A Day In The Life

It occurred to me the other day as I walked around and actually didn't feel completely overwhelmed that I might be actually settling in here!  At first, I thought it might be a good idea to lie on my blog and act like I was some moving-abroad master.  But the truth is, the first week of being here was crazy.  Crazy awesome, but also crazy overwhelming.  I'm so glad for this experience, but it has certainly been a whole new world for me living here.  At every turn, I would get lost, I'd feel inadequate because my Cantonese is, well, non-existent, I wouldn't know where to eat, where to shop, or where to stand.  And, y'all, it is HOT here.  I mean, pervasively, overwhelmingly hot.  Thank goodness I had a great chat with my boss's wife and one of the parents in our ministry, and they assured me that these feelings are totally normal.  That was a definite turning point in my week, to be sure. 

In any case, with no plans on Saturday, I forced myself out of the house on a little excursion.  I love going to the beach, so I decided to check out some of the options here in HK.  I opted for what I read was the best beach, both in terms of water quality (because who wants to swim in dirty shipping channel water?  This isn't Galveston, people), and a beach that was fairly easy to get to (read: I didn't have to hike alone through the jungle to get there).  It also occurred to me that my blogging audience might like to see a little more of my day-to-day routine.  So, I did a little documenting as I went. 

Ominous weather on beach day

Front door of the flat I'm staying in! On the 23rd floor!

The street outside my building. Note: left side driving!

 So, each day when I leave the apartment, I am fortunate enough to be able to take a shuttle from the building into town for free.  The part of Hong Kong I live in is actually high above the city, as you can see in my ominous weather picture, so it is great to have free transportation into Central.  On this day, I took a shuttle, the MTR (subway) and a double decker bus to get to the beach.  But I'm getting ahead of myself...

Protest in HK

MTR (metro)

I had to stop off in the city and walk to the drugstore to pick up some sunscreen on my way to the beach, and on my way back, I got caught up in a protest.  I've seen probably 10 protests since I've been here (apparently Hong Kongers love to protest!)  This one was something about HSBC bank, though I couldn't understand the very loud, microphone amplified chanting as it was in Cantonese.  I would also like to point out one of the cultural curiosities I have discovered in the left picture.  Look at the lady in the white pants, then look up to her face.  See that visor/sunshade combo?  I've seen lots of people wearing these, almost completely covering their faces.  Some people go to great lengths to keep the sun off of them, ensuring a nice light complexion.  Not this girl.  I was ready to sun it up.  

Trolleys are also a legit transportation option

Road to Shek O

I got off the metro at almost the end of the line, and boarded the bus, bound for Shek O.  It was my first experience riding the bus, and it was awesome!  You can see a lot of things from the top of a double decker, and it's cheaper than a touristy bus tour! I took a few pictures on the gorgeous windy way toward the beach, and knew immediately that the day was going to be great.  Hong Kong Island is actually predominantly forest, so this is pretty typical.  I felt a world away from the busy-ness of the city, which was awesome.  I'll definitely be making this journey again.

Getting closer!

Shek O from above

When we finally arrived in Shek O, I was totally charmed by the little town.  It's totally quaint, and local.  No chains or anything.  I really felt like this is how a lot of Southeast Asia must be.  (Who knows, though, I suppose I'll find out as I travel!)  I disembarked, and walked out to a gorgeous beach.  I found a place on the beach behind this mysterious yellow tape on the beach (which I later figured out is just for umbrellas), and soaked up some sun.  This place is seriously gorgeous and the weather was perfect.  It was awesome to have some time to read, decompress and just relax for a bit. 

Eventually, though, the weather took a turn for the worse.  I'm not sure why it didn't occur to me when I saw these dark clouds building that some serious rain was coming, but one moment, I was gazing idyllically into the ocean, and next minute, it was POURING.  I mean, serious, monsoon, pouring.  Me (and the 3 other idiot westerners around me) hastily grabbed our stuff and made for the nearest covering, which happened to be a toilet and shower area.  Whilst there, I thought, hey, I've had enough of the beach today and decided to change and head home.  So into the bathroom I went. 

And I was greeted with this:

Squatty-Potty

Hello, everyone and welcome to the squat toilet.  I used one once in Bulgaria, but let me just say that it wasn't a great experience!  The kicker here is that the little silver placard in the upper right corner of the picture implores the user to flush the toilet.  But, if you look closely, you can see that the area where I presume the flusher used to be is strangely devoid of anything but concrete covering a hole in the wall!  This was all a little too much for me, so I decided to head into the changing room and delay my, well, my business, until later.

On my way back from the beach, I passed through the Shau Kei Wan area where there was a market right adjacent to the bus/MTR area.  Since I had some time, I decided to peruse through the market.  I had heard about the "wet markets" but wasn't quite sure what to expect.  This is just a small sampling of the things I saw, but mostly, the idea is that a lot of people here like to get their food fresh. And by fresh, I mean still alive.  All these fish in these various bowls (and the squid on the white square styrofoam in the right picture) are absolutely still alive.  They have these air bubble things that they periodically switch between each bowl to make sure they are oxygenated, I assume.  I saw someone stuff two crabs into a bag, and a fish get its head cut right off, right there on the sidewalk! All of this is outside and in an alley area between two buildings.  Definitely a different cultural experience, but interesting as well.  There were probably 50 different kinds of fish and lots of meat to choose from.  I refrained and visited the neighboring bakery to get a sweet bun, which was DELICIOUS (and thankfully, not alive).

Anyway, that was just a taste, no pun intended, of my weekend trip.  I also did some visiting of IKEA in the rain and discovered that Hong Kong sizes are absolutely not equivalent to US ones.  I will not be buying any clothes here, I think.  Haha.  Oh well.  

Oh, and for a new tradition: The Funny Chinglish Sign-O-The-Day is:

Moral of the story: Don't foul with feces!!

Til Next Time, 

The Adventurer!

Chinglish, anyone?

I've been here a week!

It seems crazy to me that a week has gone by already.  I've already jumped headfirst into my job, done a good bit of exploring, and have started to settle in a little bit.

While these things are fresh on my mind, I thought I'd comment on some of the quirkiest linguistic things I've encountered since arriving.

Scattered throughout the raised escalator system.

There are ample opportunities for hilarity when translation from Chinese to English happens because the structure of the languages is so different.  For example, the already absurd phrase from one of my early Chinese textbooks,  "Jirou xianzai zai kafei bei.zi li" Literally translates to "The Chicken right now at the coffee cup inside"(actually meaning The chicken is inside the coffee cup right now).  So, you can see how confusing translation can be going from Chinese to (proper) English.

