Fruitcake is looking pretty good

It's likely I've blogged already about Hong Kong traditions and holidays, but anyway...

September and October bring many holidays here in Hong Kong. Yesterday being the Mid-Autumn festival which is largely about family time over Yum Cha and sometimes homes decorated with red paper lanterns around a table holding a basket of Mooncakes.

My research tells me that mooncakes aren't like the (American?) fruitcake, which as most would agree is more spoken about than actually eaten. Here Mooncakes are given as corporate gifts, brought with on your visit to Grandma's apartment, given out by restaurants following many courses of Dim Sum; and the flavors are many. Kosmo Cafe has an organic version, Starbucks a coffee version and despite the move from red bean, chestnut and lotus flavors I still don't seem to care for these pasty treasures.

I was treated to a Mooncake at work on Tuesday just before we left to enjoy our mid-week holiday. Which while on that subject (the subject of holidays falling on a Wednesday) I have mixed feelings regarding middle of the week days off. They're good in that perhaps you're more likely to have the mindset to get up and out and get something done--maybe being just a bit more grateful for every precious hour of 'free time' despite it not being the weekend. There are downsides though such as not being able to stay up late given that tomorrow morning, bright and early your adultish-responsibility driven-life will begin again, all to soon.

Back to the Mooncake. Tuesdays treat was the 'icy' kind, refrigerated, just for something different I guess, kind of like how cheesecake is often served cold. Knowing I probably wouldn't love the thing I opted for 1/2 having learnt to some degree how to stradle the line between total rejection of local flavors and total willingness to ingest anything.

It tasted my friends like the following: 1 part mashed macaroni noodle, 1 part pineapple puree, 1 part bread dough and 1 part garbanzo bean paste. And, yes this is quite an accurate description my smart tastebuds would say. As a wine drinker I've tasted many varieties whose descriptors fell in the hay, dirt, prune and ear wax categories; however these 'notes' are undertones, and oh so subtle--in no way tasting as though one had actually mixed real ear wax with real dirt--if you get my drift.

The Mooncake I argue is not so subtle.

But hey, once a year I think I can partake. And after all aren't holidays mainly a psychological expectation of participating in whatever the holiday is known for, even if that is bean-pasty desserts?

Monday October 1st is also a holiday here. So Nick and I will have 3 days in which to try to find activities to keep us away from 72 hours of couch dwelling. This may include hiking, gyming and anything not in the culinary indulgence genre as we're trying to keep our waistlines in check. Congrats to Nick whose lost around 12 pounds since our return from Seattle. Good job babe! Certainly trumps my 7/8 pounds :)

PS- If I still had 'Today I wish I were here:' posted on my blog I might say China, as in the mainland. They have all of next week off for National Day - who wouldn't like the idea of taking a week off to celebrate 1 day...

No one told me it was orange jumpsuit week!

Today during the 'lunch hour' I walked to the mall to pick up a few groceries. A few ways in which Hong Kong malls are different from say 'The Commons' in Federal Way would be that 'The GAP' is replaced with 'Louis Vuitton', Applebee's would be replaced by an upscale $20-$25 a plate restaurant specializing in jumbo prawns and (the one and only) Macy's replaced by an international grocery store of some sort.

So there I was meandering toward 'The City's Uper' (inside joke = real name CitySuper) to purchase a few 'staples' for my very hungry 'stapler' - a.k.a. myself, and what did I see walking in my direction but 2 men in full-body orange jumpsuits. Now, I've never been inside a jailhouse here in Hong Kong, or in Washington State for that matter (I'm not counting visits to adjacent buildings for marriage license or what-not) however I believe I would be part of the majority in my reaction to the sight of these 2 men seeing as how most of us likely conjur up a few specific thoughts at the sight of anyone resembling massive traffic cones.

My first thought was of concern; and not so much because these guys might've just escaped jail, but rather because if they had--whatever the purpose in having put them in orange jumpsuits--it wasn't working. I'd like to think that if the two of them had been lucky enough to by-pass prison security they'd also be smart enough to consider ditching the related threads as Step Two; however I think we've all seen and heard enough of 'The World's Dumbest Criminals' to suspect, that maybe, just maybe it hadn't occured to them that their orange outfits could put a kink in their otherwise successful getaway.

I'm all for alarms. I love alarms. Ok, well I atleast like them. I don't particularly like waking up to them, but I appreciate the regulation and order they contribute to society. Bbuuutt... When they fail it seems to leave me with more concern than would be present if I'd just had my own two eyes and ears to guard me sans manufactured notification system.

What is the point in having felons in orange jumpsuits if should I see someone inside them--outside a jail cell--I do nothing? I mean I suppose you could argue their benefit with regard to my visual memory. Would I have remembered the 2 men if not in neck-to-ankle orange? Probably not.

Aside from my remembering their presence in the IFC mall around 12:50pm today - what is the unspoken code of conduct in such a situation? Should I have tackled (yes, I'm capable) them? Distracted them with questions on everything from 'Who does your hair?' to 'Where's the nearest subway station?' meanwhile texting our whereabouts to HK's 911?

