Settling in to my new life

Now that our furniture has arrived and 99% of all the stuff we shipped now has a new home, there is a new challenge to be had. What do I do now? Lets just recap. I don't have a job and without a work visa, I don't intend to get one in the coming year. I don't have any friends here, any family or a support system in general, excluding my lovely husband of course, who is obviously otherwise engaged during the week and indeed, currently most evenings too. I need a plan. It's not that I am yet climbing the walls or anything, or desperately lonely, over all I am dealing pretty well with the situation but I am aware that I need to find something to occupy my time, to give me a purpose, even some goals because all I really seem to be focusing on right now is trying to keep up with the usual household chores and let me tell you, this apartment (and I suspect this is not unique to our apartment here!) gets so very dusty! After the vacuum-sealed house in Ottawa, this place seems to manufacture dust. Of course the continuous construction outside will not help..nor the pollution in general. Canadians, take a moment to be very grateful for your beautiful clean air!!

It's not that I'm simply saying that I'm bored with housework, although that in itself might be a valid statement. Neither am I about to do what (apparently) most Brits do here and hire a maid to remove the burden. However, there is no doubt that this is an opportunity to have an adventure and whilst stuff does have to be done around the place and bills have to be paid here, back in Canada and even in the UK and that alone is capable of causing regular confusion, and a degree of attention, there is more to life...at least to this life, right here, right now and if I am not careful the PA and the Capricorn (aka very practical person) inside of me will somehow manage to make a full time job out of it and my year off will be over before I've finished the ironing pile!

So...I need that plan and I need it now!

We have a list of Things To Do while we are here - places to visit, things to see etc and with the weather currently perfect for hiking we are doing our best to get out and about at the weekends on the trails and we are slowly exploring new areas and trying to get fit again. Having spent the best part of November in hotels, eating out and over-indulging in general both my waistline and energy levels are suffering! It's definitely time to re-engage with my yoga practice (again) and maybe even make regular use of the gym facilities downstairs. Maybe.

I have also just joined an "expat group" which is made up of other newcomers to Hong Kong from all over the world, but I suspect mainly the US and the UK. It seems to be the way to go here. Making friends can take time, especially with the advancing years and the absence of children and there is no time to waste given our small window of opportunity here. My first outing with the group is on Wednesday. I'm off on another hike...did I mention it's a great time of year for hiking? :-)

So, we have a list of things to do together in our leisure time and I have been proactive about meeting some women who find themselves in a similar situation to me...time will tell how that goes. But I need more...I feel the need to be creative in some way. This in itself is relatively new for me. A few years ago, if anyone ever dared suggest anything I did was creative, I'd have strongly denied that it was even possible and that I simply was NOT creative. Then I did my yoga teacher training and I did finally acknowledge that I had at least some creative bones in my body. No pun intended.

What might evolve, remains to be seen. I have a few thoughts, a few ideas but nothing I am ready to broadcast just yet. For now I have my blog...which I'm enjoying. It's fun to do and it helps me to organise my thoughts...sort through them even and decide whether they should be filed, left on the pending pile or brought forward to be actioned.

Home

Today is a momentous day here in Hong Kong. Today is the day The Sea Shipment arrived at Bamboo Grove. I'm oh-so-grateful for my recent 2 weeks away which provided me with a much needed break from the frustrations of living in an empty apartment for 6 weeks, but Now, we can sit in comfort, eat our meals at a table, listen to CDs, watch DVDs, cook with the proper implements and we don't have to wash up immediately after each meal, as we now have a cupboard full of plates! It took 8 weeks for our shipment to arrive. That wasn't quite part of the agreement, but hey...life does not always go to plan. Sometimes the challenges just keep on coming.

It's been an interesting time, living without all the usual "stuff" that surrounds us. Some days I have barely given it a thought and have been quite content with the space that has been my Home. Other days, not so much and on those days I have tried to work out what it is that I am actually missing..what it is I really NEED. Some days it was simply comfort, either physical or emotional. Other days I longed for a particular "thing"; a book to read, or CD to listen to. On the days my body was crying out for a restorative yoga pose, I desperately missed my yoga props but some days I was just plain angry. It just did not seem fair. Those were the bad days and said more about how I was coping with the transition than the situation itself but I'm pleased to report there were not many of those. I thought there would be more.

