Language School

Well, it's official, as of tomorrow that is. I am back in language school (again)! This time, I'll be studying Mandarin. I think it will be a great time. I have something a little "special" lined up for it. I'll be traveling each week to Shekou for two days of study.

I must admit, I am a little conflicted at the moment, because Krispy Kreme opens next week in HK and I'll have to be in China! Yikes.

Pam Goodell - 40 years old today!

My little sister, Pam, turned 40 years old today! How in the world can I have a little sister that is 40 years old?

I have put together a little photo anthology of my baby sis.

I love you lots!

Pam was image conscious at an early age

Pam had "School Spirit" early on

Pam nurtured her "school spirit"

Pam was always "stylin"

Pam was always up for a birthday bash

Pam was always quick to encourage

Pam was always ready to go somewhere

Pam always preferred "khakis"

Pam always wanted a closer look at things

Pam was always a part of the big picture

Pam was a bundle of joy

Pam was loved by her family

Pam always had someone to play with

Pam was always clowning around!

Pam is a great wife, mother, and sister

Happy Birthday Aunt Pammy!

The nieces love you!

Can't wait til August 8th

That's when the Krispy Kreme in Hong Kong opens its first (of 20) stores! It will be somewhere on Lee Garden Road in Causeway Bay. Oh boy! Oh boy! Oh Boy!

BTW, I am in the drawing for ONE YEAR'S FREE DONUTS! Wouldn't that be something?

Not exactly Abbey Road....

but here's Sally walking home from the grocery store this afternoon.

Pictures of our flat

Our living room


Our dining room (with remnents of OU Memorial)

Flavors of Asia

Here are some local HK delicacies that you won't find at your hometown IGA!




Fanta Grape and Plain Lactic (milk?)



Nestle Soy Red Bean popsicles.

Great Time in Shenzhen

Well, Shekou, actually.

It got off to a rough start when I took the "wrong" ferry to Shenzhen. How was I to know that there were three different ferry ports. The one I took, at least wasn't the farthest one away. I took the one to the airport which turned out to be about 50 km from where I needed to go. I had a hard time getting a taxi to where I needed to go because I thought it was only a mile or two and the taxi driver knew it was a long way. I offered a 10th of what the fare should have been and he refused to take me. I finally got someone on the phone who bargained with another taxi driver to get me there at a correct price. When we arrived, after nearly an hour drive, I remembered I hadn't changed any money yet. Thank goodness he too my HK money!

I must say I was impressed with the school and with the area around the school. It looks like I will be going there once per week for to study language. I think it is going to be a great experience.

I am very happy to see that the school and the hotel I will stay at are in a very modern, built-up area. In fact, here is a picture of where I had lunch:

Within the same area are Starbuck's, KFC, Subway, McD's, Pizza Hut, a Mexican restaurant, two Italian restaurants, and several Brazilian BBQ's! The Hungry Traveler should get a good work out in the months to come.

USATODAY.com - Jackie Chan apologizes for disrupting Hong Kong concert

That's better, Jackie. Read the story here:
USATODAY.com - Jackie Chan apologizes for disrupting Hong Kong concert

Field Trip

Tuesday, I'm going to take a little field trip to Shenzhen, China, to scout out some schools and hotels. I am looking forward to it. The last time I was there was in 1990. It was basically a fishing/farming village. Now, I understand it has 14,000,000 people! Wow!

Happy Birtthday, Mary!

Ahh, a "Blue Bird". Weren't you cute!?!

Happy Birthday, Cysto!

Birthday Boy

Well, another birthday has come and gone. I got to talk to Mom and Dad today; I got a new phone; and I spent the day with my family. It was a great day!

Customized Birthday Lyrics

This is what happens when you have "creative" kids:

Street View

This is a video I took with my brand new Motorola V3 Razor. It is looking out our flat window to the street below.

42 - Ouch!

This is my 5th or 6th birthday party in Sapulpa, Ok. That is my kid sister, Pam. She turns the big four-0 this year. (I'll have a special "sister tribute" on her birthday, so be looking for it on the 30th of this month). I think mom got the cake at Target in Tulsa!

My kids "made" me open my presents already this morning. The biggie was a new Motorola V3 Razor! I can't wait until the battery gets charged up and I can play with it.

We are going to continue the fun by going to Ruby Tuesday's for lunch. Sally has a cake in the over for me right now. Mmm, mmm.

