take me home, country roads

yep, you guessed it. I *finally* made it out to karaoke night!

This was my first visit to Happy Valley, which is an out-of-the way neighborhood famous for its race tracks, coupled-off lesbians and popstar sightings in the congee shops (think of Ashley Simpson just chowing down on a slice of Ray's Pizza in NYC and you get the idea).

Sang a bit of George Michael and John Denver, even the Spice Girls. Super fun Wednesday night with my mates Sophia and Susan. Susan's traveling around the world for 6 months... she's an explorer. And Soph is a film/video producer. So it was the perfect distraction from some rough days at work! Man, we need more swanky karaoke bars in NY... nothing seedy, just a beautiful space and your favorite tunes in English and in Cantonese. :)

Peking Duck for expats

So, this week I had a fantastic surprise... two more colleagues from NY came out for a visit. This brings the total up to 6 women from my NYC office, all in HK for short-term assignments. It was great to have everyone together, and we ate ate ate our way through a particularly grueling week. The best meal by far was the Peking Duck dinner.

I see why everyone says the expats get fat here, but we've also got people in dance classes, training for marathons, and having tennis dates. You can even ice-skate on your lunch break. Can't wait to take Bren ice skating when she gets here next weekend!

Cute factor

Okay, so Hong Kong is probably the "cute" capital of the world. Grown men walk around with dressed-up plush animals on their bags and the women wear bridesmaid-approved bows during morning commutes! That black blob on the woman's bag is actually another stuffed animal... a kitty.

safari

I found all sorts of interesting animals today... on my plate! Ate lunch at a local restaurant on the waterfront in Sai Kung where the fishermen sell seafood right off their tiny row boats. The specials of the day were spikey crab that you're supposed to crack in your mouth - ouch!, prawns with eyeballs, lobster ruined with cheese, and a green vegetable that looks like freaky spinach drowned in oil and fish sauce, which is simply called "vegetable."

Much to my relief, dinner was a yummy Japanese vegetarian meal with geometrically shaped green veggies :) I stocked up on cubes of spinach and organic fruit juices at the supermarket because lunch was far too much animal meat for me in one day!

Up above is a photo of the local fruit/veggie stands, with the stinky "durian" fruit in the foreground. It's known for its pungent odor, but supposedly it's tasty enough to turn into ice cream. I'll stick with mango gelato, thank you.



On a totally different note, I think I finally found the Hong Kong Flower (for my tattoo!)

HK vs BK on the live-ability meter

Would B & I ever relocate to Hong Kong? Permanently? I often wonder this. To test out the idea, I had a (mostly) domestic weekend...

Went out on a junk boat (they're actually lovely, despite the horrible name, like old pirate ships but more spacious) with colleagues who are now new dads. Better scenery than Park Slope. 1 pt for HK
But Bren couldn't be on my health insurance here b/c our marriage isn't recognized. Serious problem. 1 pt for BK.
Borrowed a couch from MIX, my favorite little sandwich & coffee spot, and leafed through magazines while drinking hot cocoa and goofing off with my Scottish/Chinese friend Sophia and her Scottish buddy Susan. Nice, but it was in a mall. Brooklyn's tea spots are homier. 1 pt BK

And the crowning glory... I stumbled across an alternative to Home Depot... the home renovation areas by Wan Chai. I could smell the sawdust from the flooring store a block away and like WonderDog when he hears Polly's cry for help, I dashed to the scene. I was in heaven. I breathed in the perfect smell of fresh-cut molding and wandered through the neighborhood. This was a luxurious Chinese version of the mega home supply stores back home... dragon-footed bath tubs, gold and crystal chandeliers, silk wall paper, and eco-friendly toilets. The wallpapers have NYC beat, hands down. 1 pt HK
But those gold & dragon accents are just tacky! so 1 pt BK

Verdict? BK wins by a hair. Will need to explore this further!

Socially responsible painting?

