54 Hours in Hong Kong

I can see the lightning. I can hear the thunder. For all I know, my flight will be delayed for longer than just the measly hour that was bargained for at the check-in counter. The unreal aspect of Hong Kong has come and gone. The trip is over, so why is it taking so long to get back home? Talk about a jam packed vacation, this was definitely one for the books. The first morning was a rough one. With green streaming from my eyelids, i answered my phone to a wake up call from JoJo. "you're not ready are you?". She asks with a twinge in her voice. Of course, for me, it takes ten minutes to clean up, get dressed, and grab my keys. We were off quickly, stopping for the morning joe and talking about our wacky work weekend. With excitement in our steps and sleep in our minds, we were off to a quick, 2 1/2 day adventure to a land that we had only ever heard about. There was no trepidation from either of us until we reached our hostel. After locating the woman who spoke zero English, she escorted us to a room about the size of that little crammed room in Willy Wonka. A bed, a small nightstand, and a bathroom doubling as a changing room and shower. This is what we had, but it was fine considering the amount of time we actually would be spending in the room. We embarked upon our first adventure, bringing us to a nunnery in the north part of the city. With our flight delay from Shanghai, we arrived too late and were only able to view the nunnery from the outside. "On to the street market!" we cried with hesitation in our voices. Normally, one would be excited about a market that sells anything and everything. Unfortunately, the curiosity wears off when the market is practically identical to the ones that are a five minute stroll from your residence. Still, we took to the market like savage coyotes, waving our foreign accents and even heavier wallets. Gifts were bought. Food was eaten, but the overall excitement of this new place was yet to be seen. With somewhat clean linen, we gave in to our slumber, only to be awoken with a sun-filled morning. Of course there was a plan for an amusement park. Out of pure rebellion, Disneyland was not the favored choice. After exploring parts of the city such as Avenue of the Stars and Repulse Bay, it was on to Ocean Park. A wonderful merry land full of aquatic themed attractions, hair raising rides, and lots of people, this place was way more intense than originally anticipated. With bated breath, we took to the sidewalk towards the first adventure we could find. After the excitement of the coasters, bumper cars, and endless amounts of walking had worn off, we were on our way to The Peak. Oh, what a harrowing bus ride that turned out to be. Twists and turns that left me with the feeling associated with too much tequila. Finally, at the top. Let's see everything...oh no, it's really foggy. We decide to drown our sorrows in fried food and alcohol. Hello, Bubba Gump Shrimp Company (that one's for you, Ryan). Luckily, at some point during our gastro indulgence, the skies opened and the city came into full view. We raced to the overlook terrace and stared down at this mecca of thriving life and business. After taking countless pictures that will never do the view any sort of justice, we headed back to fall to the lords of slumber once again. Day 2 was not over for me, however. I began to wander. I didn't know where to, but I just knew that there was not much time to spend here, so I wanted to explore as much as I could. After finding a bar that served somewhat cheap drinks, I wandered around a bit more. No headphones, no people, just me and my thoughts. And it hit me again, for about the 200th time since embarking upon my original Asia adventure. Holy crap, am I really in Hong Kong? A slap in the face of reality. The experiences and sights that I've been a part of still boggle my mind. Day three, where is....? It's only hard to find something when you know you've seen it a million times. That point aside, we brought our bags to the airport, dropped them off for hold at an astronomical price, and set off for this cable car thing. This was not your grandfather's cable car. A 25 minute ride through the mountains, over the river, through the woods, well you know how it goes. And it drops us off inside of a cloud. A small village housing eateries, shops, a monastery, and the worls famous 100 foot tall Buddha statue. Yes! Bring on the historical part of the...wait, it was built in 1992? It was still beautiful, at least what could be seen. After the harrowing 250 steps up, the disappointment grew when we saw that the fog would be detrimental to our view of this wonderous figure. Still, we snapped our cameras out of curiosity and jubilation. So much was accomplished in the small amount of time we had in Hong Kong. Yet, I somewhat feel unaccomplished in a weird way. Well, whatever I missed will have to be made up for at some point. The trials and tribulations of my traveling career are getting fewer and far between, at least.

Springtime in Shanghai

The colors, smells, and feel of this bustling city have grown toward the better over the past few weeks. Seeing pink flowers, purple leaves,

and green grass bring about a sense of happiness and euphoria to even the most cynically negative person. Finding solace in the colors and odors of a new season brings about new people, opportunities, and fun. In just a few short weeks of the newly turned spring, I have visited lakes, new parts of the city, and countless cheap markets peddling endless amounts of watches, sunglasses, wallets, and of course, pirated DVDs.

My spring present to myself was buying a moped. I had chatted with friends about the possibility of buying a motorized bike, but the traffic patterns in Shanghai make the helix entering the Lincoln Tunnel look like a deserted highway. With great determination, I purchased my new machine, with lock, and took off on an adventure throughout the city. The swift wind flowing into my face and the somewhat fresh air felt like a wave of new emotion and freedom in my world of being an expat in a large city. Topping out at 50km (30mph), the moped

does enough for me to enjoy myself without feeling the fear of the possibility of flying through or on top of a windshield.

Spurring from a promise made to friends, one Friday night, I left work and headed to the Hongkou Football Stadium. Here, the Shanghai Shenhua (FireFall) play their football matches. They only have matches scheduled on Friday nights and Saturdays, making it difficult for me to attend a match. However, I was able to attend. After arguing with the ticket scalper about the amount of money that would be drawn from my wallet, I entered the arena. I walked through the uncoordinated line, passed through security, and took my seat for my first ever sporting event outside the USA. Before the match, everyone stood, put their hand over their heart, and to my surprise, they sang a song other than the US National Anthem. I sat taking pictures, and it was then that I noticed two things that struck me as odd. There is no food or drink sold in the stadium. Plenty of people brought

in their own food, but the stadium is strictly for observation, and not for charging an exorbitant amount of money for a measly soda. Soon, the players took the field, and the battle commenced. Cheering, I watched the combatants kick the life out of the ball. Unfortunately, the Shanghai team lost to Guangzhou 1-0. It was a hard fought battle with lots of excitement and red cards throughout.

This spring has proven to have a lot to offer, and I look forward to the rest of the spring and eventual summer. Explorations of the city and surrounding areas is something that I have not been able to do in a long while because of the weather. Now that the weather is changing, I look forward to exploring more of the mysterious and majestic city.