It’s Sunday, and we’re out of eggs. We’ve actually been looking forward to a breakfast outing, so we jump out of bed and head out for breakfast.
On our way to the elevators, we notice our friend the leaf bug is still sitting in the same spot!
We walk over to the nearby mall, which is only about 5-ish minutes away, and go to Café de Coral. We find a table for four in the very back corner, and we order through the app. Maylin and I order a macaroni soup with turnip cake, hotdogs and a “green onion pancake”, except it’s not a green onion pancake. It’s essentially a round, flat dumpling with meat and chives. I’m so disappointed, I wanted what I know and make as a green onion pancake!
Joe and Téa share a silver needle noodle soup, with a side of turnip cake, scrambled eggs and ham. Both girls eat a small bowl of soup, and the entire side order.
After breakfast, we head back home and have a calm morning blogging, playing, crafting and working. Joe makes a simple noodle soup lunch, and then we get ready for today’s adventure. We are aiming for Tsim Sha Tsui, or essentially what I call downtown Kowloon. We’ve decided we’re taking the bus today, and Maylin begs to take my photo in front of a double decker bus.
Of course, in true Cheng family style, we head for a snack straight off the bus. After all, we had a simple lunch at home, and the bus ride is an hour long, so… It’s time, definitely. We take random lefts and rights, and find a cha chaan teng, a traditional tea restaurant. Maylin and Téa decide to share a pineapple bun with butter, I have a thick toast with peanut butter and jam, and Joe orders a full mountain of French toast cubes. What was he thinking? He doesn’t even know.
After our energy levels have been properly recharged, we trudge on to explore. I remember visiting iSquare a couple of times during our previous visits, always remembering it as a mall of long elevators and “coming soon” temporary construction walls. It’s still the same! But apparently that’s only the bottom three floors. When we get to the 4th floor, the space opens up, and the outer glass wall lets in all the light.
We’re aiming for the Hong Kong Flagship Apple store today, just to browse and enquire about pricing. We have an old model of an iPad in mind, and go in for a chat. We’re reminded that Apple is launching their latest and greatest this month, and that it might be smart to wait a week, as prices may drop as newer model press the lower ones down and out. We can wait!
On our way back towards Nathan Road and a different mall to hunt for clothes for Joe, we spot a Mr Softee truck WITH ZERO LINEUP!!! This ice cream truck is a Hong Kong staple, they sell Mr Softee souvenirs in all shapes, sizes and price categories. We’ve never seen one without a hundred person lineup (or at least ten), so we grab the chance on this rainy, grey day to have our first Mr Softee ice creams!
Once we cross back over onto the other side of Nathan Road, we duck into a mall looking for the Muji store, and end up finding a store selling miniatures instead. We spend quite some time admiring the installation taking up the entire front of the store, they’ve recreated a Hong Kong neighbourhood, and it looks so real!
We ended up finding pants and a shirt for Joe, shorts and t-shirt for Maylin and a t-shirt for Téa at Uniqlo. We may come home completely Uniqloed, the way we shop at that store. It’s ok, it’s in Vancouver as well. As is Muji. We end up finding Muji tucked away all the way in the basement, and I can’t help but grab some of their very unique snacks. I have to say, their chocolate hazelnut cookies are so different from everything I expected them to be, and could turn addictive if I let it. Good thing the bag is tiny, and the store is far, and hard to find. But now that I know where it is… Uh oh.
Then, as we are walking north on Nathan Road, I text Joe an idea. I don’t want to say it out loud, but I’m suggesting a restaurant to him, and tell him it’s a 5 minute walk from where we are. He agrees immediately, and we start walking a little faster, a little more excited. The girls light up when they see the destination, and we are all smiles when we sit down.
It feels so good to be back. It feels like Osaka, it feels like home. It feels like a little piece of forgotten comfort in a big foreign place. As much as I love Hong Kong, going to Hama’s tonight makes me almost teary eyed. It’s memories, sights, sounds, smells, and two ecstatic girls.
We are floating on cloud nine all the way to the bus stop, and of course I nap the entire way home. It’s later than usual when we get home, so just time for showers and a movie before bed. Every night can be a movie night when there are no after-school activities, no early morning wake up alarms (even though we’re usually up by 7am) and every day is flexible. Wonder what tomorrow will hold?