Happy Saint Patrick's Day from Dubai! It's a bit surreal to be typing those words, but it's just after 9:00pm here on the evening of 17 March. I landed early this morning after taking the red eye from Hong Kong last night. I've already spent a memorable stretch of hours getting my first real introduction to this Middle Eastern megalopolis, courtesy of my friends Romain and Janet. Expect a full chronicle of my adventures once I've returned home. But, in the meantime, I wanted to pause for a moment to recap some of the high points in my recent Hong Kong life, which has been chock full of fun since I returned from my Chinese New Year extravaganza on the East Coast.
First off, while I was back in the States, an old Villanova friend found her way to Hong Kong for a ten day sojourn. Danielle and I got to know one another junior year when we were in the same Communications class. When she reached out to me a few months back to say she was potentially coming to Hong Kong, I leapt for joy. Although I missed her first few days out here because of my own trip home, we hit the ground running upon my return with a fantastic Monday lunch at Crystal Jade, where I introduced my old friend to dan dan noodles and xiao long bao, among some of my other favorites.
That same day, 26 February, also happened to be the one hundredth anniversary of the devastating Happy Valley Race Course Fire of 1918. Over six hundred of the nearly ten thousand people who had gathered to watch the Chinese New Year races lost their lives that fateful day, and the city erected a beautiful memorial in their honor a few years after.
The memorial is one of my favorite "secret spots" in Hong Kong, and even on the major anniversary, I was all alone when I stopped by that afternoon to pay my respects. A quartet of white flower arrangements had been placed on the site earlier in the day, so I was happy to learn the date didn't pass completely unnoticed by the community.
That same day, 26 February, also happened to be the one hundredth anniversary of the devastating Happy Valley Race Course Fire of 1918. Over six hundred of the nearly ten thousand people who had gathered to watch the Chinese New Year races lost their lives that fateful day, and the city erected a beautiful memorial in their honor a few years after.
The memorial is one of my favorite "secret spots" in Hong Kong, and even on the major anniversary, I was all alone when I stopped by that afternoon to pay my respects. A quartet of white flower arrangements had been placed on the site earlier in the day, so I was happy to learn the date didn't pass completely unnoticed by the community.
The next day, I met Danielle for a couple of cheeky beers post work at the Beer Bay, a low key hole in the wall with a great selection of brews, hidden near the Discovery Bay ferry pier. As dusk set in on Hong Kong, we caught up further.
I must be honest, I wasn't the only reason Danielle came to visit Hong Kong. One of her best friends, a fellow Wildcat from the class of 2009, Ellie, was doing a six week work stint out of her firm's Hong Kong office. That was the catalyst for the trip. Funnily enough, although I was also friends with many of Danielle's closest pals, for some reason, Ellie and I had never crossed paths before. We met that evening for the first time, for a delicious dinner at Michelin-starred Din Tai Fung, many an expat's favorite dumpling chain in town. We ordered scores of delectable little morsels, including the black truffle variation of the xiao long bao Danielle and I had feasted on the previous day at Crystal Jade.
That Friday, my firm relocated offices, shifting from the twenty-second to the twentieth floor in our building. So the company could properly move all of our electronics and furniture, my colleagues and I were allowed to work from home that day. I took the opportunity to squeeze in a much needed haircut—at the Barber Shop, of course—and wound up meeting Danielle and Ellie for drinks later that night.
Neither had been to Lan Kwai Fong yet, so it proved a perfect opportunity. Although we met in SoHo, we soon descended into the mayhem of Hong Kong's most notorious party street. You can bet it wasn't long before the Jell-o shots had been ordered.
My classic go-to venue for big Chinese feasts, American Restaurant, is currently closed for renovations, so I had to find a substitute this time. Red Pepper Restaurant is another expat favorite in Causeway Bay, a place that's been dishing out popular bites for nearly half a century. Most restaurants don't last half a decade in Hong Kong, so it's a testament to the quality of an establishment like Red Pepper that it truly stands the test of time. Although the place is touted in my beloved Frommer's guide that I used as a blueprint from day one of this journey—and although it's been mentioned by friends for the last eight years and I often stroll past it's endearingly Chinese façade when I'm making my way to or from Causeway Bay MTR station—for some reason, I'd never had the good fortune to actually dine here until that Sunday. I can assure you, my first meal at Red Pepper will not be my last.
