Jim and Andrea on the bridge at Tai O Fishing Village. This small village is one of the few 'original' parts of Lantau Island. It is slightly touristy because the bus tours sometimes stop here, so there are signs, a parking lot, etc. However it was real life, hard-working Hong Kong citizens who speak their own dialect. Our guide said that he could not speak with them since he only knows Cantonese. The village is at the edge of the Pearl River Delta which is where the China Sea and the Pearl River meet. The Pearl River is home to the elusive pink dolphins and many new industries which are dumping mercury into the water. The Pearl River Delta is now quite polluted since about 30% of the water is fresh from the Pearl River. It is hard to tell how polluted the water is because the sky is a grey haze of pollution and the water is just a murky reflection of that.
This photo is of some of the homes on stilts in Tai O. We saw people sitting on their 'back porches' watching the water go by. These homes are very tiny. Maybe 800 sq feet, if that (I'm terrible at estimating) spread over 2 levels. I would probably refer to these homes more like floating shacks, as they are cobbled together with whatever will work.
This is the beautiful view from the Po Lin monastery at the foot of the largest outdoor Buddha Statue. The Buddha is 85 feet high with a small museum at the base. Inside is a small, pea-size piece of neck bone from Buddha (salvaged after his cremation). I got my 'fortune on a stick' at the monastery. In one of the 'temple rooms' (not sure what they are called, but the places with Buddha statues, kneeling pads, incense, etc. for prayer), I was determined to get a fortune. I had done this easily in Japan years before. Deanna, JD and I watched the locals doing the ritual to get the fortune, then I picked up my 'cup of fortune sticks' and was prepared to try. Fortunately, while I was staring at folks to figure out what to do, a very nice man from Singapore asked me if I wanted to know what to do in crystal clear English. So I found my Buddha wood pieces, knelt before Buddha, shook my cup o' sticks until one fell out (though occasionally more than one fell out, so I put the extras back in the cup and asked Buddha to forgive a first timer), then dropped my 2 Buddha wood pieces hoping for the yin/yang symbols to appear meaning Buddha was happy with my fortune. It took about 5 tries, and I was starting to get a little nervous that I didn't have a good fortune. So I took my stick to a little table, paid $2 for the opportunity to read my fortune in an English language book with Deanna's help and was pleased. It said something philosophical about me being an old well that was being refilled with fresh water, new beginnings and such. I do feel that getting Katie is just such a beginning and that my lack of success in the fertility business will be put behind me. I also remembered that Brad and I prayed for a baby (pre Alex) in Japan at a similar temple. Now I wonder if it wasn't a part of that answered prayer that I was sent back to Asia to get my daughter. Note to self: next time you pray at a temple halfway across the world, be very prepared to return to get your prayers answered. I think we'll need to save some more $$ before I send out any more baby prayers! :-)
This was our lunch! JD saw some wild boars running through the village, so he caught one with his bare hands and we paid $10 for a restaurant to roast them for us. The knife in the skull was free if you provided your own pig. The box was $2 extra. Yummy! We can eat this meat for days. They said it didn't require any refrigeration. Funny, back in the states most cooked pig needs to stay out of the 'danger zone.' Not in China!
In a nod to Brad, JD and I posed next to the dried shark skin, a la JAWS. I think you buy this to eat...hmmm...maybe not today. Seeing this can only help you imagine the aroma of all the dried and fresh fishes in the market stands.
Our group: JD and Deanna Rainey, Mom and I, and Andrea and Jim Adams enjoying a vegetarian lunch prepared by monks (though we didn't see them). It was yummy! I used my chop sticks and could manage pretty well. I'm not sure JD was happy that it was vegetarian, but there was tofu "fish." Not quite the same.
After our tour, we returned back to the Regal where I've been checking e-mail and updating this. Thanks to everyone who has e-mailed or posted comments. It really does make home seem closer to know that so many of our family and friends are coming along on this journey with us via the internet.
Less than 48 hours to Katie!!!!
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1 comment:
looks like you had a nice trip to get my new cousin katie shes all grown up now. hope u have a nice christmas even though its november but anyway have a nice one hope to see u soon
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