Travel: Hong Kong, Part 1

Hong Kong!

I finally got to see the self-styled Asia's World City. I went up for work on a Thursday and stayed the weekend earlier in October. It was a nice change of pace from Singapore, as the weather was just a bit cooler, almost Fall-like. At least to someone used to the tropical heat of the Lion City.

You fly into the nine-year-old Hong Kong International Airport on Chek Lap Kok island, west of Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. The airport opened in 1998, replacing the old Kai Tak Airport located in Kowloon, amid densely populated land and surrounded by not insignificant hills. HKIA is beautiful, and it really is nice to fly there from Singapore's Changi Airport, because you travel between two of the cleanest, most efficient, most modern airports in the world.

Of course, one of the most beautiful sights at HKIA is the Krispy Kreme inside the main terminal building, near the Airport Express train.


My first stop was Cathay City near the airport, headquarters of Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific and its sister airline DragonAir. In front of the HQ building sits an old Cathay Pacific DC-3. It is a beautiful plane, and although I didn't get a picture, I included one here.


After my meeting, I headed into the city on the Airport Express (after stopping at Krispy Kreme), the high speed train that makes two stops before terminating at Hong Kong Island's Central Terminal. The train is a modern, very comfortable ride that cuts your travel time to the city to about 20 minutes. Once there, I jumped into a cab to my hotel in Causeway Bay.


My first ride in a Hong Kong cab, on my way to my meeting, was distinctly different than what the experience at Central. Cathay City is on Lantau, and only blue cabs can take you there. These mirror the outlying island's slower pace, as I waited more than 25 minutes in the humidity (not as bad as Singapore, but not quite as cool and dry as it would get later in my stay) before one pulled up for my leisurely two-kilometre ride to Cathay City. Hong Kong and Kowloon are served by the red cabs, which are more in line with the hustle and bustle of the city. As we pulled out from the station, I was struck by how much the city reminded me of Chicago. It is built up right to the edge of the harbor, and hurtling from Central towards Causeway Bay on the freeway brought back great memories of Lake Shore Drive. It really is a mix of Chicago and San Francisco, however, as a glance to the right revealed the hilly streets dotted with residences, shops, restaurants, and bars that lead up to the Mid-Levels, where many Hong Kong residents live (and which is served by the largest escalator system in the world - more on that later). It was fantastic.

Luckily, the hotel was within a block of an MTR station. The MTR is a clean and efficient way to get around the city, both Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. I dropped off my bags and headed out for a look around. I decided to get off in Wan Chai, knowing I would find a mix of decent pubs and hostess bars (which you want to avoid, unless you like your money flying out of your pocket for the "privilege" of talking to one of the hostesses). I was able to defend myself against a few very aggressive door-women (they literally try to drag you in) and found a couple of ex-pat pubs, one where a middle-aged American was loudly discussing the merits of 80s rock before accompanying Stairway to Heaven (on the bar's stereo) as loudly and off-key as possible, and the other offering a quieter atmosphere as well as quality music. It was here that I found myself in a Hong Kong bar listening to the Highwaymen. Not a bad experience.

But, I wanted to get some rest before my two days in Hong Kong started, so I was back to the hotel at a reasonable hour.

Mid-Autumn Festival

Singapore is a city of festivals in the Fall. The first of three (Hungry Ghost not included) is the Mid-Autumn Festival, which is celebrated in China and east Asia, falling on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month (September). It is also known as the Moon Festival and, in Singapore, as the Lantern Festival or the Mooncake Festival. It is the second most important holiday in the Chinese calendar, after the Lunar New Year.

The festival falls on or near the Autumnal Equinox, and it celebrates the abundance of the harvest. The moon plays an important role in Chinese society, and it is supposedly at its brightest when full during the festival.

The festival has a history dating back more than 3,000 years. It is associated with several versions of a legend of the archer Hou Yi and his wife Chang Er. One has the skilled archer shooting down nine of the ten suns that orbit the Earth at the behest of the Emperor (each sun would cross the sky once every ten days, but one day, they all appeared in the sky, burning the Earth). He was rewarded with a pill that contained the elixir of everlasting life, but Chang Er found it and consumed it. It gave her the ability to fly, and she flew to the moon, much to Hou Yi's dismay. Hou Yi was granted a home in the sun, and once a year the gods allow the two to meet. That is during the full moon of the Mid-Autumn Festival. The moon and the sun here also represent the female and male principles of Yin and Yang. Legend has it that if you look at the full moon, you can see Chang Er's celestial companion, a hare with a pestle, working on an antidote to allow her to return to Hou Yi.