It was a relatively short but incredibly sweet reunion with Danielle, and it was so nice to have a familiar face among the Hong Kong crowds. It was equally nice, however, to get to know Ellie, who would be sticking around for work for a few more weeks.
Right on Danielle's heels was the next of the 'Nova connections to come to Hong Kong this year, Peggy and Sohail, whom you may remember from a previous post two years back. Peggy was one of my favorite professors at Villanova. Not only did I take her course in international comparative management my junior year; she also coordinated the summer abroad program I did in London during the summer of 2006, which I often site as the first taste I had of living and working in an international setting, and which surely paved the way for all the good times that have since followed, from Paris to Hong Kong and beyond!
Peggy was back leading another group of about twenty-five VSB MBA students around Vietnam and Hong Kong, and her husband Sohail, who is also a VSB professor, again came along for the wild ride.
The first year Peggy and I met up in Hong Kong, I took her to Shatin Inn for Indonesian food one night. She has never forgotten it, and she always insists on a repeat visit when she finds herself in town. That night, Peggy, Sohail and I were joined by Zung, a friendly Vietnamese-born Czech who worked with Peggy on putting together this itinerary.
The next night, I got to meet the students themselves, as we cruised about Victoria Harbour on the red-sailed Aqua Luna, watching A Symphony of Light. In spite of the light rain and chills, the skyline always dazzles, and it was a mercifully clear night. I don't think anybody walked away unimpressed.
Post cruise, a small subset of the students plus Peggy and myself migrated to nearby Star House for a Peking feast, including roasted duck, chili prawns, more xiao long bao and braised vegetables.
However, it was the next day, Friday, to which I had been looking forward for months. During the earliest planning stages of this trip, Peggy asked if I would moderate a panel discussion in the third floor ballroom of the Ritz-Carlton, titled What You Don't Know About Doing Business in Hong Kong. Zung got a couple of participants to join, and I strong armed my friends Christina and Matt into sharing their knowledge, as well. Being another member of Villanova's Class of 2009, Christina was pretty easy to convince. Matt, however, was another story. I literally had to trick him into coming, by telling him he would only be staying for a lovely, free lunch at the Ritz. When he turned up and saw his name plate on the table in the front of the room, he shot me a look and new he was stuck. In the end, he even confessed that he had a great time.
What started as a very formal discussion covering things like taxes, business registration and local etiquette quickly delineated into a passionate free-for-all about the reasons we all love Hong Kong so much and have chosen to base ourselves there for a significant portion of our lives. The MBA students peppered the conversation with their own questions, and the whole thing went off without a hitch.
We continued the discussion in a much less formal setting one hundred and fifteen stories higher, at Ozone, Hong Kong's highest bar, a portion of which was reserved for our group, who were entitled to freely flowing drinks for the ensuing three hours! Even Ellie, whose firm's Hong Kong office is located in the same building, turned up to mix and mingle with the MBA students!
Of course, 8pm on a Friday is no time to end a big night out. So we all hopped in taxis across the harbor to continue the fun in Lan Kwai Fong. With more Jell-o shots and great conversations, it was a third great installment in the MBA programs' visit to Hong Kong. I hope it becomes a dependable mainstay of my March.
Saturday was a free day for Peggy and Sohail, and after all the work they had put into the program, I thought they were entitled to a full day of self-indulgence. They met me in Happy Valley, where Fredric joined us for a leisurely coffee at my favorite local cafe. We had to leave the little pooch at home afterwards, because I really wanted to take Peggy and Sohail to Aberdeen for dim sum on the Jumbo Floating Restaurant.
Even just strolling the colorful waterfront made for a memorable afternoon, but when we mixed in a plethora of perfect dumplings, spring rolls and sesame balls, it was elevated to perfection.
On Peggy's last trip, we had ducked into the tony Peninsula Hotel in Kowloon for a quick look-see, and, in the process, stumbled upon a cute little jewellery shop selling reasonably-priced jade necklaces. So after a return visit during which Peggy truly stocked up on green goodies, a celebratory interlude in the hushed, dark bar was obviously in order.
