Biking

Dear Most Excellent People,
I love biking.  Some of my best memories are biking memories.  I love biking through beautiful scenery, I love the speed, I love the challenge of getting up a hill and the rush of going down.  I love what it does physically for me.  My ankles are better, my lungs are better, my legs are stronger, and I love it when the endorphins kick in.  Especially when you are biking on a scenic trail and suddenly you are filled with euphoria.  Awesome.  Biking is God's sport.

Last weekend I biked with two friends from school, Ryan and Daniel, around a reservoir.  Five minutes into the trip it started raining.  Perfect.  Ten minutes into the trip Daniel got a flat.  Perfect.  Once Ryan patched that up off we slogged through the mud, and puddles, jungle, bamboo groves, down stairs, up stairs, over rocks, around rocks, spending about twenty percent of the time hauling our bikes over impassable terrain, then gingerly flitting through more mud, and obstacles.  Perfect.  Half way through the trip we had a break and it was Ryan's turn to have a flat.  Another operation in the rain ensued.  Perfect.  Then we headed back on pavement up a half kilometre hill.  Perfect.  Keeping up with the (much younger) men on the flats was too hard, no way could I keep up, but for some reason on the hills going up I beat them both.    I guess in old age you learn to pace yourself better or I am simply in better long range shape.  Or  maybe the young guys were showing mercy, (not a chance) or were just bored, but whatever it was good for the old ego to beat them in something.  However, once we got to the downhill and flat stuff again I was left  way behind.  No matter.  It was perfect.

Still smiling afte getting up a half kilometre kill hill.  Kind of.  Me, Ryan, and Daniel.

Due to the flat tires a two hour trip stretched into four.  At the end I was covered in sweat, rain water, and mud and was totally wiped out.  Perfect.  Daniel and I took a taxi back and left the seat saturated in water.  Not perfect for the next customers.  Still it was a great day and this summer I look forward to biking in Germany and Canada.  Biking is great.  I love biking.

Till next time.

Love adios and peng on!

Dirk

A great view of the reservoir and jungle.

Slogging through a bamboo grove in the rain and mud.  Awesome.

Just before sailing into the abyss.  Was fun.

Old People

Hello Splendid Ones,
One of the most impressive features of Chinese society is how older people are treated.  Namely they are treated with great respect.  Part of the reason for this is that parents tend to treat their children very well since with little or no pension or old age security plans in Hong Kong and China  their kids are the "pension/old age security plan." So making sure their "plan," is well taken care, sadly in most cases, spoiled, is very common.    It is very normal for old people in Hong Kong and China to live with one of their children.  As a result some kids at my school have five adults raising them;  parents, grand-parents and domestic helper all  actually spoiling them since, as mentioned above, junior is the "plan."  The only requirement most Chinese kids have is to study.  Everything else is done for them like tying shoes, opening water bottles, putting on clothes, etc.  While these little princes and princesses can speak and read three languages and do basic math by the time they are five most can't tie their own shoes and can barely wipe their nose.  And oh boy when they get hit by a soft dodge ball, it is like they have been chopped down by an axe.  Teaching these kids how not to be wimps has been a big challenge for me in PE.  My rule is if you ain't bleeding and nothing is broken, you have ten seconds to bawl and then it is time to move on.  For the most part it is working.  Any way I digress,  I am supposed to be talking about old timers.   Here is what impresses me about Chinese old timers:  most  exercise in the morning.  The parks are filled up by 7:00 am with hundreds of them doing Tai Chi, badminton or slapping their bodies awake.  After that may hang around playing games, tending to their birds, or selling some things at the market.  Since their diet is low fat, heavy on the rice and vegetables, obesity is not a common sight here.  Many also have young family members walking with them, holding their hand helping them along.  There is certainly much we Canadians can learn from the Chinese about treating our elders with respect and dignity.  Here are a few pictures of some Chinese old timers.  

Till next week,
Love adios and peng on!

Dirk

Grammas selling at the market.

Men and their birds at the bird market.

Grampa with youngster at the bus stop.

Carrying the future pension plan.

Men playing cards.  Very common for old men to hang out with men and women to be with women.

A Chinese Colonel Sanders.

Stretching in the park.

Grand Opening

Dear Most Excellent Ones,
Last summer I managed to get a part time job at a tutorial centre called Top Connection.  Tutorial Centres are big business here in Hong Kong.  Think Sylvan Learning Centre times 10 000 and you get an idea of how many Tutorial Centres there are in Hong Kong.  They are everywhere, come in all shapes and sizes, and offer a variety of services, English being the major one of course, but there are math ones, reading ones, science ones, music ones, etc, etc, and centres offering some or all of the above.  Every kid I know in Hong Kong spends some time at a tutorial centre after school.  And they pay good money for the opportunity to go as well.

 I make 200 Hong Kong dollars an hour for talking and joking around with a Chinese kid, in English of course, which is about $25 dollars Canadian.  This is called "oral English class."  My kids love it, they tell mom, and if a Chinese mom is happy, everyone is happy, and the money flows in.  The Chinese are taking over the world because Chinese moms, also affectionally known as Tiger Moms,  are sparing no expense in having their precious children educated as best as possible. And it extends beyond China's shores.   Check any North American University or college campus these days and tell me which "minority" is well represented there.  If you guess Chinese you win.

