Tai Tan Country Trail hike (Photo-essay)

Although I've put up a few photos taken while out in Hong Kong since returning from my German vacation, my past few months' photo-essays (e.g., this one) -- as well as quite a few other entries (like this recent one) -- have been Germany- rather than Hong Kong hike-focused. But here's finally returning to "regular programming" with the first Hong Kong hiking photo-essay since the one back in July with photos of a from The Twins to Stanley portion of a hike I actually went on back in -- augh, how time flies :O -- November last year.

More specifically, the next hike I went on after that which saw me finally conquer the formidable -- to the likes of me anyways! -- twin peaks of The Twins took two friends and me to Sai Kung West Country Park. The Tai Tan Country Trail -- which should not be confused with the Tai Tam Country Trail on Hong Kong Island -- skirts along a scenic section of coast, sometimes at sea level and sometimes at somewhat higher ground. So yes, it's one of those hikes that I think deserves not just one but at least two (maybe even three!) photo-essays worth of coverage on this blog...

Shortly after passing through the wooden archway
announcing the start of this official hiking trail,
I was getting the feeling that this would be a hike
offering plenty of aesthetically-pleasing scenes and sights

Early on in the hike, one could hear the restful sounds of
Hau Tong Kai stream's flowing waters as one traipsed along

Many Hong Kong hikes pass through abandoned villages
but this one passed through a still inhabited one
with houses that look very nice(ly kept up) indeed

This home made not be as recently painted
as the ones in the above photo
but I think it still definitely has its charms

Minutes away from a village, a resting feral cow
gives proof that it's not just humans who have made
this neck of the Hong Kong woods home :b

Call me namby-pamby but it's nice to have
those laid out stones to step on as one passes
through land that can otherwise be on the wet side!

And yeah, those describing of this hiking trail
as a coastal trail really weren't kidding!

Looking across Long Harbour to other country areas of
the "Leisure garden of Hong Kong" (i.e., the Sai Kung Peninsula)

To be continued... of course! :)

Some more things to do in Hong Kong when it rains

Rainy, gray day in Hong Kong

When asked who I think my blog's audience is, my answer is that I appear to have two core audiences. The first -- and longest term "followers" -- are people who first became acquainted with my online presence via either Brian's Hong Kong Cinema: View from the Brooklyn Bridge or the Mobius Home Video Forum's Asian Cinema Discussion Board. The second group are those who only began visiting this blog after I moved to Hong Kong and appear to be most interested in my Hong Kong hiking photo-essays and other posts that stem from my exploring diverse sections of the Big Lychee.

To judge by such as my blog's Site Meter stats though, this blog also attracts a fair number of one-time visitors who are led here by Google and other search engines. And while it's true enough that quite a few of these individuals were looking for information about Hong Kong cinema, I've also come to discover in recent months that one of the most popular posts on this blog is that which offers up suggestions as to what are some things to do in Hong Kong when it rains.

As it so happens, today was one of those days in Hong Kong which was rainy or threatening to rain for much of it. And I can honestly say that my mother (who's currently at the tail end of one of her visits over here) and I did do one of the things mentioned in that post (i.e., spend time shopping... :S).

However, we also spent a good part of today doing two other things that I do think are worth spending some time on a rainy day in Hong Kong doing: that is, checking out a cultural performance and also leisurely -- and enjoyably -- eating a big meal.

With regards to the former: someone who left the Fragrant Harbour some months back but still can't seem to stop thinking and commenting about matters and life (and, in particular, cultural life) here recently put up an online piece about how he reckons that Hong Kong is a cultural desert. Frankly, I think his views are so wrong -- this not least since he seems to equate culture almost solely with indie music and that to be danced to in clubs -- that his piece is just not worth linking to. And also since in the past week or so, this culture vulture's packed cultural life has included attending a screening at the Hong Kong Film Archive of Keisuke Kinohita's sublime Twenty-Four Eyes, a percussion concert courtesy of Musicarama 2010 and the Four Gig Heads, a Hong Kong Sinfonietta concert which had Christopher Hogwood as guest conductor and -- earlier today -- a very enjoyable co-presentation by Opera Hong Kong and the Theatro dell'Opera di Roma of Puccini's La Boheme.

With regards to the latter: I particularly love how the Big Lychee has a plethora of brunch options -- including big English breakfasts at 24-hour breakfast specialists The Flying Pan as well as a number of English-style (and often run) pubs that also offer up traditional English grub, American alternatives such as bagel and lox and Egg's Benedicts at establishments like Staunton's Wine Bar and Cafe in Soho and the New York-style Main Street Deli in Tsim Sha Tsui and -- my personal favorite when I have company -- dim sum at eateries such as Victoria City Seafood Restaurant and the more quirkily named Sportful Garden Restaurant. (N.B. both the dim sum establishments cited are actually restaurant chains -- my personal favorites are the Victoria City branch in Wan Chai and the Sportful Garden in Causeway Bay.)