It often got me to thinking about Home. About what makes home a Home. Surely it's not just about your "stuff"...material possessions, about bricks and mortar; it's much more than that. Is it friends and family? Is it where you "feel" at home? What is it that makes you feel at home somewhere? I confess I've had these thoughts before, when we moved to Ottawa. It was harder first time around. More confusing. More things were new and unexpected. Of course everything was new and different in ways you didn't expect them to be and you missed all the familiar stuff and that included people; family, friends, colleagues.

Second time around it feels different. Yes, it is a different country but that is not why it feels different. I feel less "at home" in this country than I did in the previous country and yet it's easier this time. I miss familiarity less. The separation from friends is less intense, and this probably has a lot to do with today's technology. The wonders of Facebook and Skype, of MSN and similar applications. I also have more time to connect and communicate this time around. Being here on a tourist visa has its perks!

So now that we have our sofa, our books, our kitchen stuff and other personal items surrounding us, yes, of course it feels much more like home. We have comfort and more choice about how we spend our time while we are within these four walls. We can re-engage with things we had to put on hold. It feels good. However, I believe Home extends beyond the four walls of our physical abode. It's also about people and our surroundings. About what surroundings you feel comfortable in. Even the climate plays a part, I believe. I often think that I was born to live in a cold or at least cool climate as I generally don't do well in the heat. How our body responds to temperatures can really affect our mood and how we deal with situations...at least that is true for me. Then there's people. We all need people to interact with and those people, and they can be complete strangers, can make a difference to how you experience life. Are they friendly and welcoming, are they approachable and easy to talk to, or do they appear completely disinterested in anyone else around them as they go about their daily business? I'm taking it all in....every country seems just a little different and it can affect the way I behave or respond and I find that really interesting.

I don't believe I have quite finished with this particular subject yet so I will continue to watch my reactions but I do believe I am getting better at finding Home regardless of the country I'm in.

Searching for the Beauty in Canberra

It's a bit of an odd day today. Alan had to go to Canberra for a meeting and decided to drive it rather than fly, so I opted to jump in with him and steal a day trip to another new city.

After a slow exit from Sydney, we were out on the open, empty road to Canberra. We had been warned to expect dull scenery so were pleasantly surprised by the varying geography...nothing drastic but there were definite changes along the way. Some roadworks, lots of speed cameras and warnings of police radar made our journey a bit longer than it could have been but overall, it was a good drive.

Upon arriving, we managed to miss the city centre...and drove straight passed it which was not encouraging but we did a u-turn and found it. I think. Alan dropped me in what appeared to be the city centre and drove off. That was 3 hours ago, not heard from him yet but I'm sure he won't forget me.

I have to say, and sorry if anyone from Canberra ever reads this, but it's a bit of an odd ball place. I wanted to record it on film so decided to take a few snaps...tried to find a picturesque angle....Hmmm... tricky. So I took some anyway. It is, what it is. I took my time just wandering the centre to see what my options were and how I could occupy my time here. Yesterday the advice I got from some Sydney locals was to head for the War Memorial Museum or the Parliament buildings as they were the highlights. Clearly I didn't do that...my head is still full of facts on Sydney architecture from yesterday and I was not quite ready for more facts and serious-ness today. However, maybe there was a reason I was pointed in this direction. My heart sank a little as I looked at my watch and wondered what on earth I'd do for the next 4, maybe 5 hours....then I realised I had a choice here. I could feel that way or I could see this as a challenge. So, I decided to look for the beauty instead. It's everywhere after all and there is more chance of seeing it, if we choose to see it.

I can't say that miraculously Canberra sprung to life and the concrete buildings, office blocks and largely uninspiring shops suddenly looked any different but I did begin to stumble on a few treasures. I found Siam Senses, a day spa and indulged my weary walk-a-holic feet with a reflexology treatment then found a magical alternative book shop that providing I bought a book and a coffee would provide me with their wireless password and allow me to access the internet...so here I am! I decided to buy a book on dreams because I keep having some really interesting ones lately and I want to record them and see if I can do some dream interpretation over the coming year. It's the most indepth book on dreams I've seen so far, so I hope it's good.

I'm wondering what time the shop shuts...I'm hoping I have a little longer before they throw me out and given that Canberra appears to be "closed" I'm not sure where to head next in this spread-out city...perhaps Alan's meeting will end early...or perhaps I'll find another gem around the corner.

My phone just rang...my chauffeur is on his way :-)

Day 1 Solo in Sydney

Today is my first solo day in Sydney. It's started somewhat slowly but that's OK. Sometimes you just need to slow down the pace a bit and take stock. Once again, I am keen to maximise my time and experiences in this city as who knows if I will ever return. I seem to be having more trouble engaging with my guide book here though for some reason, but I am slowly getting some plans made and some thoughts about what I want to do, clear in my mind.

