Chapter 1
Full of sheer joy I boarded the A12 airport bound bus making sure I had plenty of time to spare. That crucial moment when Mama and Papa emerged from the arrival hall enterance was one I just couldn't miss! With my eyes glued to the screen of arriving passengers I received a text message from madre saying "Weev arrived" and then a call saying they were coming through "looking like dead dogs" haha. I wondered what to expect! That moment when we were reunited was one i'll never forget, and so the week brimming with adventure and laughs commences.
We hopped in a taxi and headed for the City Gardens Hotel in North Point, shortly after dropping the luggage and settling in we headed down to the hotel bar... Padre's face was one of real delight as he delved deeper into the basement of live sports T.V's and ale's! We became aquianted with the doorman and tour guide extrodinaire Tony who offered a few of his pearls of local wisdom and tried to coax Mum and Dad into sampling the Lan Kwai Fong nightlife! I headed back to Nan Fung Sun Cheun on the tram feeling the gentle flutter of wind in my hair and feeling so content in the knowledge that I was back in the bossom of Team Tobin :)
Chapter 2
We took a stroll around North Point looking curiously at the many local stalls selling pigs feet, claws and frogs by the dozen. Our nostrils awakened to the fresh blends of herbal teas and rather overpowering fresh fish scents! The rain boiled over shifting from a simmering drizzle, we dashed to a nearby stall and huddled under our umberellas. After decending from The Peak we went for a wander around Central, after a soothing massage and a wander we headed over to Din Tai Fung Taiwanese Restaraunt in Tsim Sha Tsui for some sumptous soup dumplings and jasime tea. We then went to see the view of the harbour from the Marco Polo hotel... we walked the perimeter and took in the blanket of illuminations.
Chapter 3
The sun was shining and smiling down on our day of adventure to Lantau Island, a real highlight of the holiday. Here were were able to experience beautiful local charm and broaden our perspective of how life can be lived. We headed down to the ferry pier at Central and took the boat to Mui Wo, here we caught the bus up to Po Lin monastry. The drive up to the Big Buddha allowed us to get a snapshot of Hong Kong which you would find hard to believe, straying from the city bustle gave us the chance to capture the adverse side of the city. The buddha sits commandingly at the top of the mountain as the crowds flock up the matchstick steps in hommage. His hand raised in gesture to all that journey to witness his wonderment. Madre was quite content to see Buddha from the bottom of the steps but me and padders decided to venture to the top, doing it rocky balboa style! At the top we were able to appreciate some spectacular views, the light mist peaked and added to the mysticism of the expereince. Pops also gave me some photography hints and tips as I was really keen to put my new Hogla camera to use. We then explored the Po Lin monastary, I loved the vibrancy and what you can imagine to be the sheer tranquility of the place. We then decided to do a Barca style cable car journey which allowed us to see full paraoramic views of lantau and surrounding islands. We were with some local people on our outward jounrey, a real merging of cultures... shame we couldn't make small talk though :) When we arrived in Tai O we were instantly struck by the overpowering scent of the dried fish, stalls line the village streets and seems to be the main trade. As we ambled along we peered into the coregated iron houses built on stilts. Even in such simpilicty some houses had plasma T.V's mounted near the make shift walls. It was so interesting so see the lifetyle of the local village people, playing marjon next to the water, sitting and talking as vendors try to flog their produce. We were able to board a small speedboat for 20 dollars each to go and see the pink dolphins and have a tour around the village on stilts. As the boat engine purred we bombed off into the open ocean a la James Bond, with the wind in our hair and the sea breeze in our lungs it truely was a special moment. We stopped the boat and hoped to see the pink dolphins but didnt hold out much hope, then we saw the gliding icing pink bodies bobbing up to the surface. Everyone gasped and couldnt believe it! Afterwards vdelved deeper into the village and me and Mum bought some egg bubbles from a lady at a roadside hatch, she signalled that we could collect them when we passed on the way back through. Then we came across a man called Wilfed who was shuffling back from his daily cold shower next to the park, he asked pops what newspaer he read and asked the difference between the types. He facinated us with his knowledge of British culture, talking about Henry the 8th and how he was eductaed in Mid Levels, Central. He engaged us in chat and he and Padre sat side by side on the bench talking about a whole host of different things. Dad said he would send him a copy of The Mail as he wasn't able to get it anymore. In the meantime the lady from the egg bubbles shop had peddled over on her pushbike to deliver the warm chocolate flavoured puffs. The friendliness of the village folk was something that really left us with a warm feeling. As we walked away we could see Wilfreds hunched outline and his waving hand smudging into the fading gully between the coregated iron houses. After being caught in a temporary time warp we proceeded through the village but there was little sign of life and tourists were sparce. It then dawned on us that all transport from the village may have been terminated. We dashed through the dried fish stalls leaving the lingering scent behind and thankfully returned to the bus terminal to find that transport was still running. Padre took the exectitive decision and suggested that we opt to take the MTR back to North Point as night time was drawing in. That night we dined at the hotel and mused over a spectacular day of events :)
Chapter 4
After work I went to meet Madre and Padre at their hotel and we hopped in a taxi to Causeway Bay. Pops was amazed by the attention to detail and the archeticatue in this area and we had a lovely feast at SML restaraunt. Afterwards we walked around Times Square and sipped on a mango sago drink as we took in the fresh bustling scene.
