Sightseeing and Night Eating

Since my first tumultuous day here in Hong Kong, things have evened out a lot, and along with figuring out class registration, the bus system and the magic of HK SIM cards (they don't work on my AT&T phone. Hooray!), I've had time for plenty of recreational exploring. Here's (quite) a few of my favorite sights over the past few days!

Tuesday:

Fiona and I went to HKU to finish our exchange student registration process. Though there was a lot of running around from office to office, it wasn't too bad (just remember to bring copies of your passport photo, passport info page, and visa page!) and we were done shortly before lunchtime. At this point, Fiona had met a German exchange student in her economics faculty, Tobias, who had just moved in last night as well. We all decided to go to Central to purchase towels and other necessities for the next semester.

The bustling streets of Central, complete with man on bike with basket.

The infamous wet markets! People buy everything fresh here instead of refrigerating!

After purchasing all necessary laundry detergent and towel items, we checked out Tobias' Lonely Planet guidebook for an idea of what to do next. We found a neat looking temple called Muen Mo Temple that was just a short taxi ride away, and decided to check it out! 

Outside view of the temple, complete with HK red taxi cab!

Coiled incense burns above the worshippers' heads.

The calligraphy brush on the right and the weapon on the left represent the importance of military and academia.

I was captivated by the way that Hong Kong people worshipped, but the fact that I'm an outsider to Hong Kong culture was once again made quite clear. I didn't know what anything meant and I felt very foolish getting in everyone's way. Ben, my HKU buddy, later explained to me that the massive amounts of incense and flowers and fruit left at different altars were gifts to the ghosts of your ancestors, so that they would not go hungry. Most of my knowledge of Chinese culture comes from Snow Flower and the Secret Fan and watching Mulan over and over as a middle schooler (I know it's not an accurate representation of history... I just wanted to BE A MAAAAN)  so this insight was quite enlightening. Obviously, there's a lot more to it than that but learning little by little works for me!

Next we explored Hollywood Road, right next to the Muen Mo Temple, where there are several small outdoor shops selling souvenirs and antiques. 

Buddhas and eagles and dragons, oh my!

I liked these lil' Maos.

Tobie and Fiona found a neat telescope just standing in the street to play with.

We didn't buy anything but it was fun to peruse. I loved the Chinese paper dragons that decorated the alleys, as well as the happy little snakes for Chinese New Year (It's almost year of the snake everyone!).

We didn't have much of a plan after Muen Mo temple, so we ambled about a bit more (to the Western Market, which really wasn't as interesting as it should have been...) before heading back to HKU.

Wednesday:Ben Chu had invited Fiona and I to try out some local food in his hometown of Yuen Long. Which to me meant lunch somewhere. Apparently, in Hong Kong, things work a little differently. Ben took us to several different food shops where we would order the specialty, eat, and then move on. We had no idea when it was going to end! I was quite pleased with this new culinary experience.

First we had pork and prawn dumplings, which were delicious. I ate them all and started drinking the soup. Ben told me not to drink the soup.

Beef balls were next. We each had three and then I started drinking the soup. Ben re-informed me that you're not supposed to drink the soup.

Next were fish balls, which were a lot more delicious than I expected. They had a soft, spongy texture.

Then we had beef brisket, which was just divine and this time I drank the soup when Ben wasn't looking :)

Ben then showed us to a local chicken skewer stand (apparently, this is where all the college kids eat).

I could see why everyone loved it so much.

After our long delicious food excursion, it was time for some sightseeing. Ben brought us to the Tang clan ancestral hall and several other historical stops, all the while explaining all the different cultural aspects of each destination. Just saying, having a local friend who studies history makes sightseeing just as educational as it is fun!

The ancient Tang Ancestral Hall, where several cars were parked and dogs were sleeping.

Kwan Yu, who represents good faith and loyalty. Fiona and I have seen this guy all over HK and we love his beard.

Once this was a walled fortress, but now it's a small housing area called a "Wai."

Here's where people would stick their weapons out to defend the fortress.

An inside view of the fortress.

