Jolly Old Hong Kong

It's still a constant shock to be able to read the street signs and understand what people are saying. I originally had wanted to skip Hong Kong, since I remember being so bored here 20 years ago. I realize that's because when you're a kid, nothing is more boring than tagging along while your parents are in pursuit of the perfect eelskin wallet. It's more fun when you're shopping for yourself.

On top of a little shopping, we've ridden ferries, seen a temple, and eaten dim sum. We've also eaten some very fancy meals, which have been a nice change of pace. We also experienced the single biggest price differential between two similar snacks in a 24-hour period: a $50HKD (about $7) ice cream cone at Haagen-Daazs, followed by a $2.50HKD (about 30 cents) ice cream cone at McDonalds. Ice cream cones at McDonalds have always been one of my favorite things, and I am happy to stay that along with our Starbucks in every city rule, we've been making them an afternoon snack at least once every few days.

Given that we might as well be in New York, I have far fewer stories. The most amusing thing I've seen is the signs at Starbucks which inform us they are celebrating the 10th anniversary of SAR's. This refers to China's taking over of Hong Kong and giving it special administrative status so that it can continue to function exactly the same as it did, but it does give one pause given this continent was the locus for the outbreak of the disease with the same name. Also, as a Starbucks beat reporter, I feel it noteworthy that this city does not serve us our lattes in porcelain cups, nor did the island-of-Chinese-babies location in Guangzhou. Oh, and perhaps due to the special status Hong Kong has, I can access Juliedelphia once more, but that will be over tomorrow. In review, these posts have been looooong. I bet you're all excited for when I go back to writing about how many times Satchel pees in a day.

We are flying to Shanghai tomorrow morning, and a week from now I'll be in California. I can't believe it's almost over.