Back in psychology class we learnt of the 'crowd effect' - probably not actually termed exactly that way... It generally alluded to the reality that when many people are present, if a problem surfaces and we see others ignore it, we're likely to also creating a cycle of mindless reactions. We tend to follow the norm which can result in every single passer-by doing nothing when in fact our help in doing something is absolutely needed. I always worry about such realities. I think (knock on the steel bars of the nearest jailhouse) that I am in fact more observant than the average idiot, I mean respectible citizen and would ask the questions needing to be asked before going about my way. And yet, with questions asked sometimes the result still is 'I'm not sure I should do anything...'

I mean although this isn't America, a.k.a. "Land of freedom to... accuse anyone of anything." I can picture it now... If I'd tackled these guys, or even interogated them with "So, you guys just really like orange huh?" or "What are your thoughts on prison security?" and the like, might it have been me who'd find myself wearing orange if I were wrong in my suspicions? Wearing orange that is until I could break out of 'the house' myself, and you better believe I'd think to change my clothes after.

Maybe I made the right decision to keep on walking, but if this were America I might be sued and/or prosecuted for doing that too...

Visit to CHUNGKING MANSIONS

Thursday night Nick and I joined a few friends for dinner at ChungKing mansions. The name may not mean much to you; but to an HK resident it sits on the list of 'Things you must do atleast once," and now we have.

What resulted in the building being given the title 'mansion' I don't know; maybe it's a mockery as it's reputation is of everything not stately, refined and well-appointed.

With ChungKing what you have is a poorly cared for building on the Kowloon side of Hong Kong known for very cheap hotels and apartments. And where cheap living exists you should not be surprised to find folks with few life options such as refugees from generally poor nations and others in similar despair.

Although every visitor is warned to be on their guard as apparently many of ChungKing's resident's dabble in thievery and drug use there are signs that productive and skillful activities do take place as here you can find many, many Indian and African restaurants and 'The Dehli Club' which we ate at? Simply superb. The Chicken Tikka particularly good with it's intense smoky bbq flavor, which I adore. My affinity for Indian food is pretty easy to disect--I love chicken (rather than beef and pork) I love carbs (rice, potatoes, naan) and the sauces and curry flavors so great a match. Who knew great cuisine could result partialy from a culture which perhaps respects the cow a little too much and disowns the pig...

Not to say I didn't have an enormous fear that I might wake up the next morning with the worst food poisoning known to man... I did fear this. Sure the tables we sat at and the other patrons all looked relatively clean however that didn't calm my worries on what the DC's kitchen might hold.

I wish I had more historical knowledge to share, but if you'd like to keep reading on the subject here's one article that paints CKM in a fairly positive light and another which reflects the more common view.

Our 2nd Hong Kong Hike

Nick recently made a post regarding our newfound semi-commitment to hiking and all things that might generally make us more 'outdoorsy' people and in turn stave off unwanted poundage.

Finding that our time on 'Dragon's Back' was pleasant, we zeroed in on our second Hong Kong hike and set out yesterday to prove what we were, or wanted to be, made of.

The trek up a paved road toward the beginning of the trail turned out to be quite steep and resulted in twitchy calf muscles just 30 minutes into our adventure. Not wanting to find ourselves on bed rest for the following week--at 40 minutes we decided it best to turn around and hope that we'd atleast gotten in a good bit of exercise and yet not so much that what had felt like 40 minutes of solid lunging would do us in.

Regretably, it wasn't until we'd left our apartment that I thought to ask Nick whether he'd determine what 'level' this hike was categorized as by our 'Guide to Hiking in Hong Kong' book:

1) Easy Rambling, 2) A Fairly Challenging Walk, or 3) Strenuous Hiking were the options.

Nick replied that "No, he had not paid attention to the assigned difficulty either."

Following our turnabout at 40 minutes and subsequent return home I commented that we were about to find out whether we were indeed capable of 'becomming hikers' -- this would depend on the what the book had to say of the trek we'd now labeled as 'Strenuous Hiking.'

I was thoroughly mortified and dissapointed to find 'Stage 4' of the 'Sha Tin Pass' hike marked with only 1 of 3 possible hiking boots, thus equalling = Easy Rambling. How could this be I thought? Did the author not consider the steep road one must walk up to find the trailhead itself? Was the author some sort of super-athlete? Was the author confused as to where he'd led his readers?

I may never know. And we may never finish that trail. But we can say we tried, doesn't that count for something?

Boo--Yea!--Boo

It's been a bitter-sweet-bitter day.

1) (bitter) I had to accept my elder sister's resignation from blogging. Having clicked on the link to her blog posted on my blog (3 or 4 times weekly) since who knows when--with no luck in discovering new information--she gave her nod that pnkfrog was to be no more. *sigh*

2) (sweet) Amy, next younger sister, decided she (upon my inquiring whether she too had had enough of life with blogger) would drum up something to share of her life since whenever back in May she'd last written. See, I like reading blogs almost as much as I enjoy writing my own; especially when the author is related to me!