Beard Papa in Hong Kong

I have been reading about people waiting hours for a Beard Papa cream puff back East in the US. I gotta admit I had never heard of them before. Well, lo and behold, they have one right here in HK. At exit "E" at the Mongkok MTR.

I bought us some and brought them home. They got mixed reviews from the kids. Emily took one bite and didn't like it. Audrey didn't like her first bite, but kept eating and said a the end, "These weren't too bad. I wouldn't mind one once in a while". My sentiments exactly. A little pricey, but Krispy Kreme they are not.

Friday, already?

Wow, I can't believe it is Friday. That means tomorrow is my birthday! Yeah for me!

We had a big week this week. We went furniture shopping. At Ikea. Right here in Hong Kong. I have never shopped at an Ikea before. If you "do" it wrong, you don't get what you though you were getting. Literally. I didn't write something down on my order sheet and we didn't get our hide-a-bed ordered. They delivered all the stuff today and it wasn't there. Sure enough. I looked on my little order form that Sally has pulled out of the trash twice (just in case) and it wasn't written down. I looked on the receipt, but it wasn't there either. Oops.

In any case, we now have a bunch of new stuff in the flat. It is starting to feel like home.

Come on Jackie! Wassup?

Some things money can't buy. For everything else, there's an intoxicated Chinese actor.

Canadian PressPublished: Tuesday, July 11, 2006
HONG KONG (AP) - An apparently intoxicated Jackie Chan disrupted a concert by Taiwanese singer-songwriter Jonathan Lee in Hong Kong and exchanged insults with the audience, a news report said Tuesday.
Ming Pao Daily News said Chan suddenly jumped on stage at the concert Monday night and demanded a duet with Lee. He then tried to conduct the band but stopped and restarted the music several times, Ming Pao said.
As the awkward interruption dragged on, audience members started to heckle Chan and the actor replied with an insult, according to the report.
The newspaper quoted Chan as saying on stage that he was drunk.
Chan was an invited performing guest at Lee's earlier show Sunday night.
A spokesman for Chan, Solon So, said he hadn't seen Chan since the incident and had no immediate comment. He said he didn't attend the concert.
© The Canadian Press 2006

Sounds like an out take from Rush Hour 3.

Finally on Flickr!

After all this time, I have finally opened a Flickr account! To see my pictures go to www.flickr.com/photos/rboyne/. I have added about 20 or so but will be adding a LOT more later.

Join Today!

Disneyland Revisited

Well, we got another chance to go to Disneyland today. Just as we got there, a monsoon rain opened up and rained for about 3-4 hours. However, mid-afternoon, it stopped and it turned out to be a great time.

We stayed for the fireworks this time. They were stupendous! We couldn't believe how good they were. I took a video with my video-phone and hope to have it posted tomorrow. Meanwhile, here are some of the best pics from the day.


A look at the park from Tarzan's Treehouse.


The girls in front of Sleeping Beauty's Castle.


The Castle just prior to the fireworks show.

More Macau Pics

Fortaleza do Monte


Cannon at the Fortaleza do Monte


View of Macau Harbor

Back from Macau!

Us at the Lighthouse at Fort Guia, Macau.

We had a grand ole time in Macau. I couldn't believe how much it has changed in only 16 years! First of all , it used to be the peninusla of Macau and the islands of Taipa and Coloane. Now, it is just Macau and Co-Tai. The area between the two islands has filled in completely and it is now one big island! I couldn't believe it!

The ruins of St. Paul's. It burned during a typhoon in 1835.

Some of Macau looks the same. It is still crowded, but there are HUGE CASINOS everywhere. They are even building a new Venitian which is supposed to open next year. We really enjoyed walking around, looking at museums and architecture. One hightlight for me was going to the East India Company Cemetary and finding the grave of Robert Morrison, who died in 1834. He was the first protestant missionary to China and worked hard on translating scriptures into Chinese.

Emily and Audrey at Robert Morrison's gravesite.

I will also post several entries on The Hungry Traveler in the next day or so.

Traveling

We will all be leaving a little later today for 5 days in Macau. Macau is a former Portuguese colony that was given back to China at the end of 4 or 500 years in 1999. It is a beautiful, but very small and very, very crowded city. I haven't been there since 1990; my family has only passed through on the way to China. I am excited that they will get to see Macau.

I won't have a computer while I am there, but I hope to get on an internet cafe to make a post or two. I hope to have a few pictures by the end of the week to post when I get back. I will also be making an entry or two into "The Hungry Traveler" by the end of the week.