Week of September 16th

(Click on any of the pictures to make them larger)

What to write about this week????

Well - this week was kind of a low key one.  We went to Mong Kok and picked up some supplies for our trip to the Philippines for a mission/service next weekend and we found a thrift store that had some clothes that can get wrecked doing construction work.  We left all of our older clothes at home with our parents.  I found an awesome shirt that is from a Hip Hop Dance Team :)  It was a find that was meant to be!

What else did we do this week?  We did normal things like make dinner, go on walk/runs in preparation for the 10K on Sunday, read the newspaper, watched tv, ran errands to the store to pick up a Christmas gift (and got the last one - yesssss!), went to the library and checked out books, read books, checked out phone stuff, and had a shrimp burger Friday night to finish the school week.

The Mid-Level Escalator System!

The view from the Mid-levels

Saturday we got up early and headed to the island for yoga class.  It was probably one of the harder classes we have attended mentally and physically but also a good motivation to keep working on stretching.  I found a new tank top which was pretty exciting and then we headed to the McCafe (fancy counter at McDonalds) for a egg, tomato and cheese cibatta sandwich, whole wheat bagel and salad for lunch :)  I could eat that McDonalds food every day!!!  We decided to check out Causeway Bay (which is a big shopping area from what we can figure out) and wandered there for quite some time.  The wandering included one of the major department stores here called SoGo that has everything in the universe including cute salt and pepper shakers that are shaped like bunnies :)

Nachos!!!

We then explored the entire mid-level escalator system and found a place with NACHOS!!!!! The one food that I have missed having regularly is Mexican food and it was REALLY EXCITING to have nachos again :)  MMMmmmmm.  It was then back home to get ready for the early morning.

Sunday was a day that was full of physical activity with the end of the day being one of my favorite things that I have ever done in Hong Kong.

The 10k went really well for the two of us.  The only downside is how humid it was.  I think I sweat more that hour and 30ish minutes than I may have in my entire life.  I had rivers of sweat running down my arms and legs.  It was pretty gross.  We got some sweet shopping bags that look like a carrot when they are folded up.  After the 10 K we headed home and changed so that we could go hiking.

(Pause for a moment and think... Saturday morning was the most intense yoga class that I have had in a loooooong time, we walked around all Saturday afternoon, Sunday morning was a tiring 10K and then we decided to go hiking?!?!?!  No wonder I felt like an old lady on Monday! Ok unpause)

The view on the way to the beach!

There was a beach to explore that we had not seen yet and it was supposedly only 40 minutes after taking the MTR (train) to Wu Kai Sha, and then a bus halfway to Sai Kung and then a taxi ride that twists and turns on the one lane road through the Country Park (Equivalent of national park).  I sat in the front seat with the driver while Tim and Co. were in the back.  As we swerved around giant boulders, stopped suddenly when another taxi came at us around a corner, sped over and around speed bumps and hugged the shoulder going over mountains I realized it was the first time that I had sat in the front seat of a car in almost 2 months!  It was quite the view!!!

The beach!!!

When we got to the trail head thunder started rumbling in the distance so not only did we hike, but we hiked with purpose to try and beat the storm to the beach.  The hike was mostly downhill and there were some of the most breath taking sights that I have seen yet here in Hong Kong.  It was so wild and beautiful and the water was all so crystal clear you could see all the way to the bottom of the reservoir.  Thankfully the storm never came our direction so we didn't have to worry about that.  Once we got to the beach that sight just took our breath away.  Some of the rock formations were unreal.  The water at the beach was also so clear you could see straight to the bottom when you were in the water and it wasn't very crowded.  There is a series of 3 beaches at that place (Tai Long Wan).  Tim and I decided to call it quits at the first beach and we read and slept on the beach while waiting for our friends to go find the waterfall and come back.

The view from the speedboat on the way to Sai Kung

Neat rock formations!

We talked to the people at the restaurant and purchased tickets for a speedboat ride back to Sai Kung for a seafood dinner (that was one of the best ever!!!).  There were two places selling tickets for speedboat rides back.  We ended up going with the place with the red boat (they were the same price) and there were only 7 or 8 people on board (compared with the white boat that had about 15-20).  We left just after 5pm and headed towards Sai Kung.  The speedboat goes past the GeoPark which has amazing rock formations and caves and rocky cliffs on the right and smaller islands on the left.  There was a guy who teaches surfing on our boat and he narrated the trip back and said where the GeoPark starts, pointed out the drug rehab center that is on an island, talked about how Hong Kong had the highest consumption of seafood per person in the world (I believe it!), and told us about the boating laws.  While he was doing this the air temperature was perfect, the wind felt so refreshing, the sun was setting ahead of us and created some of the most beautiful scenery that I have ever seen.  It was so serene, so calming and fun and awaking and wonderful all at the same time.  I don't know if there are words to describe it.  If anyone comes to visit - this trip is on the must do list.  From what we have heard, is not the Hong Kong that most visitors experience, but it is a part of Hong Kong that I want to share with everyone.

