Hong Kong

Wow, I am behind on posting. I'll try to get caught up on Thanksgiving, the end of our saga with Little Windmill Kindergarten, and Betsy's latest antics this week, but in the meantime, here are some pictures from our trip to Hong Kong last week.

We surprised the kids with the trip as an early Christmas present, and traveled with our good friends Helene and Josh LaVire, and their kids Eleanor and Jackson. We told John on Sunday night that we were flying to HK on Tuesday, but didn't tell him about Disney until we were actually pulling up the hotel. The big reveal, the moment I had been waiting for ... and his response was "Oh."

In spite of that enthusiastic reaction, they had a great time. Betsy loved meeting the characters ... John, not so much. The teacups and Dumbo were the favorite rides, though John attempted a ride on Space Mountain. The verdict? "Mom, next time I go to Disneyland, I do not want to ride Space Mountain. The ride up was fun. The ride down was not fun."

Hong Kong -- the city -- was a delight. It was so clean and civilized and English. The taxis had seat belts! And then there was the English language and the steep fine for spitting in public. And, oh, the shopping. No fewer than 4 different Clark's stores within walking distance. And it was warm and mostly sunny while we were there. Just the thing to sustain us through the long, cold, wet Shanghai winter. Everything was decorated for Christmas, and we heard more Christmas carols -- full, Christian hymns -- than we can remember hearing anywhere recently. Even "O Come, O Come Emmanuel", a beautiful song that doesn't usually make the mall soundtrack, even as Muzak!

We tried to hit many of the high spots, in addition to Disney. We were staying right on Victoria Harbour, so we took the Star Ferry, rode a double-decker bus around the perimeter of Hong Kong Island, visited the Stanley area for a completely un-city experience, visited the top of the Peak via a very steep tram, walked along the Avenue of Stars, and did a decent bit of shopping. The only thing I missed was high tea at the Peninsula -- nap schedules didn't allow it. Oh well.

Enough words. Time for pictures!