From Ho-Hum to Hong Kong

TAIPEI! Here’s a quick overview of my weekend in Taipei: celebrating my friend D’s upcoming wedding with a big night out, visiting the National Palace Museum, and plenty of chill out time at the hot springs and the hotel. A perfect getaway weekend for a group of busy HK girls!

Sometimes life has other plans for us than the ones we originally designed for ourselves. Fortunately, living in Asia has taught me that life is both flexible and forgiving, and that things have a tendency to work out for the best.

There’s been a little change in plans for next school year. There is no longer going to be a move to Beijing, a wedding in early 2014, a two-year plan to be in Asia.  Without going into details here, I’ll simply say that I began to have serious doubts about the path I’d chosen. After taking some time to think things over, and with the full support of my family, I decided to end my engagement and back out of my teaching job in Beijing.  These were the most difficult decisions I’ve ever had to make, but I know they were the right ones for me.

Friends and family, I’m coming home! I’ve had an incredible year and a half in Asia. I found adventure here, a fresh perspective on life and love, exposure to exotic lands, a totally different cultural experience in the Hong Kong school system, new friends, old friends, and challenges that truly tested me and made me a better person. I have zero regrets about anything I’ve done here. But it’s time for this chapter of my life to come to a close this summer. I’ll be moving back to California either this summer or early fall, and I can’t wait.

I’ve got just a few months left in Asia. What should I do to make the most of it?

Sumatra!

It began with a bang.

Actually, it was more like a wobbling, a hard tilt and a thud.  So started my 10-day adventure in Sumatra with JP: with the scariest airplane take-off  of my life. As our plane neared the end of the runway in HK, it was hit by several strong gusts of wind that set us tilting from side to side in a way that felt very, very wrong. JP and I both braced ourselves for impact, and I screamed (along with others). But in the end, we made it to Kuala Lumpur and, several hours later, to Indonesia.

JP and I didn’t know it then, but the airplane episode was a sign of things to come in Sumatra. Totally exhilarating and also kind of dangerous, this Indonesian island is full of the kinds of adventures you can’t wait to tell your friends and family about but never want to experience again.

Simply stated, Sumatra is the wildest place I’ve ever been. The main city of Medan is the biggest city you’ve probably never heard of—a swarming, swirling mass of 4.5 million people and buses and vans and street food vendors  and shopping centers and broken sidewalks and burning rubbish piles in gutters. Outside of the city is jungle. To quote the Lonely Planet guide to Indonesia, Sumatra is “chaotic and intense.” It is unspeakably lush and beautiful but also unbelievably poor. People live on fried rice and eggs and vegetables and live in wooden or thatch-roofed homes in various states of disrepair. As in a place like Bali, just a few islands away from here, tourists can stay in mostly clean, somewhat comfortable hotels and bungalows—though mostly without amenities like air conditioning or even flush toilets. But unlike Bali, hotels and private cars cannot shield you from the grinding poverty that surrounds you. You can’t travel through this part of the world without thinking about the fortunate hand you’ve been dealt in life.

You also can’t travel in Sumatra without accepting a certain amount of risk, even when you don’t think you’re taking much of one.  After landing in Medan, JP and I immediately headed to the jungles of Bukit Lawang with a reservation at a sweet little guesthouse and without much of an agenda.  Shortly after our arrival, we signed ourselves up for an ”easy” 2-day jungle trek. What we found ourselves doing instead was climbing up and down steep, muddy hillsides and literally swinging on vines from ledge to ledge with 2 guides and 3  English tourists. We saw a young orangutan, monkeys, macaques, gibbons, snakes, monitor lizards and strange colorful insects that could’ve been out of a Dr. Seuss book. We camped by the river for a night and ate a delicious meal of curry, rice, fish and tempeh prepared by our guides. We swam in a pool hidden deep in the jungle and fed by a rushing waterfall. But we also faced many moments throughout our trek that scared the daylights out of us. Ever pulled a leech off your leg, worried that you might be bitten by a vampire bat in the night, or wondered if the small, muddy ledge you’re on will hold your weight and prevent you from tumbling into the canopy of green below you? We did, and we were happy we survived!

