Apartment hunt!

In exactly one month, our service apartment contract will end and Katherine and I will be out on the streets...

...and walking to our new, permanent apartment. ;)

In truth, our Hong Kong apartment-hunting began about a year ago, so we have a pretty good feel for our options and where we'd like to stay. Still, yesterday, we contacted a real estate agent (who happens to be a very good friend of Katherine's former academic adviser at Hong Kong U) to see if she could help us navigate the waters. She setup four apartment viewings immediately, and there's more to come, so it's going to be a busy few weeks.

To give you a glimpse into the process, here are a few images from one that we are considering...

A good chunk of the living room.

The kitchen, which is of average Hong Kong size (and larger than our current one). The refrigerator is behind me to the left, if you were wondering, and below the microwave is a washing machine for clothing. Dishwashers and ovens are extremely uncommon in Hong Kong, and didn't exist in any of the places we've seen so far.

About half of one of the two bedrooms, which are almost equally sized.

A cleverly-disguised breakfast nook.
Or perhaps I am mistaken.

Once we have a place picked out, you'll get full coverage. :)

I'm legal! Part 2!

Last week I obtained my visa, this week my application for a Hong Kong Smart Identity Card was submitted and approved! Here's a shot of the room in the Immigration Department where final confirmation was bestowed upon me...


...in cubicle 58, to be exact. Here's a look at the result...


This in an interim identity document for me to use while my ID card is manufactured. In about two weeks, I'll return to the Immigration Department and pick up the final product, completing this six-week process. I'll return with more pictures then. :)

Ergonomic improvements...

During the past month, Katherine and I have been scouring Hong Kong for the right pieces to build a healthy and ergonomic workspace for ourselves. We both sit for hours on end while working and that can lead to some pretty devastating injuries if care isn't taken in the selection of the components we use. The most important of those components is undoubtedly the chair. It must be tuned to one's specific bodyshape and, once it is, all the other components (table, monitor, etc) can be fitted accordingly.

Let's take a look at our previous workspace...


Hotel furniture, essentially. Nothing is adjustable, so Katherine and I were always sitting in poor position - extremely unhealthy. This week, thank goodness, we had two excellent chairs delivered...

...a Duorest for Katherine...

...and a Steelcase Leap for me.

They are wonderful and their effects have been immediately noticeable. We also picked up a height-adjustable table from Ikea which allows us to properly tune the table to our chairs (which, in turn, have been tuned to our bodies). This is only part of the final design, though, since we'll each need a separate table (you might have noticed that Katherine and I are of different heights ;>), but it is a great start. Once we've moved into a permanent place, the final pieces will be obtained and we'll have a great foundation for a healthy, happy life in Hong Kong.

A Chiu Chow dinner...

There was a time when I considered "Chinese food" to be a single category, but that is certainly not the case now. Hong Kong has a way of quickly correcting that misconception with access to unbelievable variety in food.

Last night Katherine and I sampled yet another facet of that variety, Chiu Chow, at a restaurant that was one of her favorites while studying at Hong Kong U. It was magnificent and I'm sure we'll be back many times. Here come the obligatory pictures...

A pickled vegetable condiment that the restaurant made themselves.

Chicken with a flash-fried green leafy vegetable.
(I know - I make it sound so mouth-watering. ;>)
What made this dish truly amazing was how crispy the leaves were!

Their soup of the day. It included pork, peanuts, lotus seeds,
black-eyed peas, and (as you can see in the picture) the foot of a chicken. ;>

Fresh shrimp, cucumber, vermicelli, and cilantro.

After dinner, we strolled around the nearby Kennedy Town area and found an outstanding dessert shop, so we had to stop in and try a few things...

Tong yuen (balls made from sticky rice flour dough and filled with
sesame paste) in a ginger sauce. A very quintessential Hong Kong dessert.

Yeung zi gum lo dou fu faa. A dessert soup comprised of
mango juice, freshchunks of mango, pomelo meat,
mini tapioca, and sweet-n-silky tofu.