Yesterday Alan and I headed to Bondi. We took in the Bondi sunday market and made some customary purchases...a hammock amongst them...! Now we just need to find some perfectly spaced palm trees and we're all set. Bondi was not quite what I expected, although I'm not sure why...I think it was more that I'd never given much thought to what it might be like than anything else and that it was just not what I had envisioned for our sunday outing. However, we had a good day. After the shopping spree we managed to find a spot for lunch at a pavement cafe and did some people-watching (a popular sport in Bondi I'd imagine) while we grazed on lunch and contemplated our after-lunch walk along the cliff-top.

Unfortunately...or some would say fortunately...depending on your outlook, it turned out that the route of our planned walk was also that of the Sculptures by the Sea exhibition which takes place annually in November. It was PACKED with people. I was hoping for a brisk and bracing walk but we could barely manage snails pace. Ah well.. we got to look at some interesting sculptures instead. To add insult to injury though I managed to acquire a bump on the head courtesy of Alan's new giant super-dooper camera and I had to navigate the course with what felt like a mild concussion...to be honest, it's all a bit of a hazey memory now!

This morning I have been communicating with the internet. I do love how you can plan your days without leaving the hotel room. Tonight we are off to the ballet...at the the Sydney Opera House - that should be very interesting, a special treat for us both. Not that either of us knows much (indeed anything) about ballet but it has to be a great thing to do here and I'm sure it will be memorable.

For the rest of the week I've booked myself for a few solo tours - an architectural walking tour of the city and a tour of the Opera House...a kind of behind the scenes look... so Wednesday is to be my day of culture. Tomorrow, I am hoping to jump on a boat and explore Manly while the sun shines.

And now...to meet my friend Kate for a cup of tea.

The Buddha Tooth Relic Temple Experience

I just wanted to remember, although I am sure I always will, a moment that occurred in the Buddhist Temple in China Town, Singapore yesterday, Wednesday 11th November. I’d been in the temple for a little while. I’d taken some photos outside in the courtyard, I’d lit my incense stick and said my prayer. I’d sat down on a chair and contemplated the huge Buddha statues in front of me, with the others who were either praying or meditating, or possibly sleeping given their slouched position, or just sitting and looking, like me.

I had got up, walked around the edge of the seating area and through to the back of the temple, one of the exits...I nearly left at that point, but something drew me back in. Thankfully. It would have been so very wrong to leave so early. So I walked back in and back through to the main part of the temple. As I walked down the side aisle that was separated from the rows of chairs, I happened to glance into the seating area and my eyes met with those of an old lady...I’m not sure if she was already praying, or looking at me, but she instantly gave me such a beautiful smile, truly one from her heart and gestured the Namaste gesture to me, bowing her head slightly. With that simple but huge gesture I was immediately filled with love. I cannot quite explain it. I felt honoured. i felt like she cared. Like she knew. Knew what I was thinking, feeling, what I’d been through lately. Good and bad. It was quite incredible and to some perhaps, unbelievable. But to me, it was a very real and pure moment and one that I will remember for years to come. I felt strength in that smile, in those eyes. Strength I could use in my life. It almost sends shivers down my spine.

Exploring Singapore

It's hot here. Very hot, especially for anyone who does not endure heat well...like me...but I think after a few days of it I am starting to acclimatize.

So, Alan is working. He heads off to the office or to meetings first thing in the morning and returns at the end of the day during which time I am left to my own devices. And, I'm pleased to report, I'm enjoying it. Of course it would be more fun if there were two of us discovering the sights together but that cannot be and I am just lucky to have this opportunity to explore...with or without a companion and I am determined to get the most out of it. Each morning I have found a place for a spot of breakfast and sit with my guide book and decide what to do with my day. So far I have been really lucky with the weather and by that I mean it has hardly rained. Until today in fact...as I sit here and type I am listening to the torrential rain, crashing of thunder and of course every so often the flashes of lightning make me jump as they light up the room.

Today is Day 3 of my solitary explorations in this city and finally I decided that it would be sensible and beneficial to take a break between 12-2pm when the sun is directly overhead and the heat of the day can be totally oppressive. I headed for the MRT station at City Hall and welcomed the over-cool coolness of the air conditioned Mall which leads to the underground train system here. Having made the decision to head back to the hotel to escape the sun I was somewhat surprised to be welcomed by puddles and grey clouds when I re-surfaced at Orchard Road. Then again not so surprised...I've been lucky after all so far this week and this was proven once more as just as I was stepping inside the hotel lobby, the heavens opened and down came the rain...