 Also, the British influence in HK for so many years has also yielded a lot of new (to me) phrases.  There are also funny hybrid words that I haven't ever encountered anywhere else, but that appear, at least, to be English.  Some are useful PSA's, like the one to the right.  There are also signs approximately every 10 feet imploring you to hold the handrail.  (But don't worry, they're sanitized).

Here's the list so far with appropriate translation:

Aircon = Air Condtioning
ie, Could you please turn the aircon on?  It's stifling in here.

Uni = University ie, Don't ask him to lead the group, he's going to Uni in the fall and won't be here.

Rubbish Bin = Trash Can ie, please throw that in the Rubbish Bin.

In the bathroom at my church

Car Park = Parking Garage, Parking Lot, etc ie, Wasn't it funny and slightly sad when my boss' car battery died in a the carpark on the night I arrived and we had to take a taxi to my host family's house? (true life example here, people)

Lift = Elevator, ie, Her apartment has no lift - can you believe we carried her furniture up 5 flights of stairs? 

Funny phrases:

We can start with this one.  "No littering into the bowl".  Really the translation isn't that terrible, but what's going on with the figure?  Is it a bee?  Or another insect? Why is it using the toilet to begin with?  All good questions, my friends.

In the MTR

Another funny one I encountered in the MTR (Hong Kongese for Metro or Subway).  Spitting is totally disapproved of here, and I believe is illegal.  Apparently it was such an epidemic that signs needed to be posted to remind people of their duty to not spread their filthy spit-germs. (photo courtesy of http://www.bootsintheoven.com/boots_in_the_oven/asia-china-just-hong-kong-for-now/)

I am totally loving these new linguistic surprises.  I encounter at least one per day, but have been woefully bad at documenting them.  I found a great site for some other funny "Chinglish" here http://mistyhilltops.com/2011/08/info/humor/fun-with-chinglish-stand-still/
(Photo credit to her for the Escalator sign)

Hopefully I can be as prolific as she is at capturing these funny signs!

Anyway, that's all for now.  I am getting excited for our first real event with the kids at church tomorrow night, and have had a great week of planning in preparation for the fall.

Stay tuned!
The Adventurer

You Drank the Water? And other Uh-Oh Moments

Moving to a new country is always a fun experience in learning the local culture and customs.  Lots of people, including a large swath of those I studied abroad with, preferred to carry on as if they were in America, but my inner Anthropologist cringes every time I break a cultural norm.  As such, I've tried really hard to learn (in a hurry) how things are done Hong Kong style. 

On Saturday, I was invited to Dim Sum with my co-worker and a couple of volunteers in the student ministry.  Let me say that it was DELICIOUS.  We had a lot of different things from spring rolls, to pork buns, to stuffed chili peppers to shrimp dumplings and egg custard.  The only thing I wasn't a huge fan of was a gelatinous square of shrimp and some other mystery ingredients.  During this meal, I learned several good lessons.  First and foremost, when someone pours you tea (and there is always tea at such an occasion), you tap two fingertips on the table to thank them.  (Two knuckles are also acceptable, but that is too similar to the horned frog hand sign for TCU, which I refuse to support, haha!)  Also, you are given a pair of chopsticks, and a bowl with a plate underneath.  It is a good idea, according to my new friend, to rinse off the chopsticks and the bowl with the hot water they provide you.  Also, it is customary to eat out of the bowl, no matter what dish you're enjoying.  One last funny cultural thing - the waiters stand at the table and count your money right there.  No going back to a cashier stand for them!  They want to make sure they've got the goods before you leave.  There is also no tipping in HK.  Score!! This meal cost me right around $8.

The mass of humanity that is Hong Kong is really indescribable.  Hopefully this picture can try and do it justice.  To imagine my next faux pas, imagine all these people crammed into a subway.  Now, imagine them all scurrying out of the subway as if carried on an invisible river.  Now imagine me, playing the part of the log jam, frantically searching for my Octopus card (subway card) and blocking one of the exits.  Cue pushing, loud grumbling, and many stank-eyes. Yes, friends, this was my experience on Saturday.  After leaving Dim Sum, I decided to wander around Causeway Bay.  I found my way back to the metro and decided to head back to Central (the area near the church) to explore some more and do a test run of my route for Sunday.  When we arrived at Central, I was feeling pretty good about my life.  I had public transportation in HK mastered.  Boom.  Then I got off the train and the aforementioned log jam incident occurred.  As I hastily scanned my card on the reader (once it was found, of course) I got totally disoriented and came out onto an alleyway instead of beside Louis Vuitton, where I had entered.   Quite the difference, as you might imagine.  This is the point where I truly understood just how dependent on my iPhone I have become.   In Houston, assuming I was walking around for some unknown reason, I would have just busted out my phone, looked at maps, and navigated my way out of there like it was my job.  But, alas, I don't have a working iPhone here yet, so I wandered aimlessly around the station for what felt like at least 37 sweaty hot minutes before finally recognizing the Marks and Spencer that signaled the street I wanted.  Phew.

One other charming difference between HK and the US is that hey they drive on the "wrong" side of the road.  This has probably the most challenging difference for me to conquer, because let's face it, getting this right could be a life or death decision!  On Saturday alone, I had the pleasure of being chewed out in both Mandarin and Cantonese for failing to "Look Left or Look Right".  26 years of conditioning is quite the habit to break.  Thankfully, lots of the bigger streets do have these handy signs to remind me, so I may make it home after all.

Lastly, yesterday evening, I started feeling a little blah.   A little sore throat-ish, a little tired, but I chalked it up to traveling and breathing recycled air for over 28 hours.  Today, however, I discovered the real source of my problems.  While talking with the domestic helper at my host family's house, I mentioned to her that I wasn't feeling great.  She asked me what my symptoms were and I told her that I just had a general stomach ache and didn't feel all too awesome.  I said that I should probably drink some water because I felt a little dehydrated.  She offered to get me a glass, and I told her that I'd just get some water out of the tap.  Her eyes got wide and she said to me in an alarmed tone, "You drank the water?!!"  I replied, ever frantic, that yes, indeed, I had drunk the water.  She gave me a pitying look, and said nonchalantly, "Well, that's why your stomach hurts! You can't drink the water here.  It's no good for you".  Oooooh buddy.  Welcome to my intestinal tract, foreign bugs and other miscellaneous aqueous ingredients.  I'm sure we'll become acquainted in no time.

Tomorrow is my first day of "real" work, though I did get to attend church and and event on Sunday with the kids.  Thoughts: I LOVE them already.  They are smart and funny and a little crazy, but hey, this is Youth Ministry! It's what we live for!

