It's been a tough week for me, both personally and professionally. Adjusting to life in Hong Kong hasn't been easy. I would say that the most challenging part of my experience here has been my work life, but it has been affecting my whole outlook. Everyone has tough weeks, but this one seemed particularly hard. Most people who know me, know that I am a pretty positive person 95% of the time. In fact, I think I have an intolerance for negativity that border lines on impatience. I don't like being around negative people and I don't like it when it's in myself. On Thursday night I had had enough. After a long yoga and meditation session, I felt like I had a new outlook and I was prepared to bring that to all aspects of my life.
I woke up on Friday to a head cold and what turned out to be a very long and hard day at work. But it didn't really phase me. After work, I headed to a bar called The Pawn, and it has become my new favourite place in Hong Kong. Built in an old Pawn shop, the eclectic furniture, amazing acoustic music and chilled out atmosphere were just what I needed. I had planned to have one glass of champagne, but after four I decided to call it a night. I am feeling more and more comfortable in Hong Kong, and as I walked through the narrow side streets to find a cab, I realized that I am really getting to know this city. I am really becoming comfortable here.
On Saturday morning I met up with 6 friends and boarded the luxury ferry to Macau (think plush leather seats). I haven't been out of the country since I moved here, and even though it's just a short trip, escaping the crazy of Hong Kong was welcome. Most people know Macau now as a place to gamble, but it is so much more than that. Even though Macau pulls in $3 billion more than Las Vegas, there is not as much of a commercial and "Vegas" feel to it, as Vegas.
Macau's roots are Portuguese. It was only handed back to China from Portugal in 1999, so Portuguese influences are everywhere, including the language, the people, the culture and the architecture.
I was lucky to go on the trip with a new friend whose Mother has an apartment in Macau, solely for the purposes to have a place to stay on the weekend when she gambles. She booked us an amazing lunch at a Portuguese restaurant where we feasted on mild cheese flavoured with salt and pepper, clams in an amazing tomato sauce and for my main I had cod--a portion so big I was quite certain that I was eating the entire cod fish!
After that we headed into the main square, and took in the sites...churches, temples, forts. The people from Macau are such an amazing mix of Portuguese and Chinese--my ear kept tricking me as I heard people switch from Cantonese to Portuguese seamlessly. As I stood in the street and listened to the sounds that were all around me, I felt as though I was climbing my very own tower of Babel. We explored Macau for a few hours and then headed to the spa. My Post Valentine's Day Massage Massacre was redeemed because the 90 minute massage that I experienced in Macau was the best one I have every had in my life. Massages were followed up by a divine dinner at the Wynn hotel, where I think my quote of night was, "I think heaven just exploded in my mouth." That was in reference to the best lemon I have EVER had. I can still taste it.
My day was amazing--not only because Macau is an amazing place to explore, but because I spent time with five phenomenal women. My friends, and friendship, is not something that I have ever taken for granted, but it is something that has been heightened in my mind since arriving in Hong Kong. On Saturday, five people came together from Canada, Japan, and China all currently living in Hong Kong--some for only a couple of more weeks, some indefinitely...but despite the differences in our history, we laughed like we had known each other for years and shared in the positive energy that was all around us.
Here are some pictures of Magnificent Macau.
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