Here today, gone tomorrow

In the past 2 years, we've learned not to depend on our favourite haunts surviving the real estate boom in Hong Kong.  Rents have skyrocketed, and, as a result, many businesses are on the move.  It's always an adventure to find a) if they have indeed moved, or b) if they have just closed their doors for good.
My first shock came about a year ago, when my habitual Starbucks on very busy Hollywood Road suddenly disappeared overnight.  The next morning the premises had been cleared, all furnishings removed, and a new sign was placed on the construction boards announcing that a (yuppie) bar would be opening within the week.  Several of us stood on the sidewalk scratching our heads and wondering where the closest caffeine fix could be found!

Our street, Seymour Road, is a case in point.  When we first moved here, there were several different shops along the block, including an Italian deli, a dry cleaner, a 7-11, a drug store, and an independent coffee shop.  The only remaining shops are the 7-11, a travel agency, a small grocery store, and the pharmacy.  The rest of the ground-level businesses are property agencies advertising the condos and rentals in the neighbourhood.  As soon as a shop closes, everything is cleared out (overnight), and lo and behold another agency opens very quickly.

This week's casualty is the Garden Cafe (blog Feb. 10, 2010).  My sympathies are with the owner, even though his cappuccino is not first rate.  The other day he told me that he cannot afford the rent.  I'm sure there will be a lot of disappointed patrons - their armchairs were very comfy.
Last week I decided to check out Flow, a used book store around the corner from the aforementioned defunct Starbucks.  I regularly pop in to see if I can pick up a cheap copy of the books we are reading in our book club.  There was a handwritten sign plastered on the door directing us to the new address on Hollywood Road.  Alas, number 29 Hollywood Road does not exist, but I found them at 27!  The original store was crowded and small, but the new place is even smaller - perhaps 10'x10'.  Not for agoraphobics.  I wondered where all of their books had gone.
A few days later, Joan alerted me to the fact that there were thousands of books sitting on the sidewalk across the road from the old store.  Too bad I didn't have my camera with me (I have a very basic phone that doesn't take pictures) - by the time I arrived on the scene, there were three huge metal crates filled with used books, cds, and dvds.  Four workers, supervised by a very mean woman, were emptying bags and bags of books into the crates.  I salvaged a few gems, included a hardcover copy of The Hong Kong Story.  The boss-lady kept yelling at us as we helped ourselves to the soon-to-be-recycled piles (or is that wishful thinking?).

Later that afternoon, I returned with my camera, hoping to capture the workers and the onlookers.  However, the crates had been removed, and the sidewalk was clear.  There were still hundreds of bags waiting to be discarded, so I unzipped a few and pocketed a couple of mysteries.  Speaking of these plaid bags, they are usually called amah bags, because Filipina domestic helpers use them (especially when sending stuff back to the Philippines).  Amah is a Chinese word for maid/nanny.


Jeff decided to get his hair cut the other day.  He usually goes to A Salon a few doors west of our building.  The shop was closed, and there were workmen inside.  We took it for granted that A Salon was no more.  What a surprise to see it reopened a couple of days later, with several coats of new paint and the same old fashioned barber chairs intact.

We thought that HMF furniture was gone for good.  The shop's location was not in a prime spot - it was tucked in beside the escalators, in a dark passage north of Caine Road.  The shop closed a few months ago, and the space has not been rented.  On Sunday we were moseying along Wellington Street in Central and there was the new incarnation of HMF.  I'm not sure if it will be any more successful in its new address, since it is surrounded by small printing shops and hardware stores.  An odd place to park an upscale furniture store.


The biggest real estate story this summer is the Pedder Building.  One of the few remaining colonial-era buildings in the central shopping area, the Pedder Building has been the home of the flagship Shanghai Tang store for many years.  Shanghai Tang occupies the basement and ground floor, and the charming China Tee Club restaurant is on the first floor.  Last month it was announced that Abercrombie & Fitch is taking over, leaving Shanghai Tang and China Tee out in the cold.  We've heard rumours that Shanghai Tang will be moving into the swanky Prince's Building nearby, but China Tee is gone for good (after 25 years!).  Abercrombie's rent is somewhere between $1-1.2 million U.S. per month!

We're still waiting for the real estate bubble to burst, but so far there are no indications that it will.

Summer in Toronto/Ann Arbor/Toronto/Montreal

The day after I arrived in Toronto, I had plans to meet Sue for lunch.  When she asked me where I wanted to go, I said Costco!  There was nothing I really needed to buy there, since we have so little storage space in HK, but I craved walking through the wide aisles filled with large-sized stuff.  It was a thrill just to push a cart and mosey around, without ramming into anyone.  To top off the "big box" experience, we crossed the vast parking lot and shmoozed around Home Depot looking for a curtain rod.  Once Jeff and I return to North America, I vow never to take space for granted again.