Next Ben escorted us to a different part of town, where we would see Wetland Park, a beautiful nature preserve untouched by the city of HK. Unfortunately, it was closed, so we couldn't go in, but we were able to get a good view when we walked up to the top of a hill around sundown. And on the way, we passed Ben's secondary school!

Ben's school was decorated by cute anime posters that had inspirational sayings on them, which I found adorable.

The view of Wetland Park from the top of the hill.

When we turned around, the city loomed over us. It was amazing to see the difference between natural and urban HK.

Ben is always prepared for a photograph.

Sightseeing was great, but after walking around all day and getting gnarly blisters (I was wearing kitten heels, because I thought we were just going out to lunch, silly me!), I was ready for some serious dinner action. Lucky for me, Ben had a plan. And what a glorious plan it was!

...But first, desserts! The more I ate, the happier I was with this country.

This was a tofu dessert with yellow sugar on top. It kind of reminded me of oatmeal with brown sugar.

Next we had gelatinous bean cakes of some sort. They weren't incredibly sweet, and the black chunks are actual black beans!

Then it was time for dinner. Ben took Fiona and I to an outdoor alley restaurant to have some traditional food to share, and I was finally able to rest my weary soles! I was also able to order my first legal beer since the drinking age is eighteen in Hong Kong. For those who don't know, the drinking age in the US is twenty-one, and alas, my twenty-first birthday isn't until September. But in Hong Kong, I'm free and able to purchase alcohol like a real adult! Wow!

We shared eggplant, fried octopus and fried oyster cakes with our German beer!

An extremely excited Lauren drinks her first gigantic beer!

Ben was pretty proud of his beer too.

Thursday:
Several girls from my hall and I decided it was time to check our first tourist trap off things to do in HK, so we bit the bullet and headed over to Victoria Peak. We took a tram up and got to finally check out that beautiful skyline. And just a heads up, at eight o clock every night, the buildings actually perform a light show for your enjoyment! I got to experience firsthand what it feels like to be in a sci-fi movie . Let me tell you, it's pretty cool.

Patrick Manson Second Floor tour group (and Tobie)!

After staring at the skyline and saying "wooooow" for several minutes, it was getting pretty late and most of the girls were ready to head home. Tobie, however, planned to meet up with his local buddy, Vincent, for dinner after sightseeing. So when we heard that dinner was involved, the ladies and I changed plans and decided to tag along. Needless to say, Vincent was pretty surprised when his quiet dinner for two turned into an eleven person hootenanny. But he was a good sport about it!

Vincent and Tobie: Together forever.

No one really knew what they wanted and Vincent said he would take us wherever we wanted to go. So naturally, I begged Vincent to take us to hot pot. Hot pot is kind of like a communal soup where everyone throws in whatever they want (raw meats, vegetables, mushrooms, seafood, you name it), then fishes it out and dips it in a sauce of their own concoction to eat. In practice, it reminded me a lot of fondue. I had heard it was absolutely amazing and the thing to eat in Hong Kong, and lucky for me, Vincent was a fan too!

The fancy hot pot table! The hole in the middle is where the soup and meats are cooked.

Use these ingredients to make your dipping sauce. I used spicy ground up fish, garlic, green onion, red and green chilies and sesame seeds with soy sauce!

I was probably more excited than anyone else.

The meal was delicious (I was so hungry and so excited, I forgot to take pictures of the actual food!). I tried sea urchin, octopus balls, drunken chicken, and many other things I wouldn't have normally seen on an American menu. I also had beer again (because I CAN). After dinner, Vincent made sure to take us out for desserts. I wasn't sure I'd have room in my stomach, but let's just say it's hard for me to say no when dessert is involved.

Red bean rolls and mango with coconut noodles were probably the strangest desserts I'd had.

Everything was so delectable! In short, it's been a hectic and surprising couple of days, but I couldn't be happier with the friends I've made and the food I've eaten. Hong Kong has been nothing but good to me so far, and here's hoping my luck continues throughout the semester!

