Tai Cheat

Confident that Zack’s fantasy football team had not failed him while we were fast asleep in a Hong Kong hotel, we set out for an early morning walk to Vicotria Park. The park was formerly a typhoon shelter, part of Victoria Harbour, used as a refuge by fishing boats and yachts during typhoon seasons. In the 1950s, the shelter was reclaimed and the park was built there. Victoria Park is the largest urban park in Hong Kong. It is a vast green space, situated in the center of Causeway Bay. This morning we had no trouble finding a Tai Chi group to join. As any Gould student or faculty member who has been beaten by Zack in the infamous “five yard dash” will tell you, “he cheats!” I’ll let you be the judge of this regarding his efforts at Tai Chi. (see attached pictures.) After a brief stint at Tai Chi we continued our walk through Victoria Park. The gardens included beautiful topiaries and an abundance of vegetation in the midst of this enormous city. One of the most bizarre sights was the juxtaposition of butterflies and pigeons!
Despite having enjoyed a foot massage last night we could not resist the foot massage paths located in the park. OUCH! This is not for the faint of foot! I may look like I’m walking on eggshells, but it feels more like walking on a bed of nails. The more experienced walkers did not wince quite as much as I did. In fact, for them it was “a walk in the park!” Maybe I’ll try again tomorrow or maybe I should have had my coffee before attempting this “feat!” (Maybe the pun really IS the lowest form of humor.)
We headed back to the hotel for a more familiar form of exercise that involved a treadmill and an elliptical. For lunch, we met up with a local consultant who took us for traditional dim sum. YUM! Afterwards, we were taken to The Peak.

The Peak is the highest mountain on Hong Kong Island, standing at 552 metres (1300 feet) above sea level. It served as a natural signaling post for incoming cargo ships in the nineteenth century and currently serves as Hong Kong’s most popular tourist attraction. I made friends with a group of school children on a field trip. They (Angela, Kate, Jeffrey, and Kelvin) interviewed me in English. Kate even knew how to spell Amy! I loved talking to them and answering question that they diligently wrote the answers to on their clipboards. The walking paths offer a stunning 360-degree panoramic view of the Island. The shopping plaza housed a plethora of stores and food eateries. Zack paid homage to one of his culinary favorites, poutine, but this giant advertisement was as far as it went! Having had our fill of exercise for the day, we returned to the hotel and promptly… you guessed it! Took a nap!