Til next time,
The Adventurer

Hong Kong Beginning

I've arrived in Hong Kong! 

The past few days have been a crazy rush of getting introduced to my new job and new city.  Hong Kong is definitely like no other place I've ever been.  There is a frenetic energy that pulses all around, from the main streets to the alleyways, there is a constant flurry of activity.  Purposeful businesspeople head through the crowds, friends meeting for lunch chat and stroll, and I wander, looking up to the (smoggy) sky, checking out the buildings around.

16 minutes from Hong Kong after 36 hours of travel. 

I made it to Hong Kong after a bit of a crazy flight from Singapore.  I had my first proper introduction to a mainland tourist group, and let me say culture shock.  My inner Anthropologist was wildly scolding my human nature when I found myself aghast when the woman next to me took off her pants nonchalantly mid-flight, when I entered the bathroom and discovered, thanks to the shoe marks, that someone had used the toilet as a squat toilet, and when I could not hear myself think because of the immense number (and volume) of conversations going on around me.  As I have come to find out from talking with the people in HK I've met, this is totally normal for groups such as those.  So, I have taken it with a grain of salt.  Though, somewhere over the South China Sea, I began to ask myself what I had gotten myself into!

Driving on the left and some smog... oh, and beware incident!

But, everything comes to an end, and that flight, thankfully, did.  I was greeted at the airport by my new boss, his two kids, and my co-worker.  They happily carted my luggage to the car and we set off for the city.  Hong Kong airport is on Lantau island, which is quite removed from the city.  As we drove in, I was surprised to see so much green space.  I had though of HK as being a super urban environment (which it is in places), but out on Lantau, there are lots of mountains with dense vegetation.  Also, HK'ers drive on the left, as in Britain, so it was eerie for me to sit in the front left seat without being the driver!  This is a picture I took as we were getting ready to drive over one of HK's many bridges.  I wish I could tell you that this was fog, like San Francisco, but it is sadly smog.  Couple the mainland's factories with HK's car pollution, and this is what you get most of the time. You can also see at Taxi in front of us to the left.  All of the taxis in HK are color-coded to where they drive.  So on Lantau, they are green, I think.  Apparently, it takes a good deal of bargaining to get them to go into another zone.  Taxis where I live now are red.

ICC building to the right

As we drove into the city, we passed right by Hong Kong's tallest building, the ICC (International Commerce Center).  It is also home to the world's highest hotel, the Ritz Carlton.  My boss' son told me that he had his birthday dinner at the top! It is 118 floors tall!  This isn't a great picture, but it is the tall building to the right side of this array of skyscrapers.

This building is on the Kowloon side of Hong Kong which is the peninsula that juts out from Mainland China.  Directly to the South, across the harbor, is Hong Kong Island, where I live.  We drove in a tunnel under the harbor to get to HK, and when we emerged, we were in the middle of total skyscraper-ville.  Everything was vertical, and very close together.  It's what I imagine New York City would be like, just on steroids.  My office is right in the middle of all this craziness, in a place called Sheung Wan.  We're only a few kilometers off the harbor.  We parked in a car park (HK talk for a parking garage), and went and had some dinner at a great little pizza place close to the church.  After pizza, we went and checked out the church, where I got to see my new desk and the youth space.  I will be happy there, for sure.

View out my window - HK at night

 

As we were attempting to leave the car park to go to my host family's flat, my boss discovered that his battery was dead!  We abandoned the car there temporarily and lugged my bags down to a nearby taxi stand.  My co-worker and I hopped into the taxi while my boss and his kids sorted out the car.  As the taxi climbed up the mountain, I could see the lights of HK even better.  The flat I'm so lucky to be staying in has a gorgeous, sweeping view of Victoria Harbor, looking towards Kowloon.  You can see the ICC building to the extreme left of the picture, with the ICF building on the HK island side appearing the tallest in this picture. 

My hosts are actually out of town until the beginning of September, so I got settled in by my co-worker who lived here when she first moved to Hong Kong and the family's helper, Jeany.  A lot of families in Hong Kong have these so-called helpers, usually from Indonesia or the Philippines.  They live-in, do the cooking, cleaning, laundry and anything else that needs to be done in the house.  I was a bit uncomfortable when Jeany asked me what time I wanted breakfast in the morning, but I was advised by my co-worker to go along with it.  Apparently, the helpers see the kitchen as their domain and can be insulted if you don't allow them to help you.  So, I'll be getting used to that, at least until I move into my own place and have to figure out how to cook, shop and do laundry on my own here.  It's like a halfway house for new HK'ers!

Alright, enough for now.  Next time: dumplings, what's your sign, and my first lifegroup meeting...

The Adventurer

Traveling Mercies

My plane with our stewardess, Lee Ling Ling
the "Singapore Girl".  Basically, one of the most gorgeous,
put-together Asian women on the planet.

As I write this I'm sitting in the Singapore Airport.  Saying goodbye to my friends and team members at the church, as well as the families I have grown to know and love through skating was so incredibly hard.  But, as I've been assured over and over again, God does things for reasons we don't always understand, and the most heart-rending decisions are normally the ones that are the most fruitful.  In any case, I've asked a lot of people for good vibes, prayers, etc for my traveling and let me say, it's worked!

I started off my day on Tuesday, August 21st.  My cousin, Sara, dropped me off at IAH about 2:30pm, I got checked in, ripped half of one of my toenails off trying to lug my 50.5 pound bag onto the scale, and tried to bribe my way into Business Class (it didn't work, by the way).  After waiting FOREVER to pay for my extra bag, I got checked in, and said my goodbyes to Sara.  I have been dreading this since I decided to move, but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.  When you're kindred spirits with someone, no distance can really change your friendship.

IAH to Moscow Breakfast.  Baked Beans
And Eggs?  

SO, about the plane.  It was NICE. When I first got on, we were all handed hot towels and a menu detailing dinner and breakfast.  The plane was in a 3x3x3 configuration, which I hadn't ridden on before, but it worked out great because the middle seat was empty.  I was SURROUNDED by Vietnamese people who were all really friendly, especially the woman I shared my row with.  We took off, I perused the in-flight entertainment options (nearly endless, by the way) and we had some dinner.  My strategy, I'm proud to say, worked for the most part.  I was able to stay awake for almost all of the 12 hour flight, except for a brief catnap from 11:30pm-12:30am Houston time.  In the morning, we had a strange combination of scrambled eggs, chicken sausage, potatoes and what tasted like baked beans.  It was a little unusual, but actually quite good.