Also I met Bruce Lee :)

Culture Shocked! My First Day in HK

I'm here! I'm here, I'm here, I'm here! It took about 19 hours total and I lost a whole day, my lunch (several times) and a lot of my sanity, but thanks to the help and support of the kind and generous people I've met here and back home, I'm finally happily moved into my dorm in Hong Kong. But it's definitely been a bit of a journey. Let's start from the beginning....

I left on Saturday night/Sunday morning from LAX at mid-night midnight (after sad I-miss-you-and-love-yous with the folks/uncle and tearful chick-flick worthy goodbyes with my boyfriend) and took  a 14 hour flight to Beijing on Air China. I exchanged my money, bought a frappucino, and was on my way!

The money has ANIMALS ON IT! YES!

At this point, I was quite nervous, and needless to say, the fact that the flight attendants couldn't understand me was exceptionally frightening. I guess I always knew there would be a language barrier, but my goodness! I felt so disoriented. Culture shock is a much bigger deal than I expected it to be. I slept most of the flight but I always felt like I was on my toes, just in case I had to speak to someone. I was served two meals: "pork noodle" (my first chinese noodle dish, though because it's airline food I don't know if that counts) and beef with rice at 2am Beijing time, which I found hilarious because who eats rice for breakfast, amirite?! Basically I was just excited to be eating "genuine" Chinese food. 

When I arrived at the Beijing airport, I was overcome with a genuine sense of accomplishment and then a total sense of overwhelming fear of my surroundings. I mean, I expected studying abroad to have some scary moments, but I was so disappointed in myself! I was in a new country, doing exciting things, and yet I was whimpering like a baby! Believe me, doing something big and grand on your own for the first time is no cakewalk. When the wi-fi in the airport didn't work (so I couldn't send "I'm freaking out" emails to my loved ones) and I accidentally wasted 30 US dollars on an international SIM card (thinking I needed one for HK, which is silly because I only need it locally), I basically felt I was the most helpless person ever and had meltdown #1 of my journey. Still, I was distracted by asian coke cans and this weird ad for teeth whitening (or something) and once I got on the plane to HK I was nearly okay.

Chinese Orange Crush and Sprite make everything okay.

I was in awe of this guy's strange and beautiful emotional expressions.

However, the story only goes downhill from here. The flight to HK was at 8:00am and only four hours long, during which the jet lag made me strangely alert and awake. I drank a lot of water but started feeling hot. Like sickly, weird, feverish hot. I took off my jacket and felt a bit better. Then I ate a Chinese breakfast that consisted of congee (kind of like oatmeal made of rice), hot pickled mustard tubers (which I smelled but didn't eat), a black sesame paste bun, pears in syrup, raspberry yogurt and... here's the kicker: what appeared to be a small brown fermented hard boiled egg. Which I ate. With abandon. Because, why not?

Badddd decision on my part.

By the time I got to Hong Kong, I was hot, thirsty, nauseous and exhausted from carrying my overpacked luggage. My HKU buddy (a local assigned friend for international students), Ben Chu, met me at the airport and helped me with carry my suitcase (Thanks so much Ben!). He is also in the arts faculty at HKU, studying history. He speaks German, Cantonese, English and Mandarin, which I found extremely impressive, and he's a great tour guide too.

Ben Chu!
We chatted about Hong Kong and our different cultures on the bus ride (50 HK dollars or 6.50 American dollars) to my housing, but I started to feel ill on the bus ride. Really ill. By the time the 1.5 hour bus ride was nearing it's conclusion, I could barely talk for fear of vomiting. I just couldn't stop thinking about that disgusting fermented egg. Even now, when I think of it, my gag reflex gets set off. I was incredibly tired, carsick and dehydrated, and by the time we got off the bus, I was ready to lose my lunch. Which I did. In a public restroom. It was not my proudest moment.

After checking in at the Pokfulam Amenities Centre, Ben walked me up to my dorm room.

I felt a little better so we ran to the nearby 7-11 and bought some water, then ran over to HKU to begin my check in process. HKU is approximately 5-10 minutes away by bus, but even that was enough to make me feel pretty sick again. Poor Ben! I wasn't very good company in this condition, but he was still nice enough to help me find the Global Lounge Exchange Office before he headed to the library to turn in a job application (good luck Ben!). 

