minimunchkin: Jam-packed January

January went by in a flash. Things took off the minute we got home from Melbourne. Shad went back to work, Ryan went back to school, and I once again became chauffeur to a very busy four and a half year old. Times really are different, I don't remember having half as many activities and play dates when I was his age. But then again, I guess I should point the finger back at myself, and my other half too of course, after all we were the ones who signed him up for swimming, taekwondo, science club, mandarin club... Living here, it's difficult not to get caught up in the "kiasu" Hong Kong parenting environment since more often than not, when you speak to another parent, you'll hear about their child being enrolled in endless number of enrichment programs. Having said this, I certainly hope that we have not fallen into that trap. Ryan seems to enjoy all the extra-curricular activities that he attends so far. For him it's all about play and he attends each activity with a different friend so it's like having a playdate with a different friend each time. So I guess, until the day he complains about not wanting to go, I will continue to be chauffeur to my pint size boss!

Those of you who know us know that we can never stay away from the beach for too long. So even though we came back to Hong Kong in the middle of winter, we still managed to sneak in a trip to South Bay on one one of those few "warm" winter days.

Digging in the dirt

Free foot scrub service :)

Unfortunately this "si fu" is not very professional, started to scrub his own foot 2 mins later!

We also caught with some friends who were holidaying in Hong Kong. That's the nice thing about living here, there are always people passing through and dropping by for a visit.

It was lovely to see my kids getting along so well with my (rightfully my sister's friend who also became my friend as I grew older) childhood friend's children from Singapore

Always wonderful to see Uncle Chris here from California but we missed Auntie Sharon and little Peter

It has been some time since we used our Ocean Park annual passes so we took advantage of a nice sunny day and brought the kids there with some other friends. As usual, the place was packed with Chinese tourists and after a couple of hours of jostling with ill mannered people, we decided that we'd had enough. Still, the kids had a good time watching the dolphins, riding the cable car and going through the underground aquarium.

Waiting for the dolphins to make their appearance

The stars of the show

Hong Kong has some great walking trails but most of them are in the New Territories or on many of the smaller islands. Even with a car, getting to them is always a challenge since they are a fair drive away and often require an additional mini bus or a ferry/sampan ride. We've been fortunate enough to explore some of these hard-to-get-to places thanks to our friends who have their own boat. Hiking is so much more enjoyable when you get picked up at the end of the walk rather than having to double back to the starting point! This time we went to the south west corner of Lantau Island and hiked up to Fan Lau Fort. This fort was built in 1729 and was once occupied by pirates. It was retaken by government troops after the pirates surrendered to the Qing government in 1810.

Start of the trail

Mama did all the hard work while little Missy slept most of the way

Happy hiker

Three cheeky boys doing their favourite thing - jumping out to frighten the adults as we walk past

Conquerors of the fort

Navigating a way down

Finally sleeping beauty is up

Leading the way home

After our hike, we stopped by Tai O for lunch. Can't believe we've been in Hong Kong for four years and have not been to this place. The fact that it is only accessible by boat or a one-hour bus ride from either Mui Wo or Tung Chung is probably the reason why we haven't ventured out here before. Tai O is home to the Tanka people, a fishing community who have built their homes on stilts for generations. Unfortunately the fishing lifestyle is slowly dying out and the village has now become a popular tourist spot.