Hong Kong: Day 1

Uh-oh, we took way to many pictures for a single post about our awesome trip to Hong Kong and Beijing, so it looks like I have to blog in a few installments. A HUGE thank you to my father-in-law and his girlfriend Peonie for having us out and entertaining us all week long!

The first day we arrived, we were promptly whisked away to a delicious dim sum lunch. What a wonderful way to begin our trip to Asia! Scott and I were schooled in proper chopstick usage while eating yummy pork buns, shrimp in rice noodles, and even trying chicken feet.

Peonie & me

Next, we took the famous "Peonie" tour of Hong Kong, in which Peonie personally showed us all the highlights of Hong Kong, from the harbor view aboard the Star Ferry, to city streets from the tram. We ate sweet waffle treats from a stand on the street (don't tell my doctor...she said no street food!!), had drinks in SoHo, and ended up at the InterContinental Hotel for a few appetizers and re-energizing before the nightly light show and dinner.

Waffles!
Scott & me in the city
Hong Kong Island from the ferry
View from the cocktail lounge at the InterContinental Hotel

Nightly light show? Oh yes...every single night at 8pm, Hong Kong skyscrapers put on a light show set to music. You only can hear the music in a few touristy spots, so that is where we went for the show. The lights on the building flicker, move, change colors, and lasers even shoot off some roofs! Kind of like a Disney show...but set in a world class harbor and city. Seriously, if you haven't guessed by the pictures so far, Hong Kong has an AWESOME skyline.

After the light show, we met up with Peonie's whole family for a Chinese banquet. When I say whole family, I mean like over 20 people! It is very common for families to China to dine out in private banquet rooms, since their apartments are so small. The family spent all afternoon playing mah-jong, and when we arrived, dinner was served! Now, by this point on the evening, Scott and I were exhausted by our flight, and had to really work hard to make it through this meal. But the food was MARVELOUS! Here's a quick run-down of the menu:

Lobster steamed and topped with garlic
Bird's nest soup (good for your skin!). Yes, that really is a swallow's nest in the soup.
Dried scallops with pea shoots
Steamed whole grouper with ginger
Fried chicken, but moist and light, unlike American fried chicken (notice the head?)
Rice cooked in lotus leaf (soooo good!)
Noodles and shrimp dumpling
Steamed buns with lotus paste and egg yolk
Sticky rice and coconut soup (my favorite!!)
Peonie's family (told you it was big!)