Hong Kong trip report

So I am very late to post some random comments about our April trip to Hong Kong. Here is a picture from the Ocean Park amusement park/aquarium; the park is split into two sections, separated by a large hill. You have to take a sky cable car to go from one side to the other. The views are spectacular.

1. It is very disorienting and difficult to walk in the city. The sidewalks are fine; the problem is crossing the street. I have 39 years of experience in crossing street, so it is obviously second nature to look a certain way when crossing an intersection.

But, of course, in Hong Kong, drivers drive on the left hand side.

You really have to stop yourself and think - where are the cars coming from? For example - if you are on the southwest corner of an intersection and want to walk to the northwest corner, you automatically look to your left for oncoming cars. It's empty - you start walking - and a car comes zooming by you on your right, making a left hand turn in front of you. It's hard to override all your instincts.

2. We went to a beach one afternoon on the ocean. While we were there, a few Caucasian families with children were there. One of them starting playing ball with Freddie.

I asked him where he lived. As soon as I asked, I realized that was a dumb question - he could have said anything - a road, a city, a country. He responded by saying the name of some apartment complex near by.

The next automatic question to any Caucasian over here is "how long have you lived here?" I was about to ask the boy that, but then stopped. It is certainly possible - probable? - that this is not a temporary stop, but his permanent home. He could be a "citizen".... For whatever reason, that boggled my mind. For the past 9 months, any "white" person I see is automatically a foreigner and could live anywhere in the world...here I am in "China" and I see a white person - it does not even dawn on me that this person could be a native - and that his parents could have been living here for their whole life.

3. Hong Kong is full of culinary delights! We had dinner by the pool one night - I got a club sandwich with fries. Out came my order - the fries were perfectly done - with a side of Grey Poupon.

Now that's something I have missed. My mouth is still watering thinking about Grey Poupon and how great it went with those fries......