Kyoto: Part 2

In Kyoto, we visited many historic sights and buildings.

Sanjusangendo Hall:Inside the main hall are 1,001 life sized wooden statues gilded in gold--stunning. No photography is allowed. This hall is the longest wooden building in Japan.Kiyomizu Temple:
Kodai-Ji Temple Zen garden:Small temple on a side street we stumbled upon: Yasaka Shrine:Kennin-Ji Temple is oldest Zen temple in Japan. Inside the main hall is a huge ceiling mural of two dragons.Nijo Castle is large and beautiful. The most interesting part is the wooden nightingale floors which squeak when walked upon, used as a means of defense against intruders.

Erik sampled the "strange" 4-flavored ice cream cone: mango, black tea, green tea, and vanilla.

Tiananmen Square 20th Anniversary

I'm not sure how well the US media is acknowledging today’s 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. In Hong Kong, the newspaper has had front page stories about it all week. I will be taking a few moments of silence to remember the victims and hope for peace and validation for their families. This Bloomberg article is quite good at describing the harsh restrictions set by the Chinese government to avoid commemorating the event. I am happy to be living in the “Special Administrative Region” of China where we have freedom of media (relatively), speach and the ability to demonstrate.

In the evening, we attended a candle light demonstration commemorating the event. There were 150,000 people in attendance. It was a very magical and profound event--so happy I could be a part of it.

Kyoto: Part 1

Our first trip was to Kyoto, Japan. Kyoto is an old and historic city, so we visited lots of temples, castles, and palaces. I loved the architecture and gardens--so orderly, serene, and peaceful. I accomplished two items on my life list by having sushi in Japan, and I also tried sake for the first time. (The sushi photo was my first bite, but we ate it several times--fabulous.)

The hotel we stayed in was part of the Kyoto train station which attracts tourist for its design. We did a superb job of taking the subway and buses even though there was virtually no English. As expected, Japan is super clean and orderly, but everything is ultra expensive. The attention to detail is amazing especially the packaging and food presentation; not just in restaurants, but also in the grocery store.

We were lucky to see one Geisha girl on the street, but it felt intrusive to photograph her. There were many women, and a few men, dressed in traditional kimonos.

Stay tuned for all the sights we saw.
Subway ticket machine:

2 trips in 2 weeks

The blogging will be slow for the remainder of May. By an interesting turn of events, we are taking two small vacations in these two weeks. Check back soon to see where we went.

For all those in the US, Happy Memorial Day! Enjoy the long weekend.

3 Pretty Things

Life has been moving along quite smoothly and steadily in Hong Kong. Today, I'll share 3 pretty things just because.

Modified pearls: I saw this great idea in a magazine. My pearls are too long for most of my outfits, but a simple knot turns it into a choker. I'm wearing them much more at this length. My orchid arrangement: in Hong Kong, the flower arrangements are exquisit, and pre-arranged orchids in nice pots are widely available but more expensive than doing it yourself. I am pleased with my first attempt. Beautiful animation I found on design*sponge:

Firekites - AUTUMN STORY - chalk animation from Lucinda Schreiber on Vimeo.

City of Life and Death

We saw the movie City of Life and Death this weekend which portrays the Japanese massacre of Nanjiing, China, the former capital. This movie is supposed to be shown world wide, but I'm not sure how accessible it will be for those of you in the US. If you can, try to see it. As expected, it is brutal and graphic, but the cinematography and depiction of emotions are outstanding. Here is a review.

Happy Spring

The weather has been so beautiful in Hong Kong recently--low humidity, in the mid to high 70s. Last weekend, we took full advantage of it during the 3-day weekend. On Friday, we went to Stanley and scored some good deals in the market and walked along the seaside. Sunday, was spent with our friend R hiking, beaching and eating. What other major city can you hike and go to the beach all within a 1 hour trip from the city on efficient public transportation? I heart Hong Kong.