HK and Sing Sing

Sing Sing and HK...that is what back packers call Singapore and Hong Kong. I just today arrived in Malacca Malaysia after I had been in Hong Kong for 6 days and Singapore for 6 days. My last update was written after my first day in Sing Sing. I stayed there another 5 days and checked out some nice budhist temples including the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple. This is a new temple that is in a way beautiful building and there are like 4 floors of beautiful exhibits. JThe top loor has a walk around exhibit of the life of the buddha told in statues and art work with english and chinese explanations. it was lovely although I dont think it was all totally accurate.
Chinese Buddhism is a kind of combination of Taoism, Confucianism and the teachings of the buddha. Lots of the Chinese Buddhist art also incorporates traditional hindu themes like swastikas and they pose the buddha with one thousland arms holding weapons as if he were Siva. Also like christian art, they portray the "world honored one" as a wealthy man wearing fine robes and jewelry. Its just art but it is a little over the top, yeah?
Lots of emphasis on bhodisatvas, or other buddhas and they seem to think heaven is a place where there is some kind of hierarchy and a beaurocracy of saints. You pray to different saints or bhodisatvas to get results. Like the Catholics. Not very buddhist from my point of view. Temples are beautiful though...
Sing Sing has lots of nice green spots and a thriving "little India" I stayed in the little India section of the city on Dunlop street at the "Inn Crowd" Good hostel. The beds are all coverde in a very annoying plastic wrap that crinkle loudly when you move in the bed. I assume it is a protection against bed bugs, and bed wetters. All along there section of Dunlop street are lots of cheapo backpacker hotels and hostels. Lots of nice food stalls, veggie shops and it is a good location for getting around the city in a mass transit sort of way. right near bus stops and 10 minute walk tot he MRT where you can get to and from the airport. Oh yeah and also they sell cheap tiger beer pints in frozen mugs. That is a real treat as the weather is hot in the morning hot in the evening hot at night and sometimes even hotter in the mid day sun when only a mad dog or an englishman would go out.
There is also a beautiful botanical garden and good bird watching there. It is a good city for shopping but I dont really get into that. I deid get some socks...One US dollar for 2 pairs... The other thing you notice is how clean and orderly things are here. I mean CLEAN!! The goverment is serious about things being clean and there arae stiff penalties for littering and spitting and stuff like that. Avctually HK and Kuala Lumpur are also very clean, and all three have incredibly nice clean modern air conditioned fast efficient metro or tube or subways systems choose the term you prefer. They are a pleasure to use.
Hong Kong is a very impressive Modern city. Beautiful harbor with lots of small islands and some not so small. Lots of fast and faster(hydrofoil) ferries to get you from island to island cruising in style or you can take the metro, if you are in a hurry or on a tight budget. The food is fabulous! Chinese food like you wouldnt believe. Not chow-mein. Not egg rolls. Not pu pu platter. No shhaah really good creative food well presented and niced and flavorful. Great noodles. All shapes and sizes. Excellent mushrooms all shapes and sizes. I think it was one of the real gourmet holiday treats of my journey so far. I was very impressed.
I was there to meet my old cowboy friend Shannon from USA who was travelling for business on the old expense account. I got to stay in his hotel with him and we hit up some of the really high priced restaurants with great views and nice wine lists.Shannon would pass me the wine list with a grin on his face and say "hurt me chef but dont kill me..." Strangely enuf one of the best wines I chose in the week I was there was a beautiful Viognier from Eberle vineyards in Paso Robles Californian, made not 20 kilometers from where me and Shannon used to live.
HK is also a shoppers paradise and Shannon got him some custom tailored suits and we went shopping for chinese nick nacks like fans and jade stuff and wound up in a cool tea shop where we got to taste all these fabulous chinese teas. Selling for up to HK$950 for 250grams!(half a pound of tea for US$120). They had some even more dear but that was the most expensive one old Shannon took home with him. Me? I got 25 bags of chinese organic green for HK$9.00 or about a dollar 25 US money. Actually damn good tea for 5 cents a bag!! Enough. Enuf. My magic word. Good enuf for me!
Shannon might retire soon. Or he might open a restaurant in Oregon. I might just go to Oregon and work getting the place started if he opens a restaurant.Either way I will be seeing the old cowboy again sometime soon, I think.
I go to Sumatra in 2 days. I got my ticket to fly from Kuala Lumpur to Medan. I will be in Indonesia for a month this time. I plan to stay on Sumatra the whole time, then take a ferry across the Melaka straits back to Malaysia. Melaka straits were famous for Pirates in the ninetys. I hope they have cleared that up...
Now here are a couple of quotess to think about until you hear frm me again, next time from Indonesia.
"Let me give so much time to the improvement of myself that I shall have no time to criticize others."Dean Cresham
"A wise man may look ridiculous in the company of fools." Thomas Fuller
Peace and Love to all who read these words.
Robert