A great way to spend a Friday evening! Fui Fui, however, had to stay at home and guard our valuables...

Beware, thief!

I'm legal!

Not that I was ever illegal, but without the event that happened this week, I would have been in about a month.

All US passport holders, among others, are granted a free 90-day visa upon entry to Hong Kong - no need to apply before jumping on the plane (which makes it very easy for anyone to visit us, I might add). This was the case with me when we arrived at the end of December. We're planning to be in Hong Kong longer than 90 days, however, so about three weeks ago we visited the Hong Kong Immigration Department in order to apply for something more permanent: a dependant visa. More specifically, a visa based upon my marriage to Katherine. In Hong Kong, a visa granted through marriage to a permanent resident imparts nearly all citizenship rights (employment, investment, land ownership, education, etc) - about the only thing it doesn't provide is the right to vote, but that can be acquired eventually.

It took quite a lot of paperwork and three different visits to the Immigration Department, but this week my visa was granted! Here's a snapshot...


It's pasted on one of my passport pages. Pretty cool.

I must renew the visa each year that we are living in Hong Kong. If we live here for seven years, however, my visa status changes from dependant to permanent, so renewals no longer become necessary.

The next (and final) step in my residency process is to obtain a Hong Kong Smart Identity Card (something that has similarities with Real ID, but not nearly as feared by the public). That application will be submitted this week and I should be able to show you pictures of mine by mid-March.

The strangest Hong Kong food I've encountered...

...isn't snake soup, isn't turtle pudding, isn't pig's blood, isn't frog hot pot, it's...

Pizza Hut! ;>

Tonight I wanted to be really adventurous and experience Hong Kong's Pizza Hut, and Katherine agreed to subject herself to the experiment as well. In truth, Pizza Hut is my least favorite of the major American pizza chains and I haven't actually set foot in one for more than 10 years. In Hong Kong, however, Pizza Hut projects a different image than what I'm used to: fine dining. Well, more so fine than what one would expect, anyway. It's closer to an Olive Garden than my traditional concept of Pizza Hut. (Though, to be fair, Katherine and I both agree that it is definitely a notch or two below Olive Garden.) Let's take a quick peek at some menu pages...



Norwegian Salmon and Fruit Salad? Spanish White Wine Blue Mussels? Pizza Hut? Does not compute! ;>

Now, before you ask, they do have pizza. Many of the same pizza toppings are available, but a few may surprise you: pork, tuna, crab sticks, and corn. (Corn, in particular, is all over most of the pre-designed pizzas.) The most surprising ingredient choice, though, has to be thousand island dressing. Yes, instead of tomato sauce, you can have your pizza slathered in thousand island dressing before the cheese and toppings arrive. This sounds absolutely revolting to me, which means I must try it.

I didn't try it tonight, though. Instead, we decided to go for a promotional combo meal to get a more complete experience...


The combo doesn't actually include all that food - a few of them are either-or choices. Let's take a closer look to find out what Katherine and I chose...


Iced Aloe and Iced Citron Tea


Minestrone

Sicilian Chicken Trio

Mushroom and Black Truffle Sauce Spaghetti

Abalone Sauce Slice Cheesy Lava Stuffed Crust Pizza
I'll let Pizza Hut further describe this particular pizza themselves...

"Savour the taste of fresh seafood slices flavoured with authentic Abalone sauce served with crayfish and crab roe dressing, then perfectly complemented with succulent chicken bites and fresh enoki mushrooms. All served on your favourite Cheesy Lava Crust – a delicious combination of Mozzarella, Parmesan and Cheddar that's simply irresistible to cheese lovers!"

Not your everyday pizza, eh? ;> And it was actually pretty tasty - particularly the crust. But what's with the "fresh seafood slices"? I'm not sure how one gains a slice of all seafood, but apparently we had six on our pizza (one per pizza slice). We speculated that they were actually squid slices.

