More fun in HK
HONG KONG. Been there. Done that.
Quite a number of times, as a matter of fact, from pre-handover to post-Luneta hostage crisis. So what fun can still be had out of a place that has become all-too frequently visited?
One, find some spots out of the tour rut.
Two, get a totally new perspective, indeed, a new high out of the old familiar places. Simply by bringing the whole family around.
And what fun we -- three sons, three daughters, two sons-in-law, three grandkids and one nephew -- are having now here in cool, 11-degree C-chilly Hong Kong. Aye, if only for the opportunity to ramp in their winter collection, this trip is already one blast for my three girls.
Yeah, it's more fun in Hong Kong. With the whole family. It helps -- tremendously-- when one family member lives and works here. On the practicaly side, you just don't get a free place to stay in but a knowledgeable guide too. And then, the emotional rebonding, priceless.
Hectic is one adjective appended to Hong Kong. Just get to any MTR station and be devoured by the rat race, at a most frenzied pace. Which makes the Nan Lian Gardens and the Chi Lin Nunnery at Diamond Hill in Kowloon a most pleasant discovery.
Serenity comes right at the very entrance to the classical garden, the meandering pathwalk through clumps of "giant" bonsais and rock formations inspires contemplation, the pond -- really a lake in miniature -- with kois of bright orange, immaculate white, bursting yellow, deep black and shimmering gold opens up to meditation.
If it's solitude that one desired, the banyan grove makes the perfect spot, with but the soft whistling of leaves breaking the perfect silence.
From a promontory, the Perfection Pavillion -- a golden pagoda which bears some likeness to Kinkakuji in Kyoto -- and its orange Zi Wu Bridges radiate some glow of enlightenment amid the verdant calmness, touching the very soul, moving one to seek the Way.
The feeling of lightness of being transcends to some timeless eternity at the Chi Lin Nunnery -- in fact but a few hundred steps away -- amid the soothing chants, the gentle, barely audible tinkling of little bells and the fragrant aroma of incense at the different altars of the Tang Dynasty timber monastery.
Refreshed, renewed in some inner peace, we hied off to the Wong Tai Sin Temple at Sik Sik Yuen -- hope I got the name of the place right -- for more praying and incense offering.
Lest this be misconstrued: No, this is no religious pilgrimage we are making. Our Hong Kong-based son Jonathan, who is the main reason for the visit, is professedly irreligious. Finding the greater fulfilment in numbers -- the actuarial specialist that he is -- than in formulaic prayers.
Off to Disneyland then on our second day, January 22. A long-held dream -- as far back as when the kids were preppies and graders-- resurfacing when the wife and I did Annaheim's in 2006, finally fulfilled, the brood complete, plus three beautiful grandkids.
Planet Earth's happiest place, indeed. The child in everyone, no matter the age, finds eternal rebirth at Disneyland.
There, three generations of Lacsons, now blended with Pingol and Dy, heartily laughing, immensely enjoying jungle river cruises and space mountains, autopias and orbitrons; ooohing and aaahing at Tinkerbell and the Lion King, Buzz Lightyear and Winnie the Pooh and but of course, Mickey, Minnie, and Goofy in the Main Street parade of all the characters the Great Walt himself created and his consequent entertainment empire spawned.
And what greater climax of the day than the spectacular fireworks show backdropping -- and highlighting in all hues -- Sleeping Beauty' magnificent castle. Ah, how in childlike awe, I shed some tears of joy at wonderland.
We never really outgrow our childhood completely. Disneyland makes that a certainty.
At Hong Kong Disneyland, East and West find confluence, aye, a blending as in the yin and yang, most manifest in the oriental dragon -- to presage the Chinese New Year -- moulded in the silhouette of Mickey Mouse.
Yes, it's the Chinese New Year come. Got to leave for Tsim Sha Tsui to see the grand parade. Kung Hei Fat Choi, then.
