Crystal and I have been out on the adventure tourist circuit of HK, which is great because most of it is new for both of us. Yesterday's adventure was Lantau Island, which is one of HK's many islands. This area is much less developed than central city, but is still home to big activities like Disneyland and the "Big Buddah." My favorite destination of the afternoon was the small fishing village on the far western shore of the island - Tai O. It's all very touristy, but still quaint and fun. I've enjoyed getting away from the noise and commotion of downtown for a day.
I could very easily move to Hong Kong, if not for one thing: the horrifically poor air quality. For the last two days all the locals have been looking up at the sky and noting "What beautiful weather we're having!" I look at the same jaundiced-yellow sky and see nothing but hot exhaust fumes poisoning my lungs. Apparently it had been raining for the better part of two weeks before I arrived, and so this brief bit of 'sunshine' is about as good as it gets. On the plus side, it changes day-to-day as the costal winds ebb and flow. It's a lot like SF in some respects - this morning a warm fog rolled in over the hills, while the day before that had been clear and cool. Apparently the air is actually quite clean here when compared to Bejing and Shanghai. In these cities people note that you must clean your nose multiple times per day, usually resulting in a disgusting black slime being discharged. People have totally just normalized this, and go about their day. WAAAHHH????
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