On a related note, Hong Kong also has its share of nice bars and pubs where one can pleasantly while away some time during a rainy day -- with one of the nicer ones being The Globe in Central by virtue of its extra long happy hours, excellent selection of draft beers (including -- when I most recently visited -- Morland Brewery's Old Speckled Hen and Greene King IPA), ambitious food options and the kind of laid-back, unhurried atmosphere during the day that makes it so that one can feel comfortable nursing a pint or two while reading the daily newspaper or some pages of a book.

Alternatively put: Carry out one or more of the activities outlined in this blog (or the earlier referenced one)... and I'm reckoning that you won't mind the rain even if you're on a trip of a lifetime to the Fragrant Harbour! And for those who live here, rainy weekend days also can be days to just have a long lie in and take it easy in one's abode... or, if it's looking too messy, a day to consider take some probably over-due time to clean up one's living space! ;D

*Post-script: I just checked out Gweipo's blog and found that she and her kids had a pretty activity-packed October 10th too! And although her day appears to have been spent outdoors far more than me, I'm happy to reference it as one more example of how much there is to do on a Sunday in Hong Kong, a part of the world I honestly do feel is more lively and fun options-filled than the great bulk of this earth.

Stripes (This week's Photo Hunt theme)

The last time around that stripes were the theme of a Photo Hunt, I offered up a trio of photos of pedestrian road-crossing zones, the classic example of which are known as zebra crossing because of their visual similarity to zebra stripes. But because the markings in Hong Kong have yellow stripes on the road rather than are black and white (like in other parts of the world including Britain and Malaysia), they -- which I find to be interesting photographic subjects -- are actually called tiger crossings!

One and half years on, I find myself drawn again to putting up photos of tiger crossings; albeit different ones -- and in one case in particular, of a markedly different scale -- from the last time around. More specifically, the upper photo is of a little section of Hong Kong that remains small-scale (note the small size of the flower shop as well as the short length of the tiger crossing) in an area of the territory known for increasingly towering constructions along with deep pockets.

Meanwhile, for the second photo, I went less for one of my "artistic" shots. Put another way, I like the visual sight created by zebra crossing stripes being reflected onto -- and creating the optical illusion of looking like they continue right onto -- a bus door's glass. (And for those who don't see anything special in that vision: well, these are the kinds of things that one looks out for to make one's regular commute to work less boring than it can be! ;b )

10 things I learnt about Germany on my most recent holiday there

Sunset over the Rhine as viewed from Wiesbaden
on the last evening of my German holiday

One of a number of glasses of beer
I happily downed in Germany

Ten German vacation observations (presented in no particular order):-

1) Contemporary Germany is a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic place -- replete with such as African fairs, Asian university students and Turkish restaurants and sections as well as olde worlde German biergartens, brauhauses, cathedrals and schlosses.

2) Speaking of beer places: Germany's biergartens and brauhauses are where one can get amazingly fresh and pretty much guaranteed tasty brews!

3) Traditional German food can be delicious, is almost always substantial and appears largely composed of meat, potatoes, bread and pickled vegetables. (And on the subject of substantial: it can take several minutes to chew a single, small piece of German bread!)

4) Even the most famously touristy places (e.g., Heidelberg) as well as cities with UNESCO World Heritage-listed sites can be surprisingly bereft of people, never mind crowds.

5) In at least one German city (i.e., Ludwigshafen), one has to order a bus -- like you would a taxi -- to come pick you up from its main railway station after a certain time in the evenings! :O

6) Many Germans like to bicycle around town and further afield (and there are many bike lanes on the sides of roads and highways specifically given for bicyclists to ride on and along).

7) Germany is a land filled with beautiful cultural and natural sights galore.

8) Quite a number of German religious art works (be they currently ensconced in churches and cathedrals or art museums) can give Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ a run for its money in terms of the bloodiness stakes!

9) Unlike in Hong Kong, it's the norm for elevators to not only have a "fourth floor" button but also no "close" door button!

10) German people do have a sense of humor -- and thank goodness my German friend has; otherwise she'd be most upset by certain things I saw in ostensibly serious places like churches and cathedrals causing me to double up and laugh out loud! :D

And for the record: I flew in and out of Germany from Frankfurt airport -- and the towns and cities I visited on this recent vacation were Mannheim, Ludwigshafen, Heidelberg, Hirschhorn, Speyer, Cologne, Schwetzingen, Mainz and Wiesbaden. (So, yes, I think I (with Puppet Ponyo in tow) managed to cover quite a bit of ground over the course of my little-less-than-two-week visit -- thanks in no small part to having a very good German friend taking some time off and showing me around her homeland! :b )

Von Frankenstein, Ponyo and more in Mainz! (photo-essay)

After a particularly aggravating day at work today, it's nice to be able to cast my mind back this evening to a happy as well fun time not so long ago -- when I was enjoying being on holiday, with a good friend in tow, in the charming German city of Mainz. And since visuals help jog the memory, here's returning to my photo archive to take a look at snaps taken then and there, and select some to share in this second photo-essay showcasing the birthplace of Johannes Gutenberg (of mechanical movable type and Gutenberg Bible fame):-

This bronze statue of Mainz's favorite and
most famous son has had a pride of place
in the city's Gutenbergplatz since 1837

Physically however, St Martin's Cathedral
appears to loom most prominently over
predominantly Catholic Mainz

With Mainz the target of Allied bombing during
the second world war, the cathedral didn't entirely
escape damage -- but the destroyed stained glass has been
subsequently replaced by such as the above laudable effort

These days, the cathedral cloister is a largely peaceful place

This is not to say though that there are
no signs there of more violent times!

