(11/20/2022)
I went on a trip with some people from my dorm hall to Tai O, a fishing village, today. It was a two-hour trip out to the village, split between two bus rides, but it was definitely worth the trip.
After arriving, we had lunch. And if I had to say which meal has been the best meal I’ve had so far in Hong Kong, this would definitely be among the top ones to come to mind. There was a fried rice dish; a beef with rice noodles dish; calamari; a dish with pineapple and chicken; a beef and bell pepper dish; and then a noodle dish which I think may be chicken in a sauce on top.
We didn’t really talk at all during the meal, we just alternated reaching across the table for food, but it was delicious. One interesting cultural difference that came up was where one was supposed to eat one’s food from. We had a bowl and plate, and it seems that in Hong Kong and China, one puts food in the bowl and eats from the bowl, while the plate is for bones. In contrast, in Malaysia, I believe, it appeared to be the reverse: one would spoon food onto one’s plate and eat off the plate.
After lunch, we walked back through a little market, where among other fish and seafood were pufferfish hanging from the ceilings of the shops. There were also what I think were small dried pufferfish, with googly eyes put on them and a hat as decorations to be bought. These were both things I definitely would not have found in the U.S.
Then we went on a little boat ride, which was called a dolphin boat ride, so you know what we were looking out for. It was quite a nice ride, first between seaside-houses, and then out into the open water, with the late afternoon sun, gazing at the green hills covered with trees to our left and right, out to seeing the bridge between Tai O and Macao.
At one point, we came across a shiny moving object. We all collectively held our breath, thinking it… a dolphin. At varying moments as we approached, I thought it was a dolphin, then a flip flop drifting about, or some sort of other circular object. It turned out to be a poor fish at the surface of the water, swimming around in circles, with something wrong with one of its fins, poor thing. The boat master circled around for upwards of ten minutes trying to come alongside the fish, and I, in my happy-ending hopes, hoped it would be to help the poor fish, perhaps release it if it was caught on something, or else try to right the fish. However, instead, he caught it with the net.
Next, we landed and took some pictures against the nearing sunset, and went on a hike. However, first, at the foot of the hill we were going to hike up, there was a stand with some local snacks. I ended up getting a frozen watermelon (my favorite fruit) slice. Some of the other people got frozen pineapple or one of the warm snacks. I found the watermelon quite good, although it was hard as a rock when I first got it. We ended the hike around dark, got dinner, and then headed back to HKBU.
Until next time,
Kelsi