The Bridge

Can't go there and not have a picture of the bridge. Lux took this.

Streets

Just a street picture to show the slopes typical of the city.
Many street names were also spanish in origins because of the Hispanic influences. To my surprise, I was told the state used to belong to Mexico. I was surprised becos Mexico seem too far south to that. So much for my sense of history! Till today, there's still a strong Hispanic influence and population, and I think even a strong proportion of the tourists would have come from Latin America. Sometimes though I would think they're Chinese becos they have difference features and skin colour, till they speak.

There are of course also many Asians here. We had lunch one day at a Chinese restaurant, whose owner was happy to give us a bit of history. Many of them speak Cantonese here, so i had assumed they were from Hong Kong. As it turns out, they were mostly from China, Guangdong province. Increasingly others were coming, so Putonghua is getting more common as well. The owner also gave us some perspective on property prices. A studio with a toliet, and no kitchen, would have cost US$1,700 a month to rent. Property prices are also very high. I was later told the kids population in the city was falling becos families couldn't afford to stay and were moving to the suburbs.

The other pic is what Siyuan had. The food was surprisingly good there, better than most of the places we ate at in Hong Kong. haha

Fries and growing up

I love pictures like this one, where u can see siyuan and lux walking together. I chose one from the back rather than the front to emphasize the difference in height. It always makes me think - he's so small, yet he's complete in every physical sense. It also shows how vulnerable he is, and how much smaller in size he is to us. Sometimes as parents, i think we forget becos our babies are always so much in our faces and all over us.
The other picture shows siyuan's obession with fries and anything that looks like it. He was basically on a fries and orange juice diet, rejecting most of our attempts to feed him decent food. He did get some porridge stuff we brought, strawberries and bread etc. I guess the other good thing was he decided he could handle eggs again. For a month prior to the trip, he refused to eat egg, whether scrambled, fried or boiled, and would spilt them out no matter how disguised they are, or mixed with other food.
Btw, this time round, what's in the box wasn't fries but sweet tapioca strips.

Raining in HK

It rained all the time we were in Sans Francisco and continued to pour when we're back. And guess what? For the first time in 7 months, since we got here, we have clear views in HK. When we went to the bayside track near our place, I can finally see across the bay. I never realized there were coloured buildings there.
I can see across the bay at my office view as well! My view there is no longer restricted to the buildings nearby. I can see why HK would be so attractive in the past, but the pollution is a real pain nowadays.

Sure, China has to do with a lot of it, but you have to wonder about emissions from local power stations and motor vehicles. I was at Mid-levels checking out a rental apartment when i first got here, and my eyes were tearing while standing on the street waiting for the property agent to arrive. I was there less than 10 minutes.
That's just from the motor vehicles emissions.

And if pollution is that bad from China, why is it worse in HK island than in New Territories which is nearer to China? you have to wonder, wonder, wonder.

Flooding and the long way home

It was a long way home, and all we could do to distract Siyuan, while in a cramped environment. Because it winds all the way down, and we have an erratic driver, we can't even think about letting him down from his seats. So we were reduced to passing him back and forth. We had some great neighbours who made faces with him, played pass the toy, or switched on the lights to entertain Siyuan. Well, we won't be in a hurry to do those long bus trips around. It was worth it to get there, but man, the journey to entertain him can kill.
Here's a picture of flooding that does occur at the park.

Here's what he's really doing

Siyuan was actually throwing a tantrum. Here's the rest of the pics

Contemplating Nature

Does it look like Siyuan is contemplating the awesome waterfall and nature? well...maybe not :)

Yosemite Walks

Just walking through the little bit of the park we had time for!

Yosemite

Yosemite National Park! a 14 hours day tour. We should have booked accomodation for a nite there to better enjoy it. As it was, it was rushed and we barely had 3 hours there inclusive of lunchtime. It was beautiful, and we wished we could have been there for sunrise and sunsets, or just to sit and relax somewhere.

Day 3 or 4?

This is either Day 3 or 4. we're having breakfast at a place called Home plates, and yes, they have child's seat!

:)

Traveling and Such

We were in Sans Francisco for almost two weeks for a holiday. Pictures as soon as I get off my butt to download them. But what a trip! I rushed us out of the apartment, my wife left her wallet at home (but we didn't know for sure), 12-14 hours flight with the return starting at 1:30 am, I left a book i bought in the motel, and then left the camera on the plane. Still, all ended well. Wallet and camera found.

