Tai Mei Tuk

On Sunday, we went to Tai Mei Tuk.  It is an area near us we had never been before.  Another mom in Charlotte's class was telling me about an American grocery store there and when I mentioned it to a friend of mine, she said it was a fun area to visit with a lake to do fishing.  After a big day yesterday and a rainy start to the day, the kids were happy spending the morning at home dancing and playing monopoly.  After lunch, we headed out to Tai Mei Tuk.  They weren't very excited because it sounded "boring", but I told them they had said the same thing about the rugby tournament the day before and they had ended up having a great time.  They decided they would trust Mommy and Daddy to pick fun things to do even if they sounded boring to them.

When the taxi pulled up, we saw an area with lots of people.  There was a BBQ area with tables that had grills built into them for people to cook their own meat.  There was a bike path with LOTS of people riding bikes and walking.  There was also a bay with many people out on boats.  I did not see any area with people fishing (nor the small stocked lake I read about online), but we decided to rent a row boat instead.  That sounded more exciting to all of us anyway.

We got our life jackets on and headed out on the boat.  Tom rowed us around the water.  We had fun looking at the other boats in the water.  After a while, Tommy and Charlotte decided rowing looked way too fun (and easy) and wanted a turn.  They did a great job , but lost a little of their confidence when Tom told them to turn the boat in the right direction and row it back to the dock.  They decided Tom should take over again.

Then we walked around the area.  We found a pier where a lot of people were riding bikes, walking, and flying kites.  We finally saw the lake, but didn't see anyone fishing.  After exploring the area, we ate dinner at a delicious Thai restaurant.  I stopped by the American store, but decided not to get anything.  We all had a great time.  It was another fun day.

Lots of kites

We decided next time we are going to rent one of these "bikes" 

delicious Thai food 

Rugby at Repulse Bay Beach

We had a very busy weekend.  On Friday, Charlotte brought home her classroom stuffed animal.  It is a mama and baby koala named Lemonade and Pom Pom.  We were supposed to take pictures of Charlotte doing things with them this weekend and fill out the classroom book for Charlotte to take to school and share.

Charlotte feeding Lemonade and  Pom Pom breakfast on Saturday morning

On Saturday, we wanted to go down to Repulse Bay for a rugby tournament.  Tom has expressed interest in learning to play rugby in Hong Kong.  He sent me a message earlier that week letting me know his coworker, Michael, had a team playing in a tournament this weekend and he wanted Tom to be on his team.  Tom was excited, but nervous and I told him I didn't think a tournament was necessarily the best place to play for the first time.  He doesn't know the rules or positions and would probably do better to attend a practice or 2 before playing in a tournament.  Another coworker of Tom's told him he would probably get killed if he played.  Tom told me he wasn't going to play, but he still wanted to go and watch and that Michael said the tournament was fun and good for kids.

When we were getting ready Saturday morning, Tom was taking a little while to get ready and put on much more athletic clothes than he would normally wear.  I had a feeling he was no longer going just to watch.  We saw Michael soon after we got there.  He clearly was planning on Tom playing.  I told him we were taking a trip to Japan next week and I was going to hold him personally responsible if Tom was on crutches for our trip.  His response was he would make sure if Tom broke a bone, it would be one of his arms instead.  I did not feel reassured.

The kids were really excited when they saw the beach.  Tommy had no interest in watching any rugby, all he wanted to do was play in the sand and water.

After playing in the sand and water for a while, Tom really wanted to go up and watch rugby for a little bit.  They had kids games in the morning and Tom thought Tommy and Charlotte might enjoy watching.  Tommy was not happy to leave the beach and made it clear he was not the least bit interested in rugby.  After watching for a little while, Tom went to see the rest of his teammates.  Once Tommy realized Tom was going to play, he was suddenly very into it.  We got a rugby ball and practiced throwing it around.  Then Tommy and Charlotte had a lot of fun running around in the sand playing rugby with an imaginary ball and occasionally tackling each other.

They love tackling each other

Then it was time for Tom to play.  He did a great job.  Apparently rugby is normally played with 15 players per side, but this was a modified game to play on sand, so they only play with 5 per side at a time.  Tom was not in the first rotation and there were several hard hits.  A few players got grabbed around the collar and dragged down to the ground.  I was getting pretty nervous.  Then it was Tom's turn.  He did really well.  He carried the ball a few times, but he didn't get hit too hard.  The kids were so excited to watch him and cheer for him.  His team didn't win the match, but we were SO proud of him!

Tom in his jersey before the game

In action, number 10

After Tom's game, he could relax and enjoy the rest of the day.  We spent some more time playing in the sand.  The kids wanted to go to the beach and spend more time running around and pretending to play rugby "just like daddy".  All Tommy talked about wanting to do was play rugby, which was quite a change from 4 hours earlier.  They also had bounce houses the kids enjoyed.  We got some hamburgers and an ice pop and it was time to head home.  It had been a really fun day.

Lemonade and Pom Pom chilling in the sun

After showers and dinner at home, there was time for a few quick games of Yahtzee.  Then it was off to bed.

Tommy's list

A few days ago, Tommy matter of factly mentioned St. Louis was #7 on his list of places he wanted to live when he grew up.  After some prodding, I got him to write his list down.  Apparently, after some consideration, St. Louis moved up to #5.

Here is his list:
1. Hong Kong
2. California
3. Greenland (???)
4. Brazil
5. St. Louis

571. Antartica
670. North Pole

I am not sure what is from #572-669, but I don't think they would be on my list of places to visit.