A couple of days later, we moved on to the town of Berastagi so we could do a sunrise hike up a volcano. Our guesthouse in Bukit Lawang had connected us with a driver and a local guide to take us up the mountain. Easy, right? Well, the guide turned out to have stayed up drinking all night at his cousin’s wedding and seemed a bit unreliable as he stumbled up the rough trail in the dark night. And the so-called “easy” way up the volcano was so eroded and covered with debris from years of violent rainstorms that it required climbing and scrambling over obstacles more than walking. As we passed by still-active steam vents loudly spewing sulfur and focused on the small circle of moonscape illuminated by our flashlight and the occasional flash of lightning, JP and I held hands and silently prayed for sunrise. But did we make it? Yes! And we were rewarded with an awe-inspiring sight: a sudden burst of sun breaking through the dark band of clouds like a bright, bleeding wound in the sky.

One thing I’ve always loved about travel is the way it reveals new insight into the uncharted territories of your own character. As you encounter new experiences, people, ideas and ways of living, you’re forced to take a clear, hard look at yourself. On this trip, I learned that I’m a big talker when it cones to taking risks, but when I’m actually in the middle of the risky activity I doubt myself and panic. JP laughed at me at one point in our travels and asked, “How are you so brave and so anxious?” I wasn’t sure how to answer. I guess a part of me has always wanted to be a real globe-trotting adventurer, someone who embraces uncertain situations with confidence.  But another part of me is still very much an overprotected girl from the suburbs of Los Angeles. More than that, I am a worrier by nature. I had to admit to myself that I would probably always feel more comfortable spending my vacations at a tiny, tucked-away beach resort than acting like Tarzan in the jungle.

Fortunately, our trip ended in just such a place. Cubadak Island, where we spent 3 nights at the end of our Sumatra vacation, was a perfect little oasis of sun, sand, and creature comforts. Difficult to get to, unknown to most, it was luxurious and just exotic enough to feel like a proper holiday in the tropics.

And that’s Sumatra in a nutshell: a vibrant island not for the faint of heart!

Tone made visual: 6 year olds trying to help me understand tone in the Cantonese word for “kangaroo.” Effective, don’t you think?

Living far from the U.S. plays tricks on your mind and your awareness of American holidays. If it weren’t for friends’ ecstatic Facebook posts about 3-day weekends, Columbus Day and Labor Day would pass by me completely. And it’s hard to think much about Christmas when it’s 85 degrees and I’m lounging in an open-air hut in Bali.

The holiday that really gets me each year, though, is Thanksgiving, that most American of holidays. It’s not so much the turkey and the cornbread stuffing I miss as much as the menu planning with my mom in the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving. And the anticipation of the 4- or 5-day Thanksgiving vacation is in itself part of the ritual. (Re: “I can make it through 28 parent/teacher conferences this week because Thanksgiving Break is coming up soon!”)

I can’t express how strange it is to skip straight from Halloween to Christmas displays in Hong Kong without anything more than a vague public awareness of some American tradition of eating turkey. Everyone I know in HK is beyond exhausted by work right now, and we’ve all got another month or more to go til our next break at Christmas. If only Asians knew how much happier they’d be with a belly full of cranberry dressing and pumpkin pie and a long weekend with their family and friends! 

This year, my friends and I all too overworked to plan a big traditional Thanksgiving dinner—nor would the effect be the same if I forced everyone to sit on the floor of my studio apartment to eat pan-fried turkey on paper plates—but I’d still like to acknowledge the spirit of the holiday. In no particular order, I’m thankful for:

• family and friends at home who don’t forget about me, even when I fall behind on email and Skype
• persimmons and kumquats found at the Shau Kei Wan wet market last weekend
• Sunday night South Indian meals with friends from all over the world
• my German boyfriend who cooks better than I do, who cleans my apartment when I have to work on Saturdays, who makes sure our fridge is always stocked with really nice cheese and chocolate, who can’t wait to travel with me to Sri Lanka or Borneo or Beijing, and who tells me my German isn’t that bad (even though it really is!)
• weekend hikes with friends followed by lazy Thai food meals at the beach
• spontaneous trips to Taiwan and Chengdu
• the many amazing teachers, principals and students I’ve been privileged to know and work with at Moscone Elementary School in San Francisco
• expat friends who I can laugh (and occasionally cry) with about life in Asia
• HK friends who have welcomed me into their social circles and families
• opportunities to see and do things I never thought possible
• Obama!

Happy Thanksgiving to you!

In case you weren’t already a believer in the saying “It’s a small world,” here’s a story for you:

A few weeks ago, someone said my name while I was filling my water bottle in the lobby of my yoga studio. Imagine my surprise when I looked up and saw my old friend & classmate from grad school in San Francisco—in Hong Kong!

“Emily?!” R said. “Remember me from USF? Oh my gosh, do you live in Hong Kong? My husband and I just moved here!”

