Fun Photos

Happy Hong Kong

Namaste family and friends! We are back in India after our wonderful trip to Hong Kong. Here is an abbreviated play-by-play of our activities. We set off Friday afternoon on the long journey to Mumbai with our good friends, Andy and Emma and their kids Eric and Mycha. Our flight left at 12:30am and arrived in Hong Kong around 8:00am Saturday morning, which is 5:30am in India. After checking in and having a nice lunch, we took a rare but much needed family nap before partaking in the playground and the pool. The kids both really loved the hot tub and the water slide. We spent Sunday at Hong Kong Disneyland. The Cinderella Carousel, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, the Mad Hatter Tea Cups, and Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters were among the favorite rides. On Monday we took a cable car to Ngong Ping Village to see the Tian Tan Buddha, a bronze statue that symbolizes the harmonious relationship between man and nature, people and religion. The views were spectacular and the walk up the hill was great exercise. My trainer would have been impressed. We went back to the park on Tuesday and enjoyed the Jungle River Cruise, Tarzan’s Tree House, the Festival of the Lion King, Mickey’s Waterworks Parade and It’s a Small World. Wednesday started with a workshop on how to draw Disney characters and a dip in the pool. We then went into downtown Hong Kong for a ferry boat ride and some shopping. We ate dinner at a revolving restaurant, which was stunning given our surroundings. After all of that fun, Chris and I took the kids to the Temple Street Night Market where a wide variety of goods are offered at extremely low prices, if you are willing to bargain. We returned back to the hotel after midnight, exhausted but excited about our purchases. After sleeping late on Thursday, we spent the day at the park again, while Andy and Emma took their kids to a water theme park. Our big accomplishment that day was a quick photo of Anna and Mickey Mouse, being that both of our kids are terrified of masked characters of any kind. On Friday Chris and Max went shopping while Anna and I enjoyed the park again with our friends. We stayed late to enjoy the fireworks display. It was amazing! We did some last minute shopping on Saturday morning and left midday to catch our flight back to Mumbai. Overall, this was a magical trip. We loved Hong Kong Disneyland; it is just the right size for our kids. Anna’s favorite ride was Space Mountain, which she and Chris must have gone on at least twenty times. Max loved Autopia, where he got to drive “like Kiran” (our driver). We loved Hong Kong for its beauty, its clean, unobstructed sidewalks, its energy, and its infrastructure. It was difficult to come back, as it is after any vacation. Anna started kindergarten at a new school the Monday after we returned. So far there are three kids in her class and she loves it. She even gets to ride the bus (small van) home, which she’s wanted to do for some time. Max is very jealous, but enjoying the alone time with Mom every day. Next up is a trip to the Quad Cities to renew visas. We leave on July 31st and return August 18th. It’s our shortest trip home so far, so wish us luck. Hope to hear from you soon. Take care!