last trip out on the little speed boat, it was getting dark and everyone on the big boat was watching us. Around that time is when people were sort of getting a little restless and so they turned their attention to things outside of the big boat, mainly Matt and I trying to wake board on the small boat. Matt went first and he did very well. After a few times he got it and was wake boarding around the little alcove we were docked in. Then another guy went, and then I was last. Last was not a good thing to be because then everybody is waiting for you to finish so they can get home and it is almost dark. Now, I had never gone wake boarding before and I was proud because I could get out of the water so that I was standing. The only problem was, once I was up I could not stay up. I tried a few times and then one of the expat guys took a kayak out and paddled next to me, explaining what to do. Our boat driver was trying to pantomime how to wakeboard and even the guy in the sailboat that was next to us was yelling instructions. It was pretty funny. I decided that I need to go again when there is more light and less people staring at me! I didn't have it as bad as Matt did on our last junk boat trip. That was his first time wake boarding and it was sort of the same situation: he was in the last round of wake boarders, it was almost dark, and everyone was waiting for him. It was worse though because he was drunk, and all of the other people on that boat were young single guys. Somehow that makes it worse. Guys are much more competitive with that stuff. Plus, we didn't know those people at all, we had just met them in a bar a few nights earlier.
I love going out on the junk boat trips. You take the boats out and dock them in a some little alcove in one of the islands that surround Hong Kong Island and play around for the day. The water is warm and there is a boat attendant guy to get the lunch ready while everyone is swimming. The alcove we were in today was particularly nice, with very steep hills and huge boulders all around and a pretty, clean, empty beach in the middle.
Tuesday, November 02, 2004
Makybe Diva
Today was the Melbourne Cup. I had never heard of it before, but apparently it is the horse race of the year in Australia. I was invited by some other expat ladies to an event hosted by the Australian Association at the Happy Valley Race Course to have lunch and watch the race. We got there at 10:30 in the morning, and what did they give us? Coffee? Tea? No...Champagne or beer and sausages, mini pizzas, or quiches. Alot of the ladies had big flouncy hats on and frilly dresses and it was quite fun to look at all the ladies.
Next we headed inside to place our bets...I bet on Hug's Dancer and Pacific Dancer. It probab ly wasn't the most well thought out bet, since I just chose the two horses with names that ended with "Dancer", but hey, what was I supposed to do? I don't know anything about Australian horses. If it were American horses, now that would be a different story. :)
From there, we headed upstairs to have our lunch and watch the race. It was a gorgeous lunch, another multi-course extravaganza, and of course there was endless wine as usual. The race was...short. It was over before it started, really. The whole day-long hullabaloo for those short seconds of actual racing. Needless to say, I wasn't a winner. Pacific Dancer and Hug's Dancer really let me down this time! The winner was Makybe Diva, and the only person at our table who bet for that horse only put down 20 HK dollars! That is nothing! She won 6 HK dollars, which is less than 1 US dollar.
After lunch, I thought it was over, but no. Upstairs for more drinks and a jazz band. After a couple of hours, I really thought it was over. By this time it was dark, and we had been there since 10:30 am. I couldn't believe it when two of the ladies, one of them pregnant, suggested we go over to the Captain's Bar at the Mandarin Oriental. So...there we went. Those Australians really like to drink.
Next we headed inside to place our bets...I bet on Hug's Dancer and Pacific Dancer. It probab ly wasn't the most well thought out bet, since I just chose the two horses with names that ended with "Dancer", but hey, what was I supposed to do? I don't know anything about Australian horses. If it were American horses, now that would be a different story. :)
From there, we headed upstairs to have our lunch and watch the race. It was a gorgeous lunch, another multi-course extravaganza, and of course there was endless wine as usual. The race was...short. It was over before it started, really. The whole day-long hullabaloo for those short seconds of actual racing. Needless to say, I wasn't a winner. Pacific Dancer and Hug's Dancer really let me down this time! The winner was Makybe Diva, and the only person at our table who bet for that horse only put down 20 HK dollars! That is nothing! She won 6 HK dollars, which is less than 1 US dollar.