R and I had spent an entire year of Saturdays together taking classes for our Spanish bilingual teaching credential. We had lots in common and shared countless lunches together that year. We’d both studied Spanish as undergrads and had both lived in Spain, though at different times and in different cities. But after grad school ended, we were quickly sucked into the busy life of a first-year teacher in cities across the Bay from each other, and we lost touch.

Fast forward 9 years: we’ve both left California public schools to teach in Asia. Turns out that all roads meet in Hong Kong—especially if you’re a yoga-practicing Spanish teacher from California seeking adventure abroad. How nice to have another familiar face in town!

I finally applied for a tourist visa to China last week. (FYI: If you’re an American, China really sticks it to you with visa fees. $150 USD just to enter the country? Ouch!) As part of the extensive application process, you have to state all the countries you’ve recently visited. Let’s see….Malaysia, Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, the U.S., Italy…

I realized something as I listed all the places I’ve been in the last year alone. I’d always dreamed of having a passport full of stamps, and now I’ve got it! Taking a teaching job in Asia is an excellent way to satisfy one’s sense of wanderlust.

Next stop: China! I’m thinking of a quick weekend trip in early December. With trips abroad planned for Christmas and Chinese New Year, my passport can expect to get a few new stamps in the coming months. 

Singapore! Read below for the full story.

I forgot to mention something exciting that happened during my first 2 weeks back in Hong Kong: I went to Singapore! My HK bestie V had a sudden work trip to Singapore pop up, and she invited me to take advantage of her free luxury hotel room. (Thank you again, V!) Since my school term hadn’t started yet, I jumped at the chance to spend 4 days walking and eating our way all around town. 

I’d been curious about Singapore for a long time. Was it really as orderly as everyone claimed? Was it as harmoniously multicultural as I’d heard? Was Singaporean food really as incredible as people said it was? Did everyone really end all of their sentences with “la”?

All of it, I’m happy to report, is true. Singapore is a self-contained ecosystem of Chinese, Indian and Malay people all wrapped up in one tiny nation. It’s the same cultural mix as Malaysia, actually, but Singapore is something completely different. Turn a corner, and you see this:

It’s Arab Street, where you can visit a mosque, sip a cold rose-water drink, and try an Arabic perfumed oil or two from Jamal Kazura Aromatics shop. 

Blink and suddenly you’re here:

You’re in Little India, epicenter of marigold vendors, sari shops, and the best chicken biryani outside of India. I’ve never been to Bombay, but I imagine it looks a bit like this.

Cross the street, and now you’re here:

Chinatown! Bring on the lanterns and noodle shops.

Everything in Singapore—the food, the language, the culture—is a blend of all the different cultures. There’s even a word for the mash-up: peranakan. You can be Chinese/Malay, Hindu-Indian/Malay or Muslim-Indian/Malay, or even Caucasian/Malay, and you’re peranakan. 

Food is a national obsession in Singapore, and after my visit I understand why. In addition to regular restaurants, hawker centres serve up all kinds of tasty street food ranging from naan and curry to char siu pork and chicken rice. My favorite dish was this one, fish head curry:

I know you’re probably grossed out by the fish head, so let’s just think of it as fish curry. Spicy and delicious! And it’s the one dish that crosses all cuisines. Indian and nonya and purely Malay restaurants serve it. 

Taxes on things like alcohol and cars are ridiculously high in Singapore, and as a result, the government is loaded. I’m not sure how Singaporeans feel about the taxes, but I’ll say that as a visitor, I was really impressed with the way the government spends  its money on public spaces and programs. V and I went to the huge new Gardens by the Bay, a park open to the public (with admission fee) that literally looks like Dr. Seuss designed it. Look at this:

These are supertrees, and in a few month’s time they’ll be entirely covered by plants spiraling up the metal framework. Those “ants” that you see on the walkway between the trees are actually people, just so you have a sense of scale. There’s also a huge bio-dome structure that houses the largest vertical garden I’ve ever seen, complete with a waterfall and sheer cliff. A second dome holds an entire field of flowers. All of this is brand new, and all of it funded by the government.

The weekend we spent in Singapore happened to coincide with the government-sponsored Singapore Night Festival to showcase local and international arts. The streets, parks and museums hosted performance art of all kinds for free all weekend until 2 a.m.! Coming from Hong Kong, where the government can’t be counted on to fill a pothole in the road, I could barely fathom a government that would put on this kinds of arts program for the public. Amazing!

Singapore managed to be somehow both more exotic and more civilized than Hong Kong. I’d gladly go back again!