Victoria Peak

Blue skies, sun shine, puffy clouds - a day not to be missed. So we went up to Victoria Peak to take advantage of the clear skies and sunshine. It was spectacular!

We took Bus #15 from Exchange Square, which we found out after we boarded, goes really close to our apartment, but who knew. It goes up narrow, twisty roads to the peak. And you have to sit on the downhill side of the bus to get the full effect. On the top level it seems that there is nothing below you but space. It can be rather scary. And just riding the bus up those tight, twisty roads can test your bravery.

When we got to the top it was just what we hoped for, beautiful. About 50 pictures later, we decided to take the walk around the peak. It to was spectacular. One of the prettiest days we've seen. But by the time we got around full circle it was beginning to get a little hot.

Lunch was a real treat. Burger King, we had it our way. Just like home!

Then back on the bus for the downhill portion of the trip. But we decided to get off about halfway down and catch another bus to Stanley. Now came the really tricky part. We were sitting on the upper level and had to get downstairs in preparation to get off. With all the twists and stops and starts and jerks, it was a real challenge. But we made it.

We rode on to Stanley, but didn’t shop. Unbelievable I know, but true. We had planned on going to Tai Tam Reservoir, but by afternoon it was so hot, we decided to save it for a later, cooler day. Home and the air-conditioner were very welcome.

Couple's Outing - Kadoorie Farm and 10,000 Buddhas

Saturday - and we had a senior day out planned. We checked with the observatory and it said, showers until 9am, then scattered showers until noon, then very scattered showers all afternoon. So we made an executive decision - to go for it. And as soon as we decided to go, it opened up and rained. But too bad - we're going!

There were 10 of us, Baldwins, Newells, Woolseys, Benchs, and Jacksons. We bused to Yuen Long, then to Kadoorie Farms. When we got there the good news was that none of us had to pay to get in (age has its privileges), but the bad news was that the shuttle bus was not running. Too many downed branches in the road after the typhoon, but we could walk anywhere we wanted. It was raining lightly, but what the heck, so off we went.

It sprinkled a little but the temperature was great. We hiked up hill to the Butterfly Garden. Then walked down hill just a little and took the Rainbow Trail back down. It promised waterfalls, pagodas, and great scenery. And it was just that.

We all had a wonderful time. The steps were a little slippery and there were branches down on all the trails and steps, but it didn’t stop us. We had a great time and all OD’ed on pictures.

Then back on the bus to Tai Po Market, and had lunch at McDonalds. "Crew" (our friend with the English accent) was there and we all had a great time joking with him.

The Newells and Benchs decided that they had to get back, so they parted ways with us when we got to Sha Tin. They caught a bus home and we hiked up to 10,000 Buddhas.

By this time the skies were blue and we got some "prize winning" shots. It even got hot and sweaty on the way up. We went up one way, and came down another, grabbed some water and were ready to catch the bus home, when the Newells called and told us that it took them 2 hours to get home, the traffic was terrible. So a quick change of plans and we took the MTR home.

Elder Baldwin wears a pedometer and tries to get in 10,000 steps every day. By the time we got home he had 17,000, and everyone of us felt it.

A quick stop at the grocery store, then home where we just took it easy.


The skies looked a little scary this morning, but the day turned out great, and we all had a wonderful time.

Now we have to take a return trip so we can ride the shuttlebus to the really far out places. But we will save that for another day!

P.S. Two days later the mosquito bites appeared! We must have fed the entire population! Next time we have to remember the rules, long sleeves, long pants, and deet!

Flower, Sneaker and Bird Markets in Kowloon

It was time for a little shopping! First we stopped at the ladies market, only to find out that the "ladies" don’t get up very early. We were there at 11:30 a.m. and they were just getting set up. So take note, don’t rush there before noon. They are not early risers.

Then on to Fa Yuen Street, or as it’s called "Sneaker Street". By the time we got there it was all set up and ready to move. It was a very hot day, so it was nice to wander down the back sidewalks rather than the middle of the road as we might otherwise have. There weren’t too many sneakers, mostly sandals at this time of year.

While we were there we also wandered down the flower market, which I love. It’s very hard to resist the dozen roses for HK$20.00, but I didn’t want to carry them all day. Then into the bird market. Not being a bird lover, I was ready to move through this area very quicky. But I will say, it’s probably the noisiest street we’ve been to, those birds are not quiet. At one stall we saw a huge blue parrot who was setting up quite a storm.

