In any case, Judith had it in mind to see most of the major sites of Hong Kong within the space of a weekend, and didn't mind having company. Pushing back the hazy feeling that 13 hours of jet-lag can create I was happy to tag along with Julia for a tour that included:

1. Going to Launtau island and riding a tram up to see a giant statue of Buhdda.
2. Running to see the nightly light show along the water.
3. Catching another tram to the peak to see a birds eye view of the city.
4. Catching a ferry to Macau island to see the Portuguese ruins, try a bunch of snacks, and see the Las Vegas style casinos (plus leave $5 HKD richer)
5. Going to Lan Kwai Fong in Hong Kong to streets full of expats and bars
6. Being the only white people eating traditional dim sum on a Sunday morning
7. Going to Stanely on the opposite side of Hong Kong island to walk the tourist shops, listen to an acapella group sing Puccini, and take a coffee.

Here are the photos:

Before Buddha buy Hello Kitty Paper Towel...

View from the tram on the way to Buddha...

Ohhhhhhmmmmmmm.........

I felt 57% more enlightened:

Statues give offerings to Buddha...

Buddha's view...

Meine Freundes Alice und Judith:

Prayers at the temple:

Und das temple:

Snap shot of the light show, which is hosted by the sky scrapers in the area...

View from the peak: The "Postcard" photo...

Macau Island from the Ferry:

Street of Macau, packed with people and with vendors giving samples:

The ruins of Sao Paolo, an artifact of Macau's Portuguese past...

Taking a photo from the floor...whaaaat???

The butter crumble cookies they make there...

Sample?

Happy cakes...

Macau is "little Vegas"?

Not so grand actually...

Judith pointing out the holiday decorations of the snowy weather Macau will never see...

On the way to Stanley:

View of Stanley Plaza...

A mangrove tree...yes...

vaser es schoone.

After all this I say bye to Judith and wonder how she managed to create the job she did in Beijing at the age of 22, and I also wonder how she had the gusto and the togetherness to plan such a weekend...Maybe it is because she is living in Beijing, a place renowned to be bustling and active and accomplishing things at an unprecedented rate? Your environment affects you deeply, make no mistake. Or maybe Judith is a driven person who wants to get the most out of life, and travel surely does it.

Now I feel like I have covered most of the sites of Hong Kong, and I am willing to let any more of them come as they may, while I try to get to know the little neighborhood where I find myself and all the people in it, and if they will laugh a little less as I learn to speak Chinese. :)