Jacky Cheung is one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Cantopop. While he is mostly unknown in the Western world, his legacy as a singer has influenced multiple generations. He is known for his upbeat dance songs but mostly for his love ballads. His 2016/2017 A Classic Tour alone has 20+ stops in Hong Kong (all sold-out) and another 100+ stops in various cities across Mainland China and the rest of Asia. When I first found out about the tour in September, all of Jacky Cheung's shows were already sold out. Scalpers were reselling tickets at over twice of the original price, and it was ultimately not worth it to buy them. At least that's the story that I originally told my mom... What I told her was true; however, I Skyped and Whatsapped Uncle Anthony and Aunt Bryony and told them my dilemma. Jacky Cheung is one of my mom's favorite Cantonese singers, if not THE favorite. (I later learned that my uncle is a huge fan of his too; he knows the lyrics to every song) In early October, my uncle found an announcement on Facebook from his company label that announced the addition of 3 more concerts in Hong Kong: Dec. 30, 31, and Jan 2. The tickets would be released for sale on October 14 at 10am Hong Kong time. When the time arrived, my uncle and aunt sat in front of their phones and computers in an attempt to get through the server. At last, 4 tickets were bought. This secret was kept for two whole months, all the way up until 2 hours before the actual concert itself. We debated over various ways of surprising my mom: surprising her on the plane, dropping hints on Facebook, telling her the day before the concert... In the end, we decided to surprise her over dinner before the concert. With Jennifer's (yes, my roommate) drawing skills, I managed to craft a surprise card to give to my mom at the dinner. There was a bit of emotion, tears that nearly spilled (but didn't), and happiness, so all of us declared the surprise a success! It's a rarity because my mom despises surprises 99.9% of the time. It probably goes without saying that we thoroughly enjoyed the concert. A neighborhood winter festival!Endless food pics in 3... 2...1... |
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Wicked :)
The musical was held at the Lyric Theatre of the Hong Kong Performing Arts Institute in Wan Chai. The theatre was amazing and the musical itself was identical to the Broadway production. Heading into the musical, I already knew most of the music numbers; however, I didn't know the plot, so it was a great experience for me to watch the story unfold. In all honestly, I felt that the plot itself was extremely relevant to modern society and was an indirect critique of societal views and norms.
Day 9: 14th Hong Kong Mega Expo (第14屆香港冬日美食節)
The Mega Expo included an entire exhibition hall of food, and another exhibition hall filled with food, home appliances, cars, toys, and everything you can imagine! Of course, the food exhibition hall was the busiest. I ended up spending around $120 HKD (~$22USD) just trying a bunch of different foods :D Other than that, I also bought some socks (they're super cute) and they were a total steal at $10HKD a pair.
Back to the Australian Dairy Company for dinner!
Day 10: Coco Ichibanya lunch, Deluxe Daikiya dinner, 3D Pulse Light Show
I didn't learn of Coco Curry until my favorite Youtubers, Simon and Martina, mention about the Japanese curry restaurant chain. They always rave about the amazing food there, so I thought I would try it in Hong Kong. Apparently, there was a location nearby, so all of us went for lunch. I ordered the tonkatsu (pork cutlet) and vegetable curry with less rice and medium spicy. It was so good (and spicy)!
The 3D Pulse Light show was pretty cool by using this wall on the Tsim Sha Tsui promenade to project a short and simple light show. The show was a short story about an elf that wanted to perform in Santa's talent show. Lucky(?) for me, the 8:45pm show ended up being in Cantonese so I had to translate the story in real-time for Adrienne.
Day 11: Adrienne leaves Hong Kong
Day 7: St. Andrew's Church Kowloon, Family dinner
Day 8: Lantau Island
Ngong Ping 360 Cable Car
Tai O Fishing Village
This was me after being motion sick from a 20 min bus ride (thanks, driver-who-sped-through-mountainous-roads). In this photo, we are waiting for the boat ride to start to sight see some dolphins! I thought I was going to get seasick, but the crashing waves made the ride more like a roller coaster ride. Instead, I was more scared of the stomach drop feeling than seasickness.
I was surprised at the owners' willingness of tourists photographing their property and its surroundings. I'm unsure of other residents' opinions but it was interesting to note that a number of residents adapt and welcome tourists and turn tourism into an income source instead of criticizing the commercialism and romanticization of their lifestyles.
Wisdom Path
Tian Tan Buddha
"Official" Ngong Ping 360 photos
Side note: I'm back in Saint Paul! I can't believe three weeks of being in Hong Kong passed by so quickly. It has been the most awesome three weeks of 2016/2017 being able to see my extended family after 5 and a half years of being physically apart. I'm hoping that I will be back again end of this year or beginning of next year to see family. No need to wait another five and a half years.
Again, sorry for the late updates. I didn't mention this in the last post, but the wifi in my Hong Kong Airbnb was extremely terrible, so it made me lose some motivation in updating while in HK.
Again, sorry for the late updates. I didn't mention this in the last post, but the wifi in my Hong Kong Airbnb was extremely terrible, so it made me lose some motivation in updating while in HK.
MTR South Horizons line: Ocean Park Station Opening Day
MTR (Mass Transit Railway) is the public transit system of Hong Kong. My aunt and uncle were lucky enough to have won tickets to the opening ceremony of the Ocean Park station of the new South Horizons line. The opening of this line officially connects all 18 districts of Hong Kong by MTR rail (train/subway).
Chi Lin Nunnery & Nan Lian Garden
Wong Tai Sin Temple
Sorry for the ridiculously late updates! I have been extremely tired and worn out from daily activities and it wasn't until today that I got to do absolutely nothing and revel in the feeling of sleepiness and boredom (and watch some YouTube videos). I'm hoping to catch up on a few more posts as my Hong Kong trip comes to an end this Saturday.
Unlike many people (and what my photos/posts may suggest or imply), I actually dislike sharing every second of my life on the internet, so I did not take very many photos of Day 4. I prefer to be in the moment and keep some memories to myself, so I hope you as the reader understand. Some background information... I consider Ma On Shan as my hometown in Hong Kong since my first memories were there. Visiting the neighborhood again and being able to just sit on a bench on the promenade along the Tolo Harbour allowed me to reflect on my childhood. I remembered the good (and bad) times that I had moving around several residences within Ma On Shan, as well as memories of attending Greenfield International Kindergarten and Shun Yeung Primary School down the street. It's interesting to note the gaps in my memory. My memories of Ma On Shan are like puzzle pieces. I remember bits and pieces of one location here and another location there...but I have no recollection of how to get from one location to another. |
For lunch, my mom and I managed to meet with one of my primary school classmates. We had been friends from kindergarten to second grade, but my immigration to the US marked the end of our friendship. Seeing each other after over 10 years was awkward to be honest, my childlike vocabulary in Cantonese prevented me from initiating the conversation (it's so embarassing for me to talk to people outside my family) and his natural shyness didn't ease the situation either. Despite the distance, it's interesting to note how both of us developed in personality and personal interests.
Day 5: Sam Tung Uk Museum (Tsuen Wan)
about me
college student. junior. international studies major. over-the-top foodie.
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