Hong Kong 2011

Hong Kong was a blast. I loved it... minus the food and the lack of regard for personal space that Asians seem to have (no offense to any of my Asian friends reading this blog). Here's a quick digest of some of my favorite experiences:

1. Monkey Mountain. Monkey's literally roam free on this mountain road. My goal was to pet a monkey. Afterall they are sweet, cute little things right? And surely they would enjoy a little back scratch from an equally as sweet and cute little human. I should have read the "Protect Yourself From Monkey's Sign" before entering monkey mountain not after leaving it. I approached one slowly and squatted down about 2 feet away from him. He didn't mind this at all. No problem yet. I held out my hand, palm up and this is when the monkey barred his fangs and hissed at me. Yes I said fangs. They looked like that to me. It was like he was part vampire. Not only did he show his teeth and hiss but he lunged at me. Thankfully at 30 years old I still have good reflexes. I jumped about ten feet in the air and backed away quickly. Threatening to put my foot in the monkey's mouth by way of a swift kick in the teeth also got the monkey to back off. Catherine and her friend Oscar were laughing in the background. By the end of our walk 3 monkeys hissed at me. I deserved the first two. But not the last one. Anyway, my goal to pet a monkey was not accomplished. And not only that, but I don't think I like monkey's anymore. Hmph. Their loss.

2. Big Buddha - This is the largest outdoor Buddha statue in the world. It was absolutely massive. Located in the mountains. The landscape was beautiful.

3. Chinese Garden - These ancient homes are built like giant puzzles. No nails or screws of any kind are used. Pretty impressive and really beautiful.

4. Hong Kong Harbor - Hong Kong is massive. It makes NYC look like a playground. The skyscrapers are huge, they're everywhere, and they are packed really closely together. Even on the hillsides.

5. Wet Market - I loved this stop. They sell whole chickens... neck, head and all along with various other animal parts from cows, ducks etc. I watched several fish meet the end of their fate. Poor little guys. They kill the fish right in front of you with one whack to the head with a mallet. Then they scale him and slice him up. One minute he's alive and the next he's gone. The cycle of life. Glad that's not how it works for us.

6. Buddhist temple - This was a really interesting experience. I watched people light incense and worship. The incense was a little overwhelming actually. Worshipers brought food as offerings such as whole pigs and chickens, fishes, and fruits. I liked the art and design of the temples. Lots of dragons and intricate details.

7. Macau Tower and St Paul's Cathedral - On Macau island off of Hong Kong. Even though it's part of China you have to have a passport to get through. It's a Portugese island. The tower is the 10th largest in the world. The glass floor was freaky! Made you feel like you were about to drop to your death.

The Cathedral was blown to bits during some war so only the face still stands. There aren't many, if any, Christian Cathedral's in Hong Kong.

8. One of My Favorite Buildings - It was made to look like Koala's are climbing it. Cool huh?

Some other interesting things...

People wear medical masks here a lot. Was weird to see at first. But after being on the subway with tons of people who have no regard for personal space and cough all over you (people literally don't cover their mouth and cough on you) I began understand why people where masks.

Road a double decker bus.

Walked on a concrete soccer field. Who thought that was a good idea???

Trees grow out of walls here.

The grocery store shelves are SO straight and tidy. I really liked that.

Actually tried some Asian cuisine. I'll stick to American food thank you. But at least I tried. Right?

My trip to Hong Kong was awesome. I had a really great time... minus the cold I got two days after being there! I would recommend a stop to Hong Kong for anyone interested in experiencing a taste of Asia. It's a really neat city.