Hallo from Hong Kong

Here I am, way across the ocean in my Hong Kong home.

I'm visiting my parents and my sister. I brought my oldest daughter and my youngest daughter along for the adventure. I would have liked to bring the whole clan, but they stayed behind to hold down the homestead. They're swimming and ripping out arborvitae from the backyard (yes, the dashingly handsome sidekick is keeping himself busy while I'm gone).

I'm planning on posting some Hong Kong adventure photos, but haven't gotten around to downloading yet. The weird thing about this trip is that it feels like such a VACATION and I wasn't expecting that. I thought bringing two children halfway around the world would be WORK, but my mom is attentive to our every need and I actually have time to read books in the middle of the day (when I'm not out playing.) It's a bizarre feeling to be this free.

This is what we've been busy with:

• Ocean Park where they have an aquarium and dolphin shows and cable cars and roller coasters ... this wasn't the most fun day because it was boiling hot and super crowded. The amusement park is built on hills, so we were walking up and down hills, pushing our way through crowds, waiting in lines, and sweating like we were volcano inspectors. 
• Shopping! I don't frequent all the expensive stores that Hong Kong is famous for ($cha-ching!$), but I love the markets where they sell all the seconds from the factories. Great deals-- if you can dig for them.
• Disneyland ... Yes, Hong Kong has its own Disneyland and my nine-year-old was determined to visit. It poured rain the day we went (we're in the subtropics, so when it rains, it RAINS), but it was still loads of fun. Sort of like a Disneyland-Waterpark combo. 
• We loaded up our packs and hiked up to Sunset Peak on Lantau Island where we stayed overnight in a stone cabin without electricity. It was so great to revisit this place because my family stayed up there when I was a teenager. The mountain was in a cloud the whole time, so there wasn't a great view, but I now know the true meaning of DAMP. I'm just proud of myself that I made it to the top with backpack and five-month-old in tow. 
• I've read DIVERGENT by Veronica Roth (good) and BEFORE I DIE by Jenny Downham (amazing writing, but difficult topic). I'm working my way through a short story collection (I'm in love with short stories), and my sister just loaned me THE ROAD by Cormac McCarthy (jaw-dropping good so far). 

Four more days until we head back to our American home! And isn't this the way it always is-- as soon as you get over jet lag you're turning around to leave again?

How is summer going for you?