Wednesday 12 – Day 13 – We took the cable car up to the view of the harbor and the city. The view is wonderful.

We went to Repulse Bay, and then to Stanley Market. It was a narrow street with shops and stands selling all manner of items. We then went to a jewelry factory and store to see how the other half lives.

We are not into jewelry, but it is always interesting to see how the pieces are made. The craftsmen are fantastic. I never wore a watch when I was working, and I don’t intend to now that I am retired. I was a blue collar worker and got very dirty at my job. No watch for me. It would just be in the way and get broken in about five minutes, thanks anyway.

Now that I am retired, I have less need of one than before. They are beautiful, but I can go on another trip for what a nice watch might cost me.

At this time, 1995, all of the house boats in the harbor are long gone. I watched I Spy and loved the sight of all those families living on the water. They are now in high rise apartments on shore or farther away into the interior of China. I am sure that there lives are more comfortable now, but I do miss all of the boats out there on the water.

We have two more days to explore Hong Kong. We had Chinese friends of one of my wife’s uncles who showed us around. Remember, I talked about my wife’s uncle who was a tour guide in the Orient earlier?

We went to Lan Tao Island by boat. It was a small fishing village then. The houses had no plumbing and stood on stilts over the water. There was electricity and television, however.

There was a wonderful small temple here with whale bones stacked in one corner. On the roof ridge was a group of clay figurines depicting earlier residents of the village. An elderly man and his wife pulled us across the river by an overhead rope to get us into the village.

Our new friends family once lived here, but sadly, the new generation has moved to the big city to make their fortunes. Good luck to them. Now, only the old folks live here.

Oh, by the way, this is the small quiet island where the world’s largest seated Buddha resides. Also, it is where Disney built their new Disneyland. I suppose it is quite different now.

Sadly, things change, and not always for the better.

However, the new airport is said to be great. I can remember flying between two tall apartment buildings and seeing people eating dinner inside as we flew past them to land. It was a little disconcerting. Thankfully those days are long gone.

Having said that, we have gone back to the Orient since this trip and enjoyed it to the full. We are off to Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos in October. I hope you enjoy these little memories and the photos will be up soon.

I will have another tidbit up in a few days. I just haven’t decide which one to do. Maybe The Olympics in Greece might be interesting to you. It was for us. Greece is something else.