Any way since I am a native English speaker (I never tell them I learned to speak German first, sorry but Deutsch is a small language in the world scene) and a white boy, Gwalo "white ghost," as the Cantonese say I am kind of a celebrity.  And since I am the only Gwalo at Top Connection that makes me even more special.  Talk about reverse racial discrimination!  I'll take it.

I work about four hours a week at Top Connection, I can't work anymore due to my job at CAIS, yet despite the limited time I work there I was invited to the opening ceremony of the new Top Connection campus on Saturday.  The new centre took over a three story building and it includes a small drama room, dance studio, piano rooms, and several neat classrooms.

To say the owners, Uncle Thomas, and Mrs. Kam, no one knows her first name and she won't divulge it like her age, spared any expense for the opening ceremony would be an understatement.   First came the flower arrangements worth at least 200 to 400 dollars Canadian each.  Those they did not have to pay for thank goodness.  The lobby at Top Connection looked like a funeral home.  Then there was the 5000 Hong Kong dollars roasted pig, which got to lay beside the Buddhist idols.  That Uncle Thomas had to pay for.

 The festivities started when Uncle Thomas and Mrs. Kam lit up some candles and incense and chanted some Buddhist chants.  The Christians on staff, myself included, and for some reason there are quite a few, watched this with some bemusement.  Our leaders don't seem particular devout, it was like they went through the ceremony as a tradition rather than out of belief.  Just like some people back in Canada go to Church to get married and buried.

After that ritual, we had a pig splitting time.  Why split a pig?  I forgot to ask.  Kind of like a ribbon cutting I guess.  I got to hold part of the cleaver along with about five other guys and on three we forced the cleaver down and back splitting the pig in half.  Hmmm.  Later we got to eat him.  He was not bad.

After that we headed outside and had a ribbon cutting ceremony.  Several dignitaries held this massive ribbon interspersed with these bouquets and there were about 20 scissors handed out.  On the count of three those with scissors all cut the ribbon at the same time.  Cool.  The women were given the bouquets as a token of appreciation.

Then came the dancing lion, two guys dressed in a lion costume, who danced and jived to the ear splitting rhythms of a few drummers.  This lion was brought in to scare the bad spirits away.  Uncle Thomas paid 20 000 Hong Kong for that to happen.  Hmmm.  I watched and listened to this with some amusement.  And I prayed to Jesus.

Finally it was eat time and drink champagne time.  And then the party really got started as there were demonstrations from a variety of musical artists.  By then however, I had been cultured out and thankfully due to my limited capacity at Top Connection I was excused with a heartfelt thanks and appreciation for showing up.

Well Great Ones that is it for this week.  God bless you all and I wish you a great week.

Love adios and peng on!

Dirk

Top Connection.

Me with my buddy Bill.  We were born in the same year!  Me in a suit.  That does not happen very often!  

Colleagues.  Thankfully many Chinese have English names.  From left to right.  Antony, Alpha (he has two brothers named Gamma and Beta,  I kid you not, Antony (another one) and Sandra.

A few flowers.

Felicitations?  Huh?

Mr. Pig has seen better days.  Nice ribbon on your head buddy.

Pig splitting time!

There was a massive guest book.  Do you see my autograph?  Many Chinese admired it, said it was very artistic.  I on the other hand find it amazing when the Chinese do their writing.  Now that is artistic!

       Ribbon cutting time.

It must be tough trying to be incognito as a dancing lion.

Part of the buffet.  Very good.

Cape D'Aguilar Road

Hello My Great Ones,
The school year is slowly winding down.  The humidity and heat have started to kick in, which means the air con (air conditioning) is on!  Last week I had to take my kids inside, because my school has no inside gyms so we do everything outside, to COOL off!  After a five minute cool down in the air con'd room we went back out into the sauna heat.

On the weekend however it cooled off a tad and I took a little excursion on the Cape D'Aguilar Road which is located on the east end of Hong Kong Island near the funky, California like small village of Shek O.

The road was a welcome respite from the crowded madness that is Kowloon and Hong Kong.  No people, quiet, great views, nature, clean air.  It was great.  The views from the road were pretty spectacular.

The road itself wound through a jungle.

There was some interesting plant life.  A Hibiscus bush and these white leafed things.

Other sights included wild dogs.  Unlike in other places the wild dogs in Hong Kong are friendly.  Where ever there is some wilderness in Hong Kong you are bound to run across some dogs.  Many were left to fend for themselves by owners who transferred out of Hong Kong.  Rather sad really, but somehow they survive.

There were some interesting rock formations along the road.  Pretty amazing really.

The views from the road were great and there was a place where one could see several eagles, hence the nom, parlez vouz Francois nest pas, Cape D'Aguilar.  Or is that Spanish.  I don't know…  Anyway  the eagles floated on the ocean updrafts and looked like they were enjoying the view from on high.  Sadly I could not get a good picture of them.

Later I went to the beach at Shek O and took a shot of some of the rocks at the base of the Cape.  It was a nice day and I took lots of time to pray and think and enjoy God's creation.  He is great!  Thanks for your prayers and your thoughts for me.  They are helping and I am very grateful for them.  Till next time.  God bless you!  Love adios and peng on!

Dirk