farewell

tonight was my last night in hong kong. to say goodbye to all my friends, we got lots of cake and had a little farewell gathering.

all of us international students!

relina and voon made okonomiyaki that read "bon yovage" and "we love u anna"!

i had to get a picture with our doorman. he is the nicest man on the planet (unless you leave the building through the fire exit past 10.30pm like i did once).

i am going to miss you!!

cheung chau bun festival

another beautiful day, another adventure. since my friend christina from hamburg / beijing was in town, we took the chance to go to cheung chau, one of hong kong's outlying islands, to celebrate their annual bun festival.

according to the legend, 200 years ago cheung chau was devastated by the plague but eventually saved by the gods, and in order to keep the spirits satisfied, the inhabitants vowed to commemorate the miracle every year by having colourful parades and eating lots of buns. i was was excited to get some bubble tea...

and a bun, of course!

they came with various fillings, i got lotus seed paste.

it was quite a spectacle. they had a marching band very much reminiscent of kölscher karneval, a dragon dance and little kids strapped to poles invisible under their festive dresses and thus seemingly 'floating' through the crowd.

tea time

i woke up to a beautiful day with loads of sunshine today so after working hard on my essay all morning long i decided that i deserved a treat - i had wanted to go to antique tea room to try their scone tea set for while now. when i told david that i had never had a scone he was literally appalled, so he took it upon himself to introduce me to the magic that are scones with clotted cream and jam.

boy, it was so good. the scones were soft and warm, just the perfect little pick-me-up to go with a pot of english breakfast tea. antique's interior is also really nice, complete with pastel coloured wallpaper and comfy armchairs so i highly suggest you stop by should you happen to be in hong kong. read more about it here.

when i returned to my hall, however, a not so pleasant surprise was waiting for me. stepping out of the elevator i ran into the college's master, who visibly flustered informed me that the first case of swine flu in hong kong had just been confirmed. obviously, the whole territory is freaking out right now. at the reception desk our door man made sure i picked up a face mask to protect myself. when i got to my floor i saw all my hall mates wearing them already.
wow.