To celebrate, families give mooncakes to their relatives. These are dense round cakes made with lotus and often containing duck eggs. They provide a mix of sweet and salty. They also served a practical purpose, at least in legend. It is said that in the 14th Century, during Mongol rule of China when group gatherings of Chinese were banned, mooncakes that were distributed as part of the festival contained messages to the Chinese rebels (the Mongols did not eat moon cakes) stating the time of uprising during the festival. The Mongols were defeated, ushering in the rule of the Ming Dynasty. This is not necessarily supported by historical record, but it has become a part of the lore of the festival.

As part of the festival, a display is put up in Chinatown with models of various temples, churches, and other places of worship throughout the world. I am not sure the connection (other than that the models are essentially very large lanterns), but I have included some pictures. I will leave you to identify each one.

Hungry Ghost Month

I am beginning to miss Autumn in the States, especially when I see that night NFL games are being played in 50 degree (Fahrenheit) weather. But, Singapore has a number of Autumn festivals to help divert my attention from this. Currently, we are at the end of Hungry Ghost Month/Festival. The Chinese believe that the seventh lunar month is a time when spirits of the dead come back to earth, and they make all kinds of offerings to please them. Among these is a burning of (fake) money. Throughout the city during the last few weeks, I could see people burning the money over makeshift bonfires. Sometimes, I would just come across a smoldering pile of paper. As part of the festivities/offerings, Chinese street opera troupes stage colorful performances of Chinese legends. In Singapore, performances called Getai are staged during Hungry Ghost Festival, performed to appease the ghosts and entertain the living. I am in search of one of these performances before the month is over.

Haw Par Villa

In the early part of the last century, two Burmese Chinese brothers introduced to Asia a product called Tiger Balm, which is a heat rub that was developed by their father. Tiger Balm made the two brothers, Aw Boon Haw and Aw Boon Par, very rich (actually, the elder brother Boon Haw ran the company, and Boon Par worked for him). Boon Haw was quite a character - a generous philanthropist who was also quite flamboyant. As part of his Tiger Balm identity, he drove an old Buick that had been outfitted with a large tiger head across the bonnet, with red eyes and steam coming out of its mouth.


The two made Singapore their home territory, and Boon Haw built his brother a large estate on several hilly acres along the west coast (actually, the western part of the south coast). Today, the area is called Haw Par Villa Tiger Balm Gardens, a landscaped theme park that features huge monuments to the brothers and their parents as well as thousands of statues and figurines in recreations of Chinese myths and legends. There are stories of spider demons that turn themselves into beautiful women to tempt travelers, heroes that cross oceans and mountains on grand quests, and a number of battles pitting good versus evil. The main attraction, however, is the recreation of the Ten Courts of Hell. I mentioned this in my post on the Jade Emperor Pagoda in Saigon, but it is here that the Ten Courts really come to life. Each court features a stern-looking judge, and a list of the sins for which you (dearly) pay accompanies each scene. Things like robbery, cheating, adultery, lying,...you name it, it is there. And woe to you if you committed one of these. You are lashed to burning hot copper pipes, thrown into boiling oil, disembowled, frozen, thrown onto sharpened stakes (in some scenes, there are lookout towers where your earthly relatives are forced to watch your punishment). All of this is graphically displayed, which is morbidly cool. I think it is a good place to take a wayward child who doesn't seem to respond to any other discipline - there certainly were a lot of kids in there.


The gardens also feature beautiful ponds and walkways, and it is a nice, peaceful, out-of-the-way destination in the city. Singapore has all kinds of places like this, but you have to look just off the beaten path.

A note on names: in China, the surname comes first, so the brothers' family name was Aw. The first given name is usually the same for all children of the same generation, thus the Boon name for each brother. It is the second given name that is unique to the person: Haw and Par. The park's name is a combination of their two unique given names.

Travel: Saigon, Part 5

The war is a big part of Saigon's recent history, but the city offers many other fascinating sights and experiences. Instead of heading to the Cu Chi Tunnels, the vast network of underground tunnels constructed and occupied by the Viet Cong just a few kilometres outside the city (where the tours feature a chance to shoot AK-47s for a buck a bullet), I decided to stay in the city and explore. After the museum, I went in search of a little restaurant my guide book listed as the Indian Canteen, tucked back behind the the city's Central Mosque. It took me a couple of times passing the mosque to actually go in - I am still not completely comfortable with entering mosques and temples where I have little knowledge of the protocol. But, I was determined. As you walk all the way around the building, a small alleyway opens into a large eating space, with a dozen tables and several dishes simmering on a large central stove. It was around 5.00 pm, and I was the only one there, but I got a great meal of chicken with curry, rice, vegetables, and Indian bread.

