Monday, May 16, 2005

HONG KONG

Our very first day of programming was very exciting from start to finish. We began the day with student presentations and learned about the culture, administrative functions, geographic considerations, and economic factors of Hong Kong, mainland China, and Singapore. After the presentations, we traveled by coach to Hong Kong Island where we enjoyed lunch at a nice restaurant inside Hong Kong Park. Following lunch and a walk thru beautiful Hong Kong Park, we made our way to the U.S. Commercial Service located inside the U.S. Consulate offices. Sarah Kemp and Elenna Tam of the U.S. Commercial Service gave a very informative briefing on the economic climate and business opportunities in Hong Kong.

From the Consulate's office, we traveled by coach to the south side of Hong Kong Island for our first bit of sight-seeing and touring. We traveled by Repulse Bay, Hong Kong's most popular beach area and on to Stanley Village for a bit of open air shopping. An interesting moment came when our bus was navigating the steep roads and became "stuck" with another bus heading in the opposite direction. The two bus drivers decided, after about a five minute standoff, to maneuver around each other. Once we were on our way again, we headed to Aberdeen Fishing Village where 6000 people live or work on junks (boats) anchored to the harbor. After learning that the average apartment in Hong Kong is 300 square feet and houses a family of 6, the boats on which these people lived didn't seem very small after all.

The day came to a close with a wonderful dinner atop Hong Kong's highest point, "The Peak." The view of Hong Kong at night from The Peak was simply breath-taking. Tired after a great day of learning and touring, we traveled back to the hotel for a good night's sleep in preparation for a very early morning on Tuesday.

Our first official lunch in Hong Kong. We enjoyed a not-very Chinese meal of baked sea bass and spaghetti with meat sauce
	What a great crew! Getting ready to board boats for the tour of the fishing village
The narrow winding roads on Hong Kong's south shore proved to be a little to narrow. We eventually got "unstuck" and were merrily on our way.
Wow! Hong Kong from "The Peak."

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