Sai Kung :)

We all got off of the boat in Sai Kung and the four of us just looked at each other in amazement of what we had just experienced.  It was one of those times that I never want to forget.  I don't want to forget what I saw, the fresh air that I smelled and felt blow past me as the boat sped across the water, the sense of wonder that I felt as the boat kept rounding corners and the scenery became more and more intriguing, all of the other boats and jet skis that were going with us to Sai Kung with people smiling and waving from every deck of the boat.  It was an experience that transcended language.  Everyone was enjoying the wonderful boat ride and scenery on their way back to the fishing village.

The boat we took to Sai Kung - Thank you!!!

We had a wonderful seafood dinner at one of the places in Sai Kung and as we headed back we kept going back to how amazing the boat ride was.  I am really looking forward to going back and exploring all three beaches and more of the park.  I just won't do a 10k in the morning before we start :)



Sorry for the late posting of this one - I was at middle school camp the past three days (it was AWESOME!).  More on that to come.  :)

A lantern for the Mid-Autumn Festival! :)

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival this weekend!!!

On the Move!

The Baumann family evening varies from night to night.  As was told in previous posts, both of us have after school commitments throughout the week that keep us teaching until close to 5pm.  This may seem like an inconvenience, but it is usually pretty rewarding time with students and it helps to punctuate our work week.

A trip anywhere is begun with a reference to any one of the many HK Transit phone apps that we have on the iphone.  Hong Kong, like many major cities in the world, can take all available information sources and plot a course for you using busses, trains, boats, and walking routes.   Routes can be sorted by fare, time, and distance.  Luckily fare does not have to be a great consideration due to the extremely subsidized transportation system.  A one hour trip spanning the city from end to end will often cost 2-3 USD. (16-24 HKD)  That doesn't mean that our "midwestern sensibility" doesn't still contribute to the decision making process:)

All public transit can be paid for on a debit card-like "Octopus Card."  You put money on it and then every time you get on the bus or train, you "dood" that card on the reader.  Yes, the word "dood" is a verb here in Hong Kong.  The word comes from the sound the reader machine makes when it debit's your account.  It is really a very ingenious system, even if the verb makes it sound as though the user should be very embarrassed by themselves :)  Many vendors like convenience stores, fast food restaurants, coffee shops, and bakeries also accept payment with Octopus.  The only downside is that the logo for the Octopus card is not a cute cartoon octopus, but the infinity symbol.

McDonald's "Shake Shake" Fries with Seaweed Seasoning.

Healthy McDonald's?!!!

Once the method of transit is selected, then it is off to the transit terminus.  If we take the bus down to the island (for things like yoga class, cello repairs, or an "I need good chips and salsa now!!!!" run) then we turn right as we leave the school and follow a nice little path that pops out by a bus stop.  It is located right in front of adventure cycling course and across the street from a HUGE Coca-Cola distribution plant (that's a shout out for Paul Kliszcz :)  A turn to the left will take us past the other primary school and university campus next door where we quickly find ourselves waiting for a mini-bus or on the train.

Christine on the rocks at Shek O beach.

Mini-buses are probably my favorite way to travel.  They are cheap, safe (well, there are seatbelts at least) and fast.  They are also independently owned, uniquely decorated, and driven by colorful men who like to drive fast, turn sharp, slam doors, and listen to Korean pop music, Cantonese opera, or Chinese love power ballads from the 80's.  The green roofed mini-buses are overseen by the transit authority, who monitor and organizes their routes, licenses their drivers, and controls their fares.  The red roofed mini-buses are completely lawless and subject to whatever and whoever in driving.  Want to pay three times the rate of the big bus?  Sure!  Want to sit on an old ottoman in the back as your "bus seat"?  Sure! Want to take the curves of the mountain passes at breakneck speeds while playing chicken with other buses and cars and dodging wild cows?  Sure!  We usually take the green mini-bus (don't worry moms) when we go to our local shopping mall and back.

The laser light show at the harbour- it never gets old!

If the destination is more centrally located or right on the train line, then the MTR train is the way to go.  MTR stands for Mass Transit Railway and is it an awesome system.  As with all things Hong Kong, lines matter.  Every train door lines up perfectly at the train door logo painted on the floor, and que directions are painted for all to see.  If you do not que closely to the person in front of you, others will jump in to take the space.  Train rides range from empty to packed depending on the time of the day and day of the week.  If you time it just right you may get the chance to sit next to the awesome guy who was picking his nose like it was going out of style while reading the daily news (Christine got to sit next to him last week :)  Oh, that we should all be so lucky...)  Everyone on the train is plugged into a device of some sort.  I would imagine it is mostly to keep yourself preoccupied while your personal space is invaded by strangers.  But my are they clean and efficient trains.  Chicago, DC, Seattle - Take notes please!

Spring Rolls with orchid flower.

