Day 194 At Sea

It was a pretty uneventful day… The sun did make an appearance for a while and it felt great. I even starting packing today… one bag packed already, only a month to go. Tomorrow, Shanghai!!!

Day 193 At Sea

Today was very laid back… We are in much cooler temps and that means no pool time. It gave me time to rest up for our upcoming ports in China. Tonight I will be joining my Jewish friends for the Passover Seder dinner. It should be a nice evening. Tonight at showtime we had a presentation by Sam Donaldson of broadcast journalism fame. It was definitely interesting to hear what is going on in Washington from a liberals perspective....

Day 192 Hong Kong, People's Republic of China

This morning was a little change of pace. We left the hustle and bustle of the city and got on the MRT out to the Ngong Ping 360 Cable Car station which took us on a 25 minute ride out to Lantau Island to see the Buddhist Monastery and most importantly to the magnificent Buddha way up on the hill. I have been there a number of times and am always struck by the beauty of the place. It was slightly less impressive on this visit due to construction projects going on here and there but Oh well... lovely all the same. After leaving it was back to the ship for a bit of rest and a bite of food. Nice day!

Day 191 Hong Kong, People's Republic of China

Hong Kong! I love Hong Kong..... We arrived early this morning as the sun was rising. The sail into Hong Kong is one of the best, up there with Sydney and New York. It was off the ship crossing from Kowloon to Hong Kong on the Star Ferry and into a taxi to the top of Victoria Peak. You have to take advantage of clear skies in this beautiful city when you can. The view was indeed pretty good but not as good as I would like. I anxiously await the day when the Kowloon side of the Harbor is crystal clear. We left the peak via the tram and headed for the Mid level escalators and Soho. We walked the city and ran into friends here and there shopping and taking in the views for the next few hours. It was then time to go back to the ship for a quick rest, shower before we were off to the Temple Street Night Market for some shopping and scrumptious street food. I got the fried chicken wings with garlic and hot chilies.... really good and hot!!!! All in all it was a magnificent day in Hong Kong.