Trip Update Nummah One
Hi. I got my "hands" on an internet connection, so I'm going to do a quick update. Forgive any spelling errors, because I hate typing on a laptop keyboard. My fingers are just too big for these tiny things. [insert sexual innuendo here]
We left on Thursday morning, Sydney time, and headed for the airport. A last-minute problem with the kennel that Savoy was staying in meant that I had to talk our housesitter into taking care of her while we're away. He really likes her, so I didn't have to talk too hard to convince him...but it was stressfull to find out (the day before we left for two weeks) that the dog suddenly had no place to stay. All's well that ends well, however...so no complaints. I'm sure she'll be happier staying at home, anyway.
All of our flights so far have gone off without a hitch. The leg from Sydney to Hong Kong was uneventful, and Norris and I chatted about our trip plans and watched a couple of movies. I will say that watching Panic Room, which has some very claustrophobic moments in it, while buckled into your seat in an airplane cabin at 30,000 feet does add some very interesting psychological side-effects to watching the movie. When it was over, I realized that I was cutting off the circulation in Norris' hand. He looked at me as the credits rolled and said "Damn. That was hard work." I agree.
Hong Kong was smelly, crowded, and amazing. Smelly was my first impression as I got off the plane...hot and humid was my next. It was about 34C, and you could cut the air with a knife. I guess the smell shouldn't have surprised me, considering how many millions of people are crammed into that city...and I do mean crammed. Westerners just wouldn't understand unless they'd been there. Every block near the airport was wall-to-wall apartment buildings, each reaching 50-60-70 stories into the sky, with between 50 and 100 apartments, tiny apartments, per floor. I'd never encountered such crowding, and now I have a better understanding of why many people who are raised in Asian cultures so often seem to have no concept of "personal space."
We only had about 7 hours to spend in Hong Kong, so we took a train into the city to the Peninsula Hotel. There is a bar in that hotel above the restaurant, on the 28th floor. Felix, as the bar is known, looks out over the water towards the main business district of Hong Kong, and is famous for the view. We'd heard about the place from a friend in Sydney who used to live in HK, so we decided to spend our "layover" time there over a couple of drinks and soak up the city from above.
The bar was tiny, much smaller than I'd imagined it would be...but the view was amazing. The entire Hong Kong skyline stretched out before us, crawling with neon signs and flickering traffic. The water was littered with cruise ships and barges, all vying for space along the waterfront. I couldn't believe how many vehicles and people were scrambling around in front of us in that window...it was like having the world's busiest ant farm right in your lap. I could have sat there and sipped beer and watched it for days, except for the fact that the beers were $75 dollars (Hong Kong) apiece. I stopped myself at three and we headed back to the airport to catch our next plane.
The next leg of our trip was 13 hours from Hong Kong to London, which (since I'd been up for almost 20 hours) I spent the first part of sleeping. This means that I missed the steak and lobster dinner (No loss, really. Even the food in first class tastes like shit at that altitude) but was awake in time to watch the news and have breakfast. We arrived in London at 5am, rested and awake. Of course, it was raining...but warm. Norris's brother had his driver pick us up at the airport and take us to his house to unpack and freshen up. (He was in Copenhagen for the day on business.) He has a fantastic house just north of the city, and today (Saturday) is having a barbecue for us. We also got to meet the new nephew, who is also named Jack. He's only a week old, and looks like he's not quite done yet.
He is, however, a pooping machine. I've never seen so much stuff come out of an animal so small. How do they do it?
So, today is going to be a family day. Tonight we've arranged with friends to go out to some clubs, and then spend the day tomorrow socializing and finding "the next party." Next week we've got plans to drive out to the country and see things, like Stonehenge, before heading back into the city to do the touristy stuff, like ride the London Eye, visit the Palace and Museums, and maybe go to the zoo or aquarium. I'll keep you posted when I can.
Have I mentioned lately that I really, really love my life?