I started the check in process, realized I had forgot my passport in my dorm room and that I'd have to go all the way back on my own to find it (unless I had lost it along the way, which was even scarier and more horrible) and that I had no change for the bus. Oh I felt so defeated and nauseous and awful. I used my phone to call my boyfriend internationally in a panini shop and was basically completely overwhelmed. 

I found my way back to my dorm, found my passport, vomited several more times in the bathroom, and laid down, miserable, on my new dorm mattress. I say mattress because I did not bring blankets, pillows or sheets on my journey and I had nothing to lay down on. I was cold. This was difficult. I felt useless, defeated, and it was one of the top ten hardest days of my life. I called my boyfriend over Skype (thank God wi-fi here is easy to access) and complained my little heart out, while he listened and talked me through it with a dedication of a thousand suns (Thank you so much, Tim!). 

After some rest, I was able to stand up for long enough to go down to where I checked in to find out about blankets and sheets. I talked to the incredibly kind check-in lady, who let me  rent some from the school for 100 HK dollars for the semester. Surprisingly enough, I also ran into a UC student from Irvine, Anna, who invited me to have dinner with her and some friends later. I was still feeling pretty bad, but decided I needed some sort of food and towels and other necessities and went along. 

We took a bus to Central where Anna, her friends, Ping and Gordon (who were also from UC) and I grabbed food at a small noodle shop. I ordered the "plain noodle" since I was convinced any strong flavors would upset my stomach (and I love noodles), and it was just heavenly. It was something like a chicken broth with udon-like noodles and green onion in it and it was honestly the only thing that saved my stomach. Also it only cost 12 HK dollars (1.50 American dollars)! Thank God for noodles!

Noodles: They'll save your life.

We then went to Japan Home Centre and Watson's for towels, linens and other home essentials. In total, to deck out my entire room with bedding, towels, toiletries, hangers, laundry detergent and toothbrush only cost 240 HK dollars! That's 31 US dollars! I was pretty happy about that. 

When I got home, I was feeling much better, and my roommate had moved in! Her name is Fiona and she's from France (though she lived in Mexico for the first fifteen years of her life). We get along really well and I was really grateful that she didn't speak much Cantonese either. It's nice to have someone go through the same things you're going through!

My roommate Fiona, in front of our residence hall.

In the end, my first day actually turned out pretty well! By the time I went to sleep, I felt much better, had successfully made friends and navigated the HK public transportation system and made a nice little home for myself. The culture shock (and incessant nausea) was hard to deal with, but the people here are also more helpful than I could have ever anticipated. Being on my own in a country where I don't speak the language is different and a little bit scary, but the world is full of nice people who are willing to help you out no matter what language you speak! 

But that doesn't mean you can't have a meltdown now and then :)

Last Minute Preparations

I leave for Hong Kong in basically two days! TWO DAYS PEOPLE! It still hasn't really sunk in that I'm moving to a foreign country but who cares? What happens happens! I figure I'll just launch myself into this situation trying to be as prepared as possible and see how it goes. What could go wrong?

Today my mom and I went around town taking care of all my last minute purchases and appointments. Specifically, I went to the doctor and the dentist to make sure I was ship-shape to go to a foreign country (no root canals for me!) and purchased a US to UK outlet adapter from Radio Shack. These go for about for about 13 dollars and it's important to note that HK uses the UK outlet, not the Chinese outlet. Another heads up, the voltage there is 220 volts, so you may need to purchase a converter instead of an adapter (which is slightly more expensive). However, I've checked all the chargers I plan on bringing and they can go between 110 and 220 volts just fine, so an adapter ended up being all I needed! Read the backs of your plugs if you're wondering about this.