All in all, it was a good holiday - cool climate, fresh air, good food, lots of space and some good shopping. wife got clothes, i got books, and Siyuan got to play on a beach and walk in a national park. That's also his 7th trip on a plane in 11 months. Yes, its a bit too much. So this is likely the last one for the rest of the year. The return trip was hellish becos it was way past his bedtime, and the ventaliation wasn't good. It was almost 4 in the morning before we got any sleep, though after that he was reasonably good. Well, as good as an active baby can get on a plane. :)


During the trip, Siyuan also decided he could say bye bye afterall, throwing in waves as well. He did that while we were on a ferry and chatting with fellow Australians from Victoria, which was where he was born. At their departure, he suddenly decided he liked the woman and said good bye. No doubt that was becos he recognised a fellow Aussie, and more probably becos he was totally fascinated by her rings and bagles. haha.

First impressions of Sans Francisco was that it was a lot like Melbourne - cool climate, wide spaces and fresh air. Of course, its also a lot bigger. Everything in the U.S. is large, from the roads, pavements, people to the coke we got. We arrived at 9-10 pm and hit our motel (becos this is the fourth-most expensive city in the U.S.!). It was old, but in good condition and the owners of the Redwood Inn were friendly and helpful.

We got a room with two Queen-sized bed, which gave Siyuan a bit of room to play around, and a place to put down our luggaes, and his food, his diapers, his clothes, his etc. haha. His stuff took up half of Lux's and mine's suitcases. He even has a toy laptop. (I bought a small basketball for him to play, which kept him most amused. Except rather than kicking or throwing it around, he loved to hide it. It got left behind in the motel room in the end becos we couldn't find it. haha)

We visited Fisherman's Wharf, yes, yes its a tourist trap, but there's a small pier and its only 3 blocks away from where we stayed. Went cycling and got sunburnt. Checked out Chinatown, where movies such as Big Trouble in Chinatown and one of Jackie Chan's was filmed and weren't impressed. Afterall, HK is one big Chinatown. There was little italy as well, which again reminded us of Lyon Street in Melbourne, though of a smaller scale.

We went up the famous Crooked Street, climbed up and down lots of slopes. Took a ferry to Sausaulito. Went to Yosemite national park. Checked out Union Square and also visited a friend's place in Richmond. In between the longer trips (such as the 14-hour Yosemite tour) we just relaxed, bringing Siyuan to a local playground and eating out at restaurants we found six blocks away where the locals hang out.

We had big breakfasts most mornings becos we missed them, and they were usually good. Like I told Lux, this was for the rest of the year! I doubt we can get such good breakfasts in HK (point proven when we went to Mid-levels this weekend for some and found it was hardly worth it.)

We had sushi becos it was fresh enough to eat, and burgers and steaks becos we were in Amercia. Went to Hooters becos wife never been to one, ate the Dungree crabs, and tried out chinese food (very good stuff there).

All in all, a good if expensive trip. Pictures and details later!

Fisherman's Wharf

We headed to Fisherman's Wharf after that for a bit of the local crab. We actually went there twice, but only the first time was good. We think the waitress the second time was inattentive and brought our food too late, so it was cold. But the first time, the crab was succulent and steaming hot. THe good thing about cafes and restaurants in Sans Frans is that they provide seats for children, and sometimes crayons as well. HK don't seem to have child's seat ,or if they have them they are really poor.

Little Italy and Chinatown

After that climb, we went down to Chinatown, bypassing Little italy. we stopped by a french cafe to have french onion soup. As u can see, Lux is having a good time since she loves food :)

The other pic is me just in front of the chinatown gate.

Day 3

We woke up, climbed a very steep slope to get to the famous croookkedd street. We were even overtaken on the slope by an old lady. We wondered how people can live on the slope.
The actual street itself isn't as bad.

Saying goodbye

yes, he's learnt to say good bye at Sans Francisco. Here's a picture of him doing that :)

Day 2

This is Day 2 in Sans Frans. We woke up for breakfast and then took him out to the little pier for a walk, followed by a short jaunt at French cafe, where they made burnt coffee..we tried coffee at just about everywhere, and its usually burnt. guess the beans are burnt and they like it that way!