After lunch, I thought it was over, but no. Upstairs for more drinks and a jazz band. After a couple of hours, I really thought it was over. By this time it was dark, and we had been there since 10:30 am. I couldn't believe it when two of the ladies, one of them pregnant, suggested we go over to the Captain's Bar at the Mandarin Oriental. So...there we went. Those Australians really like to drink.
Monday, November 01, 2004
Halloween
Yesterday, Matt and I were invited to a four course dinner and jazz show at the Aberdeen Marina Club. When Matt and I went on that junk boat trip a few weeks ago, the boat left from the the pier next to the AMC, and we had gazed longingly into the "Member's Only" club with the giant pool and waterslides and a very yummy smelling buffet. So, we were excited to have the opportunity to have a nice meal there. We were invited by a woman from the At Home group, and her husband is the head chef at the AMC. I was a little bit nervous that I wasn't going to make it through four courses and the all of the accompnaying drinks, but I did because each course was perfectly portioned so that you never got too full. We had stewed rabbit with gravy, a very artistic Caesar salad with all of the lettuce pointing upwards, roasted red pepper soup, Sea Bass, a very yummy raisin cobbler dessert thing with rum raisin homemade ice cream and then petit fours at the end. It was delicious. Oh, and never ending red wine, white wine and champagne. It is sort of disorienting because they keep refilling your glass, so it is hard to keep track of how muchyou have had. I had at least 4 glasses of different drinks going at one point. The jazz singer, Cherryl Hayes, was excellent. She was American and I found out that she had been an accountant until she was middle aged, when all of a sudden she realized she could sing. I think Dad would've loved that! It seemed like he always felt he was an artist trapped in an accountant's job.
So, sitting at the table surrounded by British people (aside from matt and one Chinese woman) I realized that I am having more culture shock with British people than I have ever had with any other nationality. I am very accustomed to Chinese ways, partly because of Quinnie, partly because there were always alot of Chinese people in school with me, and partly because they are usually so sincere and friendly. British people seem to be highly cynical and most of their "clever dinner party repartee" is just dripping with sarcasm. Now, don't get me wrong, all of the British people that I have met here have been nothing but nice. I was (fortunately) seated next to the Chinese wife of one of the Britsh men. She was very happy, nice, friendly, and funny. I could see glances being exchanged across the table, which were very unecessary in my opinion.
After the dinner, Matt and I went out for Halloween! Matt and I had a very good, last-minute sort of Halloween. I got my Bumble Bee costume on Saturday and Matt threw together his Mongolian Warrior costume on Sunday. We went down to Lan Kwai Fong and cruised the streets. We literally couldn't go five feet without someone asking to take our picture. I guess that is what the locals like t do, get dressed up and then go out and take pictures of themselves with other people that are dressed up. If I had known that, I would have brought my camera! There were some good costumes out there. Matt and I went to some clubs, but my wings were sort of clumsy on the dance floor and he was too hot in his lambskin Mongolian Warrior vest. We got into a club for free cause of our costumes, so that was cool.
Bzzz, I'm a bumble bee.
So, sitting at the table surrounded by British people (aside from matt and one Chinese woman) I realized that I am having more culture shock with British people than I have ever had with any other nationality. I am very accustomed to Chinese ways, partly because of Quinnie, partly because there were always alot of Chinese people in school with me, and partly because they are usually so sincere and friendly. British people seem to be highly cynical and most of their "clever dinner party repartee" is just dripping with sarcasm. Now, don't get me wrong, all of the British people that I have met here have been nothing but nice. I was (fortunately) seated next to the Chinese wife of one of the Britsh men. She was very happy, nice, friendly, and funny. I could see glances being exchanged across the table, which were very unecessary in my opinion.
After the dinner, Matt and I went out for Halloween! Matt and I had a very good, last-minute sort of Halloween. I got my Bumble Bee costume on Saturday and Matt threw together his Mongolian Warrior costume on Sunday. We went down to Lan Kwai Fong and cruised the streets. We literally couldn't go five feet without someone asking to take our picture. I guess that is what the locals like t do, get dressed up and then go out and take pictures of themselves with other people that are dressed up. If I had known that, I would have brought my camera! There were some good costumes out there. Matt and I went to some clubs, but my wings were sort of clumsy on the dance floor and he was too hot in his lambskin Mongolian Warrior vest. We got into a club for free cause of our costumes, so that was cool.
Bzzz, I'm a bumble bee.
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