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Our second day in Hong Kong was absolutely incredible. We were not as tired today so we definitely enjoyed all of the activities a lot more. After breakfast we travelled to Wong Tai Sin Temple. As we walked through the gates guarded by stone dragons(to keep away the evil spirits) we were quickly amazed at how beautiful and ornate the entire complex was. This was our first taste of religious life on our trip and it was definitely different than anything that I have ever seen before. Rows of individuals were lined up with incense or shaking bamboo sticks in the hopes of finding answers to his/her problems(or giving thanks to ancestors).
From here we moved on to the bird market(Don't worry, Louisa, we didn't get close enough to contract bird flu) and then took in the beautiful aromas of the flower market and had a snack from the BEST bakery. It was basically a big warm roll coated in sugar, doesn't sound that nice now that I'm typing it out but just trust me-it was incredible. The most interesting thing that I learned today was that billionaire Li Ka-shing got his start in the flower industry. He travelled from Hong Kong to Italy to find out how to manufacture fake flowers. Lacking the necessary funds to purchase the patent/knowledge, he remained in Italy to work for the company and learn the tricks of the trade. After he had mastered the process he returned to Hong Kong and subsequently dominated the flower market. This powerful and adaptable businessman continued to have businesses in almost every facet of Hong Kong's economy-from real estate and telecommunications to retail outlets and shipping services. After the flower market, we went to the Jade market where we both found some cool(and inexpensive) jewlery. Walking through the local markets was quite an experience, as the locals were not as accustomed to seeing foreigners in these areas. While the fruits and vegetables all looked amazing-I could have done without seeing the dried snakes and catepillars that are used in traditional Chinese medicine or the pig feet that seemed to be hanging at my every turn. The goldfish market was very cool and according to our tour guide it is bad luck to have an odd number of fish in one's pond.
We had a traditional Chinese Lunch(it was good-but we were seated right next to the bowl of animal feet and it kind of ruined my apetite haha) before heading out into the rain to walk to the Hong Kong Museum of History. We learned so much during our few short hours here-it was a lovely exhibit! A visit to the famous hotel Peninsula(it was beautiful and luxurious!) was followed by a fun star ferry ride back to our side of the island.
For what was left of the afternoon we hit the pool before getting ready for the night. We had drinks at Sevva(thanks again, Alea) where we were able to watch the famed Symphony of Lights on the terrace with a glass of champagne. Dinner at Tokio Jo was follwed by drinks at Beirut where we ran into some boys that had just graduated from Vandy and one of them had been in our IES program in Barcelona! Small world!
The night ended with a trip up the hill to Dragon I, where we danced and met some new friends before making the short walk back to our hotel. What a day!! Tomorrow we are jetting off to Hanoi, and although I am excited I will most certainly miss Hong Kong. The fusion of it's rich and traditional culture with it's growing importance in the world of finance and resource management(more on that later) is something that is vey unique. We were trying to figure out other cities that we could compare it to for friends that have not visited before- but it is proving to be a difficult task since it is truly a unique place...until next time xoxo
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