Nicole and Jesse had a wonderfully busy weekend. It started with the Mid Autumn Full Moon Festival, where it is customary for children to parade the street with paper lanterns. On Wednesday evening, Nicole and Jesse headed downtown to take in some of the festivities, which included a Fire Dragon parade. Unfortunately, they arrived a little bit too late, and Nicole was unable to see much of the parade due to her height (or lack thereof). But happily, she was able to see it through the digital screen on the camera which belonged to the man in front of her, so the evening wasn't lost!
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| The head of the Fire Dragon |
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The parade began with a drummer, followed by many children carrying lanterns. Unlike the parades back home, this one happened all in one small area, going up and down the same street, instead of winding through a few streets and ending in a different place than it started. Probably one of the reasons why it was so crowded, everyone wanted to be in prime viewing area! Once the kids exhausted themselves by their fifth lap, the FIRE DRAGON appeared. You may be thinking this dragon is going to look like the typical Chinese new year dragon, but you'd be wrong. This one was made of incense and was on fire. The air filled with smoke as it wound its way towards us, its 220 feet held up by many men.
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| Peacock Lantern |
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Once the parade died down, Nicole and Jesse headed towards Victoria Park to see the lantern display. There were lanterns hanging throughout the park unlike any they had seen before. They were so colourful and so big, it took quite a while to walk around and see them all.
On Saturday Nicole and Jesse decided to explore a little bit of the south side of Hong Kong Island. There are a number of beaches that are only a short bus ride away, and one of the most popular is called Repulse Bay. They hopped onto the number 260 bus and were on their way! After a quick lunch when they arrived, they posted up on the beach and began to relax. There is something to be said for having a wonderful beach practically outside your city doorstep. Even though the weather didn't stay as nice as they had hoped, it was an afternoon well spent, and they headed home happy and ready to continue their evening with the Kowloon Night Markets.
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| Crowded Temple Street Night Market |
Due to their upcoming trip to Borneo, Malaysia this week, Nicole and Jesse needed to pick up some supplies. Their trip consists of hiking up an actual mountain, and then spending some time on a beach, so they needed to grab some towels, hiking poles, and backpacks. After acquiring their goods, Nicole and Jesse kept strolling through the stalls, seeing if there was anything else that peaked their interest. Once they were completely shopped out, they headed home, knowing the they had an early morning of hiking awaiting them!
Hong Kong island has many trails for the weekend hiker, ranging in difficulty from easy-peasy to quite challenging. One of the more well known hikes is Dragon's Back, taking you up to a ridge and along for quite a ways, giving you beautiful views on all sides. Sunday turned out to be a very sunny and clear day, perfect for seeing the views and making their first real hike on the island one to remember.
The hike was a great warm up for Nicole and Jesse, getting them more excited, and nervous, for their grueling mountain hike this week. Nicole tested out her new hiking pole, which proved to be of wonderful use, and Jesse continued to hone his photography skills. Once on the top of the ridge, they could see many small towns and villages littering the coast. Knowing that the finish line was a beach with swimming and food and beer, they plodded on despite the heat and Nicole's allergies!
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| On top of the ridge, looking down on Shek O Village. |
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The hike lasted a couple of hours, and Big Wave Bay beach didn't disappoint when they finally arrived. After the hiking party changed into their swimsuits, everyone happily ran into the water and enjoyed the waves. The next step was to fill hungry bellies, and a roof top restaurant came to the rescue. Beers were drained and food consumed, after which everyone promptly returned to the beach to either pass out or sit and enjoy the view.
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| Big Wave Bay beach |
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| Looking down on Big Wave Bay (left) |
This week will be another huge adventure for Nicole and Jesse, as they attempt to scale the 13 000 ft Kinabalu Mountain. The next post will surely have some incredible tales, and photos, so be sure to check back in a week!
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| Jesse and Nicole atop Dragon's Back ridge. |
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