All-in-all, however, the meal was... just okay. A better experience than I expected, really (considering my lack of love for Pizza Hut), but not something I'll crave. There are many other local restaurant near us which are far tastier and cheaper (this was about $US17 per person). Still a good experience to have and one that I'm happy to share with you. ;>

Amanda Visits!

A good friend of ours, Amanda Banerjee (who some of you certainly know and who others might have met when Katherine and I were married), stayed with us for three nights this week while returning to San Francisco from West Bengal, India.

During her first day here, Thursday, Katherine and I both had to work - but we did squeeze in some sari time...



...before heading over to the University of Hong Kong for a little tour...




The next day was packed with activities, starting with a tour of the Central district where we stumbled upon the world's largest postage stamp mosaic in the Central Post Office...





We then crossed the harbor and went to Kwun Tong for a visit with Katherine's parents (and a wonderful lunch made by Katherine's mother). Once lunch was done, Katherine's mother joined us for a trip to Sai Kung, where we hopped on a private boat tour around the coastline and nearby islands...






Here's a little panoramic video which might help convey the boat experience...



Sai Kung is extremely well-known for its deliciously fresh seafood, so we appropriately finished our coastline tour with a traditional floating fish farm...



Much to our surprise, the waters surrounding the farm were teeming with jellyfish (which, along with sharks, prevent this water from being friendly to swimmers). I attempted to capture a few shots of them, but the boat was moving too quickly, producing a bunch of white blurs. ;)

We closed the evening with a dinner made from fresh (live up until they cooked it for us) locally-caught seafood (lobster, steamed fish, crab, and squid) followed by an amazing selection of mango and durian desserts. Unfortunately, before all that great food came our way, my camera ran out of battery. Whoops! Not to worry, though - you'll see more food some other day.

A reunion at Jolly Thinkers...

This past Monday evening we were reunited with some wonderful friends: Joyce, Ronald, Janice, and Louisa! We met at Jolly Thinkers, the boardgame cafe that Joyce owns and operates, for a bit of dinner, conversation, and gaming. It also happened to be the night before Ronald's birthday, so we had a tiny surprise celebration for him as well. Here's a look at Jolly Thinkers...


...and a look at the gang...


On the left back to front): Katherine and I with Janice.
On the right (back to front): Louisa, Joyce, and Ronald.

A great time at a great place with great people!

Lunch with a Living Linguistics Legend...

Today Katherine and I had the pleasure of lunch with John Swales (who certainly will be known to some of the GK+HK readers). John is a man of many accomplishments in the field, to say the least, and though he is retired, he is still constantly contributing. In fact, we are very familiar with him because he is still very much affiliated with the University of Michigan and lives in Ann Arbor. Amazing to see him here, no? He came to give five lectures at various Universities in Hong Kong (including Hong Kong U, where Katherine caught up with him) and help City U conduct some curriculum evaluations.


Here are the three of us at a fantastic Shanghainese restaurant (the third different Shanghainese place we visited this week ;>) in the Festival Walk shopping mall, very close to where he was staying at City U.

After lunch, as Katherine and I were parting from John, we happened across a giant peacock, terrorizing shoppers at the center of the mall...


At first, when it sighted me, I was in great peril...


...but after a nice heart-to-heart chat, we patched things up...


Much better.

A mobile phone for Gray!

Just a quick note to mention that we finally had time to pick up a new mobile phone (and associated service plan) for me this weekend. This wouldn't be so news-worthy, except that the four digit suffix of my new phone number is rather special: 1337.

This may not mean much to everyone in the audience, but for those who were involved in late BBS and early Internet eras (mostly in the early 90s), it is a number of great significance. I didn't go looking for that number, mind you, but it jumped out at me while browsing through a page of available numbers to choose from. I couldn't believe it...and I couldn't resist it.

Incidentally, I went for the cheapest service plan (since I am most definitely a "lightweight" phone user): about US$5 per month for 550 minutes. In Ann Arbor, I was paying about US$40 per month for about half the number of minutes with Verizon. Quite a difference.