This morning the sun was burning holes through the smog and I sweated my way through the vibrant Central and Soho.

• Breakfast at the American-palate friendly Flying Pan (yes, that's an L, not an R.)
• Exploring the ancient Chinese art galleries along Hollywood Road
  
• Leisurely reading through The List ( expat magazine) at Pacific Coffee
• Strolling through the costume shops of LKF (it's like Bourbon Street in New Orleans, complete with feathery masquerade masks)

Finally, I couldn't take the heat anymore. I popped into the luxurious International Financial Center Mall, heard some live piano music, and eventually stumbled onto an art installation in one of the atriums.

I was enraptured.

This was my first interaction with the hyper-realism work of Indonesian artist Budi Ubrux, whose latest oil paintings of newspaper-wrapped figures resonate with a pure conscious I have lately found lacking in New York. Meticulously-painted headlines cling to the animated human forms, encasing them in news of the financial crisis, women's right to enter the workforce, and global warming.

His technique is heart-stopping trompe-l'oeil (literally, "fool the eye"). Viewed from even just 2 feet away, I was absolutely certain that there would be a strong surface texture like paper mache. But when I was up close (so close the guards came over, but it was still worth it to see!), I could see that the surface was perfectly flat, entirely 2-dimensional. What a gift.

And what a bold man to speak out, through his work, about the storm headlines swirling around him. I wanted to fly immediately to his studio and paint with him, to feed off that intensity with which he must work to achieve such hyper-realism.

Outside, a typhoon was brewing (this is like a really intense hurricane) and I hurried back to my uninspiring neighborhood of Fortress Hill to buy groceries before the rains hit. On the way, I passed by newspaper headlines about the deadly bombing in Jakarta, Indonesia. Budi Ubrux's country. The words seemed surreal on the flat surface of a stack of newspaper, like they were made light simply because they were typed and neatly stacked. I wanted to see the human forms that Budi Ubrux would build from those papers. I wanted him to translate that flatness into 3-dimensional forms in his imagination, then back into the two dimensions of the canvas. With his brush, the absurdity of the bombings would melt away.

stairmaster

From my gym, I see this staircase. I should probably ditch the medicine ball and try running up and down this!

the view

I love the moodiness of the clouds over Hong Kong's harbor. This is the view from the 28th floor of my new office building. My desk is on the 53rd floor, which is even more spectacular, but not exactly a discrete place to take photos.

My apartment building has an uber-tidy roof deck, and although I can't see the real sky from my building (due to all the skyscrapers around), I can see the sky reflected in the funhouse mirror of the blue glass building down the block.

You can't tell from this picture, but I have a new haircut. And a dress. Because HK is to friggin' hot for pants suits! The air is thick like porridge, and breathing it feels like a chore. We better get some typhoons soon to wash this mugginess away.

She's baaaack

So, I got shipped off to Hong Kong again. Quite happily, in many respects. It's good to see my friends again

I'm out here for 2 months, on a last minute assignment for work. So after a quick and crazy whirlwind to pull everything together in one week (romantic getaway with Brenda, a million apologies to my sisters that I'm missing the upcoming bridal shower!, power of attorney for our mortgage refinance, doctor appts, saying goodbye to the 5 analysts/associates who report to me but leave next month!)... here I am.

I brought bagels for the New York City expats (no good Jewish delis out here, go figure), and already have weekend plans with friends from Singapore and Sydney who happen to be in town. I love how international this city is.

When I got to the new office, I discovered the most breath-taking views, and a very sweet, giant note on my desk from my HK bff, Jamie... "Welcome Back CHRIS!"

Feels good to be here again, and to be writing the blog. Partly b/c I'm not allowed to talk about actual work on a blog, so it keeps me focused on the things that really matter: relationships and exploration. I miss everyone in NY/CT/WV/MD/NJ/CA/VT already, but I have to say, it's good to be back here too.