Journey to the Center of the SE Asia

Hong Kong has been so great. We've had time to relax, eat good food, and watch old folks in the park practice tai chi and slap themselves with seemingly extreme force. But really, the best part has been learning about a new city and culture, home of Wong Kar Wai, Jackie Chan, Duffy, and Bruce Lee (among others, of course).

Tomorrow we fly to Bangkok, where we'll stay for a few days before heading to some beach, somewhere. Sounds good, right? I'm a little nervous because Thai food is my favorite, and I don't want to discover that authentic Thai food actually makes me sick. I hope I'm not an American-style-Thai-food-lover only. 

HK

Hello everyone! It's been a loooong time, but Ben and I are in Hong Kong now. We are staying with the most wonderful host, Duffy. Not only is she allowing us to crash in her sweet apartment, but she handed us piles of Hong Kong guide books, maps, and magazines, too. 

We walked around all day in Victoria Peak Park, and lucked out with some awesome views of the city and surrounding islands. We got sweaty, because it's hot and humid, then sat on a bench in the shade for a long time and took it all in. Today was a much needed day after our super-cities tour from Tokyo to Beijing to Shanghai to here. Tonight, we ate delicious shrimp wonton and noodle soup. Yummy. It's early yet, but we're back at Duffy's, enjoying taking it easy. 

Sidenote: One can eat too many Shanghai soup dumplings. We now know it is possible.

Goodbye, Suitcase. You will be loved.

Azusa says, "Thanks!"

Nara

We finally made it to the ancient capital of Japan, Nara. Nara lays claim to being the city with the biggest wooden structure in the world, Todai-ji. It really was enormous and the interior pillars (supports) were the size of grand old cedar trees. Inside, the great Buddha, which is also enormous. The hole that Ben crawled through was the size of one of the Buddha's nostrils, and to pass through it guarantees enlightenment. Good thing he's slim. Nara is also home to many, many tame deer. The deer in the picture with Chrystal are 100% real, on the grounds of a temple.

Himeji-jo

This is the best castle in Japan, according to all lists. We concur.

Hiroshima

We spent two nights in Hiroshima right after we left Omuta. It was a great city, and of course the main attraction is the Peace Park and Atomic Bomb Museum. The second picture shows an origami crane to remember the young victims of the bomb, and this memorial was spurred by the story a girl who developed leukemia and died after the war. In fourth grade, I read a book about her, and her thousand paper cranes. I still remember the teacher's aide taking small groups of us out into the hall to teach us how to make these paper cranes. After that experience, I went origami crazy. I made a crane at the memorial. It will be hung up with thousands (if not millions) of other cranes that you see in the background of the photo, many donated by schoolchildren.

Omuta Summer Festival: Daijayama