Kyle and Shane's excellent adventure in Hong Kong

Batten down the hatches.  Remove plants, vases, tassels, knick-knacks, and anything of value.  Close the doors to "off-limits" rooms.  Kyle and Shane are coming!  Invasion of the little people!  They sure look cute and innocent, but, in a flash, food is all over the floor (and themselves) and toys are scattered all over the house.

No complaints!!  Jeff and I were counting the days until the boys and their parents arrived on August 12th.  Their non-stop flight from Detroit was scheduled to land at 7:30.  At 11 a.m. I was ready to go to the airport to wait for them, but I restrained myself until 6:30.  I paced up and down the arrivals area holding two plush toys, and, of course, started to cry when I saw them wheeling their "stuff" through.  Julie and Eric looked sleepy, but the boys were wide awake.  Into the limo and onward to Wan Chai where Grampa Jeff was eagerly awaiting their arrival.

After a long, jet-lagged, sleepless night, breakfast was served at 6 a.m.  Kyle and I "discussed" what he wanted to do that day.  First and foremost was a trip on a double-decker bus.  He loved watching them from our living room windows and couldn't wait to take a ride.  I can't exactly remember which bus we took that day, or where we went, but the boys were very excited.  They were on top of the world!

Before the visit, I had filled the freezer with "comfort food" - meat sauce, meat balls, chicken, etc.  Rejected!!  Julie announced that she could eat that any old time, and all she wanted was Chinese food, and more Chinese food.  In the photo, Jeff and Kyle are waiting to pick up our nightly take-away.

Most mornings, we began our day at my favourite Starbucks, next door.  My cappuccino is always ready for me as I walk in their door.  While Julie and I sipped our coffee, the boys watched the cranes at the building site across the road.  Why are boys so fascinated with construction sites and machinery?  Kyle announced that he wants to be Bob the Builder next Halloween.  The staff at Starbucks are so kind - they never once complained about the mess we left behind each day, or the noise the kids made running around.  The day after the boys went home to Ann Arbor, I brought the Starbucks staff a box of chocolates to thank them for their patience!

The next adventure was a trip on the Star Ferry.  Before embarking, we walked along the central ferry pier and looked at the various boats, the harbour, and the skyline on the Kowloon side.  The kids (and Julie) loved the reversible benches, the breeze from the harbour, and the view.  The nasty diesel smell didn't spoil their enjoyment either!

The Star Ferry is one of my favourites things in HK - I automatically relax and feel like I'm on vacation.  I was glad that Julie, Kyle, and Shane shared my enthusiasm!

On our way into the Harbour City shopping mall for lunch, we stopped to look at a display of Doraemons.  Doraemons are cute, smurf-like anime characters.  Japanese kitsch is very popular in Hong Kong.

Jet-lag and the heat combined to wear us all out, so we headed home for our afternoon naps.  Kyle and Shane have certainly inherited (great-) Grampa Loua's sleeping genes!

Three-hour naps refreshed all of us and then it was time for a swim, or games in the apartment.  The boys' favourite game was jumping on the furniture.  (In fact, the first question that Julie posed when they arrived was "may the boys jump on the sofas?")

We centred the kids' visit around the boys.  They loved the playground next to the HK zoo.  It had big boy swings for Kyle, baby swings for Shane, and lots of shade!  Next best thing to having a back yard. I was beginning to realize how difficult it is to push a stroller in this city.  So many steps, so many uneven sidewalks, and so little space.  Speaking of steps, the following morning we couldn't find the lift at the Tin Hau metro stop, so Julie carried the stroller up three flights of stairs, while Shane masterfully climbed all the steps by himself.  He's so agile and confident, that it was hard to remember he had only been walking for three months!

Everyone enjoyed the trip to the Central Library (yes, I take all of our visitors there).  There's a terrific kids' section on the 2nd floor.  After sitting quietly with their books, Shane suddenly got that "gleam" in his eyes and led Kyle and another little boy of several rounds of jumping on the furniture!

We met Grampa Jeff for lunch at the cafe in the library.  A treat for everyone!  Kyle was excited when I told him we would take a green minibus to go home.  Julie and I were rather concerned when an old man rammed into the bus on his bicycle!  No injuries, but the bus driver had a few choice words for the cyclist.

After dinner, Jeff and Kyle curled up to read "chapter books".  Julie had brought several of them from her local library.  One of the books disappeared a few days after they arrived, but my cleaning lady found it when she vacuumed under the sofa.  However, the same book vanished again the day before their departure.  It has yet to be found, and I'm convinced Shane placed it in one of his hiding spots.  It will probably turn up when we move ...

One of our neighbours arranged a play date for Kyle with her son, Salaar.  They had a great time playing with Salaar's action toys, eating snacks, and dressing up as super heroes!  Julie and Eric spent that morning wandering around the Wan Chai market, sampling street food, and getting the feel of the neighbourhood.

That evening, we took the family to our old stand-by, Hometown Dumpling.  Smiling faces, full tummies!

The weekend was filled with touristy things.  Grampa Jeff and Kyle got us off to a great start by serving blueberry pancakes.  Another bonding experience!
Armed with the broom and dustpan, the boys expertly cleaned up after breakfast.  It's never to early to train them!

