We have now been in Hong Kong for 2 1/2 months! It's hard to believe it has been 10 weeks already. We have 11 more weeks until we return to the US on July 29th. While we dearly miss all our family and friends from the US, we are enjoying where God has chosen our home to be for right now. Since our last post we have had a few more holdays here. We enjoyed a four day Easter Holiday weekend. Both weeks after that we have had four day school/work week due to local holidays. Yesterday (Tuesday, May 10) was Buddha's birthday. We had the day off and relaxed by and in the pool, and watched a movie in the evening. It was a much needed, refreshing, one day break.
On Monday, April 25th (Easter weekend) we took a double decker bus over to the back side of Hong Kong Island to the area of Stanley.
We saw pagan religious ceremonies and street parades. These parades were colorful, loud, and bearing gifts of incense, fruits, whole cooked pigs. They would push the fruits and pig along the streets in the parade on carts (you can see one of these carts with fruit in the far right of this picture).
We had a nice outside lunch at Smuggler's Inn right on Stanley Main Street. We had front row seats for all the parade action.
After lunch we went to the Hong Kong Maritime Museum in the famous Murray House. It was really interesting finding out about all kinds of boats, how they manuever on the water, and what they looked like through history.
Lindsey is navigating a simulated docking of a large boat to the pier right by our house.
The kids were inside a freight container. We were discovering how many of these could be stored on a cargo boat and just how much one container could hold. They had simultaion computers inside for people to practice loading containers onto a large boat.
After the Museum we walked through the crowded streets of Stanley Market. We found a couple of bargains. We then enjoyed Stanley Bay Beach. The water was still a bit cold for me, but the rest of the family took a swim.
On Saturday, April 30th we went the Hong Kong Herritage Museum. They had a computer program that took your picture and aloud you to see what you would look like all made up for the Chinese stage. This is a picture of Kaylin as a Chinese Lady of the Opera.
The Herritage Museum had a Pixar Exhibit which was really cool. It showed all kinds of movie drawings and sculptures, and how they were made. Here we are with Sully and Mike from Monsters Inc.
We found another outside street market that was really interesting. They sold mostly fruits, veggies, clothes, shoes, and a few odd end things, in addition to some really stinky dried fish.
Lucy and Joy at the park with our kids. They were taking our picture.
Andrew and Ikie showing off their muscles and having a great time doing so.
Mine and Joy's kids posing for a picture at the park. They have a very good time together.
Lindsey at the park with a leaf she found.
Me and the girls after going to a Mother's Day Tea at Kowloon Intl. Baptist Church on Sat., May 7th.
This is a look out area along a street near Victoria Peak.
Our family went back up to the Peak on May 7th during the afternoon so we could watch the sunset. It was beautifully clear day.
These are just a few of the escalators in the Peak Mall.
We're riding a ferry back to our flat after going to the the Peak.
We invited Mark's co-worker, Sean, and his wife, Jackie, over for dinner on Mother's day. They surprised us by bringing their baby (dog), named Fanby (sounds like fawnby). We took them bowling and then played a game of Farkle with them after having a Mexican meal.
We had a great visit with friends.
