Updates:

1. My boss spoke to Daniel and I today offering us a contract extension to stay for a year longer in Hong Kong. This means I can be here until August 2013, promoted and with a possible raise! To stay or not to stay…

2. I’m moving flats to - gasp! - Sha tin! But to an enormous flat with a pool, rooftop barbeque area, guest room, maid’s room, and a view of the mountains… but I’m scared I won’t have time to move every thing in time because…

3. I’m flying to England on Sunday morning to see Gus! <3

**Picture taken yesterday at Ocean Park when my sister Joyce visited for the day before flying off to Munich. I might blog about Ocean Park another day (it was amazing! Better than HK Disneyland, or so I’ve heard! But seriously, an awesome theme park!!!)

PS. The much-awaited Rugby Sevens afterparty was a flop. My sister and I gave up at around 1:30AM as there were too many drunk men molesting every moving thing around.. Just imagine the usual LKF sweat + vomit + seediness TIMES TEN and you’ll understand why we jumped ship

PPS. Have been listening to this song NON STOP. As in 20 times a day!?

- How I spent my Saturday afternoon in Cheung Chau, an island supposedly ruled by pirate Cheung Po Tsai for almost a hundred years during the Qing Dynasty. “His followers are said to have reached 50,000 and his fleet said to have possessed 600 ships.”

Allyanna and I took a ferry from Central at 3pm and spent around an hour biking on one side of the island (bikes can be rented at HKD$15 an hour, w/ HKD$200 deposit). We risked leaving our bikes to peek into Cheung Po Tsai’s cave, but didn’t dare to descend into its dark depths nor walk to the reclining rock for fear of someone nicking the bikes we had left unlocked, at the bottom the stair leading up the hill.

A chilling piece of trivia I found looking up the island’s history online: From 2000, a spate of suicide cases (most of them by “burning charcoal”) took place inside rental holiday homes on the island. Hong Kong Chinese-language newspapers soon dubbed the island “Death Island” and stories concerning apparitions appeared in the wake of news about the succeeding suicides. (Wikipedia)

The weather in Hong Kong is improving as spring approaches, and I for one am set to make the most out of it!

Juanka covered the microphone the whole time I was talking, so you can barely hear what I’m saying!

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earlier today - and as for the results of the flat viewing, it was a great apartment with 2 available rooms; new, clean, big windows, reasonable price, and the bus to work is literally across the street from the building! Not to mention free cleaning, coffee, and fruits! But, as usual, too good to be true: no visitors allowed to sleep over. My sister’s coming to stay end of March, and so many other friends come to HK and stay over with me, it’s such a non-negotiable!!! So back to the horrors of flat-hunting in HK. It’s such a nightmare, really, especially when you’re on a budget. The prices and conditions are unbelievable…

PS. to all my friends back home… yes I know, my face got so fat… I gained a lot of weight in Hong Kong! But hopefully in the right places! Haha!

“The Dark House” (2009)

Original Title: “Terug naar de kust” (Back to the coast)

saw this Dutch thriller today at the Hong Kong European Film Festival with Kristina and Allyanna. It’s supposedly an adaption of the Dutch novel of the same name by Saskia Noort. The film was casually awesome. We never really knew who was crazy until the end…

Storyline

Single mother Maria starts to receive anonymous death threats. Together with her children, she flees to her former parental home, where her older sister Ans now lives. During those cold winter days in the secluded seaside house she is confronted with her traumatic childhood memories. But as the people close to her begin to question her state of mind, her assailant closes in. 

(Written by Holland Film)

After the movie (in which I ate a disgusting hotdog bun, and I swear to God hotdogs in Hong Kong suck and I’ve been a victim of this for the third and final time today), we stuffed our faces with dim sum at Tim Ho Wan, the Dim-Sum Specialists. This place supposedly has the best dim sum in Hong Kong (!). It’s literally 5 shops down from Mr. Wong’s. While waiting for the food, we were able to talk about the school system in the Philippines and Filipino-Chinese racism against Filipinos. We were then seated beside a young Japanese traveler en route to India, and had a laugh at his antics to get his beer back from the waiter, who literally confiscated his beer for the duration of the meal, as alcohol wasn’t allowed inside the restaurant.

A pretty satisfactory Sunday, I must say. I dread the coming work week, but look forward to returning to Manila on Thursday, finally, after 3 months of being away! 

<3

the most spectacular fireworks display I’ve ever seen in my life - Hong Kong Harbour (from Avenue of Stars)… moments like these make me love living in this city.

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