Off to Tai Po in the New Territories!  Our visitors experienced yet another mode of HK transportation - the commuter train.  We walked to the Railway Museum, and by the time we got there, Shane was fast asleep.  I nodded off watching him while the others checked out the old HK to Canton railroad cars.  Later on, as we walked through the village, we found a tiny barber shop.  Kyle's three-dollar (CDN) haircut!

Julie, Eric, and the boys visited their first Chinese temple.

We ended our adventure in Tai Po with a delicious dim sum lunch at the Great Day Restaurant.  We were the only "gweilos" in the place!  Note Kyle's new brushcut!  Shane was more interested in climbing up and down the gaily decorated staircase than eating.  Lots of grandparents stopped to admire him.

At 8 a.m. the next morning, we beat the Sunday crowds on the Peak Tram, Hong Kong's number one tourist attraction.  Oddly enough, Jeff announced that this was the first time he'd ever been on it!  I've taken in numerous times with many visitors, always during non-peak weekday hours.

After admiring the views, we watched the kids enjoy themselves in the playground.  Not sure how I squeezed myself into the little table with the boys - it was not easy extricating myself!

The next day, Julie and Eric flew off to Beijing, leaving the boys behind with Gramma and Grampa.  At six a.m. I looked at them wolfing down their breakfasts and thought "this is going to be a very long three days!"  Poor little? Shane marched over to Julie and Eric's bedroom, gave me a sad look, and said "Bapa?"  Hmmm ... how can I distract him?

I know - Tupperware and wooden spoons!!  Worked every time with my kids!  Meanwhile, Kyle emptied the shoe cabinet, and set up a shoe store on my sofa.  That kept them busy until it was time to head to Starbucks for our morning snack, and to meet Ayelet, our friends' daughter, who would be helping me babysit that day.

Julie is her mother's daughter - she left lots of lists and instructions.  Sunscreen, hats, shoes, snacks, blankets, water, and more water.  And off we went.  Not easy to push a stroller with a fat baby up our driveway, but I'm not your average 60+ grandmother, either!!

Ayelet and I took the boys to the playground at Hong Kong Park.  Unfortunately, there were no "big boy" swings for Kyle, but Ayelet showed him how to slide down poles and climb up and down everything.  He had the best time.  Shane did, too!

After lunch, Kyle snuggled up to Ayelet and they read together until nap time.  I think he's in love!  Shane played with his shoes.  He loves the velcro.  Grampa Jeff came home early, we fed the kids, bathed them, and put them to bed. Hooray, we survived day one.

Jeff was my helper the next day.  Same morning routine, and then it was back to the playground at the zoo.  I forgot to mention that every day of their visit, it was at least 33C, so two hours in a playground is more than enough.  Unfortunately, Shane lost his hat somewhere between the photo on the right and the time we got to the corner to hail a taxi.  In spite of Jeff's search, we never found it.  Perhaps it's hiding with Kyle's chapter book.

Bath time!

Kyle hanging out with our concierge, Mr. Tong, who gave him biscuits each morning.







Yay - we all survived day two!

I was on my own the next day.  Luckily, I had planned an indoor activity - it was pouring!  After Starbucks, we walked over to an indoor playground nearby.  I felt like a lady of leisure reading my newspaper while the kids played under the supervision of two lovely young ladies.  I was impressed by how independent Shane is, and how nicely Kyle plays with him, too.

Julie and Eric returned later that night.  Back to hard-core touring the next day.  We sat on the upper deck of bus number 6 to Stanley.  It was so early, the market wasn't even open!  However, they all enjoyed the temple, especially the framed tiger skin on the wall, coffee/snack at Starbucks, and a terrific playground.

Next on the itinerary was a visit to Grampa's office where the staff oohed and aahed over the boys (even Kyle who was sound asleep in Shane's stroller).  Then dim sum at Din Tai Fung.  How many noodles can one baby eat, and how many shiaomei (shrimp dumplings) can a 4-year-old swallow?

Shane decided that going up and down the escalator was a lot of fun.  The exercise tired him out, and we had no problems putting him down for his nap.

The kids all cooled off in our pool later that afternoon.  The pool is outdoors, but there is a roof overhead, which keeps the temperature rather brisk.

The next day we took the ferry to Lamma Island.  So relaxing!  We walked through the village which was very quiet in the mid morning.

Every village has a Tin Hau (goddess of the sea) temple, and Lamma is no exception.  There's a small sitting-out area next to the temple that is home to Jeff's favourite gnarled tree.  It soon became Kyle's favourite climbing tree.  Delicious lunch followed at Andy's Restaurant.

Speaking of Chinese food, we had a terrific meal (including Peking duck) at the American Restaurant that evening.  There's nothing "American" about this famous institution.  It's been around since the early 50s, and is called the American because its original customers were the American sailors who were stationed at Fenwick Pier nearby.

The following day, Saturday, August 25th, was Kyle's fourth birthday.  The festivities included:

Making the birthday cake.

Buying flowers.

Lunch at McDonald's.

Eating birthday cake.

Balloons.

Sunday was the last day of Kyle and Shane's adventure, and, unfortunately, it was the hottest and muggiest.  We ventured across to Kowloon by Star Ferry, and then trudged up to Kowloon Park - yes, to another children's playground.  Once again, we finished the excursion with dim sum!

We were sorry to see our little people and their parents leave the next day.  Calm and quiet returned to life in Hong Kong!