24 Dec 2011 ~ Xmas in HK

Listening to: Sun Showers ~ Arrange (Five Years from the Sun)

Merry Merry Everyone!!!

No worries that I may be missing Xmas - the season is alive and well in HK.

Santas gathering in the park...

Lions guarding the shopping mall entrances with tree reflections in the window...

Carriages abound....

Carolers in the IFC mall (which is the building my customer is in)...

22 Dec 2011 ~ Winter Solstice

Listening to: The Difference ~ The Wallflowers (Bringing Down the House)

The Dong Zhi (冬至) or Winter Solstice Festival is one of the most significant festivals celebrated.

This is the day when daylight is the shortest and has the longest night. 

How do people celebrate winter solstice? My co-workers said "winter solstice is more important than the Chinese New Year". Nowadays, the whole family will get together to have dinner on that night. It was likened to US Thanksgiving.

Sweet glutinous balls with peanut or sesame filling may be eaten afterwards because the name of the dessert "tong yuan" implies gathering.

There were lines outside the butcher stores, as unfortunately the bird flu warning was raised to serious and 17,000 birds will be culled. About 15,000 live chickens are sold on an average day. The price has sky-rocketed, with prices going from HK$50 last week to HK$130 today. (1 US$ = 7.78 HK$).

The concept of the festival traces back to the Yin and Yang philosophy of balance and harmony. After this celebration, it is said that there will be days with longer daylight hours, also an indication of the increase of positive flow of energy.

Historically, the winter solstice may have been immensely important because communities were not certain of living through the winter, and had to be prepared during the previous nine months. Most cattle were slaughtered so they would not have to be fed during the winter, so it was almost the only time of year when a supply of fresh meat was available. The majority of wine and beer made during the year was finally fermented and ready for drinking at this time.

For some Native American tribes, as the Hopi, the main purpose of the Winter Solstice ritual is to ceremonially bring the sun back from its long winter slumber. It also marks the beginning of another cycle of the Wheel of the Year, and is a time for purification. Pahos (prayer sticks) are made prior to the ceremony, to bless all the community, including their homes, animals, and plants.

19 Dec 2011 ~ Star Ferry

Listening to: Yellowman ~ 8-28-1986

Got a good dose of the Christmas shopping experience in HK on Saturday afternoon. I took the Star Ferry across Victoria Harbor to over to Tsim Sha Tsui.

The Star Ferry service dates back more than a 100 years, with the maiden voyage occurring in 1898. The ferries have whimsical names such as Celestial Star, Twinkling Star, Morning Star and Electric Star.  The trip takes about 8 minutes to cross the harbor; all for about $2.50 USD. About the same cost as the metro bus running underneath the harbor but much more scenic.

The upper deck has better views of the city. (And this is not a very good picture, but it was a hazy day, so I'll post better scenic city views at a later date).

Tsim Sha Tsui is the "tourists' Hong Kong". A tightly packed and frenetic pocket of shops, hotels, bars, restaurants, camera and electric outlets (but buyer beware), fast food stores, neon signs, street hustlers, and masses of people.

The clock tower, looking distinctively out of place, was built in 1915 and is topped with a gracefully colonnaded cupola. This is the final vestige of the Kowloon-Canton Railway Station, once running all the way to Europe.

On the way home I spotted this Apple Store in the IFC 2 building. Got a picture of the bus underneath to give perspective on the size of the store, which is packed with as many as 1000 people at any time.

17 Dec 2011 ~ Rivalries

Listening to: Wharf Rat ~ Grateful Dead, 3/14/1971, Camp Randall Field House, UofW, Madison, WI

I heard the Badgers will play in the Rose Bowl against the Oregon Ducks. I think the Badgers can take on some ducks...(btw, my co-worker is from Oregon, so just some healthy trash-talking).

Again, just a coincidence I'm listening to a show from the home of the Badgers...


I heard this news not by watching or reading any sports updates. Supposedly there is a rivalry going on between Michigan and Wisconsin as reported in News of the Weird.


