Just getting over jet lag...

I've been here a few days now, and every day I feel a little more comfortable and familiar with things. I can now successfully take the KCR railway from the hotel to the school by myself.

Tonight I met with my roommate, Caroline, and we went to sign our lease and see the apartment. We are living in a high-rise complex that comes with a pool, tennis courts, security guard, gym, playground, etc. The two main kinds of housing here seem to be village housing and complexes. Village housing comes with less amenities, is usually unfurnished, and is less convenient to things, but you have the luxery of more space for less cost, as well as a bit more privacy. Well, as much privacy as you can have in a city of 8 million people.

I really liked our apartment, and it was fairly large for Hong Kong standards. I'll have my own bathroom and two tiny bedrooms, one for a bed and one for a desk and chair. It is new and clean with granite counters and lacquered wooden floors. I'll post pictures when I figure out how to do that.

Last night, I went out with the other "single" teachers. I didn't realize that I would be part of that distinguished class, as it never seemed to be much of an issue in Denver, but I am definitely designated as such here. We ventured out to eat and decided to go to the far end of the rail that we are near. We ended up near the border of Kowloon, where it seemed like a different city...it reminded me of pictures of Times Square. The public transit and stations there were immacuately clean, as well. We ate dinner and took the Star Ferry across to Hong Kong island, which cost about 30cents to take. I have really never been in a city this big with buildings and lights and busyness and shopping and people speaking 20 different languages all around you. It was quite an experience, and I'm excited to go back again.

Tomorrow consists of more touring and adjusting, with the focus being on the major forms of public transit and visiting Victoria Peak. Public transit is relatively inexpensive here, and I'll be able to save quite a bit of money with that!

Another thing I'm loving here is the Octopus card, which is how you pay for transportation. It can be used at any pubic transit, including the railway, trains, subway, buses, 7-11 and some other stores, I think. It's also a "Smart Card", so you can just keep your card in your wallet or purse, and scan your entire bag without removing your card. My Hong Kong ID card will also be like that, I believe for use with some security and at libraries and other public facilities. In some ways, Denver is starting to look a little more like a po-dunk town in comparison!

I've arrived

Here I am, in my hotel room, overlooking a sea of people hurrying their way through the HOT streets of Hong Kong. I arrived safely, with the only inconvenience being that I left my eyeglasses on the plane. (which are now at the airport, waiting for me to pick up).

I woke up at 5am and when the sun rose, I could watch people out doing Tai Chi on the patio and sidewalks of the street.

I didn't expect Hong Kong to be so beautiful, but everywhere I look, there is greenery and mountains, and water. The buildings are tall and imposing, but most everything seems to be connected somehow so that you don't have to walk around outside in the heat.

Tomorrow is when my official schedule and job begins, with a chest x-ray, opening up a bank account, and getting a Hong Kong ID card (like a driver's license).

My first day here was a free day, and we had the option of meeting up in the morning to tour around, which I did. Shopping seems to be a favorite pasttime here, and we toured two malls. We spent a long time looking at the cell phone options, which I didn't expect to get for a while, but plans run about 10-20$ a month. Malls also seem to be where people do a lot of eating, which is also relatively cheap, and provides many options. Being proficient using chopsticks has been a great advantage already.

Today was fairly laid-back, but things will get more busy from here on out. I need to get over jet lag soon!