We landed in Moscow, which was uneventful, except for the graveyard of planes sitting beside the runway.  Not exactly the most assuring sight after a 12 hour little sleep flight, but hey, whatever does it for you, Russia.

Flight path from Russia. Right over garden spots like
Islamabad and Kabul!!

The Moscow airport was wholly unremarkable except for the abhorrent service by the airport employees.  Some of their policies seem downright ridiculous (for example, making transiting passengers on my flight (me) wait in a line to be passport checked, baggage screened, then passport checked again).  And some poor woman and her 90's-ish elderly mother got separated in front of me and the staff wouldn't let her back in to help her.  Otherwise, I sat around waiting to re-board my same plane after they cleaned and re-staffed.  A short hour and 20 minutes later, we were off again.  THIS time. though. I had an agenda!  I downed some Ambien shortly after we took off, had some Thai red curry with rice, and I was racked OUT. Somewhere over Kazakhstan, I awoke, drooling on myself and getting the stank eye from a man across the aisle, so I decided to turn over the other way and drool in private.  I slept pretty solidly through that leg of the flight and awoke when we were just over Calcutta. According to the map, we flew over Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan (right over Kabul, eek), Pakistan before taking a hard left towards India/SE Asia.  We also certainly flew within sight of the Himalayas, but it was night and I was asleep, therefore that wonder of the world still remains to be seen.

I knew I liked Singapore about 2 hours before we landed.  I was served the BEST pancake (okay, crepe) that I have EVER had.  And it was on an airplane.  I can't make this up, people.  It was doused in some delicious vanilla cherry sauce and I NOMMED it like it was my job.  Henceforth, I will only be flying Singapore Air.   Which means I'm in need of a wealthy benefactor.  Anyone? Ha.  Anyway, we landed in Singapore which was awesome.  There were a bunch of outlying islands that we crossed over on our way to the airport and they were ALL populated.  Tons of lights.  Some guy in front of me said, "Are those designs?"  And I wanted to say, "You're thinking of Dubai", but I refrained and watched him try to make out what the "design was".

Welcome to Singapore Airport Spa. 

We put down in dark Singapore at 5:10am, Thursday, August 23 local time (4:10pm, August 22nd, Houston time).  I really have nothing to say about Singapore itself as I couldn't see anything, but if it is anything like the airport, I will be returning for a visit.  It was like some crafty Scandinavians came down here, asked some Singaporeans how to best fuse these two ideals and BOOM! Out came Singapore Changi Airport.  The BEST part of my whole trip, however was the "Transit Hotel" I visited  when I disembarked.  Now before you start thinking I did something sketchy, you just back that train up! The transit hotel has rooms that can be rented to sleep if you don't need a whole night in a hotel room, and it is located right in the terminal.  The BEST part, however, is that you can also just pay to rent a shower.  I researched this before leaving, but didn't have high expectations.  I was imagining a truck stop type setup, but boy was I wrong.  It was like Singapore Airport Spa in there.  Each shower was in an individual room with a sink, vanity, plug, and bench.  They even threw in a towel in the price of the shower. (The best $6.94 I've ever spent).  I get inconsolably cranky if I have dirty hair, so this decision was a life-changing one.  I took my time repacked my bag, was able to change clothes, dry my hair, and even put on some makeup so I didn't look like someone out of a "The Walking Dead" episode.

I'm waiting now for my HK flight, which departs in about an hour and a half.  I was able to call my parents and let them know I got here okay, thanks to Skype.  I think this is about it for now.  I'm being met at the airport in HK by one of my bosses, Wade, and m co-worker, Julie, I think.  Stay tuned for my HK arrival!

Til Next Time,
The Adventurer

69 kilograms

Did you know that I have 69 kilograms of stuff?

In reality, I probably have WAY more than that, but that's how much stuff I will be taking to Hong Kong with me.  Lots of people have asked me what kinds of things I'm moving with me.  I'm in a little different situation than most expats that move to HK, because my company isn't paying to relocate me.  This is totally fine, because 99% of the things I have, I really don't need that much anyway.

In any case, most people are shocked when they hear that I'm only taking the stuff that I can fit in 3 suitcases (or 166 linear inches, if you were curious).  I've done a LOT of research, talked to some people who have lived in HK, and have decided on the bare essentials.  I'm hoping that this blog might be of some help to someone in the future who is moving to Hong Kong, so I'll give a you a brief rundown of what I packed.

• CLOTHES.  Lots and lots of clothes.  Probably about 85% of my packing space is devoted to clothes.  Mostly, this is because I've heard that buying clothes in HK if you're not a size 2 is not a pleasant experience.  So, I've over-packed a little, in my opinion, just in case I want something I can't easily (or cheaply) find.  I'm sure I could buy things at department stores, but I'm all about spending money traveling and not on expensive clothes.  So, there you go.



• Toiletries.  Probably about another 13% of my luggage.  Again, after doing research, I've discovered that there are a few, shall we say, key items, that cannot be easily found in HK.  The first, and most important, is deodorant.  Not that HK'ers don't wear deodorant, but apparently the kinds that are available are gel or spray-on.  And that isn't going to work for this girl.  I have a very specific kind of deodorant that works for me, since I can tend to be a sweaty beast, so I stocked up on approximately 8 sticks.  If you're a guy and you're skeezed out by lady issues, just skip down to the next bullet point.  Ladies, stock up on those tampons.  Apparently the pickins are pretty slim in HK (truth of this remains to be seen) but my feminine hygiene is nothing to play around with.  So, I stocked up on about a years worth of tampons, just to be on the safe side. I will definitely report on this tampon dilemma once I get there.



• Last but not least, books, mementos, pictures, DVDs etc.  This occupies the paltry remaining 2% of my luggage.  With pictures ultra digital nowadays, I have most everything on my hard drive, but there are a few things I really wanted to take with me.  Like my 20x24 stretched canvas picture of Nyhavn in Copenhagen that my cousin got me for Christmas.  Still trying to work that one in... 



• What I'm not taking: Electronics of ANY sort besides my cell phone and laptop chargers, very many winter clothes, or items I haven't seen or used in the last 6 months.  

This woman obviously has fingers of steel

I decided that in order to be on the safe side of things, I would load each bag to capacity before starting another one.  That way I didn't end up with say, 200kg of stuff after I'd completely packed.  So, I started on the first bag, affectionately called the blue beast.  I could fit myself in this suitcase EASILY.  The good news is that this suitcase can hold A LOT.  And another great feature is that there's a little handy weight indicator on top that will tell you if your bag is over 50 pounds. Doesn't that sound like a great idea?

