October 6, 2013
Hong Kong - Day 2
I woke to a very clear and breath taking view of Hong Kong and Victoria Harbour from my window perch on the 48th floor.
After a quick shower, it was breakfast time. I rode the elevator up one floor to Café Grey Deluxe, but Darrell wasn't there yet, so I crossed the hall and took a look inside the Upper House sitting area on the other side of the 49th floor. The view, like the view from my room, was spectacular!
There are many window tables and booths inside Café Grey Deluxe all with stunning views. Needless to say a very big bonus to dining there.
Breakfast went down very well in the "I pinch myself" atmosphere of Café Grey Deluxe perched high above this one of a kind world class city. First on today's agenda was to meet Mr. T.C. Lai, who is Darrell's oldest friend in Hong Kong. We left Café Grey Deluxe and went back to our rooms. Darrell gave T.C. a call to check in with him. T.C. would meet us in the lobby in an hour, so we had some time to ourselves. When T.C. arrived, we went up to the Upperhouse out door terrace to enjoy the beautiful morning.
T.C. Lai, who is know by many as "Mr. Hong Kong", was born in Hong Kong in 1921 to a family of scholars. Beginning in 1940, He studied at the University of Hong Kong and at the University of Manchester in the U.K. From 1946 - 1949 He worked in Chinese cultural affairs in London. Returned to Hong Kong in 1950 and became a tutor in the English Department of the University of Hong Kong through 1958. In 1965, He became the Director of Extramural studies at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. In 1970, He became President of the Hong Kong Translation Society and an adviser to the Hong Kong Museum of Art. He retired from the Chinese University of Hong Kong and started painting professionally in 1984. T.C. has written 29 books covering all subjects Chinese including food, dress, poetry, and calligraphy. Wingchi had business to attend to this morning, so the plan was to meet him in Kowloon at the Miramar Shopping Centre for lunch. After a nice chat with T.C. Lai, the three of us were off to catch the MTR to Kowloon.
Elements of Asia were everywhere to be found, including the bamboo issue street sweeping brooms the city maintenance workers were sporting. Cost effective and efficient!
We made it to the Miramar Shopping Centre where we ate dinner at the Old Restaurant Hong Kong last night. This time Wing Chi wanted us to experience Sun Tung Lok Chinese Cuisine. They are well know for their shark's fin dishes, and in 2011 became the first non-hotel restaurant to be awarded 3 MICHELIN Stars in Hong Kong. Website - www.suntunglok.com
The executive chef of Sun Tung Lok, Joe Chan, came to our table and Wing Chi introduced him to us.
Lunch was absolutely delicious, if not too grand in the amount of food served. We thanked Chef Chan and manager Peter Pang and headed to the underground garage where Wingchi parked hi car. One never knows what one will see in a Hong Kong parking garage .
Just like with the MTR, driving between Kowloon and Hong Kong Island is done in a tunnel underneath Victoria Harbour.
Sharp contrasts in architecture can be seen at almost every glance when moving through Hong Kong.
After crossing underneath the tunnel, Wingchi drove us to Hong Kong Park. He went in from the opposite side park because he was able to park on that side. We walked into the park and made our way to the Tea House.
The staff were preparing for a late afternoon - early evening performance of traditional Chinese music, poetry, and dialogue. Vegetarian Dim Sum was served along with tea. We sat and had some tea. I shot some video of the unique fixtures and décor elements of the Tea house to use in my video. We stayed for while to watch part of the program.
We quietly slipped out after the third performance, because we had to walk back to the hotel to freshen up for our evening dinner plans.
Dinner this evening was hosted by Kendall Oei, his wife Grace, and their son Christian. The Oei family are long time friends of Darrell's who live in Hong Kong. They picked us up at 7:30 pm and drove us to Benson Cuisine & Wine located in the Happy Valley area of Hong Kong.
Benson is a favorite of the Oei family, as Benson specializes in Hong Kong Hairy Crab. They do all the work for you by cleaning the crab and incorporating the meat into a featured dish. Benson also has a wine shop and crab market across the street from their restaurant. A former, and sometimes current Sacramentan, and fellow C.K. McClatchy High School alum, Deborah Chan joined us for dinner at the restaurant. Deborah currently lives in Hong Kong and is friends with the Oei family.
Website - http://www.benson.com.hk/
Dinner was centered around a pasta dish of spaghetti with Shanghai Hairy Crab ragu. We each ordered a few other courses off of the menu. After the food overload of yesterday and today, I went light and had baby squash blossom with greens, and a small salad of baby greens, tomatoes, and feta. We had a 2011 Joachim Flick Hochheimer Königin Victoriaberg Riesling Kabinett which drank wonderfully well with dinner.
Dinner was delicious, the conversation ever so interesting, and the company completely delightful, which made the evening absolutely enjoyable. The Oei family drove us back to the Upperhouse where we called it a night. After returning to my room, I had to take a few more looks at Hong Kong by night. It has to rank at the upper end of the scale for breath taking views day and night.
