So today, I met up with my "buddies" (or should I say BuddY). I've only been in contact with one of them, Mandy, and she's seems like a super sweet person. A bit quieter than her two friends but I completely understand the difference in personality because, well, who am I to talk about shyness? Please. All that matters is that she was welcoming and took the time out of her day to meet me --which, by the way, I am very grateful for. I went out to lunch and spent the afternoon with her and her friends who are also in the buddy program and one of their buddies. Cappy and Karen were locals and their exchange student was named Khalil (he's from Leon, France).
Here's a little description of them for me to remember them by:
Cappy - my first thought was that her name was like "Happy" but with a "C"! Which was pretty adorable because she also seems like such an energetic and well...happy person. She knows a lot of stories and enjoys Chinese history. I'd also like to point out that she was also wearing a Batz Maru shirt. Such important details.
Karen - has been to the US and took part in the international Disney internship program that Angela was a part of too. Lucky for her, she worked at a resort and not under the blazing summer sun in Florida.
Mandy - well, she's my buddy. I don't think I talked to her too much but even so, she's not hesitant when asked to get the bill or tell the bus driver we need to get off. That's probably better than me. Also, I realized she reminds me of Kitty in some way.
Being the thoughtful people they were, Cappy, Karen, and Mandy brought us to Pizza Hut for lunch since they figured we might not want to be too adventurous our first few days being in Hong Kong. Would not have been my pick but I certainly appreciate the thought that went into it! Afterwards, we went to Kowloon City because of my hunt to find tong sui. We were too full after Pizza Hut though (so much food went to waste!) so we went to the supermarket and a park. I must say, they put a lot of effort into helping me find detergent and softener.
At the park, we went to see the remnants of Kowloon Walled City. Cappy is an amazing tour guide because she likes to tell us stories behind what we saw. She told us a story behind mooncakes and the Mid-Autumn Festival and explained to us what the Walled City was like. Coincidentally, I had found out and read about the Walled City just the day before. We got to see what used to be the south gate and I have to say, it's one of the most interesting places here. It was a very inhabited space that just focused on the lives of the people living there (no matter how bad it may be). It definitely has a stronger connection and relevance to the lives of those that live there and the space was formed more naturally in comparison to the facade of the endless malls. As amazing as all the shops are here, there is a sense of artificiality whereas in comparison, the Walled City had a more genuine feel to it.
Here's a little description of them for me to remember them by:
Cappy - my first thought was that her name was like "Happy" but with a "C"! Which was pretty adorable because she also seems like such an energetic and well...happy person. She knows a lot of stories and enjoys Chinese history. I'd also like to point out that she was also wearing a Batz Maru shirt. Such important details.
Karen - has been to the US and took part in the international Disney internship program that Angela was a part of too. Lucky for her, she worked at a resort and not under the blazing summer sun in Florida.
Mandy - well, she's my buddy. I don't think I talked to her too much but even so, she's not hesitant when asked to get the bill or tell the bus driver we need to get off. That's probably better than me. Also, I realized she reminds me of Kitty in some way.
Being the thoughtful people they were, Cappy, Karen, and Mandy brought us to Pizza Hut for lunch since they figured we might not want to be too adventurous our first few days being in Hong Kong. Would not have been my pick but I certainly appreciate the thought that went into it! Afterwards, we went to Kowloon City because of my hunt to find tong sui. We were too full after Pizza Hut though (so much food went to waste!) so we went to the supermarket and a park. I must say, they put a lot of effort into helping me find detergent and softener.
At the park, we went to see the remnants of Kowloon Walled City. Cappy is an amazing tour guide because she likes to tell us stories behind what we saw. She told us a story behind mooncakes and the Mid-Autumn Festival and explained to us what the Walled City was like. Coincidentally, I had found out and read about the Walled City just the day before. We got to see what used to be the south gate and I have to say, it's one of the most interesting places here. It was a very inhabited space that just focused on the lives of the people living there (no matter how bad it may be). It definitely has a stronger connection and relevance to the lives of those that live there and the space was formed more naturally in comparison to the facade of the endless malls. As amazing as all the shops are here, there is a sense of artificiality whereas in comparison, the Walled City had a more genuine feel to it.
Afterwards, we finally went to a local shop to have tong sui. Yay. I'm really happy they brought Khalil and me there and that they didn't mind bringing us to do things that we wanted to do. We bought several bowls of tong sui and shared them as a group. I've never shared tong sui that way before. Ever. It was quite interesting. My favorite one had pomelo in it although apparently it's the easiest to make! |
When we got back to HKBU, I was feeling really tired and actually fell asleep for the first time since I got to Hong Kong. I was meeting Karen at night though and trust me, I wanted to cancel so badly. I was way too tired and jetlagged but she was leaving in two days so I patted my cheeks and went on my way. I met her at Causeway Bay and Google mapped to tell me how long it would take to get there. Now usually in New York City, the time that maps give is not too accurate and I always have to leave around 15 minutes earlier to get to my destination on time. Well Kim, you're not in New York anymore. This is Hong Kong. The trains run more efficiently and are actually on schedule.
Therefore, when I got to Causeway Bay super early, I waited at Times Square for Karen who funnily, was running late. I didn't mind though. There was an adorable exhibit of a character named Chopperman. I later found out there was more to the exhibit and it wasn't a Chopperman exhibit, it was a One Piece exhibit. I know so little about One Piece that I didn't even realize what was going on until I saw the mast on the boat (I will post pictures to explain). And even then I thought Chopperman was from a totally different show or had a show of its own. Oops. I was standing outside the exhibit taking pictures when the security told me that I could just line up (to clarify, he was so nice and polite and just wanted me to go in because he saw how infatuated I was) because no one was on the line. Lies. There were 5 people on the line but apparently I was very lucky because according to Karen, the line is usually very long.
Therefore, when I got to Causeway Bay super early, I waited at Times Square for Karen who funnily, was running late. I didn't mind though. There was an adorable exhibit of a character named Chopperman. I later found out there was more to the exhibit and it wasn't a Chopperman exhibit, it was a One Piece exhibit. I know so little about One Piece that I didn't even realize what was going on until I saw the mast on the boat (I will post pictures to explain). And even then I thought Chopperman was from a totally different show or had a show of its own. Oops. I was standing outside the exhibit taking pictures when the security told me that I could just line up (to clarify, he was so nice and polite and just wanted me to go in because he saw how infatuated I was) because no one was on the line. Lies. There were 5 people on the line but apparently I was very lucky because according to Karen, the line is usually very long.
Eventually Karen and I found each other and she actually had to find a taxi because the bus was no where to be found so that was nice of her to do that and not keep me waiting too long. We had Japanese food because it seemed the lightest out of all the options and my appetite was not in tip top shape. It was actually really good and I want their salad again. Also, I had a yakult mango drink which was super yummy. Afterwards, she wanted to bring me to see some pens and stationary downstairs where I was mystified by the different types of stationary. It put the normal plain US pens/pencils we have at home to shame. To a whole other level of shame too. Although I have to disclose, stationary shopping is my favorite type of shopping so that's probably why it's interesting for me but maybe not anyone else really. It ended up being pretty late after everything and I didn't want the MTR to stop working before I got back to campus either so I went back just in time.
Dang, I can write a book at this rate. What an extremely long post. Long to read, but even longer to write. At least this pretty much ALMOST guarantees that I'll be the only one reading (all of) this~