Out and About

As you can see, I haven't been keeping up with the blog that well. Work consumes most of my weekdays, Rufina, Frisbee and rest consume the rest of the time, so I haven't take a lot of photos or posted much on my blog. Sorry.

Here are a couple of things from a few weeks ago...

Last month, my roommate David (who you might remember from Macau), had some friends come to Hong Kong for a visit. My other roommate Mike and I decided to educate these boys about some of the finer points in life. So we took a cycling trip in the New Territories from Tai Wai to Tai Po. We rented bikes and pedaled along a bike path that paralleled a river up to one of the northern cities of the New Territories. It was a nice ride, even though it was very hot and I was very sore the next day(s).

The highlight was when we found a shaded spot with a small table and busted out Catan, or Settlers of Catan for those of you who aren't familiar with the greatest board game ever.

I managed to keep my Hong Kong streak alive despite a serious threat from James and enjoyed victory on the banks of the Shing Mun River Channel as joggers and cyclist passed by us.

On another Saturday, I took Mike and James out to Cheung Chau Island. It is a small island located between the southern parts of Hong Kong's largest islands- Lantau and Hong Kong Island. A little reminiscent of Ko Phi Phi in Thailand, it has a narrow strip that connects to larger ends that with hills. The main part of the city, the port and the beach are on that little strip.

We walked down the the southwest corner to Chueng Tsai Po's Cave. He was a pirate centuries ago and it is said that he stashed some of his booty in the small cave. Alas, there was nothing left by the time we got there, so we pushed on.

We walked up a hill and found a spot overlooking the sea. Unfortunately, the audience doesn't really get to enjoy the view.

There were a few cemeteries up on the hill, most were markers for Buddhist or Taoist, but there was a Catholic cemetery also. If the plots look small, I think it is because they cremate people, so these are more like memorials or shrines to their ancestors. Recently, we had a holiday and one of the primary reasons for the festivals was sweeping graves and honoring ancestors.


For more photos from Cheung Chau Island check out Mike's Facebook album.