So, after loading my bag down with as much as would fit, I set it upright (okay, lugged it), placed my fingers underneath the indicator, pulled up, and almost sprained every finger on my right hand.  It felt like I was lifting a 4th grader worth of dead weight.  And yes, I have done that before, don't ask.  It's called Children's Ministry. The red light immediately came on, as if to say, "are you an idiot? Of course this is overweight!!" So, just to "double check" I took it over to our scale, set it down, and waited for that magic number to appear.  67 pounds was the verdict.  Despondently. I unloaded 3 bottles of contact solution, a couple of shampoo and conditioner bottles, and one space bag full of clothes and got it down to 51 pounds.  I'm hoping that with a smile and a story about how I'm going to share Jesus with the Asians, they'll let me squeak by.


In this bag contains: 3 pairs of flats, 4 picture frames, a wooden plaque that my sister-friend Amy made for me, a T-Shirt quilt, 2 space bags full of 47 articles of clothes, a purse full of toiletries, q-tips, mousse, perfume, 8 sticks of deodorant, and a pair of running shoes Pretty decent! You can even see my sparkle Toms poking out of the zipper pockets.

All in all, I'm feeling pretty good about the move.  Despite a splitting headache that has made me feel bleh for the past couple of days, I think I'm ready to go.  It all feels really surreal to me - not sure when reality will kick in.  Probably when I'm over Northern Canada and realize that I'm not in Kansas (okay, Houston) anymore.


And for the pièce de résistance, I went to the doctor this week.  While talking about my normal sleeping patterns (I got a gold star for my 8+ hours of sleep per night) I informed her of my 31 hour flight extravaganza, and my abysmal record of sleeping on planes. Since I would be awake for 41 hours when I arrived in HK assuming I couldn't get to sleep at all, she happily prescribed me some Ambien! Praise Jesus.  I have tried literally every. single. method. for sleeping on a plane. Melatonin, Ear Plugs, a fuzzy U-Shaped pillow, having an entire row to myself, lights off in the cabin, comfy clothes, following my normal bedtime routine, meditating (seriously), lots of water, no water, etc, and I just cannot fall asleep.   While I'm normally totally anti-medicine, I'll defer to what my friends U2 would say, sometimes you just can't make it on your own! So, me and my friend Ambien will be getting acquainted somewhere over Kazakhstan if all goes according to plan.  Hey, I figure being in a sleeping medicine fog is preferable to being in a sleep-deprived coma/hate spiral/funk when meeting my new workmates and hosts.

This weekend is party-a-palooza.  I feel so loved and appreciated by all of my Houston friends.  Just 5 short days til I'm outta here!

Til next time,
The Adventurer

Some Last Minute Things

I got to hang out with this cutie

One of the greatest parts of going away is that it forces you to spend time with the people you love.  Since you won't be seeing them as often as you would when you lived stateside, you obviously make time for them.  One of the greatest things I've done in preparation for leaving was spending a few days with my parents.  Fortunately, they moved back to the city we lived in when we first moved back to Texas in 2005, Clyde.  I love this little town, I love the people my parents made friends with, and I ESPECIALLY love it because my sweet nephew lives just 15 short miles away.  I love to snuggle this babeh, kiss his sweet cheeks, and watch him do all manner of funny things.  I'm sure the next time I'm home, he'll be doing all sorts of new things.  So, these moments are especially precious.  It was great to have a couple of days hanging out with my parents, sister and brother in law.

Sending my Visa Application to HK

One of the complicated parts of moving abroad is inevitably the Visa process.  Luckily, it is completely legal and allowable to enter Hong Kong as a tourist while waiting for Visa paperwork to be processed.  This is exactly what I'll do - and I'll have to exit HK once my Visa goes through, travel somewhere else (probably a boat to Macau) then re-enter the country on my permanent working Visa.  As part of my visa application, I had to fill out about 9 pages of paperwork in order to get my visa processed.  Mostly, this included educational records, and a letter of support from each of my previous churches stating my job duties, and 6 pages of paperwork in Chinese and English.  See my previous post, The Spinster, for more info on this hilarious form.  Long story short, I finally received each letter, dutifully provided on letterhead, and sent it off to Hong Kong last Monday.  I also encountered the mythical chupacabra of the Postal Service, a nice, competent employee who actually seemed to like their job and life.  As Mary helped me fill out my envelope, it all became very real to me!  I'm moving to Hong Kong in just over eleven days!!!

What? No oven in Hong Kong?!

Last, I had a great meeting with my future boss and his family this past Wednesday.  His son goes to Rice University here in Houston, and they were in town visiting him and their other family in The Woodlands (North of Houston).  We got together at the Galleria, ate some great Mexican food, and talked about everything Hong Kong and Community Church related.  It was great to get to meet Steve and Marian and to have a face to go with the name finally!  I got to ask a lot of my questions, mostly about what I should do about banking once I get there, and got a lot of good feedback on some things I should do and expect once I move to Hong Kong.  One funny thing that I discovered is that most apartments in Hong Kong don't have ovens.  Not something I ever would have thought to ask, but it came up somehow.  I shared this info with my roommate who is a baker-extraordinaire, and this was her reaction.  She can't imagine how one would survive in an environment without an oven.  Stay tuned, everyone, I'll let you know!

Well, the final countdown is on.  I'm leaving in 10 days.  It's all becoming more real and more surreal by the moment.  I'm drowning in the little details, but incredibly excited and ready for the adventure to begin!  Til next time,

The Adventurer

The Spinster

Several great and funny things have happened over the past week.

First and foremost, I was invited over to the home of Suzanne and Eric Chai who are across-the-street neighbors of one of our church members. Suzanne grew up in Hong Kong and had a bevy of information for me about what I should (and shouldn't) do in Hong Kong.  She recommended several cheap shopping areas for food and clothes, which I will definitely be checking out once I move.  The best part of the entire evening happened while she was telling me about one area in general, 女人街 (Nu Ren Jie, literally, women's street).  She and Eric were telling me about all the great finds to be had there when she stopped for a moment, studied me intently, then quickly scrawled "Please Bargain" on the paper.  To explain herself, she succinctly said, "They probably don't give you a good deal...because you're American!"  And that was the moment I decided I was a fan of Suzanne Chai.  The great news here is that she and Eric are coming to HK for a wedding in October and there is a possibility that we can meet up.  Hopefully that'll work out!