At the end of the evening we retrace our steps and return back to our quiet hamlet in the northern "suburbs" of Hong Kong.  We pass our little corner grocery store that closes and locks it's doors every night at 10:00pm (even when you are sprinting across the street to try to buy milk at 9:59pm yelling "Wait!"...it was awkward) and pass the pass the sports courts of the school next door.  The school security guards welcome us back with a smile on their faces and a huge two-handed wave as we exchange our evening niceties, them in English and us in Cantonese and all of us thinking "How cute."  Up the elevator and down the hallway, where we "dood" our electronic door lock (we are just "dooding" all over the place today!) and into our quiet and quaint home.  They aren't kidding when they say that home is wherever your heart is :)

Scattered throughout the blog are some pictures of the last two weeks.  We hope that you enjoy seeing some fun sights!  Best wishes to friends and family in all of your endeavors.  You are thought of warmly and often from Hong Kong:)

Love,
Tim and Christine

"Oh. My word.  It's Beethoven's Third. Again..."
An evening hearing the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra :)
This was right before we were told to not take pictures... oops!

A Day in the Life of Tim and Christine

We are now at that point in blog posting where "normal life" has set in.  Everything is still really new and exciting, but we now are beginning to develop a normal routine.  We have some great routes, restaurants, stores, and shows picked out.  A lot of the "first-time" adventures have been had and incorporated into our everyday life.  Funny words are now commonplace and in our working vocabulary, and things just don't seem that different.  The big travel adventures are just around the bend (so you will have to stay tuned) but for now, the Baumann's from WI are getting used to being the Baumann's from Hong Kong.

Tim is too tall for the 2nd level of the bus!

Christine and her new warrior friend

So here is a brief combined schedule for the two of us on a "normal" school day:
6:00am- Alarm clock goes off
6:30am- Two sorry carcasses roll out of bed after hitting the snooze twice and proceed to get ready for the day
7:20am- Tim and Christine both begin to put on shoes and backpacks to begin the commute to school
7:24am- Tim and Christine panickedly run out the door to get to school in time for morning devotionals and classroom prep after a series of "oh yeah!  I forgot about that!" moments.
7:25am-  Christine arrives at devotions (one of the many perks of living two floors above where you teach)
7:45am- Tim arrives at devotions after getting his classroom ready.
8:00am- Christine's 5th grade orchestra begins
8:10am- Tim's first class begins
9:00am- Fire Alarm goes off; this one is not a drill.  Temperatures are at 90 degrees Farenheit with humidity at 85 percent outside.
9:15am- Fire Alarm is over.  Everyone returns to class with the understanding that under no circumstances is it ok to smoke in school and blame it on your welding equipment, even if you are a construction worker.
10:02am- Middle School music block begins.
10:52am- Middle School music block ends.
11:00am- 50 5th graders march into the choir room for the "Mr. and Mrs. Baumann and the 5th grade choir" show.  We have a lot of fun:)
11:52am- High School Music Block begins
12:39pm- High School Music Block ends

Tuna Roll with Soy Sauce :)

12:45pm- Lunch time.  Choose between lunch A (Chinese option), lunch B (Western option- which still looks Chinese), or a sandwich or tuna sushi roll from the ala carte cafe.  Employ the "I'm a hungry growing boy" face to the lunch ladies to receive an extra heap of fried rice and scoop of soup.  Do not eat the squash and taro sweet soup.
3:10pm-  School day ends and after school activities begin.  Monday is Handbell Choir for Tim and Middle School Strings Ensemble for Christine, Tuesday is High School String Ensemble for Christine, and Wednesday is ICS Children's Choir for Tim.
4:30pm- Arrive home to awesome apartment after a day of teaching and learning.  Go for exercising, personal reflection time, or snack.  Or sometimes all three.
5:21pm-  Momentary pause to realize "Am I really in Hong Kong right now?!!!!"
5:22pm- Resume activities with smile on face.
6:30pm- Realization that dinner has not started yet and both parties are hungry.
6:32pm- See if neighbors want to go out to eat.

The remains of a Mocha Brownie Chillino...

7:00pm- Sit down to dinner at fun restaurant
7:45pm- After eating fun meal, wandering of the mall commences.  Hours disappear rapidly and somehow we end up with a Mocha Brownie Chillino in our hands from Pacific Coffee.
9:45pm- Arrive home and chat for awhile about the day before realizing that it is time to head to bed and be well rested for the next day:)

Some days have more excitement, some days have less.  But the most important thing is the teaching and learning.  One of the art rooms in our school has a quote from Pablo Picasso that reads "Every child is an artist.  The problem is how to remain an artist when he grows up."  Teaching is an art, and teaching an art is a double art.  Our work helps us to stay young, stay spry, stay connected, and perhaps most importantly, stay in a state of learning.   We are thankful for all of the experiences we have had here so far and thankful for all of those to come as well.

Love to all of our friends and family back home.  Please know that you are thought of and cheered on from our side of the world!!  Go do great things:)

Love,
Tim and Christine

At the Peak :)