Ending 2023 in Hong Kong

 

This year I told the kids that we are not doing gifts for Christmas. Every year we have so many gifts and they just get placed on a shelf or a box the rest of the year. We decided that we would think about where we would go. Lucky Dragon wanted to go to Jerusalem. However, October arrived with a war. So that was out of the question. Instead we decided to head back to Hong Kong. This was try #2 this year after the little Muggles and I got stuck in a hotel there during a typhoon in August. Bu this time Lady Hiva came with us! 

We landed in Hong Kong in the morning and booked into our hotel. None of us wanted to waste the day in the hotel, and decided to eat. All of us wanted a good burger, so we made our way to Shake Shack! Luckily, the Shake Shack was next to the 360 cable cabin ride up to the Big Buddha on Lantau Island. 

We braved the long lines of other people holiday-ing in Hong Kong and made it into our cabin. It had a glass bottom so we were able to have a 360 degree view of the forest and harbor as we made our way up the mountain. 

The very first stop Lady Hiva and I made on our Foreign Service journey 13 years ago was Hong Kong. It was fun to look at those blogs as we were in HK and see the differences. 

All of us were loving being out in the blue sky, green trees, and fresh air as we climbed up the stairs to Buddha. 

Koala Bear liked going around the exhibits inside the Buddha and seeing the art. She has been learning about artists around the world in her art class. Either it is really interesting to her, or the teacher is really good at engaging the kids, because she remembers details about art history and the artists themselves. We will be walking and she will point to a painting and spout some random art fact that totally surprises us. 

Lucky Dragon's favorite part was watching the people get drones ready for New Year's celebrations. 

Lucky Dragon brought his turtle with him that has been going on all the trips with us lately. It is a 1inch by 1 inch cube turtle. He likes to take photos with turtle enjoying our trip too. 

We loved that everywhere we went in Hong Kong they were still playing Christmas Music and still had out Christmas decorations! 

We loved the burgers and ice cream that tasted correct.  Lady Hiva was really excited to get the mango bubble milk tea drink (no it does not actually have tea). 

We ended the night eating some amazing ramen. All four of us LOVED the noodles!

We always seem to find ourselves in random grocery stores. We do not need anything really, we just want to see what is available. Hong Kong is like Singapore and has a mix of Asian foods and Western foods. Makes us feel like we are at home in Hawaii!

When we travel I make the two Muggles bring 3 or 4 books each. Yes, they are heavy, but that choice has been a life saver when we have been stranded on Mount Everest or stuck in a hotel during a typhoon. It also helps them on long flights, long lines, and commutes. As you can see here, Lucky Dragon was almost done with his book and reading "the best part" so he braved crowds of people as we walked around to finish! I started to take photos of both Muggles reading in odd places. (don't get me wrong it makes my heart happy they love to read. It also puts my mind at ease that they are reading not on some screen playing a video game). 

These two were so happy that the hotel executive lounge had White Rabbit candy. White Rabbit is a favorite for our family.  Every time we went by we would go in for them to get some more. The lounge employees loved that an American family knew and loved White Rabbit. Little do they know that it is a favorite in Hawaii too thanks to the Asian influence. 

My one request was that we ate at Din Tai Fung. So one day we made our way there. It was DELICIOUS! I wish that India had one so we could enjoy it often. 

It was a great way to start our Hong Kong trip! Good food, nature, clean air, some culture...and just being together as a family! More photos and stories to come.