The two days in T.O. flew by - I managed to get some quality hugs from lots of friends, including Pennie, MaryAnn, Julia, and Janice, who joined me at Sierra Grill in Bayview Village for dinner.  The next morning, I met Bobby for coffee on Spadina, and afterwards we sat on a sunny bench gossiping like two old farts!  Pennie and I enjoyed a vigorous walk in the ravine, and then met Deborah for coffee.
Life in HK is great, don't get me wrong, but nothing beats old friends who share your history.

Thank you Bonnie and Joe for hosting us in Toronto.  No matter what the season, your garden always looks gorgeous, and frames your home (on the left) beautifully.  After Toronto, it was on to Ann Arbor, where Julie and Eric's lovely home in Ann Arbor Hills awaited.  If I could only borrow some of their closets to bring back to HK...

The days in A2 (as the locals call Ann Arbor) centred around baby Shane, but grandma Dale doesn't stay home, so off we went on our daily walks.  My favourite destination was Gallup Park, about 15 minutes away.  The park straddles the Huron River, which is very picturesque and peaceful.  I normally parked the stroller on the terrace of the canoe/kayak club, and sat in the shade, reading my book and watching the herons, swans, and paddlers.  On the weekends, a group of Falun Dafa conducted their tai chi exercises nearby.

There is so much wildlife in suburban A2 - deer, raccoons, skunks, rabbits, woodchucks, squirrels, chipmunks, and porcupines.  The deer are gentle, but not very bright.  They wander around front and back yards all day long, and unfortunately are not very careful crossing the roads.  The rodents are not at all afraid of people - they just carry on eating everything in the garden, while ignoring shouts (Dale's shreeks) to move away.  In the evening the fireflies illuminate the back yard.
My lungs were rejuvenated from the fresh air.
Aside from Gallup Park, I enjoyed walking to the south campus of the University of Michigan, and also to the strip mall that has a Panera's restaurant (see previous blog), Barnes and Noble books, and Whole Foods.  The free samples at Whole Foods are even tastier than at Costco!

There are two Art Deco theatres in A2.  The Michigan Theater showed old classics all summer.  I really enjoyed West Side Story for the umpteenth time, however, the ladies sitting next to me pointed out how heavy the actors' face makeup was - especially on George Chakiris.  (Or perhaps it was the poor quality of the film?)  The State Theater around the corner shows first run films.  I saw Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris for $6 (senior's early bird rate).

A highlight of summer in A2 is the annual Art Fair.  The entire down town area is closed to traffic, and hundreds of booths line the streets.  Unlike the fancy-shmancy art expo in HK, the art here is actually affordable!  The only problem was the weather - Art Fair ran from July 20-23, right in the middle of an extreme heat wave.  People stayed away in droves, since the temperature hit 100 F (37 C) most of that week.  I marched along with my little UV protected umbrella (Hong Kong style), and bought a Giacometti-inspired bronze sculpture by Dave Rizzo, a Canadian artist (when you click on the link, my sculpture is the middle one on his home page).

The Art Fair unfortunately coincided with the demise of Borders Books.  Borders was founded in Ann Arbor, and its original store on Liberty Street was still fairly busy.  Once the final bankruptcy was announced, everything in the store went on sale.  Jeff and I didn't think there were many real bargains, but the closeout still brought in the crowds, and, within a couple of days, most of the shelves were bare.

The down side of Ann Arbor:
Every Saturday morning there are protesters camped along the sidewalk in front of the Beth Israel Synagogue.  Their signs are hateful (at least to me) - Zionism is racism, Stop U.S. aid to Israel, etc.  I tried to ask one of the smug-looking protesters why he was there, and he mumbled something about his church in a neighbouring town.  I emailed the rabbi of the congregation to lend my concern.  The rabbi replied that although the city council has condemned the picketing, the protesters are within their rights as long as they stay on the sidewalk.   I guess I need a refresher course in democracy ...

The very up side of Ann Arbor:
Kyle practising how to beat the heat in Hong Kong during the summer.

Kyle mastering the art of eating a spring roll with kiddie chopsticks.

Mr. Happy (aka Shane or Shaney).
Mr. Happy looking bored with Grampa.








Jeff and I got stuck behind an accident or flooding (we could not determine exactly what had occurred) on I-94 on our way to Toronto.  We managed to advance four miles in two hours!  Good thing we had our books with us (had this happened in Montreal, drivers would have been partying on the highway!).  Our four hour trip took seven, in spite of the fact that we have Nexus cards and sailed through the border.

Toronto was lots of fun.  Lots of visits with friends, lots of food, lots of hugs.  I even had a mystery book club meeting, followed by our usual lunch at Over Easy on Bloor Street.  Since we moved to HK, I've been skyping with the book group, but it's certainly not the same as participating in the flesh!

Our last three days were spent in Montreal with family and friends.  We had our fill of bagels, cheese bagels, smoked meat, Helen's cheese pie, Helen's mun cookies, Cote St. Luc bbq chicken, and real barbecued hamburgers and veggies in Andrew's back yard.  Enough food and love to sustain on our 15 hour flight home to HK.

Thank you everyone for hosting us, making time for us, putting up with us!