I've tried to balance my experiences and sightseeing so that I get a true flavour of Singapore but also do the stuff that interests me. On Tuesday, my first day, I decided to get to grips with the MRT system..having experienced the MTR (how confusing do they have to make it) in HK and learning how wonderful it is..how clean, efficient and safe, I suspected Singapore would be similar and thankfully I was right. Very organised and clean and even cheaper than taxis. Having navigated my first journey successfully, I made my way to the Art Museum, as according to my guide book they have free entry between 12-2pm on a weekday. Woohoo - free stuff and an escape from the midday heat! Upon entering this beautiful white building, very calm and cool with it's white walls inside and out, I soon discovered perhaps why it might be free at this time. It seems I was not alone. I counted at least 2 school parties doing the rounds. At first it appeared quite cute as I walked into one gallery and observed some young girls sitting on the floor, sketching...then the boys made their entrance and the silence was history. Stampede is the word that springs to mind. From that point on I did a pretty good job at dodging them...and it was a good experience. It was actually interesting to watch them...their excitement and energy. I emerged into the heat once more after my bit of culture for the day and took a walk in Fort Canning Park...a place steeped in history and thankfully plenty of shade from some huge trees. The noises coming from the trees was quite unnerving though...no idea what was in them but they were very loud!

Finally, my legs became weary from all the walking. Did I mention that I got a bit lost and couldn't find Fort Canning Park for what seemed like ages? I was about to give up and change direction when of course, I stumbled upon it. Having found it, of course I had to do it justice and take a decent walk around. By the time I was done I was desperately in need of a late lunch and preferably an air conditioned mall. I found both...and then I found some shopping to do...well, it's Singapore...it's hard to resist the lure and the sales are on :-)

Yesterday I decided to head for China Town. I was a bit apprehensive..just a bit..strange really having just moved to Hong Kong...but off I went, open to the experience ahead and I have to say, it was great fun. Firstly, MUCH less crowded than the streets and market stalls of Hong Kong and they smelled much better too (if I haven't mentioned it before, Hong Kong really stinks at times..a mixture of the heat and all the unusual food smells I think). So I strolled, again, in the tropical heat...through the market stalls and shops, trying to browse without getting pounced on by over-keen market vendors (I'm really not "into" bartering and bargaining) with christmas music being played in the background...yes really...O Come O Ye Faithful, in particular, seemed to be very popular. Quite a bizarre experience :-)

Once more, I seemed to get slightly lost wandering the narrow streets but thankfully you can't go too wrong, it's really not that big and I finally found the temple I had been looking for. The Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum. Wow. I've been in a few buddhist temples recently having visited the Land of the Medicine Buddha for some yoga training and of course being in this part of the world, you do stumble upon such things quite easily but this has to be my most inspiring so far. It was immaculate and the energy of the place seemed calmer, purer than others I'd been in. With so many tourists pouring in I found it amazing that there was this sense of calm within these walls. I spent some time in there and also visited the free (yes that was mentioned in the guide book too) museum upstairs which housed the story of Buddha and displayed some wonderful relics. That was definitely the spiritual high of my day. Quite a place.

Last night, Alan and I did what all good tourists do in Singapore. That's right, we went to The Long Bar at Raffles Hotel and had a Singapore Sling, ate peanuts and threw the shells on the floor :-) When in Singapore..... it simply has to be done. We arrived by taxi and pulled up at the front of the prestigious Raffles Hotel...a truly spectacular sight. All floodlit and of course the christmas decorations are already up but that only adds to the splendour of the place. Not sure the pennies would stretch to dinner at Raffles given that we could not even bring ourselves to have that second cocktail in The Long Bar, so we moved on to a wonderful italian restaurant called Oso and enjoyed an extremely impressive meal there, complete without outdoor dining on the balcony. Quite a memory.

Today I was on a mission to "find" the Esplanade. This had been on my list for Tuesday but after the "losing" of Fort Canning Park I didn't quite make it, so this morning I returned to the Raffles complex and popped in to the Ah Tengs Bakery for a rather good coffee and danish, which made up for the disappointing atmosphere and the rather rude sound of drilling which I found particularly amusing, given that I was so glad to escape that very sound this week in our apartment back in HK....and from there made my way to The Esplanade on foot, via the War Memorial Park where once again I met up with a school party. I'm amazed how often children both here and in Hong Kong get outside for their lessons!

