Saturday, January 18:
While many people in the group partook in different activities during our time in Hong Kong, for us the day included a visit to the island of Lantau. We took a quick MTR (the subway-like train public transportation) ride from Tsing Yi, our leaving point for each day, to Lantau. The first thing we did there was visit the Big Buddha, one of tourist attractions in Hong Kong. Many people in our group visited this site during our time here.
Afterwards, we took the bus to Tai O, a fishing village on the coast of Lantau. There we saw mangroves, stilted houses, and a traditional market. We also experienced a moment of cultural naivety, or as we put it, had a "cultural fail." We saw many 10 cent coins (the equivalent of about a penny) as we walked down the street and picked up each one, thinking that someone had carelessly dropped a lot of coins. After picking up at least ten each, some people about our age told us the coins had been dropped purposefully-- they were 'for the ghosts'. After googling the topic thoroughly, we still don't know what this practice means or where it comes from. (If anyone knows, please feel free to let us know!)
After leaving Tai O, we rode a bus along the southern coast of Lantau in search of a specific business where we could rent kayaks. The beach that we were looking for is many miles long and we did not know specifically where we needed to get off the bus. Eventually, we got off on a hunch that we were close. After speaking to an American expat, we learned we were just a few minutes walk away from the area we were looking for. We found the kayaks (some others in our group also spent time kayaking while we were in HK), rented them, and spent an hour or so kayaking around the area. The beach was beautiful and was mostly populated by local expats. It was very nice to be away from the hustle and bustle of populous Hong Kong for a little while.
Sunday, January 19
On Sunday morning, the majority of our group went to a church service at the Methodist church in downtown Hong Kong. This included a wonderful, comical pastor from England and multiple singings of Amazing Grace. After church, there was a delicious Filipino lunch. For many, the highlight of this visit was having the opportunity to talk to and spend time with migrant workers from the Philippines. These women were hard working and inspirational. Most of them spend 6 days a week working for pay (at least half of which they generally send back home) and spend Sundays volunteering at the church.
On our way back, we decided to stop at Victoria Park to explore it a bit. There, we encountered enormous numbers of Muslim women gathered in the park. We couldn't decide if it was a festival, special event, or just a gathering. After some research, we found that Victoria Park is the place where most of the Indonesian migrant workers (nearly all women) gather for picnics and to socialize with their friends on Sundays (their day off).
In the same area, we observed multiple peaceful protests. Many people in our group noted similar protests in other areas of Hong Kong today. With a language barrier, we were unsure of what was being protested, but we think some of them had to do with justice for migrant workers and others protesting live organ donation currently occurring in mainland China.
Today, our group also had the adventure of taking the ferry which travels between Central and the small island we stayed on, Ma Wan.
Monday, January 20
Today we awoke early to catch our flight to Kuala Lumpur (KL). Upon arrival, we waited for our luggage for a while then went through customs and immigration. Afterwards, we took two vans to a centrally located hotel, Hotel Sentral Pudu.
We took public transportation to dinner, which included a VERY crowded monorail which was out of some of our comfort zones. Most of the group dined at an Indian restaurant recommended by Kent. He enjoyed a short time in the culture which he grew up in and we enjoyed having him around to help us order the very best things! The food was delicious!
After eating, we had the chance to visit the Central Market. There were many food vendors and clothes vendors outside and much more inside. Some people in the group bought fruit at a small fruit stand. We have enjoyed being adventurous with trying exotic fruits on this trip including mangosteen (Kent's favorite), lychee, dragonfruit (which turned our tongues BRIGHT purple), rambutan, starfruit, and passionfruit. Cheryl even bought us all some stinky durian to try! My best description of the taste is onion combined with over-ripe mango.
By: Lauren and Lauren
Thanks for reading along with us!
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