Hong Kong

When we first heard the news that Emily's brother, Jon, was getting married to his high school sweetheart Stacy, we were very happy for them. When we heard that they were going to have a ceremony in Hong Kong, we were very happy for them.....and happy for us. :) What better excuse to travel abroad? Emily and I had been discussing the idea of a trip to Asia for several years; now we finally had a reason. We have always wanted to visit China, so we decided to make that part of the trip as well. Luckily, Emily's parents also wanted to do a similar trip and her Mom found an amazing deal for a China tour. So on March 23, we got up at 2AM to catch an early morning flight, by way of Vancouver Canada, to Hong Kong to embark on an 11 day tour of Hong Kong and China. This is the start of our journey...

Mom, Em, Dad, Jon, and Stacy in Hong Kong

incense burning at a Buddhist temple

the sculptures in the background with the red ribbon signify the tying of bonds during marriage

Stacy's aunts, sisters, and Emily try their hand at good fortune: by repeatedly shaking the canister, a randomly numbered stick is bound to jostle loose and fall to the ground. This stick contains a key to your fortune.

near the Buddhist temple, there is a fountain full of turtles...and you know how we are fond of turtles after our engagement story :)

Later we walked around downtown and took a cable car trolley to the top of a mountain to gain a view of the expansive collection of skyscrapers that constitutes the financial district. Hong Kong is the most densely populated area in the world; after visiting, you will not be able to contest this claim.

I took hundreds of pics of the buildings....I'll spare you most of them. The Bank of China building is my favorite both during the day and at night. It's triangular patterns are easy to recognize in the night pics below. During the light show (see video below), it constantly changed patterns to provide a geometric treat.

I could only capture about a third of the skyline from atop the mountain...it was a little too hazy and I would need a wide angle lens to get all of it in one frame.

With plenty of ongoing new construction, I am sure the skyline will look different the next time we visit!

part of the skyline at night

another part of the skyline at night with Mom and Dad
(note my fav Bank of China building just over Mom's right shoulder)

more buildings at night

Walking around downtown at night, there is an endless sea of people out late shopping and eating at restaurants on the street. At times, it was shoulder to shoulder and people would walk in the streets because the sidewalks were full. This city has more energy than any other.

I was thoroughly impressed with the selection at the shoe stores....this is a pic of just the Adidas section! Each store had literally thousands of different shoes.

On the day of the wedding, we decided to squeeze in a ferry ride to nearby Cheung Chau island. It is a very small island inhabited by fishermen, so, naturally, it has some of the best seafood restaurants. We grabbed lunch, walked around a bit, and then jumped back on the ferry to make it back in time for the wedding.

dried fish in a street market

walking down the alleys, we saw old ladies drying shrimp in homemade screens

The wedding was wonderful....which will be the subject of my next blog entry. :)