And no, your eyes are not deceiving you --
there really is a plaque for a von Frankenstein
in Mainz's cathedral cloister! ;O

Before things get too morbid, here's another photo
that bears testimony to Germans' love of pretzels and breads :)

Hello Ponyo! For yes, here's one more photo
from my German holiday of Puppet Ponyo
happily posing away -- this time in a crowded
marketplace on market day in Mainz :b

Eating Shanghai crab

So strong is the love of Shanghai crabs by many a gourmand

that a few flew off the pictured plate before I could even
take the photo despite the camera already being in my hands
when the plate arrived on the table!

An easier way to partake of Shanghai crab roe --
inside of seasonal Shanghai crab roe xiao lung bao!

Years ago, I struck up an e-mail correspondence with a woman who told me that she started watching Hong Kong movies in order to learn how to use chopsticks. Some readers may laugh but I have to say that, like her, there are indeed things that I have learnt from watching Hong Kong films -- and not just the kind of Cantonese words whose knowledge I've shocked many of my Hong Konger friends with either!

For example, I first got to know of the existence of a the culinary delicacy known as Shanghai crabs (or hairy crabs) through watching The Soong Sisters, Mabel Cheung's 1997 biographical drama about a real life trio of influential sisters who all married prominent men who all had important parts to play in the affairs of China. And subsequent cinematic encounters with those prized crustaceans only strengthened my resolve to try eating them at some point.

Then one momentous day, while my mother and I were visiting Hong Kong, a family friend invited us to her home to partake of Shanghai crabs (and much, much more). As we settled down to get our first taste of the delicacy (complete with an accompanying sweet dip made out of vinegar, soy sauce, sugar and ginger, and glasses of 10-year-old Shaoxing wine into which a sweet pickled plum is inserted to add to the flavor), this friend told us that the crabs we were eating were male crabs -- whose "eggs" were considered to be better.

Rather than puzzle how male crabs could have eggs, we just concentrated instead on enjoying the feast of crabs set before us -- and it was only after reading an article in The South China Morning Post about the creatures that I got to realizing that the "eggs" in question actually weren't really eggs. Instead, the most prized element of the day's repast -- that we had been happily devouring -- was none other than Shanghai crab sperm!!!

If truth be told, I am very glad that I learn this fact after I had eaten Shanghai crabs -- because this way, I know that the taste of the Shanghai crab sperm is so divine that I really don't care what it actually, really is. (Alternatively put: yes, I am happy to eat it... time and time again!) Instead, what tends to get in my way of wanting to eat Shanghai crab is that I have found it impossible to eat without making a thoroughly embarrassing mess of my place at the table.

Consequently, I've only felt comfortable enough to eat Shanghai crab in private -- among friends and family members who will excuse my mess... or help prevent it by peeling and generally opening different parts of the crab for me! (Something I did on Friday night.) Or eat its most prized parts -- i.e., the sperm or roe -- in the form of such as Shanghai crab roe-filled xiao lung bao which are to be found when Shanghai crabs are in season at restaurants like Din Tai Fung and Victoria City Seafood Restaurant. (Like I did on this past Saturday night!) :b

Letters (This week's Photo Hunt theme)

When people think of Hong Kong, a bustling, vibrant metropolis is usually what comes to mind. And as this short video shows, there are good reasons why people think it is. But as my numerous Hong Kong hiking blog entries show, The Big Lychee also does possess large swathes of protected countryside. Indeed, it has been estimated that about 38% of Hong Kong's land has been designated as a country park or special area.

At the same time, it often seems to go unnoticed or un-noted that altogether some 75% of Hong Kong is countryside (as opposed to dense concrete jungle -- and with little suburban space in the equation). And while the New Territories does have its share of sprawling "new" towns like Sha Tin and abandoned old villages, it also still does possess a number of inhabited villages that have yet to morph or been incorporated into big towns.

So what does all this have to do with this week's Photo Hunt theme? Well, while out hiking (or walking along such as the Lung Yeuk Tau Heritage Trail), one of the things about village life that have caught my eye and which I reckon is really charming are the designated village letter box areas and individual household letter boxes awaiting the delivery of letters to people who are able to enjoy remarkably low density living (by the usual Hong Kong standards), yet feel assured that their mail still will be delivered -- and undoubtedly in a timely fashion too!

And while on the subject of the delivery of letters and other mail to rural residents, here's highly recommending Postmen in the Mountains, an elegaic drama about an aging mailman and his son who is due to take over his difficult but scenic postal route. One of my favorite films from Mainland China, it is a quietly charming work which allows inner beauty to shine through as well as beautifully captures the distant Chinese locales that don't often make it onto celluloid but should. :)