MI took offense WI is using a Mitten theme for tourism, as MI insists it is the Mitten State (as the lower peninsula looks like a mitten?)

You be the judge.

Whew - that is weird.

Well, I'm off to explore for the afternoon.

13 Dec 2011 ~ Just Another Day?

Listening to: Caithlin de Marrais ~ Hot Day (Red Coats album).

It's not just another day...it's a BIRTHDAY!!! Happy Happy!!!

Not much happening this week but working long hours. So, I'll leave you with a short video from the trip to Alaska this past summer. I was trying to get a video of a moose across the road who was happily eating some leaves, when all of sudden he starts heading my way...

10 Dec 2011 ~ Lunar Eclipse

Listening to: Alyssa Graham ~ Watching the Sky (Lock, Stock, and Soul album)

I know is might seem rigged, but honestly that is the song that came on as I sat down to write this blog, which is about the lunar eclipse that I got to experience.

The timing was perfect here as the eclipse occurred between 10:06 pm and 10:58 pm.

A lunar eclipse occurs when the moon enters the earth's shadow. This shadow has two parts: the total shadow called the umbra and the partial shadow termed the penumbra. This diagram is courtesy of the Hong Kong Observatory.

I had a great view from my terrace so set up an observatory deck around 8:30pm, when the moon was between penumbra and umbra.

I thought I brought my tripod, but alas could not find it, so these pictures did not turn out as well as they could have.

During totality, the moon is not completely invisible. This is due to the fact that some sunlight is refracted by the earth's thin atmosphere into the umbra and illuminates the moon, making it coppery-red in colour. 

This is the official HK Observatory Picture:

The next lunar eclipse potentially observable in Hong Kong will occur on June 4, 2012, which will be a partial eclipse. Also in 2012, an annular solar eclipse will be potentially observable in Hong Kong on May 21, and a transit of Venus on June 6. Both are rare astronomical phenomena.

8 Dec 2011 ~ Singapore

Listening to: Ricki Lee Jones ~ Nobody Knows My Name, Harmony Music Festival, Sonoma County Fairgrounds, Santa Rosa, CA, 2007-06-09

Hard to believe it was just a week ago I was in Singapore. The only other time I was there was February 2007.

The flight got in from Malaysia around 8:30pm and then I waited for my colleagues to all take a car to the hotel. Although this trip did not leave much time for being a tourist, except a bit for one night, luckily I had a GREAT view from my Mandarin Oriental hotel room.

This is the view and the Largest Ferris Wheel in the world at 42 stories. It takes 37 minutes to make a complete rotation. I think there was a Discovery Channel show on it's construction, as it needs to withstand typhoon strength winds.

My co-worker and I tried to ride the Singapore Flyer ferris wheel, but we got there too late and it was closed. This portrays our sentiment.

This is the view in the other direction of the Marina Bay Sands hotel, with a SkyPark shaped like a ship on the top. 

Went out for dinner at the Long Beach, a premium seafood restaurant known for their chili crab. Although I'm not much of a crab eater, this dish was superb, but messy, as the crab legs are bathed in a chili sauce. Also ate steamed Sea Bass, baby kailan with garlic, and Malay Noodle Fish Sotong. Sorry, by time I got to the restaurant I was starving and forgot to take pictures!

Headed to the SkyPark of the Marina Sands and enjoyed an after dinner Black Russian (that's a drink for those of you who may be confused) while taking in this spectacular view of Singapore (with a light show even).

Happily returned to my hotel room. It's actually bigger then my HK flat. (Oh, yes, I'm learning to speak British English...it's a flat not an apartment, a lift and not an elevator). Unfortunately I had no time to enjoy the bath.

Here are some Xmas decorations. It's hard to be in the Christmas spirit when it's 70 degrees.

6 Dec 2011 ~ Kuala Lumpur Part II

Listening to: Good Ole' Mountain Dew, Lester Flatts & Earl Scruggs, The Martha White Show, 9/6/1953

Today was a good day...I found a saucepan/kettle my stove "approves of" so I can now make soup, rice, boil pasta, etc.