The next day, I planned to get up early and go for a run. Good thing, as I was awakened at around 7 am to the strains of Buddhist chants being amplified throughout the central district. I think some monks had set up their equipment at the Municipal Theatre directly across from my hotel. I went for my run, which may have done more damage than good, given the city's pollution levels, and by the time I returned to the hotel, the music had turned into a full blow military concert. A uniformed band was playing marches for a crowd of onlookers consisting of many cyclo and taxi drivers. In between songs, a young Vietnamese woman would come forward and announce (I guess) the next song. She wore the traditional ao dai (pronounced, "ao zhai"), which is the national dress of Vietnam. It consists of a form-fitting tunic with long panels in the front and back, worn over loose trousers. It is a very graceful ensemble. I include a picture of the spokeswoman here.



After a very Western breakfast in my hotel, in the nicely restored courtyard, I decided to try a cyclo ride. It all starts with a protracted negotiation, usually after a cyclo driver (or several) aggressively approaches you. Once my driver and I had decided on a price, I jumped into the seat, putting my safety in his hands. My driver took me through the crazy traffic of the city - bicycles, motorbikes and scooters, cars, and trucks - to the Jade Emperor Pagoda. Along the way, he pointed out the sights, which included the old U.S. embassy, across the street from the current version, which was the site of the famous scene of the helicopter taking off amid the throng, whisking the last Americans to safety as the war ended. The ride was a bit harrowing, but he knew what he was doing and got me there safely.

The Jade Emperor Pagoda was built by the Cantonese community in 1909, and it is a spectacularly colorful temple filled with statues of "phantasmal divinities and grotesque heroes", as my guidebook states. The monks of the temple were conducting worship when I arrived, with loud chanting and ritualistic burning of joss sticks. I wandered through the hallways to the main sanctuary where the Taoist Jade Emperor (the King of Heaven) presides. He is flanked by the Four Big Diamonds, his guardians, as well as several other Taoist deities, many of them menacing in their appearance and (I suppose) demeanor. On either side of the central altar are two especially fierce figures - the general who defeated the Green Dragon (pictured) and the general who defeated the White Tiger. These statues are more than four metres tall!



Side chambers hold all kinds of other worship areas and statues, but I found one in particular quite interesting. The Hall of Ten Hells features ten carved wooden panels that graphically depict the torments awaiting evil people in the Ten Regions of Hell. At the top of each panel, the Judge of the Region examines a book in which the deeds of the dead are inscribed. Below him are pretty nasty scenes of torture. I won't go into detail, but just know that you don't want to live a bad life. Interestingly, there is a "theme park" in Singapore that has more graphic depictions of the Ten Regions. I just visited the park and will share some of the pictures in another entry.

The temple is like so many others you see in Asia - they seem to spring out of neighborhoods where you would never expect, ornate islands in the middle of retail areas, residences, or even skyscrapers. They offer nice respites from the hustle and bustle of their cities.

On my way back, I had to stop to try a local beer. I had read about Vietnam's tradition of bia hoi (draft beer) or bia tuoi (fresh beer). This is brewed and delivery daily to drinking establishments through the country, and since it does not contain preservatives, it is meant to be enjoyed immediately. Not only soon after its arrival, but also in one gulp - "Tram pha tram!" means 100 percent or bottoms up, and that is the signal to empty the glass. I think this tradition is more prevalent in Hanoi and the north, because I did not see any bia hoi signs. But, I did try some of the local brew. Saigon has two local brands, 333 (ba ba ba) and Saigon Export, and Larue Export is a French holdover from central Vietnam. Each is light and refreshing, a must in the tropical heat. Be careful if you try to order a 333 in local language, however. Depending on how you say it, ba ba ba can mean 333 or 3 old women.

One last visit to Ben Thanh market allowed me to buy my coffee and the single cup filter, which I have used often. It is a bit of a pain to clean, but the coffee is delicious (and keeps me awake for two days). I also had another bowl of pho at Pho 2000 across from the market. Bill Clinton visited there during the last few days of his presidency in 2000, and there are pictures of him with the staff all over the restaurant. I hope he did not choose to put all the chillies in the soup, like I did. At one point, I got lightheaded from the heat and had to stop eating for a minute! What a great way to clear one's head. After that, it was a bit more exploring and a viewing of the Formula One race, which is shown on regular broadcast TV in many places in Asia, not on a premium sports channel.

An early flight on Monday cut short my visit, but I packed in a lot in just under 48 hours. It only stoked my fascination of the country, and I realize that there is much more to see, not only in the south, but north in Hanoi and in parts in between. I hope to visit the country many times while I am over here, and I would recommend to anyone who wants to see a mix of ancient and recent history and experience a wonderful culture and vibrant people, visit Vietnam.