Chapter 5
After another hearty City Gardens breakfast Mum and Dad were Stanley bound... well that was the plan but the buses were few and far between as they waited patiently outside Fortress Hill MTR station. Eventually they opted to take a taxi over and lapped up the beautfiul views of the coast and reseviour. They abled around the market and checkout out Murray House and Maratime museum, afterwards they went off piste and ventured to Repulse Bay, DeepwaterBay and Southbay. Ticking those Bays off one by one! Really was a tour de costal... i've got on the notes here a reference to 'Peg-meter', can't quite remember where that comes into the mix! Afterwards I met Mum and Dad at Sai Wan Ho MTR station and showed them my place of work. They thought that Excel was cosy and welcoming and met our lovely smiley cleaner too which was nice :) We then went for a walk along the promendade nearby the school and were intrigued by the locals activity, playing marjong, fishing and doing Tai Chi. Madre was lapping it up and we sat and watched their gracefull motions. We went for a lovely Thai meal and then headed up to Sugar bar on the 33rd floor of the Island East hotel. The panormaic views of the harbour and beyond were spectacular, we looked on as we sunk into the the beanbags :) Cutis Mayfield "Move on Up" came on and instantly Rachel came to mind so we gave her a call, it was great to hear her dolict tones! Dad has confessed that he and Mama were a little dubious abotu coming to see my digs and had presumed the worst haha. Fortuntately they thought that the flat was cosy, in a nice area and were pleasantly suprised! I packed a bag and went to join Team Tobin in North Point.
Chapter 6
We started the day with a truely amazing breaky, it really did put my usual bowl of cornflakes to shame! With full bellies and a spring in our step we set off on our next jaunt. Today was the birth of the namesake "Lamma mama ding dong" haha. We set of via ferry from Central and around 20 minutes later we decended upon the ebbing flow of bohemian bliss that is Lamma Island. We meandered through the village enchanted by the diversity and beautiful lush greenery. We had a short hike to the nearby beach and felt like we were in out in the jungle, Padre had dressed appropraitely for the occassion and fitted in a treat with his palm print shirt :) We had a lovely lunch near the water and then had a wee siesta on the beach... perfection. We walked back to the village and stopped at shops stemming from the rural path brimming with nick nicks from all over. After stopping at an internet cafe we had a beer outside and mulled over the tranquility of island life. We took the boat back to central, it was lovely to see the skyline at night as we came in to dock. To juxta-pose our day of sheer tranquility I led Mum and Dad to Temple Street night market in Jordan, a step too far as it proved to be a truely hectic hub. The proposition of dining next to two local men with toilet roll for napkins was the straw that broke the camels back! We headed back to the hotel for dinner, a safe haven indeed :)
Chapter 7
After a nice soothing slumber we headed out to Shek O village. It was Chung Yeung The Chung Yeung Festival is a day to respect and remember ancestors, a ritual that is widely followed in Hong Kong among the Chinese community. We arrived and wandered around the village nosying into the brightly coloured small houses and stopped for lime soda and coffee at the charming beach bar. We walked along the beach and looked on as some of the local boys tried at riding the waves! Think they were gearing up for Big Wave Bay another beach just around the corner. We ticked that bay off aswell, me and Dad went exlporing up the nearby steep coastal trail but headed back down after some locals told us that it was the trail to Stanley! We had an eccletic lunch or thai rice and pizza which went down a treat. We didn't want to fill ourselves up too much as we were heading over to Hutong that evening. We hopped on the mini bus back to Shau Kei Wan and then left Mum and Dad at Taikoo. I remember the sun was shining so brightly when I got into the apartment to get ready, I was smiling ear to ear as the rays hit my cheeks :) A few hours later I met Madre and Padre at Fortress Hill and we proceeded on to Tsim Sha Tsui for an evening of delights. We went up to Aqua Bar first to see the light show, we cannily plotted to get a good spec ready for the beggining of the illuminations. I think the lack of sound threw us off and we were unsure as to whether "The Show" had begun... it was after 8 but we just wern't convinced that the show was in full swing! Some strobe lights flashed sporadically and then things started to get going :) Oh and how could I forget Momma Love's new found love of Tequila haha, "I'll just have a tequila shot to top mine up", "Excuse me I really don't think this is tequila". Funny times! Then we went down to Hutong and it was such a special meal, papa shed a tear and we shared such a wonderful evening. After the meal we went over to the iconic Peninsula Hotel for Coffee and listened to the live band and got through a bowl or four of free crisps! We conluded the night by taking a trip back over to the island via the Star Ferry for 2 dollars. All in all a truely special and memorable evening :)
Chapter 8
The final day of the HK trip and a half, we kicked things off with the final big breakfast but this wasn't the last time we'd be gracing the City Gardens dining hall :) Me and pops then went for a quick dip in the outdoor pool, afterwards we went to mass at St Jude's church in North Point. What an uplifting and wonderful mass it was, all of the smiling faces of the congregation singing and celebrating. We'd got a taste for travelling via boat so had one last excursion to Hung Hom, a rather random destination but was lovely all the same! We strolled along the waterfront and took in the activity of the locals. It was out final stroll together, exploring and taking in new snippets of culture together. The last supper beckoned and the mention of a sunday roast at the all you can eat buffet was enough to reel us in... well definitely me! We feasted like it was Christmas Day, well I suppose it was in our own special way :) I collected my bags and hugged Mum and Dad tightly, a squeeze that would see me through until 2011. It should have been so sad saying goodbye but I was just joyful inside to know that I have the love and support of my wonderful parents. I can feed off the fun and amazing times we shared together for many moons yet, until our next adventure :)
