Texas State Fair in Hong Kong?

It’s happened.  

The day I thought would never come.  

I’m gaining weight in Hong Kong people!!  Despite the long daily walking commutes to and from… everywhere, my pants are beginning to get tight.  But only when buttoned.  

As for fast food in Hong Kong, we only have McDonald's and KFC (I know, I know- if I can only have two, those are pretty good options), but I rarely go to them.  For starters, they’re not convenient and when you do find one the distance from the street sign to the actual counter involves a few dozen steep stairs leading down to a basement. (BTW- Have I mentioned I can't eat without a window nearby? Yeah… I know.)

So, without fast food windows how am I gaining weight?  Well, it could be this...

The little Hong Kong tea cafe I was at calls it French toast (I think- I didn’t order it myself), but after further research I learned some places call it western toast.  I call it HOT! (Heaven On Toast)  It’s made by deep-frying stacked bread dipped in beaten eggs and soy sauce, topped with a slab of real butter and golden maple syrup.  The best part… wait for it… wait for it… between the stacked bread is a thick spread of peanut butter!!!!!  I don't normally dance in public, but...  I have never seen maple syrup served anywhere in Asia before, so when I first saw my plate and smelled the sweet smell of maple I was shocked.  And even more shocking, the waitress (my new best friend) brought a little craft of syrup and placed it next to my plate!  I'll admit, my Saturday was MADE at that moment, but when I cut into my heavenly toast and discovered warm peanut butter too, well, I almost had to go outside for fresh air or hug my new best friend…    

BUT I HAD SYRUP AND PEANUT BUTTER AND FRIED ON MY PLATE!!  

I wasn’t going anywhere!  The only thing I said after that was, “please order milk!”

After my discovery of this dish, I was telling a friend about HOT and he said it’s ashamed I can’t order it myself (it’s all Cantonese at those kinds of places), but before the sadness completely overcame me, I realized I took a picture of it with my phone!!  That’s right, I have it on my phone!!  I HAVE IT ON MY PHONE!!!!!! 

All I have to do is show the picture to the waitress and I get HOT!  Deep Fried Peanut Butter Sandwich (BTW- best five word combination ever!!)

Eat your heart out Texas State Fair! 

Hong Kong Derby Day!

I grew up around horses and have always loved them, but as a kid I didn’t particularly like caring for them.  Having to clean out their stalls, feed, hay and water them wasn’t exactly what I called fun.  But as an adult I have learned with all that work comes a great trade off, the joy of saddling up and spending the afternoon riding.

Living in this concrete jungle, I don’t get many opportunities to enjoy an afternoon with horses, much less riding.  Last summer I came very close to riding down one of the hillsides on the Kowloon side and along the oceanfront, but after weeks of coordinating the big day, I finally gave up.  After dozens of emails with the riding club, I was finally able to prove to the club that I could handle riding solo, and not have to “follow the leader”.  But after adding up the cost associated with buying the mandatory English riding boots, riding pants, and a helmet (all not cheap!), I kind of lost the image of myself galloping through a field down to a sandy beach, all while wearing shorts and flip-flops!  The thought of having to wear leather boots up to my knees, nylon stretch pants and a heavy helmet all day in the hottest place on earth… well, I finally backed out of the “English” experience in this tropical climate.  But after yesterday, I may need to look into other “less stuffy” riding clubs. 

Yesterday I went to my first horse race in Hong Kong, and I hope not my last.  A group of my friends and I attended the BMW Hong Kong Derby last weekend in Shatin.  The BMW Hong Kong Derby is one of the most prestigious races, the most historic- dating back to 1873 and the most lucrative at HK$16 million dollars!  The BMW Hong Kong Derby is the battleground for the top four-year-old horse.   Most horses only race for 1-2 years, then retire.  Although racing can bring great earnings, the real money is made in stud fees once the horse retires.

Horse racing is huge in Hong Kong with two race courses to support the ever popular sport.  Happy Valley Race Course is on the island and races are held on week nights, and then there is the Shatin Race Course on the Kowloon side in Shatin, New Territories (very close to the China boarder), where races are held on weekends.  

Shatin Race Coarse

Happy Valley Race Coarse
 (on the island surrounded by city buildings)

Happy Valley

We were guests of a friend whose father and uncle owned one of the horses, so we had VIP access to everything.   The first race started around 12:30 and one followed every thirty minutes with a total of 10 races.  Once we arrived and obtained our coveted VIP pass, we headed straight to our viewing room where we were greeted by a huge buffet and all the wine one could drink!  After lunch, we had afternoon tea (Hong Kong style, which I love!) and afternoon tea snacks.  The day basically unfolded like this… eat for 10 minutes, go outside to watch the next batch of horses walk around for observation, go inside to place your bet, find something else to eat for 10 minutes, go outside to watch your horse lose, then back inside to eat again.  Repeat 10 times! 

I placed bets for all but one race, and only won once.  For race #6 I finally thought, with the help of a few glasses of wine, I had the odds figured out.  I placed a winning bet on every horse (10 horses total), except for the three that had the worst odds.  I went outside thinking I was surely going to win something.  But, somehow one of the bottom three horses won!  I was a little pissed.  Later in the afternoon, I finally placed a bet as the paper suggested and guess what??  I won!  I even won bills!!  I say this because one of my friend’s winnings didn’t add up to actual paper currency, only coin.  LOL 

When it came time for our horse to race (kind of ours… wink, wink) we got to go downstairs through the celebrity area and walk past the paparazzi to the inner circle that the horses walked around prior to their race.  The inner circle would fill up with celebrity friends of the horse owners along with trainers, investors and well… us of coarse!

Check out these pictures.  We had a great time and only hope we get invited again!

This was the race I placed my biggest bet on to win or place ... with horse #11.
Thank God we had an endless supply of Haagen Dazs inside.

My friends and I as we watch the horses before the race in the inner circle.

Our friend's horse right before the race.

The owner and jokey of our friend's horse speaking to the press in the inner circle, right before the race.  

  

Celine Dion singing MANDARIN?!?

This last Chinese New Years, I was in the states on a business trip.  However, even before I returned home I had heard about this shocking performance that took place in Beijing on the eve of Chinese New Year.  To the watchful eye of more than 1 billion viewers across Asia, up from beneath the stage came the surprise performance of the year!  What has only been described as flawless Mandarin, Celine paid close attention to every detail... even in a shake like dress (it is the year of the snake, after all).  I’d like to know what this gig paid, but we’ll NEVER know!