Look who came to Park N Shop

Here's why I love living in Hong Kong. You could be grocery shopping when, just as you reach for the milk, this happens:

Early Lunar New Year in Cheung Chau

Christmas is barely over and already the lion dancing has started in Cheung Chau.

Beware The Chicken

In Mui Wo, the chicken is the most dangerous sign of the zodiac.

Pun choi preparations

The temporary marquees set up in Shap Long means its pun choi time again. The big basin meal of abalone, goose web, chicken and other yummy stuff is a yearly celebration in the small village. 

 The pun choi all ready to be heated up.

Drunken lion

You can't live in Hong Kong without seeing quite a few lion dances during Chinese New Year. Most of them show off their acrobatic skills but this is the first comic lion dance I've seen. Maybe it's a special Mui Wo village skit?

The lion drank beer and got drunk. It staggered up and then recovered in time for the lettuce tearing and lai si. The crowd loved it.

Garden Plus CNY fair

If you are a loose end as to what to do over this weekend and the next, head on over to Garden Plus' Chinese New Year fair at Pui O. Of course, the main attraction are the festive plants.

Entrance is free, by the way. Don't get intimidated by the flyers and basket of decorations by the gate. They're free for customers.

The snacks are pretty good. We tried the Indian murtabak (HK$30) and it tasted surprisingly authentic, given that the the chefs were all Filipinos.

We thought the wine tasting was good value for money. If you book in advance, it's only HK$80 and you'll get to taste 10 varieties of South African wine paired with food such as salads and barbecued skewers.

Chinese New Year market

The flyer said there will be a flea market section too. So guess what poor Buffalo Wilbur will be doing for the next two weekends?

Chinese pancake at Tai O

I had a day off on Friday so we decided to try Tai O on a weekday, when it is quieter and we can try the stuff that usually has long queues. Like the Chinese pancake at HK$20 each.

It doesn't look difficult but it tastes so good. First, flour and eggs...

A sprinkle of spring onions and coriander...

Some preserved vegetables...

Sweet sauce...

And some crackers for added crunch. Bon appetit!

Cafe fare

Being Chinese illiterate, I haven't dared step into the cha chan teng opposite Wellcome. But I have seen loads of people in it so I knew the food had to be cheap and good.

Today I woke up with a craving for the local fried beef noodles so I finally screwed up my courage to walk into the place.

As expected, they didn't have an English menu but the waitress speaks English so she translated the daily specials for me.

I did get my beef noodles. And it was all I'd expected it to be: juicy slices of beef, oil-slicked noodles, sweet cabbage and an amazing smoky wok hei (wok breath).

All for HK$33, with an iced lemon tea.

It was worth going off the beaten track, food-wise, after all.

Chinoiserie

We have been resisting getting Chinese reproduction furniture because, how cliche can you get going for rosewood copies in Hong Kong?

But I'm afraid we have succumbed.

The red TV cabinet with some strange bird not known to man sold at Red Hall Furniture (Tel: 2988-1368) was just too pretty to resist.

And having started, we have caught the bug and are now eyeing our next buy. Bedside tables to match our cabinet, perhaps?

Or how about an imposing wardrobe?

Given that our flat is so tiny, maybe it's time to get a village house to store all our lovely furniture?

Then again, all the big pieces are more than we can afford. We can but dream or our red chamber.

Enter the lion

We were going out for our usual hike today when we heard the sounds of drums getting louder and louder. Turns out a lion dance troupe was going around Mui Wo bestowing Chinese New Year blessings on all the businesses (for a big fat lai see of course).

Told you there's always something happening in town.

Back to work

The ferry was full today -- but mainly with mainland Chinese tourists ooh-ing and ahh-ing every time we hit a big wave. It was quite funny.

The office was half empty. Clients also were non-contactable.

Post Chinese New Year blues, I wondered?

No, it's for fung shui reasons, said my colleague. Apparently, Monday is not an auspicious day to start work so many offices remain closed until tomorrow.

Only in Hong Kong can fung shui dictate when you open your office again.

I wonder if a big fat lai see can make up for dragging myself into work today.

Lights up!

Ok, I take that back about the fortune trees. They're pretty cute when they light up.

Chinese New Year decorations

Okay, I get the giant lanterns, the big red banners, the manic bunnies and all the usual gold decorations to usher in the Year of the Rabbit.

But what's with these plastic trees? They look so strange and detract from the lovely natural landscaping of the (no dogs or humans allowed) park.

Am I missing something of the symbolism here? Are they supposed to be money trees or something?

Maybe they light up at night? I haven't had time to do a night stroll yet but I will soon.