6-6_ escalator/market

Last wk in HK- food

Sat. 6/3 Shenzhen China

Fri. 6-2. Tai O

Wed. 5/31. Dragon Boat Races

DRAGON BOAT RACES!
This is a public holiday. We went to Stanley beach to watch them.
(http://www.dragonboat.org.hk/en/home/homepage.html)
(http://www.discoverhongkong.com/eng/heritage/festivals/he_fest_drag.jhtml)

This Festival, also known as Tuen Ng Festival, commemorates the death of a popular Chinese national hero, Qu Yuan, who drowned himself in the Mi Lo River over 2,000 years ago to protest corrupt rulers. Legend says that as townspeople attempted to rescue him, they beat drums to scare fish away and threw dumplings into the sea to keep the fish from eating Qu Yuan's body.
The real highlight of the festival is the fierce dragon boats racing in a lively, vibrant spectacle. Teams race the elaborately decorated dragon boats to the beat of heavy drums. The special boats, which measure more than 10 metres, have ornately carved and painted "dragon" heads and tails, and each carries a crew of 20-22 paddlers. Participants train in earnest for the competition. Sitting two abreast, with a steersman at the back and a drummer at the front, the paddlers race to reach the finishing line, urged on by the pounding drums and the roar of the crowds.


Tues. 5/30. The Peak

Right down the street from our hotel is the Peak tram. This tram goes straight up the mountain....and in about ten minutes you have a fabulous view of Hong Kong and Kowloon....that is, if it's not raining and overcast, like it has been the whole time we've been here. It was still wonderful though and the view was pretty great. We hiked a little, then headed back home.

Our garden

Thurs. 5-15...Macau Day 2

TODAY WAS SUNNY!!!! partially....but it was good











We started our day at the cultural center. We sketched for an hour, then went through the museum to see the exhibit.





































We went down to the square again to have lunch at a Portuguese restaurant. I had to take another picture of this yellow church since it was sunny...and there were less people so you can actually see the funky ground. haha










In the afternoon we visited a couple temples.











The roof details were amazing and very ornate...



























The inscense rings were as tall as a person at one temple.
















In the back was a huge garden....















And lastly, a view from the front of our beloved Hotel Royal.....