The cropped floral pants that I wore last week are quite versatile, and work well with both black and white tops. Here I combined them with a white button-down shirt from Banana Republic, flat white Calvin Klein booties, a mixed media denim jacket, and graphic Milly satchel. The tucked shirt and high-vamped booties elongate the leg line, while the denim jacket relaxes the outfit.
I am thrilled with my new white booties because they go the distance. I’ve walked Hong Kong flat in them already, and they’re extremely comfortable. I will be buying a back-up pair when I get back home.
Karen, who we’ve known for more than twenty years, is my Chinese sister. We are the same age (born in the year of the dog) and worked together in the fashion industry many years ago. We spend quality time together when we’re in Hong Kong, which is always a treat. So earlier this week, Karen fetched us from our hotel on the Island just before lunch, and drove us up a very windy Magazine Gap Road to the Victoria Peak. On the way we stopped by Hong Kong Island School, where I went to school, and also drove past the apartment block where I used to live, just for fun.
We got to the top of the Peak to see the breathtaking view of of Hong Kong. It was very misty, but that didn’t really matter because we’ve seen the view on a stunning clear day many times before. After that, delicious lunch at a Cantonese restaurant on the peak. Karen and I had rice noodle soup with fish balls, while Greg had flat rice noodles with beef. We finished off the meal with condensed milk on hot buttered toast, which sounds odd, but is awfully yummy.
Karen then drove us into Kowloon to see the Wong Tai Sin Temple. The colourful designs, statues and intricate carvings on the temple structures are beautiful and well-preserved.
It is particularly busy at Chinese New Year when people pay their respects to ancestors. Incense sticks are burned, and food and fruit is offered in return for a blessing of luck and good fortune.
In one spot single people can ask for a special blessing and the ritual involves winding a piece of red string around your fingers in a very particular way. We saw a cute gal performing this ritual and she kindly allowed us to take a photo of her.
We then drove out to Sai Kung for dinner. We walked around a little, soaking up the traditional atmosphere of the fishing village before eating up a storm. Afterwards Karen drove us through the Prince Edward flower market, which was bustling at 11.30 p.m. with people buying flowers and orange trees for Chinese New Year. We got back to the hotel after midnight, relaxed and well fed, having had a brilliant day.
