Dragon fruit!

Before today, the one and only time I tried dragon fruit was in June of 2003 during a day trip to Windsor, Ontario. It's appearance attracted me immediately...

...but my interest ended after one bite. Not that it was bad, just that it tasted rather like, well, nothing. (I remember thinking, "I know I'm putting something in my mouth - I can feel it - but I sure can't taste anything.") That's probably why I've passed on the chance to buy it so many times in Hong Kong. When it is in season, it is available everywhere here, and it is extremely cheap (about US$0.25 each).

Today, though, it struck me that there MUST be something good about them if they can be sold in such mass quantities, so we bought one and gave it a second chance.

Just stick a spoon in and start scooping!

As you can see, the fruit is full of tiny seeds that are nearly identical in nutty flavor and crunchy texture to those found in kiwi. My memory of the the whitish-gray flesh wasn't that far off - it definitely doesn't have a strong flavor - but this time I found it to be rather refreshing, actually. The texture is somewhere between honeydew and watermelon, and the flavor can be likened to lightly sweetened water. (Some of you know how dreadful I find watermelon to be, so you might think my texture description is a deep insult, but it really isn't - I truly enjoyed eating it. That does NOT mean, however, that I will be enjoying watermelon any time soon. ;>)

GameNight 5!

Just before the summer ends, we thought we'd have a GameNight for the folks who stayed in the residence hall with us during their vacation...

The Cajun series continued with Red Beans and Rice
(about 3.5 gallons of it, not including the rice)

Bananas Foster, a quintessential New Orleanian dessert

Fui Fui has staked out his corner and is ready to dominate in Settlers of Catan

A trilingual game of Pictionary
(with guesses announced in Cantonese, Mandarin, and English)

The PlayStation 3 was never given a rest!

Summer vacation meant a slightly smaller turn-out (about 25), but in no way was there less fun to be had. ;>

Ritz goes crazy!

I expect you guys are seeing these Stateside too, but I couldn't help but post them...

Yes, that's right, lemon and chocolate Ritz sandwiches. When I saw them, I thought, "How on earth could the buttery goodness of Ritz crackers be in any way complimented by lemon or chocolate fillings?". It turns out that my skepticism was unwarranted, though - they are actually pretty tasty. Well played, Kraft. Well played.

A life-changing experience...

Yesterday, after finishing a bit of grocery shopping, Katherine and I decided to do something we almost never do...eat at McDonald's! (We've only eaten at McDonald's one other time since moving here, and it was in April of 2008.)

We arrived just after noon, though, so I was certain we had missed the cut-off time for my favorite reason to visit McDonald's: the Egg McMuffin (which, I can say without any hesitation, is the greatest single fast-food invention of all time). Against all odds, we decided to ask the cashier if they were still being served. She told us that, not only were they still being served, but that they are actually served all day long! (And for this McDonald's location, the one closest to where we live, "all-day" means 24 hours.) What the what?! Egg McMuffins any time I want?! A revelation!

Suddenly, I heart HK McD's.

Visiting with old friends...

Last week, Katherine and I spent some time with a few folks we hadn't seen in a while...

Enjoying dinner at the Lin Heung Tea House (a place we last visited in June) with - from left to right - Ben, Cynthia, and Amy. Last May, Ben and Cynthia invited us to a magnificent feast, and we hadn't seen them since then.

Digging in to a napoleon cake with Amy (different than the one above ;>) and her two daugthers, one of which was just born. Katherine's mother joined us for the journey to Hang Hau, where Amy and her family lives.

Harry Potter in IMAX!

When we discovered that The Half-Blood Prince was showing in IMAX here, we decided that it was the perfect opportunity to get our first Hong Kong IMAX experience. It took a few weeks to get tickets (IMAX appears to be extremely popular here, so you must get your tickets well in advance), but today we finally got to go.

Hong Kong has three IMAX theaters, but we chose the one inside MegaBox, a gigantic (19 story!) shopping mall in Kowloon Bay...

My camera's tiny field of view just gets a sliver of this monstrosity

It's like they designed the logo with me in mind!

A labyrinth of criss-crossing escalators connect the floors
(some are express escalators, moving faster and spanning multiple floors)

There's even an ice rink!

...and, of course, our IMAX theater

Shortly after we arrived, we met up with Katherine's brother and his fiancé, slipped in to the theater, and slipped on our 3D glasses...

Only the opening of the film is in 3D, but it was quite an opening!

After thoroughly enjoying another Harry Potter epic, we went to California Pizza Kitchen (not my idea - I swear!). It was the first time we'd ever tried it, even though we've seen it many times before (like, in Ann Arbor), and it was quite delicious. All-in-all a great night out!

English Camp!

Our residence hall hosted a two-day English camp for 30 underprivileged immigrant children (aged 8 to 13) this week and we had a plenty of fun...

Including me, they had access to six native English speakers - something very difficult for them to normally get - who attempted to cultivate their desire to learn English through games, drama, and casual conversation. (The setting was also specifically chosen as a way to inspire them to pursue University education.) I've no doubt that the children got a lot out of the experience, but the adults just might have gotten more. It was a wonderful time.