It was a great way to cap off the evening, I think.  Oh, and I also learned a very funny phrase in Mandarin... it goes like this... 对牛弹琴 (Dui Niu Tan Qin) It means, basically, playing guitar for cattle, or doing something that is utterly (udderly?) useless.

Spinster?

Early last week, I received my visa paperwork from the church.  It is about 15 pages long, mostly of explanations on how to fill out the two pages that require filling out, and all of the supporting documentation that has to go along with it.  The good news is that my visa does NOT have to be in my passport when I move.  I can come in the country as a tourist (no visa necessary) and once my working visa is approved, I'll have it inserted in my passport, I assume, and continue on my merry way.

In any case, one of the funny things about Chinese in general, is that there are oftentimes no good equivalents for Chinese words.  Add on top of all this the British cultural influences in Hong Kong, and there are bound to be some funny translations.  The first of many, I feel certain, is on the visa application. Apparently, my only choice of marital status is to check "spinster".  This is definitely a new category for me! I'm not sure that there's anywhere to go after this, so I'll leave with that.

 Til next time, The (spinsterly) Adventurer!

Preparations

Just a little less than a week ago, I shared that I'd be moving to Hong Kong.  This information has been in my mind for a little while now, and the newness of it has started to fade away.  I had a few days of renewed elation about it after having the chance to share, but now the reality of all that this move means has set in.  I have a LOT to do!

Tonight, I took what I consider to be the most major step so far forward (after accepting the position in the first place, of course) and that is booking my ticket.  If you know me at all, you might know that I am detailed, thorough, and an information-seeker.  This created quite the situation for me in booking this ticket.  I've done quite a bit of International traveling, but I haven't ever:

a) been flying at someone else's cost (thank you Community Church for paying my ticket to HK)

b) booked an International ticket just a month out

c) had so many different options to choose from (Canada or San Francisco?  JFK or Moscow?) 

So, now, I'm not only trying to be a good steward of the church's resources by booking a low-cost ticket, but also being creative with some sold-out flights, and trying to figure out how exactly to fly halfway around the world.  Phew.

Tonight, I sat down on my couch at approximately 6:37pm with the full expectation to book a flight I've been looking at for a week.  It's a Singapore Air flight leaving out of Houston in the evening, connecting through Moscow, Russia (no plane change, just drop off and pick up some Russians, I presume) then to Singapore.  From there, I'd connect to Hong Kong.

This not the plane I'll be going on, but you get the idea...

But then, as I sat down, I started to think of all the other possibilities.  First, I could pay about $200 more dollars and connect through LA or San Francisco and save about 7 hours of travel time, cutting  from two days to one.  Or, I could save $100 and fly through Calgary, Vancouver, then to Hong Kong, but with 7 excruciating hours of layovers in each location.  Each new possibility had its benefits and drawbacks.  I found myself going back and forth, reading reviews on each airline, each plane, each route.  When I finally looked at the clock, it was after 8:00!  

Finally, I decided to man up and book the Air Canada flight that had slightly shorter layovers, and was a little more expensive.  I got to the check out page and noticed that I wouldn't be eligible to get ANY frequent flier miles with my Star Alliance carrier partner with this fare.  Oh my.  Of course, at this point, I had to go back and re-research all of the previous options to figure out just how I could maximize my frequent flier miles. 

And then, that led me to a whole new conundrum.  I do sincerely believe that frequent flier schemes are elaborately hatched plans to make you feel like you're getting a great deal while really shrouding useful information in a vast fog of codes like Y, Q, W, Z, V, etc.  Can I buy a vowel?  No, I can't as it turns out,  because I work for Jesus, and those are the first class fares that I will likely never be traveling on. Ha.

All of this became quite comical when, at 9:05pm, my roommate and best friend announced that she'd had enough of my fact finding mission and that it was time that I stopped worrying and just booked a fare.  So I did.  And what fare did I book?  The Singapore Air one.  The flight I originally intended to book three hours before. 

So yes.  The moral of the story is that I will be traveling to Hong Kong, China on Tuesday, August 21st.  I will arrive almost 2 days later after being on a combination of planes for nearly 27 hours.

Let's end this positively and note that:

Singapore Air has been voted one of the best airlines in the world for several years in a row
Their in-flight entertainment is apparently the best in the sky
There are in-seat power plugs, which will be REALLY nice

and lastly, I'm moving to Hong Kong to serve Jesus and all of this doesn't really matter so long as I remember what I'm there to do.

Til next time!

The Adventurer



 

Hong Kong

I'm moving to Hong Kong. Whoa, it feels weird to type that.  But, in just a little over five weeks, I'll be packing a few belongings, traveling over 20 hours by plane and moving to my new home for the next two+ years. 

Since I started quietly announcing my move, I've had all manner of questions.  I've had every reaction ranging from full support to outrage.  I couldn't have prepared myself for this part.  I thought the 10+ Skype interviews I did with my  new church (literally, no exaggeration), were rigorous, but the questions I've gotten since announcing my move have been way more intense than any of my search process.  My hope is that I can start to answer some questions here, because I know that many people are wondering what the heck I'm thinking...

Most popular question #1:

Why Hong Kong?

The easy answer to this is "because God called me".  While true, this may sound like a cop-out to some, so I'll go into a little more detail.  For about the last five years, give or take, I have felt a call on my life to serve abroad.  I was pretty sure that I would be given the responsibility (and opportunity) to answer such a call at some future point in my life.  For the last five years, however, the answer has been yes, but wait.  I'm not an ultra patient person to begin with, so this has definitely taught me patience!!  Over the last six-ish months, however, it has become increasingly clear to me that God is calling me abroad.  At first, I dismissed it, citing restlessness, but God kept pursuing me.  One day while casually perusing some job boards, I found (no kidding) 5 job postings in Hong Kong.  A couple for an intern, and a couple for a Youth Director, all at International churches.  This, of course, piqued my interest, and that's how the whole process started.

Have you been to Hong Kong before? Do you know anyone over there?

Nope! I've never been to Asia.  I do have an acquaintance from college who works for Hong Kong Disneyland, go figure, and we've facebooked a little bit.  Other than that, I'm pretty much flying solo.

Where are you going to be working?

I'm working at a International church called Community Church.  Once I decided to leave Houston (not an easy decision), the decision to take the call at this particular church was one of the easiest ones of my entire ministry career.  I had several lengthy Skype interviews with people from the church ranging from the pastors, committee members, students, parents and pretty much anyone else you could imagine.  Throughout the whole process, I felt God confirming the process (as did they, obviously).  I fell in love with the people I talked with, and feel that I'll be a good fit for them, and likewise, them for me.  I'll be co-directing with their present Director of Youth Ministries.  She's been there for a year, so she will definitely be the veteran - I'm excited to learn from her!

