Great Ending to 2009, Part 1

So much for posting at least once a week. We've been here for almost five months and I'm quite sure December went by the quickest. Larry took three weeks off and my parents were here for two weeks and in a blink of an eye all are gone again. I'm still waiting on confirmation that Mom and Dad are safely back on US soil, but that trip back is brutal, recovery will take a week. Larry is headed back to Dalian, and then to Beijing and other parts that are even colder. He's got a suitcase packed full of thermals, sweaters, scarves and...you get the picture. He wasn't looking forward to the next few months as Dalian is brutal in the winter. Today, it's not supposed to get above 17 degrees F. For a southerner, that's a rude awakening to the new year. We did, however, have a great time over the holidays.
The girls finished the school term with more Christmas parties and concerts. Larry came home from Dalian. Two days later we were headed to Hong Kong for a pre-Christmas-vacation vacation. I'm not really one for spur of the moment, but sometimes, those moments turn into precious ones. We'd talked about suprising Mom and Dad in Hong Kong as their cruise stopped there. We ended up being a day late, but after visiting that city, I'm not sure how we ever would have found them.
Eric, Larry's assistant, booked our flight and hotel so we weren't sure what to expect (but I'm learning that's ok). Our flight was uneventful, but the girls did wonder why we weren't sitting in the First Class section as they've come to expect that's the only way to fly. The shuttle ride to the hotel was nice. We basically had the entire bus to ourselves. I guess I never really paid attention to the landscape around the city, but I had no idea it was so beautiful. The mountains rise right out of the sea, with dazzling highrises set up against them. The full affect comes at night when the city explodes with wonderous color. If electricity can reach it then it will be lit up. And I thought Suzhou had lights.
We spent the first day exploring the resort. The girls put their bathing suits on and splashed around in the pool. The beach was next. Larry and Sarah spent time scouring for shells, Katie checked out the sand sculpure competition while Sydney let a little Asian girl bury her in the sand. We took on Disneyland Hong Kong Monday. We arrived when it opened and stayed until closing. Every ride was ridden and every character spotted. Disney certainly knows how to decorate for the holidays. Main Street even had snow falling throughout the day despite the 70 degree weather. The Sollars were vacationing in Hong Kong as well, and we met up with them for part of the day. It's a Small World and Space Mountain were my favorites.
Tuesday, we rode a doubledecker bus to Hong Kong Island. I thought I knew world geograghy. Nope, not at all. Our hotel was actually in New Territories and we had to cross over a couple of large bridges and other islands like Kowloon to get to the actual city of Hong Kong. I just watched Batman the Dark Knight and there's a scene which takes place in Hong Kong. Yep, we were there. The buildings are so close together you could shake hands with your neighbors out the windows. The streets were mobbed, the stores were mobbed. Everywhere you looked it was crowded. Designer everything, prices through the roof and you could literally feel the city pulsing. I was completely intimidated and was thankful when we got on another double decker bus and headed for Stanley Bay. San Francisco streets have nothing on the streets we rode. We scaled a mountain on a bus, hairpin turns and fantastic views. Stanley Bay is home to many expats and it was easy to see why. The hussle and bussle is left on the other side of the mountain. This place reminded me of Newport, Rhode Island, Key West and a touch of Acapulco combined into one tourist trap paradise. The weather was chilly and the skies cloudy, but one could easily see the appeal even through the fog. The market was pitiful, no bargains were found, but I would go back if only to sip a cold drink in one of the many pubs overlooking the bay. We rode back on a different colored bus and saw the entire island. We also missed our stop and ended up in the heart of somewhere not really knowing how to get back to the hotel. A couple of nice folks pointed us in the right directions and we took the subway/train. That was fun. The girls once again were a hit. They had our entire car laughing at their antics by the time we got to our destination. We still had a short taxi ride to the hotel.
Wednesday turned into an adventure. We decided to return to Tsuen Wan where the train station was as there was a large mall. Certainly, it couldn't be that hard to get back to as the taxi ride was only about five minutes. Two buses and three hours later we finally found it. The girls were troopers and for a reward and in a huge moment of personal weakness I allowed them to get their ears pierced. Sarah was the first. She only showed fear for a brief second. Syd went next and started crying after the first ear but endured through. The tears were enough to momentarily deter Katie. But, by God, she wasn't going to let her sisters be the ones to come back and brag about getting their ears pierced. I was pretty convinced she'd pass out, and I almost yanked her out the seat when she said "You're forcing me to do this!" Leave it to Katie to turn this into an Oscar winning drama performance. I did have to force her to stay in the seat after the first ear. She told the technician "Please, just give me a few moments". He had to hide a smile. Finally, after about five minutes she let him do the other ear. The three of them walked down the hall like they were on a catwalk, which, as most of you know, is one of their favorite playtime activities.
Our evenings were spent in the hotel. There was a super buffet with every type of food you could conceive of. Sarah was particularly fond of the marshmallows, strawberries and chocolate fountain. Syd liked the grilled lamb chops. Katie preferred the crab legs. Larry and I endulged in the sashimi tuna, swordfish, and salmon. The lounge singers were from the Phillipines. Their repertoire consisted of christmas songs and the Mamma Mia soundtrack. The girls were in heaven. They even got up on stage with them one night.
It was a great spontaneous trip, but I was anxious to get home because my parents were slated to arrive the next day in Shanghai. More to come....including lots of pictures.