Tommy and Charlotte like to tell us all the time how they want to live with us well into adulthood and when I tell them they need to move out after college, they are pretty sure they are going to want to live down the street and visit every day.  This morning they were talking about how they could go to the same college when they got older so they could hang out together on the weekends they didn't come home to visit us.  :)

Peak Tram, try 2

On Saturday we decided to try the Peak Tram again.  This time we decided to head their first thing in the morning.  We also decided that instead of taking the Tram to the top, we would take a double decker bus to the top and ride the tram back down.  Again, we took the Star Ferry across Victoria Harbour.  The bus stop was right by the ferry terminal.  We were the first ones on the bus and go to sit on top in the very front.  That gave us a great view going up the mountain.

There is a huge mall at the top of the peak, we ate lunch at a good Vietnamese restaurant and the kids played for a while at the playground while Kara and I shopped for souvenirs.  After some ice cream, we rode the tram back down.  There was a line to ride it back down, but the line moved quickly and we had a short wait.  Overall, it was a successful day.

Wishing tree festival

The Wishing Tree is in the Lam Tsuen village near our house.  People from all over Hong Kong visit the Wishing Tree, especially during Chinese New Year.  The village puts on a festival for a couple weeks over the holiday.  The kids wore their chinese outfits and looked pretty cute.  (In my unbiased opinion).

The wishing tree is a local tree that people started hanging wishes on for good luck.  The original tree got strained from the the weight of the wishes and they had to move to a new tree.  Officials build a stand with peg boards to hang the wishes on instead with signs telling people to use it instead of the tree, but people clearly prefer the tree.

The pegboard to hang wishes on (we went last weekend to check out the walk before CNY)

The old wishing tree, currently trying to be saved with supports

The new wishing tree with all the wishes

When we got to the festival, we bought wish placards for all the kids to fill out.  You put your name and date and there were a list of wishes you could select from on one side, both Lilia and Charlotte chose peace and prosperity of their family in the coming year.  Since Katherine had spent the night in the hospital right before their visit, Patrick thought they should select a year of good health.  Tommy decided he wanted to write his own wish and decided to ask to find his truck he had been using for a bank for the his "China money".  (He found a few Chinese coins on the street and was storing them separately from his HK money and had apparently misplaced them.)  Tommy tends to be very practical.  :)  

Making their wishes

Tommy's wish

The wishes are tied to fake oranges.  Then you have to throw the wishes into the tree.  Some of them took several attempts before they stayed.

 

Tommy throwing his wish on the tree

 There were lots of vendor set up selling food and souvenirs.  They also had several lion dances during the festival.  The lion dance is supposed to chase away evil spirits and bring good luck.  People buy packets of "greens" usually packs of lettuce tied with a string.  They attach red envelopes with money inside.  The people put the offerings in the lion's mouth.  The dancer inside, keeps the envelope and then tears apart the lettuce and has the lion spit out some of the lettuce.  This act is supposed to symbolize an abundance of food in the coming year.  It is hard work being a lion dancer.  The troupes spend many hours practicing and the dancers have to be in pretty good shape.  The troupe splits the money from the envelopes.

lion dance

They had a lot of yummy food at the festival.

Peak Tram, try 1

We wanted to do the Peak Tram.  With it being the Chinese New Year holiday, we ran into issues with places being closed and crowded.  The plan was to get dim sum for lunch, take the Star Ferry across the harbour, then ride the Peak Tram.  We had to eat at our third choice for lunch since the first 2 were closed for the holiday.  Kara's family, Charlotte and I ate at a Chinese restaurant at Sha Tin mall.  We got several dishes we ate family style and it was delicious.  Tom and Tommy decided they would rather have hamburgers, so they ate at a nearby burger restaurant.

 

After lunch we took the train to the Star Ferry.  It took us a little longer to get there than normal, because several streets and walkways were closed for the parade later that evening.  The kids enjoyed the Star Ferry.

Kara, Katherine, Lilia and Patrick on the train

We took a train from the Star Ferry terminal to the entrance to the Peak Tram.  When we got there, the line was longer than I have ever seen it.  We were pretty tired by that point, and it looked like it would be at least a 2 hour wait in line.  We decided to scrap the idea and go to the nearby Hong Kong Park instead.  They have a great children's playground and the kids had a lot of fun.  

It wasn't the day we had planned, but we still ended up having a good day.

Kadoorie Farms

After day 1 at Disneyland, we decided we wanted a low key day at home to rest and recharge before we went back for day 2.  After a morning at home, Kara and I decided to take the older kids to Kadoorie Farms and leave Patrick and Katherine home to nap.  Tommy and Charlotte were excited to take Lilia on a double decker bus.  The kids had a great time looking at all the animals and exploring the gardens and various hiking trails.

Checking out the pigs

 

Charlotte posing in front of the statue

Birthday parties

Charlotte went to her friend Allyson's birthday party this weekend.  She was SO excited.  We bought a gift at Disneyland last weekend and she has asked me about wrapping it everyday.  The party started at 2, but she was very concerned about being late and asked me many times when we would leave and told me she was ready.  She got the present and told me she would just hold it and wait about 2 hours before we needed to leave.  (she quickly gave up that idea).  Allyson's invitations had my little ponies on them and when Charlotte was picking out her outfit, she saw this outfit with a rainbow ribbon and decided she would look just like Rainbow Dash.  I don't think anyone at the party saw the resemblance.

Charlotte's outfit

Rainbow Dash

Charlotte had a great time at the party.  They had tons of food and she had a great time running around and playing with her friends.  

A few weeks ago she had gone to a different friend's Frozen party and had a great time as well.  Most of the little girls wore Elsa dresses.  Charlotte wore her Anna shirt.  She has a really great group of kids in her class and they play really well together.

Charlotte with her Dolphin glitter tattoo