New Year Fireworks...

The most spectacular fireworks show in Hong Kong is reserved for the Chinese new year - and the event happened last night directly over Victoria Harbor (the centerpiece landmark of Hong Kong).

Instead of going down to the harbour to see the show, though, we decided to go up to Victoria Peak, which has a fantastic vantage of the harbour. It's not often you get to look down to see fireworks. ;>

On our way, we took a night stroll through Hong Kong Park...




An interesting combination of skyscrapers and nature. Once we emerged from the park, we joined the masses waiting to hitch a ride up to the Peak on the Peak Tram...



(This was taken once we got to the "front" of the line, though you can see the tram and more people are ahead of us. ;>)

As we rode up the mountain, the fireworks started and we were able to see them while en route. We arrived and secured a viewing spot just in time for the finale. Here's a little video segment from that...


(As the video plays, you should be able to see a building with lines of light that are animated in a criss-cross pattern. This is the Bank of China and is the very same criss-cross-lit building that I'm posing with in Hong Kong Park at the beginning of this post.)

After the fireworks, we explored the Peak facilities a bit (a shopping mall, restaurants, etc) and then went back home for a nice rest.

Goodness - look at that - not a single picture of food in this post. I'm sure I'll make up for that later. ;>

Happy New Year!

This week brought the Chinese new year and its associated celebration (which lasts for a number of days). Hong Kong has been alive with special events, foods, and reunions. An exciting (albeit busy) time to be here.

Something else the new year brings: red packets! As we visited family and friends, these money-filled goodies were both given and received...


That would be the results of some good receiving. ;> Humans aren't the only beneficiaries, though...



Fui Fui hasn't managed to get his open yet, but perhaps he will before next year arrives.

Time to let the cat out of the bag...

(I couldn't resist! ;>)

An evening in Central...

Life is becoming much more calm of late, so tonight Katherine and I decided to take a very short bus ride to Central district (near the Soho and Lan Kwai Fong areas).

First we did a little window shopping and came across a street which was mostly full of stalls with Chinese New Year decorations...


The new year is only days away and appropriately-themed merchandise is everywhere.

After the window shopping, it was time for dinner, and we happened to stumble across one of Hong Kong's most famous restaurants, Yung Kee...


...and you know what that means - food pictures! Muhaha! No escape!

Let's start with a bit of foreshadowing...


The glare is a bit distracting, but you are looking though a window into Yung Kee's roasted meat display. Their roasted goose is among the most famous in the world, and that's mostly what you see here.


I just couldn't wait to get my smackers around some of that roasted goodness! Before we dive in to that, though, let's take a quick look at one of their kitchens (yes, this place is big - spanning at least six floors - and it has multiple kitchens)...


This was the view from our table. Being able to watch all the action was so cool!

Time for the first dish...


Thousand-year-old egg with pickled ginger. The taste was quite good, actually, but I do have a hard time with the texture and appearance (especially the yolk). Yung Kee makes both of these components themselves.


Chicken congee.


Eggplant stir-fried with fresh crab.


Roasted goose! Absolutely outstanding. It is a very common Chinese dish, actually, but Katherine and I both had never tried it. We started at the top!


Katherine agrees.


For dessert, mango pudding (with fresh chunks of mango).


...and black sesame pudding (something Katherine and I had never seen before).

After dinner, we walked around a bit more and noticed this interesting eyewear shop...


So we had to strike a few poses...




(Which, incidentally, seemed to trigger a landslide of other photos from nearby pedestrians.)

On our way home we stopped by the University of Hong Kong to grab Katherine's laptop, so I snapped a quick picture of the building she's in...


...and then returned home to relax. Fui Fui almost got himself in a bit of trouble with a common new year snack we had out, but we caught him in time...


...and then he decided to fall asleep beside me as I was writing this very post...



Quite a nice evening.