Travel: Saigon, Remembering the War

The War Remants Museum in Saigon provides a stark reminder of the effect the "American War", as it is called, has had on Vietnam over the past forty years. Originally known as the Museum of Chinese and American War Crimes, its name was changed recently so as not to offend tourists from those countries (apparently, this was lost on the group that named the new series of golf courses that runs from the north to the south of the country the "Ho Chi Minh Golf Trail").



Aside from an actual U.S. base, I have never seen so much U.S. military equipment in one location. There were tanks, armored troop carriers, howitzers, helicopters, propeller- and jet planes, guns and ammunition. And there was propaganda.

As expected, this is a one-sided exhibition. In reality, you can look at it as a passionate statement on the horrors of war. There were accounts of well-known atrocities, as well as illustrations of the effects of the widespread use of napalm, Agent Orange, and other weapons. Pictures of terrible deformities were bad enough - but the preserved fetuses really brought the message home. There are many there who still bear the consequences of the war today, both physical and economic. After seeing the museum, I wondered if the disabled beggars in the streets were victims of the war. Some surely were. But, there is another group that may still suffer. Apparently, cyclo drivers, the pilots of the bicycle/rickshaw vehicles where the passenger sits in a seat in front of the bike, count among their population trained doctors and lawyers and other professionals who sided with South Vietnam during the war and were unable to find work after. This is a sad story in itself, although one I read about only - I didn't ask any of the numerous cyclo drivers I saw.

There was no mention of the Hanoi Hilton or any practices of the NVA and Viet Cong. There were replicas of the "tiger cages" the South Vietnamese used to house and torture their prisoners. Pretty brutal stuff. And there was even a guillotine, which was used by the French until their ouster in 1954, and that looked all too operational and none too secure (in fact, I'm pretty sure that with a quick turn of a screw, you could have thrown a party like it was 1789 again).

I am not going to get on a political soapbox here, and I knew exactly what to expect, but the museum is very biased. I do have to mention the clever use of a quote from the Declaration of Independence, "...that all men were created equal...", accompanying a pretty gruesome picture of death and destruction. I didn't expect fair treatment of the NVA or Viet Cong. I do wonder this, however. Much is said about the actions of the U.S. during a 10 year war. What about the preceding century and a half of colonial rule that was characterized by systematic oppression, destruction, and abuse of the local population and resources? I guess that is old history.


After the museum, I thought I would skip the Reunification Palace. But, I decided to visit the next day, and I was glad I did. The palace is a grand building that housed the government of the Republic of Vietnam, before it ceased to exist in April, 1975.

The first communist tanks that arrived in Saigon on the last day of that month headed straight towards this building, smashing through its gates with little resistance. This moment was captured on camera and shown throughout the world (I have posted a copy of that picture from the palace's small museum and a picture of those same gates as they look today). A soldier immediately ran up four flights of stairs to unfurl the VC flag from the fourth floor balcony. Meanwhile, in an ornate reception room on the second floor, the head of the Republic of Vietnam (who had been in office for only 43 hours) waited patiently with his cabinet. When the VC officer entered the room, the president said, "I have been waiting since early this morning to transfer power to you." In response, the VC officer said, "There is no question of your transferring power. You cannot give up what you did not have." And with that, the war was over.

The building is preserved pretty much as it was that day. It is open and airy, with spacious chambers, high ceilings and lots of natural light. The first two floors contain large formal meeting rooms that are tastefully decorated in that "modern" '60s style, with offices and a library on the third floor. The fourth floor is the roof, where the VC flag was unfurled. It provides a panoramic view of the city - probably not such a great view to its inhabitants in the Spring of '75.

The basement is altogether different. This was the command center. There are a couple of big maprooms, with maps on the wall that reflect troop positions and movements. I couldn't read the Vietnamese, but they appeared to show the encroachment of the NVA and VC, painting a portrait of imminent defeat.


The palace was known by many different names. The original building, constructed in 1868, was known as Norodom Palace. After the French left, it served as the home for the South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem. He was so hated by his people, however, that his own air force bombed the palace in 1962 in an unsuccessful attempt to kill him. He ordered it rebuilt (with a sizeable bomb shelter in the basement), and it was completed in 1966. Diem, however, never saw the finished work, as he was killed by his own troops in 1963. You would think he would have learned a lesson. For the next nine years, the palace was known as Independence Palace or the Presidential Palace.

As I have mentioned before, Vietnam combines an ancient past you find anywhere in Asia with a recent history that is familiar to almost everyone of a certain (youngish) age. I am glad I got to visit these two sites, because they really made that come alive.

