What have we been up to?

Hi everyone!

You might wonder what life is like for us... so what have we been up to in the past weeks? Plenty! Gosh... so much that I am not even sure where to start... but let me give you some brief nibbles:

One Saturday we accompanied our dear friend/neighbor/colleague John to an inter-faith peace talk at one of the reformed Jewish congregations on "Building Holy Cities" and got a fascinating glimpse into the multi-cultural/multi-religious/ multi-ethnic of Hong Kong. Incredible stuff! It was moving and educational to hear about the concept of holiness and the idea of a 'holy city' from such different 'religious' perspectives as Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, Baha'i, Eco-vegetarian, and several 'New Age' 'traditions.' And then we were feed delicious Middle-Eastern food by the lovely Jewish congregation! And we sang in Hebrew! Too much fun all around...

One Evening we attended an LSE alumni event in a private room at a posh and swanky bar/restaurant in Central, HK, where we heard about the school, the alumni community, and mingled and networked with other fabulous over-achievers and in true Hong Kong style, exchanged business cards with absolutely everyone we said even one word to! ;)

We have been sweating a lot in recent weeks now that the heat has climbed a bit and the humidity stays around 90% almost continuously... oh, and interestingly, the temperature doesn't change at night! It's still hot and humid at midnight! But, after the bitter cold, you don't see me complaining! I smile and take out a tissue to dab off the perspiration...

On Sunday we attended a service in Cantonese with our other dear friends/colleagues Ted and Janie. Ted speaks fluent Cantonese (and Mandarin!) and did the liturgy and preaching all in the local language, but his lovely wife helped to translate for us so that we weren't completely lost! It was a very kind, small congregation and they meet in an activity-type room in the lower floor of a housing estate tower in one of the many 'new towns' in the New Territories of the Hong Kong SAR. Not your stereotypical idea of a 'church' but it's nice to remember it isn't about the building! They were very lovely in trying to help us feel comfortable, and after the service we had a beautiful 'sharing/prayer' time in small groups where we shared what we need others to pray about and then went around in a circle and prayed for one of the other group members' concern. They were extremely accommodating, and translated back and forth because we can't speak Cantonese and a few of them couldn't speak English. That was a really neat experience.

After the church service, communion, and sharing, Ted and Janie took us out for steaks at a great hole in the wall-type place in the New Territories (owned and run by a Danish man!). Great food and company were enjoyed, and then- thanks to their cute little car!- we buzzed around the Sai Kung coastal area of the N.T. and drove up nearby mountains for a real different taste of the natural beauty of Hong Kong!

Hope you enjoy!

Katrina and Ryan