By this time it was very hot, so we headed for the Hong Kong Space Museum. The shows were sold out, but it was nice to wander through the displays. At one point there was a 16 minute move in English, and the best part was that the back row was against the wall - built in back rest. At one pont I looked over at the rest of the back row, and they to were using it as a "power nap" stop. And we needed it.
Took the ferry back to Hong Kong, and decided to try a little place called the Cul de Sac. I had fish and chips and Dew had a huge burger. It was very good, will have to go back there. They had 4 very small tables with high stools. I think the high stools were to match the rest of the area - it was in the middle of lots of pubs, in a very colorful part of town.

All in all there wasn’t much shopping accomplished. We bought cookies and a pair of socks! We definitely are not keeping up our economic support of the community.

Interns Helping in the Office

It has been really fun having two college interns working in the office this summer. We have had Yale Layton
from Arizona working in the legal department and Annie Wong from Hong Kong working in Public Affairs.

Yale served his mission in Hong Kong six years ago and has been assigned to the legal department for six weeks. He has re-lived his mission by going back to the various branches or wards to visit all the people he worked with and taught. He developed a great blog of all his activities which has been fun to read (http://yaleinasia.blogspot.com/). One of the amazing things, is Yale is comfortable with the old and young alike. On his last day in Hong Kong, he joined the senior missionary couples and the Area Presidency at the temple. It is so refreshing to see his love for his mission.

Annie is a five foot tall fireball. She is so fun to tease and work with. She is a convert to the Church. Two sister missionaries street-contacted her when she was 15. Two and a half years after that, she was baptized in Hong Kong.

Following her baptism, she attended BYU and then went on a mission to San Diego (part of her assignment was at the Mormon Battalion Visitors’ Center), and now she is finishing up her education. What a blessing both of these young people have been to the Church in Asia and the United States.

Temples and More Temples in Fanling

We went out to Fanling to visit the Lung Yeuk Tau Heritage Trail. We took the bus to Sha Tin, then the train to Fanling, then a mini bus. Just a block from the train station was the Fung Ying Seen Koon a Taoist institute. It has recently been re-built and is very pretty. We got to see a group of women chanting, with an old man beating the drums for them.


Then we found the mini-bus and pointed to one of the pictures and the driver let us out there. Problem was we couldn’t see where the church was and we wandered through the village looking for it. At one point two big dogs greeted us and we beat a hasty retreat back to the main road. On the main road we found the church right where we got off, don’t know how we missed it.


Then we walked up to the rest of the sites. These are really old buildings and a walled village. Problem is people still live in them, so you aren’t allowed inside. Bummer! It was fun, but not at the top of the impressive list. But it was fun to go to Fanling, a new spot for us.


Then we found a bus to Yeun Long. Doesn’t matter where we go, we always seem to end up taking a bus to Yeun Long, then the bus home. It’s a great ride. This was an interesting ride to get there, one of the stops for the bus was the stop where you pick up a special shuttle to cross over into main land China to Schenenzen. We were about as close as you can get without going in.
We had lunch at ...McD’s! Then walked about a bit then home. Nice day, a little hot, but nice. When we got home we turned on the TV and are now watching the Olympics live. I am afraid that this is going to be a pattern for the next few weeks. Very fun!

Day at Macau

What a day! It was a tour with Ken day, and he is a bundle of energy. We left home at 8:30 to get to the Macau Ferry to meet Ken. Getting out of Hong Kong with our Hong Kong ID is always a treat for me, my thumbs don’t work, but this morning it did. Sister Bench’s however, did not. As soon as I got on the ferry the woozies set in. What a way to begin the day. But we made it without having to use the little white bag!!!

After making it through customs we caught a cab and headed into downtown Macau. First we went to a home of Dr. Sun Ya Sat, then headed for a cable car that took us to the top of the mountain to a fort. It has a series of tunnels and bomb shelters which were interesting. Then on top is the lighthouse and a small church and great views of the city. Macau was owned by the Portugese, so it like Hong Kong has everything in two languages, and it’s so Portugese it was like being in Lisbon again. They have the same marble block sidewalks and the same architecture. I loved it. And the colors of the old buildings are wonderful, all yellows and greens and oranges.

