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| At the peak... |
When I realised in the latter part of last year that I would be coming to Hong Kong, I did the usual internet search for information on a part of Asia that I knew little (or nothing) about. Seemingly, there were three top attractions essential for visitors to Hong Kong. A must ‘do’ was sailing around Victoria Harbour on the ionic Star Ferry enjoying the stunning views and the nightly Symphony of Lights show from the harbour front buildings. Another crucial part of the itinerary was to travel up to the top of Victoria Peak which is probably Hong Kong’s most popular attraction, weather permitting or go to Lantau Island to see the Giant Buddha. However, in my view, all of these impressive attractions fade into the background during the middle of March.
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| Hong Kong Stadium at full capacity. |
This was the week I had always pinpointed in my diary before even coming to Hong Kong, not because it was my 21st birthday on Wednesday but because it was the weekend of the Hong Kong Sevens. As soon as I knew that I was coming here to study what first crossed my mind was that I would be able to go to the Hong Kong Sevens! Tickets were extremely hard to get hold of, but luckily we managed to get one ticket from a friend from Northern Ireland who is part of a rugby club here in Hong Kong. As luck would have it, I finally managed to get hold of one more ticket after scavenging long and hard on eBay!
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| In my priest costume! |
For those of you who do not know much about the Hong Kong Sevens, it is a three day mix of entertaining rugby and a great atmosphere with many people dressing up in weird and funny costumes. The South Stand is packed with people in fancy dress and I even tried to embrace the spirit of the whole event by dressing up as an Irish priest on finals day. New Zealand beat England in the final 28-17 to top off a fantastic weekend at Hong Kong Stadium - there really is nothing better than seeing England fall at the last hurdle! But this also meant I got to see New Zealand doing the Hakka to celebrate their victory. The Sevens really are all they are cracked up to be. It was a fantastic weekend of rugby, entertainment and fun.
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| Allen, Stewart and I in the thick of the action! |
Also this week, I finally managed to complete all three “must dos” for the traveller to Hong Kong and went up Victoria Peak. After trying to wait and wait for the perfect clear night, I finally went on the Peak tram which took us up to The Sky Terrace - 428 metres above sea level. The panoramic view of the city was spectacular, especially at night time. Only here at the peak do you realise the sheer amount of buildings and infrastructure on such a small area of land. Consequently, it is no wonder that they are starting to reclaim land from the harbour.
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| An awesome panoramic view of the skyline. |
On Wednesday I celebrated my birthday and Rachel’s parents kindly took all three of us out for dinner at Soho Spice. Since moving to Hong Kong I now really do appreciate a good meal a lot more. Study in Asia has made me realise we all take for granted the quality and range of good food that is available back in Northern Ireland. I certainly savoured every bit of the sirloin steak that I ordered on Wednesday night!
This week I am going for a school visit on Thursday to Jockey Club Primary School. Luckily, the school in which I have been placed is on the campus here at the Hong Kong Institute of Education and is literally a two minute walk away from my halls. I know that everyone back home is right in the middle of their respective teaching placements and I look forward to getting some firsthand experience of the Hong Kong schooling system particularly after hearing so much about it through my classes here. Classes are also starting to come to an end which means that I will have to begin work on assignments, most of which are individual papers for the various modules.
Until next time...
Joi Gin (Goodbye)
Michael
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