Thankfully everything was well signposted and I made it safely via the underpasses, escalators, bridges...and finally emerged by the river and finally got my shots of the opera house and the Merlion. Unfortunately I am struggling with photo downloading this week but at some point I will post some photos too. It was touristy here but again not too crowded and I managed to find a Starbucks under a cool shady bridge where I was able to indulge in a refreshing iced cappuccino whilst listening to jazz and take a moment to review the morning's photographs. Nice.

Finally, that brings me up to date. The rain has stopped. Next I should pick out a place for us to eat this evening and get our reservation made for Little India tomorrow night, before we fly out to Sydney at midnight!

Kuala Lumpur

On this cloudy Monday I find myself in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was not on the agenda when we left Hong Kong on Saturday, until the very last minute...a last minute business meeting for Alan, not me of course! Another decision to make. Should I go with him for this 24hr detour or stay in the hotel in Singapore..alone? It was a close call really. I'd been in Singapore 24 hours already and was starting to get a feel for the place, and it certainly does feel like a relatively safe place to be a tourist..and a solitary female one at that. However...here was an opportunity to see another part of Malaysia, albeit in a whirlwind kind of way and to keep Alan close by. Either way, I was going to be alone in either KL or Singapore for a day while Alan attended a full day of meetings, so it didn't really seem to matter. The fact that we finally agreed I'd be better off in Singapore is irrelevant now because meanwhile Alan's assistant confirmed the flights anyway...right at the end of the day when we had no other option than to stick with them :-) So...fate it seems wanted me to be here. I'm not entirely sure why because I haven't really taken this opportunity to explore today but I'm sure it's in my best interests somewhere along the line. I have had a rather pleasant, leisurely day though. I indulged in a much needed lie-in, in a most comfortable Hilton bed and then made my way to the hotel gym. Not at all shabby either and although I'm not a big gym fan, I enjoyed a pretty good work out on some up-to-the-minute equipment, watching CNN of course. It's just what you do here. Maybe it's what you do in all gyms..to be honest, I'm not a regular so I wouldn't know.

I had been planning to follow my strenuous activity with a little relaxation by the rather lovely pool complete with waterfall, poolside bar...cocktails, you know the sort of thing. However it seems the weather had other ideas and I watched from my cross trainer as the rain literally blew in and put an end to that particular plan. Ah well...that's fine. A spot of lunch in Caffe Cino (or something like that) was welcome...in particular, a rather good cappuccino that I have not been able to get my hands on for a few days now. I settled down to continue reading my Singapore guide book and plan my week ahead. Both the solitary bits (the daytime) and the evenings when I would be reunited with Alan. Seemed like a perfectly good use of my time. Around me sat people mainly engaged in business conversation. Various cultures. Interesting to observe the differences.

Now, back in the hotel room...the rain is really going for it. Just had a few flashes of lightning and crashes of thunder and the rain is beating against the window. The view is of grey...lots of grey.

A perfect time to blog...and draw up my Singapore itinerary, through til midnight on Friday, when we head onwards to Sydney, Australia. Life could be worse.

Hiking in Tai Tam Country Park

Last weekend we went hiking in Tai Tam Country Park. Before we left home, we consulted the Leisurely Hiking Guide and selected a Sunday walk. It started out very comfortably and although steep in places the pathways were very civilised and our route was full of families of all ages doing the same thing. We strolled. After an hour we reached the end of the path and bearing in mind this had been pitched in the book as a 3hr walk, I was somewhat surprised and not quite satisfied! I was expecting more...so we took a look at the park map and decided to take a different route back. Something a little more challenging. OK...something a lot more challenging, as it turned out! Challenging but fabulous! The return took about 3 hours I think...and it was a completely different terrain. The pathway was steep and rocky. At times it resembled a dry river bed more than a foot path which is pretty accurate actually given the weather here. A few months ago we would not have been doing this walk as our path would have been replaced by a river rushing down from the mountains, I have no doubt about that!

This particular day though it was dry, not a spot of rain in sight and all the young families seemed to have disappeared. It was a while before we met any other hikers. The views were stunning. It was a little hazy as is often seems to be here but this did not detract from the beauty of our surroundings.

Quite incredible to think that we took a 15 minute taxi ride from home to get to the start point for this walk.