Travel: Saigon, Part 3

I started my walk in Pham Ngu Lao, an area popular with backpackers southwest of District 1. I sometimes get a little obsessive about following the guidebooks, and I was determined to find the exact start of the walking tour. Turns out there really isn't an exact start - you just begin in the Pham Ngu Lao area. Which I eventually did. First, however, I stepped out of the rain (and my plastic rain cover - street-bought for 20 cents - which seemed to increase my body temperature about 10 degrees) for another cup of coffee. It was my fourth of the day, but the first two were on my early flight while the third was with my breakfast. So, this really was the first indulgent cup of the day.

Vietnamese coffee is superb. The beans are roasted in butter (oh, the joy!), and the traditional way of preparing it is a cup at a time, using a stainless steel filter that sits atop the coffee cup itself. Because of the strength of the coffee (oh, such happiness!), it is often served as "white coffee", or with sweetened, condensed milk. A generous layer of thick milk is poured into the coffee cup, over which the filter containing the coffee grounds is placed, after which the hot water is poured in. The filter allows the water to very slowly pass through the ground beans and into the cup. Once the filter is empty, you remove it to find a steaming, black cup of coffee. A gentle stir of the spoon lifts the condensed milk from the depths of the cup, and you have a very sweet, very strong, delicious cup of coffee.

Vietnam features several fine types of coffee beans. I bought two kinds (along with a filter) at the huge Ben Thanh market (see below). They fill my little kitchen with the aroma of strong, strong coffee. Even those who don't like the taste of coffee would find the smell appealing. One of the most famous types of beans, a package of which came back to Singapore with me, is Chon, or weasel coffee. These beans are supposedly fed to special weasels and then collected from their excrement. I don't care how they get it, the coffee is fantastic. It was the most aromatic cup of coffee I have ever tried. So good is it that I had it straight up, not "white" or with sugar. I am hooked.

After my coffee break and a nice chat with two Brits who were spending the seven weeks before their move from England to Vancouver motorbiking through Vietnam, I finally took off on my walking tour. The first stop was to be a bar called Lost in Saigon, which is featured in several different portions of my Lonely Planet guide. Apparently, Lonely Planet hasn't been drinking in Saigon lately, as Lost in Saigon was closed about two years ago. I found the location with its washed-out sign, but its days of providing for thirsty patrons were over.

My walk took me northeast towards the Saigon River and to Ben Thanh Market, a huge indoor marketplace.
Built in 1914 and known to the French as Les Halles Centrales, the central cupola is 28 metres in diameter. And they pack a lot of stuff into the place. You can get anything from meals and drinks to prepared food to coffee to t-shirts to bespoke suits to souvenirs (and those ship models). The vendors are quite aggressive, and the place is very crowded, but if you are in the mood to shop, here is your place. Combined with outdoor markets in the surrounding streets, you are sure to find something of interest.

Not wanting to carry around any purchases, I left empty-handed and continued towards the river. The next stop was the Fine Arts Museum, which features art from across Vietnam. The pieces were as diverse as the country's landscape, featuring pastoral village scenes, representations of life centered around the water, and the energy of the bustling cities, as well as beautiful portraits of friends and family and a number of war-themed works. The building provides a nice setting for the art, with its classic yellow facade, high ceilings, and open walkways that looked out onto a central courtyard, which is used mainly as a parking area and badminton court. It is also quite functional as a shelter from a downpour.

The museum also houses an old, free-standing elevator, which essentially is a wooden box mounted on two rails and lifted by two rather thin-looking cables. It doesn't appear to have been used recently, but the car itself was in good condition.



Once the rain subsided, I was back out. My walk took me past street markets, grand old hotels and municipal buildings, and wide avenues that would look at home in the great cities of Europe, as I wound my way to the Notre Dame Cathedral. This neo-Romanesque structure features two square towers that climb 40 metres above street level. A large statue of the Virgin Mary presides over the square in front of the church. Inside, it is massive, with tributes along each wall to Vietnamese saints. Perhaps unique to this country, the statue of Christ inside featured a neon halo above his head. It was an interesting mix of classic and (gaudy?) modern.


Across the street is the old French-style post office, which was built in the late 1880s, about the same time as the cathedral. This still operates as the main post office in Saigon, and it was where I mailed my postcards. Interestingly, the cards I mailed from Saigon reached their destinations in much shorter times than cards mailed from Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur. Communist efficiency?




Leaving the post office meant leaving the older, colonial history of the city behind for a while. It was time to turn to more recent history, that which for so many of you readers is much more familiar.