I also picked up some toiletries from the supermarket. I made sure to get a few first aid essentials like band-aids, Tylenol, Nyquil and Sudafed since I had heard from a few returnees that the over the counter medicine in HK seems a bit less potent. I also bought a cute portable alarm clock from IKEA for 99 cents! Hooray for last minute purchases! I haven't started packing yet (yikes!) but I think a medium sized roller suitcase, small old-timey carrying suitcase (not sure exactly how to describe it) and a backpack should be more than enough room for the essentials. I'm going to do my very best not to overpack! I want to have space to bring home cool stuff!

As for some info about my lodging, I will be staying in the Patrick Manson off-campus student residences while I'm at HKU. Apparently it's across from the Amenities Center (complete with the gym, I think?) on 7 Sassoon Road, which is about a 10 minute bus ride and a 30 minute walk from the actual campus. This option doesn't have a meal plan or anything, which means for the first time I'll have to create my own budget for food and it'll be like I'm really living on my own in a foreign country! Cool right? I should have two or three roommates, but I don't get to meet them until I actually check into my building. Patrick Manson is supposedly non-local student housing, so I'm hoping to meet a lot of international students who are going through exactly what I'm going through. I'll post some pictures as soon as I get there! 

Okay so I have a pretty packed couple of last days that include seeing my very cool uncle, very cool boyfriend and certainly eating quite a feast with my folks, before I head off on my grand adventure, so I might not have time to post again until I'm actually in HK. I'm sure I'll have plenty to talk about!

Until then!

What I've Been Up To Since 2012...

Happy 2013 everyone! So I realize it's been awhile since I blogged on here but I figured everyone else was probably enjoying their families as much as I was enjoying mine, so I deliberately chose not to distract you with tales of silly pre-departure days. Aren't I thoughtful? Thank me later!

Anyways, here's what I've been up to. I finished my final exams at UCSC (got all As! Hooray for studying, stressing and not really sleeping!), had my last day at work and moved back home to Huntington Beach, CA for month before heading out to Hong Kong. 

My family and I took a fun weekend trip to a beach cottage in Crystal Cove before heading home for Christmas. Everyone had an excellent (and half-drunk) time.

By far, the coolest view in the whole cottage. 

My first attempt at an artsy self portrait in the rustic looking bedroom. It felt like a cuter version of summer camp.

My niece, Dylana, full on instagram-posing for the camera. 

The family looking silly for a weird (but accurate) family portrait.

My boyfriend, Tim, standing in front of some pretty Crystal Cove tide pools.

 It was fun to practice using my camera in the incredibly bright daylight on the beach, and I thought these shots turned out pretty well! 

For Christmas, we had a big family dinner and present pass around at my Grandpa Dan and Grandma Charlotte's house. 

My grandpa Dan looking particularly pirate-y as he cuts the prime rib.

My dad was incredibly excited about his new ipad and brought everyone around to see.

My parents, the original party animals.

Me and the cutest pomeranian I've ever seen, Bella.

My aunt and cousin, spreading the holiday love!

For Christmas, I received a Berlitz Cantonese phrase book and CD (score!) so I've been practicing some more phrases for my trip to Hong Kong. I don't know if other students have this problem, but UCSC does not offer Cantonese classes, so I was really excited to have something to practice with in my spare time. I also received a vibrating neck pillow for the plane, a camera case, an adorable travel journal and some cute clothes (including a t-shirt with a French Bulldog wearing a beret) for traversing through the city!

As far as preparations for my trip go, I've opened up a Charles Schwab bank account to use during my trip abroad. I learned from returnees that Charles Schwab is a really great option for people who don't want to open up a Hong Kong bank account because you can withdraw from any ATM abroad without incurring fees! It seems to make retrieving money a lot more simple and effective than it would be with Bank of America or other banks. I've also had an extra set of passport photos taken to keep with me for use during check in at my housing and for registration during classes. At HKU especially, it's good to have extra passport photos, as I've heard from returnees that several are needed for different registration purposes. And the less running around for errands I have to do while I'm actually in Hong Kong, the better.

So there's a brief update on what I've been up to lately. I'll be updating more in the coming days, but I'm leaving at 12:20am this coming Sunday morning! It's CRAZY! This is CRAZY! I'm gonna be a world traveler! I'll tell you how I'm going but for now I think I'm as ready as I'll ever be!