Social Solitude

Yes, it has been noisy here lately, in the apartment. The rooftop work is a bit erratic and some days it's been almost bearable, once you get used to the background rumblings and on other days, like yesterday for example, it can feel like someone is drilling through YOUR roof. I was sure they were coming through yesterday. Anyway, the good news is work is due to complete for the beginning of next week, fingers crossed.

I promised myself on my last blog entry that this would be a good opportunity to get out and about and do some hikes and be a tourist. It's actually a great time for both of the above and the weather is perfect for hiking. Most days are dry and the sun usually makes an appearance at some point in the day and temperatures jump between 10 and 18 degrees centigrade. And best of all, no obvious humidity! I should really be making the most of these days, once it hots up and the humidity kicks in, I will not want to be hiking out there.

So today I joined the AWA on an "easy hike" which by the way, wasn't. It did however reward us with some fabulous views both of the city and the rural, unspoilt side of the island. The mist was still hovering in the early morning sun. It was beautiful.

It was a fairly large group today, which you'd think would make it very social. Maybe for some it was. In fact I am pretty sure it was for most. For me though, not really. It's interesting how events like this can present two possible reactions. It can be really good to meet new people, in the same situation as you, in a strange country, learning new things, experiencing the same obstacles and challenges and it can feel so good to share and talk and realise "you are not the only one". It's very therapeutic. It was like that last week when I joined another excursion to a monastery, followed by a group lunch. Today though, despite all the women in the same boat as me, I felt lonely. Maybe because they actually weren't in the same boat as me today. Most of them were meeting "old" friends there and as they excitedly caught up with each other, discussing what they did over christmas, talking about the latest happenings with their children and their schooling and the hired help, it wasn't easy to join in the conversations. I had a couple of nice conversations with some nice people but as it always will be on these occasions, especially when you are brand new to a group, the conversation was a bit superficial, and you're hiking up hills, huffing and puffing, so you naturally want to keep it short and to the point...or maybe that's just me.

Anyway, I could ramble on, but my point is that I found myself pulling back from the crowd and simply enjoying the view and the hike. It was more like a guided walk than a social walk today, and that was OK. Of course it got me thinking though, about my friends. Far away friends. I am very lucky to have the friends I have and with the wonders of email and skype I'm still very much in touch with many of them but there is nothing quite like meeting up with a good friend, in the flesh, and looking them in the eye as you speak! Yes, I know that's an obvious thing to say, but I don't have that luxury right now, and today I felt it. Probably didn't help that Alan is away this week too, so it's just Me, here in Hong Kong. It's quite surreal at times.

I wonder how it will feel next week.