My First Trip to Hong Kong

I'm actually writing this in Oct 2009. Weird isn't it. But better late than never. The past few months have been hectic and I kinda lost my mood to blog. Anyways here I am again trying to capture the bits and pieces of my life, or as much as I can remember.

It's a short 4 day trip to Hong Kong for Meimei's grandma's 80th Birthday. The significance of the trip though was so much more . It's the first time I'm meeting the family and being able to attend a family event meant I was being accepted into the family. It was such a relief and heartwarming to be welcomed by all the uncle and aunties. The way they tried to chat and mingle with me literally put me at ease. This may seem a simple thing to others, but to someone who does not see this at all in his own family, it's a huge gesture. More so, as they try to converse with me in English and Chinese. Words cannot describe how much I appreciate their generosity and warmth.

We spent a better part of the trip eating and shopping. Everything was an eye opener for me and I knew I could get used to travelling as a new hobby, abit wallet permitting hehe. Most of our meals were at the local coffee houses which essentially serve the 2 basic stables of Hong Kong cusine, Char Siew and Sio Ba. Seriously the Char Siew in Hong Kong is so much better than those in Singapore. My mouth watered everytime we walked into a coffee house. Even the shopping was so much more engaging and interesting. We trooped through the local markets day and night and went through hordes and hordes of street hawkers. It's nothing like the mall shopping we do in Singapore where everything is packed nicely on shelves. The street markets were more of an organised chaos. But it's this chaotic yet bustling feel that gives it it's vibrancy.

I love the place. The city, the people, the streets, the weather, the everything. Maybe it's because the place is fresh and new to me, but I'm sure I'll fit right in if I ever get to live and work here. And you can be sure I'll be back here again, even if it's just to walk into a coffee house to have a plate of Char Siew rice. Hehe.