Hong Kong. March 15 - 24, 2009

Sunday 3/15. CO99 was not packed and seat next to mine was not occupied: my definition of a good flight. Watched quite a few short subject TV shows. Had dinner at Cafe de Coral at the airport before heading to Tim's apartment where I will stay during the trip. Went out with Tim and Alyson to have "Double Skin Milk" at Yi Shun. (This would be Monday evening.)

Tuesday 3/17. Morning dim sum with Ruth and Steven at Jade Restaurant in Causeway Bay. Lunch with Alfred, Joy & Rachel at Grand Century Plaza Maxim Restaurant. Jogged with Alfred at Kowloon Tsai Park. Dinner at Lin Heung Restaurant with Ruth, Steven, Ling & Wally. This is a well-known, traditional, and reasonably priced restaurant well known for its braised duck dish. The HP Mini PC stopped working, to my great chagrin.

Wednesday 3/18. Went to Park Island (Ma Wan) with Ruth and Steven. The attraction Noah's Ark is complete but limited to pre-organized group tours for now. Saw a brief news description of it later in the week: not quite sure what to make of it. Lunch at a local restaurant filled with construction workers. Probably got sick from the food (stomach flu) which put a damper on my enjoyment of meals for the next several days. For dinner Ling brought food she prepared to Tim's apartment. Opened the bottle of wine Col Solare I brought with me. All together there were 10 of us. One of the few occasions that all 5 Cheung siblings get together.


With Ruth at the Ma Wan Park.


Noah's Ark at a distance. Not ready for the general public yet.


Picture taken at Tim's Apartment.

Thursday 3/19. Mid morning tea with Larry. Dim Sum lunch with Tim, Ruth & Steven at Hung Sing at the Times Square Food Forum. Dinner at Ling's apartment. Wally and Ling moved to Shatin about a month ago.

Friday 3/20. Lunch with Ka Shi at Bonheur in Sheung Wan. Tea with Larry. Brought take-out dishes to Tim's apartment for dinner.

Saturday 3/21. Lunch in Kowloon City with Mr. & Mrs. Leung. Did some shopping along Lion Rock Road. Dessert at a local place. Dinner at Queen's Palace in Wan Chai.


Lunch with the Leungs in Chiu Chow Restaurant in Kowloon City Center.

Sunday 3/22. Lunch at Lamma Hilton. Then it was to the Shek O - Po Toi area to look for the humpback whale that has been stranded in the area for a few days. Dutifully warned by the official boat to not disturb the whale. We saw the whale surface a couple of times, and were able to make out the plumes and the tail. Most of us hadn't seen a whale in the open before. Then it was to Stanley for coffee, and we swung by Middle Island before we headed back to Aberdeen Boat Club. Dinner at "Double Happiness", a fusion resturant in Causeway Bay.


Waiting for our lunch at the Lamma Rainbow Restaurant.


Whale watching. Picture taken by Wally.


Taken at Stanley. The character has the same Chinese nickname I had as a kid.


On Tim's Boat.

Monday 3/23. Last full day for the trip. Went to Shatin after breakfast at Cafe de Coral. Jogged two miles with Wally along the Shatin River. Lunch at a Tai Po Shanghainese Restaurant (with Wally, Ling, Ruth & Steven). Took the first afternoon nap of the trip in the afternoon. Dinner at Sang Kee with Kenneth, Anna, and young Kenneth who is home from UCLA for Spring Break. Sang Kee well-known for its Salt-baked chicken and porridge, which we had.

Tuesday 3/24. It rained today! Managed to not get wet on my way to the Central Airport Express terminal. Flight was much fuller than the seat map indicated the day before. Someone close by had an asthma attack and the flight attendants provided him with oxygen tanks to help him breathe. He used up quite a bit; good news is he survived. New Jersey is quite cold!