By this time the temperature was 31C. Which to us is 94F. Hot and humid, but sunny and bright. It was hot and sweaty trudging up all those hills. After the lighthouse we went down to find a taxi to move on, but all we could find were those that hold 4 and we needed 5 people. So finally we caught the bus. This led to another fun experience, trying to figure out how much to pay for us all and having the right amount without having to give them way more than it actually cost. It was rather like a group of little old ladies trying to figure out how much they owed for lunch. And to complicate this even more, we had to change money, so we weren’t quite sure what exactly we had.

Then we went down into the center of town and visited an old city hall building, and then to the city square which was wonderful, and packed with people. Everyone was out enjoying the sunshine. Then to an old church, painted a wonderful yellow outside and inside. It had a museum which we checked out, then off for lunch. We went to a small sandwich shop and Ken ordered a salad, but he didn’t tell us that this was to be a light lunch. We all ordered sandwiches and they were huge. So it ended up that he ate half of my sandwich, half of Sister Bench’s sandwich and half of Dew’s. That lightened our lunch considerably, but made his lots heavier. I don’t know how these Chinese do it, they eat big, and stay little.

Right across the street was a little place that sold those waffle things, and another that sold pork buns. There was a steady stream of people there. So after our huge lunch we went over and bought a pork bun to share. It was cooked in a barrel type thing that used charcoal for heat. I had to see how they cooked them, and what they did was stick them to the sides of the barrel and they cooked and then they knocked them off and caught them. Anyway the sign said, "materials used" and then the list of ingredients. They had pork, pepper and onions. And it was pretty peppery. I ate the bread and gave the meat to Dew, I still have a hard time eating the meat here. I know I am a chicken!

Then onto the ruins of St. Paul’s church which is the symbol of Macau. We were there with a few thousand of our closest friends. It was a mad house, but fun. Then we took to the back streets to find a little antique shop. Ken loves antiques and wanted us to get some. He has a good eye, and Sister Bench bought a silver bracelet and hair ornament that were very old, and I bought a couple of dishes. Not exactly the kind of thing I really love, but it was fun to see him get so excited.

Then on through the back streets to get some coconut ice cream. It was at a dark, scary place that sells coconuts and also ice cream. The coconuts are sold in two’s and have the Chinese "double luck" symbol on them. The ice cream was good, we just tried not to look to close at the shop. Then we strolled around the streets, and bought a few more bargains. We got tea pots painted bright pink, "that you can’t get in Hong Kong because of the lead in the paint". I know, it makes you wonder! And I not only bought the tea pot, I bought a pink dish that matched it. Double the lead!

Then we caught another bus, and Dew was busy counting his change and the driver closed the door. It was only when we yelled at him that he opened it again and let him in. And then he sulked! Ken said we had to be nice, driving bus is a long hard job, so we were a little kinder.

Then we went to see ADT - another darn temple, but it was closed. They use the bat as a symbol of good luck and this temple had bats decorating the door. I’ve never quite thought of bats as a symbol of good luck. Will have to give it more thought.

Then we went to a group of old Portugese mansions. So pretty! All painted a cool green with white trim. They were museums and we toured them. They are on a small lake with lots of lotus blossoms floating in it. Spectacular! And across the lake is the Venetian casino, which rather ruined the view. In one of the houses we met a young man who was there from the Philippines. He said he was here trying to get a permanent work card, and his wife was home and expecting their first baby. What a hard life these people from the Philippines live. They say that the Philippines greatest export is it’s people. And you can really see that they leave if they want to have any future at all.

By this time I was really beginning to feel the heat, and Ken had at least another half day of fun to go. Sister Bench had back surgery just before coming and she was also ready to throw in the towel. So we walked over to the Venetian and they all had Fat Burgers, I was at the point where I knew that if I ate I would not last the ferry ride home, so I just had a coke. Then we caught the free shuttle back to the ferry terminal, and home. I was so tired that I slept most of the way, which kept the sea sickness away, thank goodness.

Then back to Hong Kong, where once again our thumbs didn’t work and they had to come let us out of the booth. Sister Bench and I just don’t have good thumbs evidently. We walked back with Ken to the Central Ferry Pier, then caught a bus home. By the time we got home it was 10:30pm, plenty late for us. I think Ken could keep going for at least 6 more hours. I told him, he has to remember he working with the old and infirm, and he kindly said he didn’t think so. It was another spectacular Ken tour.