....or as they refer to it here as the Lunar New Year (politically correct and all).....sort of like the printed words you find in Christmas cards these days - happy holidays or some such thing, just so noone will be offended!
Anyway, I still called it Chinese New Year, and I realised pretty quickly that I wasn't really prepared for this momentous event. Next year I will be ready with my cash filled envelopes - slightly embarassing to have several given to our kids and we had nothing to give in return (I suppose I could have made them a marmite sandwich and had a cultural exchange of sorts - but alas I was so ashamed at having nothing in my hands that I sort of slunk away after they gave the envelopes to the kids, and changed the subject). Next year I will also force my husband to buy the most wonderful mini daffodils - ohhhh they smelt glorious! They might even block out the odours coming from our smelly toilet!!! (gotta love asian plumbing, not!). And next year I will look up the timetable of the dragon dance (rather than take my helpers word on it) so I don't drag my family to a freezing ghost town again!
So, enough about next year, what did we do this year? One whole week off for Paul but don't think you're resting darling, oh no, we have a whole city to see :)
Naturally I booked it up heavily....Friday afternoon we shot off to Bumble Tots over in Ma On Shan to try out their indoor playground.
What a great way to use up many hours in the day.
Kids were happy as larry, Mum and Dad were able
to just sit there, not talking just sleeping with our
eyes open - BLISS!!!
Next day we were out early to tramp the Aberdeen Reservoir walk (refer last post). We started off with a look at the Police Museum. If only we didn't have 2 pre-schoolers with us we would have found out heaps about crime in Hong Kong. They had an opium lab set up, and triad information, boats that refugees used as well as the best selection of police uniforms through the ages - very funny!!! We had our own personal Chinese security guard flanking us the whole time - just incase we needed to ask where the exit was, or was he worried we might enjoy ourselves a bit too much and he would need to intervene ;)
Future policeman?
All over Hong Kong they had these amazing decorations which must cost the goverment a bomb - (don't worry, they won't be out of pocket, we are keeping them with a nice passive income through our parking ticket addiction!) - the temples are decocrated, the streets have lanterns everywhere, the supermarkets get into the act and play cute chinese music, and basically it is very festive and wonderful.
The decorations at our apartment
One place you can see all of these wonderful decorations and New Year celebrations is at the week long market they set up in Victoria Park. We shot off there one night to check it out. Fantastic fun!! Like the Easter Show within Meadowlands. There were flowers and flowers and flowers.....
Mini Daffodils
And all sorts of fruit trees that were meant to bring prosperity and good luck (fruit that is round or golden in colour is meant to be good luck). There was this really weird looking tree which we saw everywhere. I have no idea if it actually grows like this but here is a picture of it - if you know what it is let me know cause I am still none the wiser.
weird fruit tree
There was so much food at the market, and yet I was too scared to try most of it because if it wasn't black, or wobbly, or stinky, or fishy, or dried, or fried then it was in a packet and considered not very authentic by myself. Eventually I recognised something from our fruit and vege shop in Highland Park (pretty funny huh, come all the way over here to eat something you can buy for $3.00 back in NZ). Fried sesame crescents, bet they have a way flasher Chinese name but thats my description for them - yummmmm - so neally ate the whole lot!
me at Victoria park
Because this was our date night, and most of the time we walked around with our mouths open just gawking at everyone, we decided to go have a wine. Check out the photo below to see the car that was parked outside the wine bar we went in!!! When Noah saw the photo he asked Paul if that was one of the cars he had looked at when looking for our family car! Ha ha, kids are great aren't they, like you could fit even one kid in that car, doubt it.
flash as car
On the actual night of the real Chinese New Year (they celebrate it for a whole week) they have these awesome fireworks. It was really cold on this particular night and we had told Noah as a special treat he could come out with us to watch the fireworks. We went to Pauls school to watch them and it was brilliant. Noah had a blast even though he was freezing!! They went on for over 20 minutes and apparently had all these meanings that were lost on someone as nieve as myself....I just loved the pretty colours :)
Freezing while watching the fireworks
Fireworks
Chinese New Year is notorious for bad weather. It is a good sign for the coming year apparently (what a conundrum.....for the Chinese to be happy it has to get really cold, for me to be happy it has to be as warm as possible, how does this get solved? I know, we go to Thailand next Chinese New Year :) So anyway, they got there wish, it was freezing all week. We had decided to visit Discovery Bay on Saturday and yeh, it was the first warm day we had had all week. We caught the train then the ferry over there.
Ferry photo
What a great place!! We ate at this restaurant which had a big wooden boat that kids could play on. What a brilliant solution for parents with kids....it was the first meal we have had out that I actually enjoyed!! (it could have been the sangria taken on an empty stomach as well). We lazed around there as long as we could, then finally when the whinges became too hard to ignore we shot off to the beach.
The best restaurant!!!
In Discovery Bay you walk everywhere as no cars are allowed in (only buses and mini vans). If you are uber wealthy you drive these dinky little golf carts, but the rest of us just walk. Its so nice to see everyone out strolling around. The kids had a blast at the playground on the beach. I had to feed and change Tobias while they played, and poor fellow, the sun was shining, so I popped my glasses on him so he didn't have to squint - he looked so adorable!!!
Tobias with glasses on
Well after strolling around pretending we lived in amazing beach front apartments with golf carts parked outside we cruised back to the ferry for the trip back to reality. Back to work, back to being mummy of 3 kids all at home....but we got to remember our great week of being tourists here in Hong Kong.
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