What will you do while you're there?

I will be working as a co-director of Youth Ministry at the church.  Their program is actually very similar to a program at a church in the US.  Basically, they have Sunday School time, a fellowship opportunity at another time during the week, missions, events, etc.  It will definitely be a challenge doing ministry in a new context, but I'm excited to learn.  

Don't you need to learn Cantonese?

This is an interesting question.  I did take Mandarin Chinese in college, though my comprehension level was completely blown out of the water thanks to my year of Danish study from 2008-2009.  I'm probably at the level of an articulate three year old right now, so definitely not super useful unless asking where the bathroom is, making general inquiries, or ordering food.  With that said, HK was part of Britain until 1997, so basically everyone speaks English.  Many signs are in English as well, if I understand correctly.  I feel certain that I'll want to continue my Chinese study there, however, and will probably take up Mandarin again.  Many Hong Kongers also speak Mandarin.  I'll definitely learn "Taxicab Cantonese" as a little bit gets you far (and makes the locals know that you're making an effort, which I'm all about). 

Isn't Asia unsafe?

Quite the contrary, in fact. And Hong Kong is one of the safest cities in the world.  According to the state department. "Hong Kong has a low crime rate."  Those State Department people don't mince their words.  If they say the crime rate is low, I'll believe them (and the thousand other expat blogs out there!)  I even had one parent tell me in a Skype interview that they let their elementary schooler take the metro by themselves in the afternoon.  I think that's a pretty good indication of the safety level.

What's going to be your living situation while you're there?

This is the part I'm the most interested to figure out.  For the first bit I'm there, a church member has VERY graciously offered to host me in her home.  I'll probably settle in for a few weeks then commence searching for an apartment.  This will, by far, be my biggest expense while living in Hong Kong.  The rent is astronomical.  I'll be paying well over a thousand dollars a month for a TINY apartment (probably less than 500 square feet).  This is okay, though, because I didn't get into working for Jesus for the money, and I've always lived modestly.  I also won't have a car, which I am happy to say I won't miss in the slightest.  I've been wishing for public transportation since the day I left Denmark and am excited to take the efficient and inexpensive public transport available in HK.

What's your commitment there?

I have initially signed a two year contract, with the option to extend for more year(s) at the end.   I have no idea what God is going to do in the future.  If you do, kindly email me and we'll chat!

What kind of things are you moving with you?

Not a lot, to be honest.  It's very expensive to ship things there, so I'll be taking the bare minimum.  Probably clothes (as I'm considered enormous compared to Hong Kongers, who average seemingly at a size 0) movies, pictures, my laptop, and that will probably be the extent of it.  There is an IKEA in HK, as well as many local craftsmen who can make furniture fairly inexpensively.  This is probably how I'll furnish my apartment.  I will also not take any of my electronics as their current and plugs are different from ours (and after my near hair-frying experience in Denmark, I think I'll be leaving the voltage converter at home).  I will be selling my car and most of my other belongings, so if you're interested in my great e-garage sale, let me know!

Are you going to travel?

YES.  To all the places.  Okay, probably not ALL the places, but I do have an ever-expanding list of places I'd like to visit.  Where, you ask? Well I'll be happy to share.  Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Japan are currently in my top five, though I feel certain I'll find many other places to explore.  

How do your parents feel about this?

The good thing is that my parents know me well.  They've been managing my wanderlust from a young age - They raised me to be this way, after all.  My Dad was in the Navy for over 20 years, and has traveled extensively.  He is THRILLED.  Believe me when I tell you that he's already looked up hotel rooms in HK.  (He doesn't seem interested in staying in my 500 (or less) square foot apartment with three people... I can't imagine why!!).  My mom is excited, but, hey, she's my mom, so she has normal mom concerns, mostly based around when and how often I'll be coming home to visit her.  She does know that this is God's call for my life, and is very supportive.  And, as she says, planes fly, and there's Skype.  If this had been 20 years ago, she might not have been on the bandwagon, but now with technology as it is, I think we'll stay connected just fine. 

I think that's it, but obviously, I'm no stranger to questions.  Please, please, please pray for me if you're the praying kind.  I am about 51% excited and 49% nervous, and those ratios fluctuate daily, if not hourly!  Pray that my roommate and best friend, Sara, finds a new, awesome roommate, for both of the jobs I'm stepping out of (that Grace would find a new, awesome Elementary Director and that Sugar Land Ice would find a great Assistant Skating director.)

Most of all, pray that God uses me in a big way, and that through all of the new, scary, humorous, and ridiculous experiences I'm sure to have, that HE will be known.

Whitney

oh yeah, and keep reading my blog, because this time, I PROMISE to update it.

How to deal with that PK (or Staff Kid)

Every church has them. The infamous Preacher's Kid. The troublesome staff kid. You'll know these kids because they are usually the ones causing a ruckus, "volunteering" (hanging out in the youth office rendering at least one if not every youth staff person useless), or talking back to you in a way that most "regular" kids wouldn't ever dare address a youth or children's pastor.

I know this because I was one.

I didn't sit down to write this post to commiserate about these kids, I sat down to talk about how to love them. First, a few things. Yes, these kids are a lot of work. They will talk your ear off, defy your authority, and make out in any and every dark, unlocked room in the building. But they also NEED you.

Growing up, I needed my youth group. See, the trouble with staff kids (or preacher's kids, in my case) is that they fly under the spiritual radar a lot of the time. People assume that because their parent(s) work for the church, their spiritual well-being is taken care of. What's that old adage about the cobbler's children? That they never have shoes? I think you'll find in more cases than not a large amount of spiritual drought in our church-working families. Ministry is hard on a family: from long hours in the office, to the constant pressures to do the right things and seem like a perfect family, kids who grow up on this side of church often yearn for the spirituality they are surrounded by. Not one single time in my high school career did one of my small group leaders ask me how I was doing spiritually. Not one. Is this because they didn't love Jesus and want me to as well? Absolutely not. It is because they assumed that because I was the preacher's kid that I had it taken care of. Let me let you in on a little secret. Preacher's kids are some of the best posers out there. We are pros at looking good on the outside while harboring a mess on the inside. My small group leaders didn't confront me because they assumed. They assumed I had it together.