Quite a number of times, as a matter of fact, from pre-handover to post-Luneta hostage crisis. So what fun can still be had out of a place that has become all-too frequently visited?
One, find some spots out of the tour rut.
Two, get a totally new perspective, indeed, a new high out of the old familiar places. Simply by bringing the whole family around.
And what fun we -- three sons, three daughters, two sons-in-law, three grandkids and one nephew -- are having now here in cool, 11-degree C-chilly Hong Kong. Aye, if only for the opportunity to ramp in their winter collection, this trip is already one blast for my three girls.
Yeah, it's more fun in Hong Kong. With the whole family. It helps -- tremendously-- when one family member lives and works here. On the practicaly side, you just don't get a free place to stay in but a knowledgeable guide too. And then, the emotional rebonding, priceless.
Hectic is one adjective appended to Hong Kong. Just get to any MTR station and be devoured by the rat race, at a most frenzied pace. Which makes the Nan Lian Gardens and the Chi Lin Nunnery at Diamond Hill in Kowloon a most pleasant discovery.
Serenity comes right at the very entrance to the classical garden, the meandering pathwalk through clumps of "giant" bonsais and rock formations inspires contemplation, the pond -- really a lake in miniature -- with kois of bright orange, immaculate white, bursting yellow, deep black and shimmering gold opens up to meditation.
If it's solitude that one desired, the banyan grove makes the perfect spot, with but the soft whistling of leaves breaking the perfect silence.
From a promontory, the Perfection Pavillion -- a golden pagoda which bears some likeness to Kinkakuji in Kyoto -- and its orange Zi Wu Bridges radiate some glow of enlightenment amid the verdant calmness, touching the very soul, moving one to seek the Way.
The feeling of lightness of being transcends to some timeless eternity at the Chi Lin Nunnery -- in fact but a few hundred steps away -- amid the soothing chants, the gentle, barely audible tinkling of little bells and the fragrant aroma of incense at the different altars of the Tang Dynasty timber monastery.
Refreshed, renewed in some inner peace, we hied off to the Wong Tai Sin Temple at Sik Sik Yuen -- hope I got the name of the place right -- for more praying and incense offering.
Lest this be misconstrued: No, this is no religious pilgrimage we are making. Our Hong Kong-based son Jonathan, who is the main reason for the visit, is professedly irreligious. Finding the greater fulfilment in numbers -- the actuarial specialist that he is -- than in formulaic prayers.
Off to Disneyland then on our second day, January 22. A long-held dream -- as far back as when the kids were preppies and graders-- resurfacing when the wife and I did Annaheim's in 2006, finally fulfilled, the brood complete, plus three beautiful grandkids.
Planet Earth's happiest place, indeed. The child in everyone, no matter the age, finds eternal rebirth at Disneyland.
There, three generations of Lacsons, now blended with Pingol and Dy, heartily laughing, immensely enjoying jungle river cruises and space mountains, autopias and orbitrons; ooohing and aaahing at Tinkerbell and the Lion King, Buzz Lightyear and Winnie the Pooh and but of course, Mickey, Minnie, and Goofy in the Main Street parade of all the characters the Great Walt himself created and his consequent entertainment empire spawned.
And what greater climax of the day than the spectacular fireworks show backdropping -- and highlighting in all hues -- Sleeping Beauty' magnificent castle. Ah, how in childlike awe, I shed some tears of joy at wonderland.
We never really outgrow our childhood completely. Disneyland makes that a certainty.
At Hong Kong Disneyland, East and West find confluence, aye, a blending as in the yin and yang, most manifest in the oriental dragon -- to presage the Chinese New Year -- moulded in the silhouette of Mickey Mouse.
Yes, it's the Chinese New Year come. Got to leave for Tsim Sha Tsui to see the grand parade. Kung Hei Fat Choi, then.
posted by A.Caesar Z. Lacson at 2:16 PM
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