3) (bitter) My sis-in-law almost went into labor (a lil early)--an act that would've instantly given Nick and I the title of 'aunt' and 'uncle'--and then she didn't. Boo-hoo. Give her more drugs! Induce! Induce! ... Due-date, schmoo-date.

Second Language Learned: English

Sometimes I feel as though I have an inbox full of emails intended for someone else. Could be that as I am now paid to 'support' Japan, the notes to 'Beth-san' put me off. Or could be that beyond the salutation I simply have no clue as to what half of the body of these notes are in theory trying to tell me.

"We decided that earliest settlement will be settle at E/C." Said one.

"Pls find some ways to assist you to keep instruction for easy checking." Said another.

And still even more:

"Original documents must be marked by IM in yr excel file before pouched to us, I cannot find this item from yr file."

"Don't use softcopy as an easy way to correct aof."

"Pls advise another cash base for client’s BRL cash ac in HK."

And my favorite thus far:

"Master representation for the account was dispatched. Please find it and make a further procedure."

The problem my dear friends with all of the above is atleast two-fold. One, my knowledge of anything really, is limited and therefore the chance I will be of help to any client wishing to begin trading in any market, is well, best to not bet on. Secondly, I may, on perhaps a good day, accidently be of some help--but only assuming the majority of the words you put in front of me mean about the same to me by definition as they do to you.

Not to pick on anyone's language abilities, but as my new position allows for more mingling with the Honkie's as we try to serve Japan and everyone else in 'APAC' - I find any prior knowledge of Chinese/Japanese English is not at all helpful as seemingly every comedic American presentation of broken English does not orginate from anyone having access to the real thing. I would've never guessed I'd move to Hong Kong to learn a new (and distinct) dialect of my mother toungue, all while on the job.

And stranger than all of these phrases is that pretty much in all cases my Chinese coworkers (English as second language) can relatively quickly interpret the many emails I bring their way in effort to escape my common state of confusion. I suppose who says it's an incorrect use of the language if we all 'get' the intended meaning--and it seems I'm one of the few not in on the apparently commonly known rules of this new dictionary.

I suppose I can be thankful for the above as it keeps the work day interesting--without my being here in Hong Kong I could be dealing with a different set of 'occupational hazards' and why have different problems when you can just have the one's you have... that makes sense doesn't it? Not.

Here's to spending 10 minutes reading a one sentence email... And to still not knowing what the heck it wants to say.

I'm great at spelling, but not geogography...

I came in to work this morning to find 2 'Australia magnets' on my desk. And if your little imaginer wants to know what said magnets look like you need only to have the following abilities:

1) knowledge of the outline/shape of said continent
2) knowlege of said continent's flag
3) ability to imagine scribbly kangaroos, koalas and the sydney bridge doodled in primary colors.

And just in case my confidence in you (any fellow Americans) counts for anything; "I personally don't believe that people such as 'The US Americans' can not locate their own residence on a map, which hopefully they know isn't 'THE Iraq'--when they go to wherever maps are--since most people apparently don't own their own maps."

And because I have confidence in your abilities to determine which blue, I mean green patch is the US, I personally believe you will find it quite easy to then identify the 2nd big green patch as Australia and in turn visualize my magnets.

What? You say there are more than 2 patches of green on the good 'ol world map? Says who and why didn't they ask this US American? I thought 'THE Iraq' was an online shelving store and thus was even more confused as to why anyone might think it would show on a global map...

In case you are curious: I am curious. I don't have a clue who decided to gift me with 'refrigerator flair' and yes, I must figure this out. If there existed a 'detective school for the super ambitious' it would be full of kindy-gartener's with magnifying glasses in one hand and Etch-a-Sketches in the other (preferably the travel size ones) scopin' the dope on who it was that came, dropped magnet, and left. And you better believe I would've gotten a full-ride to said school, full stop. (<-- To use an Australian term)

Those who know me will know that I will forever feel wronged that such a school does not and never has existed and therefore I have wasted many years attending to 'traditional studies' when I could've been better prepared for solving real problems such as identifying unidentified gifters instead of say continually confusing NORTH America with SOUTH Africa.

Though I suppose if life were more like 'Where in the World is Carmen SanDiego' as I wish it were, my 13% accuracy in world geography would not be for nothing.

I have heard that America's inability to understand anything outside Ol' Country Buffet and a van full o' kids and Target purchases--or anything really that doesn't relate to terrific 'packing it in' skills--is no longer a secret... due to some US American with the 'South Carolina Mosquito' virus whose ailment prevented her from keeping her mouth shut and now due to the internet--which apparently houses no 'Iraq store' nor online mappage--whatever other places there are out there... have caught on that we don't know who they are, and thus why we have thought that pretty much any continent can fairly be called 'America'.

Well, 'lil known unknowns, despite America's 'geography secret' being out--we'll just continue to not care what you think of us seeing as how we'll probably never run into you due to something called 'a passport' which we fear owning and thus can't leave America, ...wherever it is, and therefore we are.

Perhaps we don't want to leave America as even if we find success someday in identifying where 'here' is, how much more pressure in figuring out where outside wherever we are we might want to go.