Although our dim sum lunch had taken place relatively late in the afternoon, I was still bent on taking Peggy and Sohail to Man Mo Cafe for dinner, as planned, that evening. We pushed our reservation back from 7:30pm to 8:30pm, and nobody was particularly hungry upon our arrival, but we still powered through. Sohail is a rice enthusiast, and while I normally stick to the tried and true dumplings, we indulged in one duck fried rice. It was so undeniably tasty that we ordered a second helping! In addition, we sampled the fois gras xiao long bao, burgerbuns, lamb kebabs, and truffle brie dumplings... I am just in love with this place. And I think I made believers out of my guests, with Peggy exclaiming, "If I lived in Hong Kong, I would come to this place at least once a week."
As we were heading out, the staff informed us that they are potentially opening up branches in London and Paris. A delighted Peggy, who spends her summers in London still coordinating that same program in which I had participated twelve years ago, was beside herself as we stepped through the doors!
On Peggy's last trip, we had ducked into the tony Peninsula Hotel in Kowloon for a quick look-see, and, in the process, stumbled upon a cute little jewellery shop selling reasonably-priced jade necklaces. So after a return visit during which Peggy truly stocked up on green goodies, a celebratory interlude in the hushed, dark bar was obviously in order.
Although our dim sum lunch had taken place relatively late in the afternoon, I was still bent on taking Peggy and Sohail to Man Mo Cafe for dinner, as planned, that evening. We pushed our reservation back from 7:30pm to 8:30pm, and nobody was particularly hungry upon our arrival, but we still powered through. Sohail is a rice enthusiast, and while I normally stick to the tried and true dumplings, we indulged in one duck fried rice. It was so undeniably tasty that we ordered a second helping! In addition, we sampled the fois gras xiao long bao, burgerbuns, lamb kebabs, and truffle brie dumplings... I am just in love with this place. And I think I made believers out of my guests, with Peggy exclaiming, "If I lived in Hong Kong, I would come to this place at least once a week."
As we were heading out, the staff informed us that they are potentially opening up branches in London and Paris. A delighted Peggy, who spends her summers in London still coordinating that same program in which I had participated twelve years ago, was beside herself as we stepped through the doors!
They say things often come in threes, so with Danielle and Peggy having come back into my life for these delightfully endearing episodes, it was only a matter of hours until the next return visitor. On Sunday, just after noon, I ventured to Sai Ying Pun to meet up with Bernadett, unquestionably one of the best friends I've made throughout the past eight years. Although sadly departed from Hong Kong and having returned to her native Germany, Bernadett, too, returned to her old stomping grounds this spring, and the reunion was pure bliss.
Bernadett graciously treated me and some of her other friends to a gluttonous brunch at Zuma, the Japanese icon in Central's Landmark. There was a lot of reminiscing throughout our two allotted hours—Zuma is quite strict with their timings—and we continued the fun at an early Saint Patrick's Day party in Tamar Park.
Sunday brunches are known to stretch in Hong Kong, and this one may or may not have gone on until the wee hours of the morning. But, oh, what a great way to celebrate the multiple reunions of so many great people coming back, albeit briefly, into my life.
Bernadett jetted down to Boracay the next day to spend some time with Sonia, Motez and Kareem, but—never fear—she returned to Hong Kong last night, just in time to join for my own rooftop Saint Patrick's Day feast, the seventh annual installment!
You see, because of this Dubai trip, I couldn't actually host my event on the big day itself. However, I figured transposing it from Saturday to Friday evening would be an appropriate compromise. With my flight scheduled to depart at 1:30am, I knew we would have ample time to quaff enough green beer while donning those trusty leprechaun hats to make the event worthwhile.
I'm not going to lie, it was so tempting to just skip the flight and continue drinking on my roof with a great conglomeration of amazing people. But I knew I didn't really have a choice. A few last sips, a few last looks, and, well, here I am...
I'm popping down to the hotel bar now, to meet my boss—who's just arrived—so we can map out our objectives for this trip. And squeeze in one (or two) final obligatory Guinness(es), commemorating a slightly offbeat but nonetheless unforgettable Saint Patrick's Day! Cheers!
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