Another large problem facing preacher's kids is that they are ALWAYS in the spotlight. One particular instance that stands out to me was right after a retreat. I was probably a freshman in high school, and I was mouthy. We got home, I was tired, and one of our youth sponsors was trying to give me some directions. Sleep deprivation and teenage angst combined, and she and I got into an argument. During the argument, she said something to me that I have not, to this day, forgotten. She looked me square in the eye and said, "Who do you think you are? I see that you leave the choir loft EVERY Sunday after the youth choir sings. You don't even stay for the sermon! What kind of example are you setting?". At that point, I probably said some ultra church appropriate words to her and walked away. See, what she didn't know is that my dad had gotten appointed to another church. My parents flat told me that I had to start participating at the youth group at my dad's new church (in the same city as the old church). And I was angry about it. I could participate in the youth choir at the old church (of which I was the president), but I had to be at my dad's church service, which meant leaving after the choir sang. It was a horribly painful transition for me. But she didn't take the time to get to know my story. She just saw the behavior and lashed out at me. And I still remember it, more than 10 years later.

See, we need to CARE for our staff kids. I can tell you firsthand that it isn't easy growing up in the spotlight. I could recount to you countless times where something "got back" to my parents that in fact hadn't happened. I wasn't a hellion in high school, in fact, I hung around with good, Mormon kids. I made the honor roll, and got into a very competitive college. But people could see what they wanted to. Growing up in the church was incredibly hurtful at times.

Lastly, preacher's kids are often saddled with an immense amount of information. Some families do a better job than others of insulating their kids from what goes on in churches, but no matter what, preacher's and staff kids are impacted by the negative things spill over from mom's or dad's job at the church. I remember at the age of 14 knowing who was cheating on who, who was getting divorced, who was getting counseling for their marital problems, and who had a drug addiction. I was both an inquisitive child and an eavesdropper, and therefore, I knew WAY more than I should. What all this goes to say is that staff kids often emerge with their rose-colored glasses off. Whereas many of their peers are meeting Jesus for the first time in middle or high school, these preacher's kids have known Him and his band of ragtag followers for years. They are, in ways, like little adults, hardened to the realities of a messy world. And this is why they need grace. This is why they need love.

So, in summary, that kid may be driving you insane, but they're driving you insane because they NEED to be heard. They are desperate for someone to genuinely ask them about their faith. They're desperate to not just be a stereotype, to not be typecast as the partier, or holier-than-thou, but to just be beloved son or daughter of the king.


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Sweden

While I was in Denmark, I only went to Sweden once, despite it being so close to Denmark. It takes a mere 10 minutes to cross the Ørseunds Bridge to get there! I almost went a second time, in fact, the first day I came to Denmark (I almost got on the wrong train headed straight to Malmø central station, but that's another story...)

In any case, this time, the Brissons graciously invited me to accompany them to Malmø to see the opera, Carmen. I hadn't seen it before and I was REALLY excited. To top it off, we were going to eat at a traditional Swedish Bakery before the opera, so I was looking very forward to it.

Sunday morning, Maggie, Jørgen, their son David, their current host student, Ruby, and I all piled in their car. It only took us 45 minutes to get there from their house (which is outside of the city to the west of Copenhagen). Maggie made a comment at one point that it would take us longer to drive to the Copenhagen Opera because of where it is. Probably true!

In any case, we drove across the bridge and into Sweden. Really, Sweden (or at least that part) is pretty much exactly like Denmark. Flat, cold, with an occasional willowy tree here and there, but not incredibly diverse as far as terrain is concerned. The most exciting part of the journey for me, I will admit, was seeing an IKEA, IN SWEDEN. For some reason it seemed like some strange coincidence to see one there, you know, in its motherland.

Anyway, we got there, parked, and walked to the cafe. It was a Sunday, so of course, it was totally packed. Maggie guided us to the counter where we all selected a smorgasbord sandwich. These things were HUGE. I chose one with lots of baby shrimp piled high. It was garnished with Tomato, Cucumber, and Lemon. (I didn't eat the cucumber and tomato, but I did garnish the heck out of it with lemon juice). It was one of the best things I've eaten since I've been here.

Midway through our meal, one of Jørgen's colleagues from the Embassy in Mali met us to pick up some things the Brissons had for her. Perhaps this is a good time for me to tell you that Jørgen works for the Economic branch of the Danish Embassy in Mali. He lives there for about 6 weeks then comes home for a week or two. I have no idea how they do it. They are both very strong people. In any case, Jørgen's colleague, Angelique was very interesting. She was a Rwandan refugee who sought Asylum in Denmark about 10 years ago, and who ended up working for the Embassy in Mali. She's now studying for her masters, I think. In any case, she was explaining her thesis to us and it was very interesting. She has developed a model for predicting if African societies were ready for democracy. Really interesting!

Anyway, we talked and talked, and ate cake and hot chocolate. And by the end of it all, I felt like I had eaten about 3 days worth of food. It was actually quite nice to go outside and get some fresh air, even if it was FREEZING! Here I'll point out one major difference between the US and Denmark. On our way to the opera, we passed a park. It was no more than 35 degrees outside. If you were in the US, you would be hustling to get inside as soon as possible, probably. But Maggie suggested that we take a nice walk around the park (we had time). We did, and it was fantastic. David and I found a huge saucer swing and took turns pushing each other on it. We enticed Ruby to join in as well. It was fun to feel like a kid again.

After our play session, we headed into the opera. We were still VERY early, so we waited a bit. Jørgen pre-ordered our drinks for the intermission (I have never heard of such a thing, maybe it happens in the US, and I'm just ignorant of it). In any case, he pre-ordered them, and they were promised to appear on one of the lobby tables when we came out. Finally, they allowed us in the theatre, and we found our seats.

The first act was good, except the words and subtitles were in Swedish! I have never heard of such a thing before! I expected that it might be in French with Swedish subtitles, but alas, not so. It was funny hearing Swedish being squeezed into the popular tunes! In any case, we enjoyed ourselves (except David who kept getting the evil eye from a guy in front of us because he was explaining the plot to me a little too loudly during the first act). It was set in a very modern way, which helped us to understand it more.

As promised, our drinks were on the table during intermission. I had a Swedish brand cola which was good. We went back to the theatre to finish it up and something very interesting happened. Right after Carmen gets involved in the underworld with the nomads and such, that scene is depicted as being in a pole-dancing bar! The girls were covered up, but not very much! It was a surprise to see that in the opera, and I'm sure my American-ness was totally showing. Europeans in general have very little problem with nudity and sexuality, but I was totally blushing. Blame it on my raising! In any case, we finished the opera, which was completely depressing, of course, and went home! It was a really great time - I'm very glad we went.

Lots to tell about my biking adventures in Copenhagen, but that will have to wait until another day!

The (Swedish?) Adventurer!