After a busy day of work last week in Kuala Lumpur, we went out to dinner in the Petronas Towers, the second tallest buildings in the world. PETRONAS is short for Petroliam Nasional Berhad, the Malaysian oil and gas company wholly owned by the Government of Malaysia.

Here is a view from the inside looking up.

Shopping is big in Asia and even the Christmas spirit is alive and well in this predominately Muslim country. I see Gucci stores everywhere (on the middle level on the right), but can't quite figure out who has the money to actually shop in one...




Here is the famous view of the towers from the "perfect picture taking spot", which is actually a placard in the park. The lighting used is so fabulous it appears as an animation even in real life.

What I found cool was the sky bridge between the two towers on 41st and 42nd floors is not attached to the main structure, but is instead designed to slide in and out of the towers to prevent it from breaking as the towers sway several feet in towards and away from each other during high winds. Visitors are allowed to the 41st floor, so maybe I'll have another opportunity to go up there.

My co-worker did not want to lay down to get the full tower picture in with me, so you'll have to suffice with just the lower half (of the towers that is).

The Kuala Lumpur Tower is used for communication purposes and features an antenna that reaches 421 m (1,381 ft), which currently makes it the second tallest freestanding tower in the world. The rest of the tower below has a stairwell and an elevator to reach the upper area, which also contains a revolving restaurant. Races are organised yearly where participants race up the stairs to the top. The tower also acts as the Islamic falak observatory to observe the crescent moon (which actually you can see equal to the building on the left). 

The next day was again meetings, and I headed to the airport by myself to catch an earlier flight to Singapore. The customer arranged a car for me, but I did not realize it would be direct billed, so when I got to the airport I had no Malaysian Ringit to pay!!! The driver was very nice and trustworthy and waited while I went in to exchange money.

4 Dec 2011 ~ Kuala Lumpur Part I

Listening to: Vusi Mahlasela & Friends (Micky Hart, David Hidalgo, and Taj Mahal) ~ One Love (People Get Ready), Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco, CA - March 29, 2007

This past week was a whirlwind of flights / hotels / taxis / and all day meetings.

On Monday morning I picked up my Hong Kong ID Card (now I am officially a resident), which allows some perks such as zipping through the immigration lane at the airport by inserting your card and having a fingerprint scan.

Hong Kong provides superior airport train transportation, and if you have bags to check (which I did not for this short trip), you can check them in at Airport Express and they are transported for you.

Going through security at the airport I was stopped because I foolishly forgot to remove my Swiss Army Knife (again !!) from my purse. I was devastated at the thought of losing another one, as I've lost 2 to security guards previously. But much to my surprise, the security officers said they could hold it, provided me a receipt, as long as I could pick it up within 2 weeks! They were so nice and accommodating. So that's a trip I need to take back to the airport this coming week (my flight home was delayed and I missed the pick-up window).

This was  my first trip to Malaysia.

Flight to from Hong Kong to KL is about 3.5 hours. We stayed at a Shangri-la Hotel.

I got a room with a great view. (Night and sunrise).

Our meeting workshop was held at the customer's Training Facility...we all wish we had brought our swimming suits.

Kuala Lumpur has a tropical rainforest climate which is warm and sunny, along with abundant rainfall, especially during the monsoon season from October to March. We did have rain every day, and it was very humid. Temperatures tend to remain constant, with the maximums hovering between 31 and 33 °C (88 and 91 °F) while minimums hover between 22 and 23.5 °C (72 and 74 °F).



1 Dec 2011 ~ Another Birthday Wish

Listening to: Been All Around This World ~ Joe, Andrea & Sandy: Second Life Broadcast, 18 January 2011

I'm actually in Singapore today, but was in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for the past 2 days, for work.

I will post post some pics of both places when I'm back in Hong Kong on Saturday, but just wanted to say....

Happy Birthday to You!!!