The Rains Came

It's been raining for a month solid. No, I'm not kidding; we're all complaining about it. Every day, even if there's a brief respite with blue skies and you think all the precipitation is behind us, it turns out you're dead wrong.

I promise you: in an hour or so, the skies will darken. It may only be 10am, but all of a sudden, it will go and get all apocalyptic outside. Peering from the window, you’d swear it was nighttime. And then the skies open, dropping torrents of rain on the SAR. Don’t even think about leaving that umbrella behind. You’re going to need it!

The month of May 2019, for all its other highlights, will be remembered by yours truly for one thing above all others: the wettest weather I can recall. Now before you chime in, I know this isn’t the first time you’ve heard this grievance. Back in July 2017, on the cusp of my North African adventures in Egypt and Tunisia, I remember bemoaning the ever-present rainfall that had plagued the city for the first two months of summer.

And I seem to recollect another time, during the Hong Kong International Film Festival in 2014, when we also got what I described as a healthy, sustained dose of rain. The difference then, of course, was that I relished the wet weather when my daily objective involved squeezing in as many movie screenings—usually in shopping malls, usually directly connected to MTR stations—as humanly possible. (The twenty-one-movie tally I hit that year remains my record.)

And, of course, I not only recall but, rather, recall relishing many of the one-off typhoons and powerful black rain storms that roll through this town on occasion. They come in fast and then vanish just as quickly, leaving mesmerizing memories in their wake. So as I’ve pointed out before, it’s not the mere existence of a little precipitation that gets my goat. It’s a sustained string of slippery days, err, weeks, where it’s perpetually at least drizzling if not downpouring.

I cannot wait to hightail it out of Hong Kong in a few days, heading to the East Coast of United States for a summertime visit. I pray the region is blessed with glorious weather during my two weeks-plus in the country. I’ll even take a nighttime thunderstorm or two, so long as I get some sunny days!  

Alright, alright. Now that I’ve gotten the rant off my chest, I can take a moment to document some of the good things that have happened over the past four weeks. Firstly, I should probably start by reporting that my finger is healing very nicely, and although it will certainly bear a small scar, which I’ve dubbed “the tattoo of the Sevens,” that whole ordeal could have ended up a whole lot worse. (My friend Lou keeps sending me photos of actual tattoos fashioned around permanent scars, trying to give me a little inspiration to really take the nickname to heart.)

Another important development is the arrival of a new roommate, Simon, from France. As I mentioned in my last post, I've known Simon for awhile now, because he's the manager of a French restaurant and bar in Happy Valley called Saint-Germain. With Antoine now back in New York, there was a free room in the flat, and because it's always nicer to have a friend take up residence as opposed to a stranger, I didn't even bother listing the place once I learned Simon was interested. And our roommate-ship has gotten off to a great start. (Think, free beer and wine pretty much every time I show up at the bar.)

I’m also making good on my mid-year resolution to spend as much time as possible in Tai Kwun, the restored police station compound on Hollywood Road that now serves as a homegrown mecca of drinking, dining, culture and entertainment. As you know by now, May 1^st is a public holiday here: Hong Kong’s—and much of the world’s—commemoration of Labo(u)r Day. And the JC Cube, a cinema and event space in the compound, screened Orson Welles’ 1962 movie The Trial on the big screen that afternoon. Of course, I bought a ticket.

And as it fell on a Wednesday, it coincided with the Happy Valley horse races. (How fitting celebrating working hard to make money by losing some!) While mingling with friends and coordinating the next beer run at the track that night, I heard someone call out my name and turned to see my old pal Julius standing a few feet away! He moved back to Germany in 2011 but was in town for one short week for work. It was so nice to catch up and enjoy the races with him, just like the good old days.

I also enjoyed a phenomenal dinner at the world’s first Michelin-starred Punjabi restaurant over on Wyndham Street. My Indian friend Gargi had visited before and said, hands down, that it’s the best homestyle food she had yet found in Hong Kong. So when she invited me to tag along for a Saturday night dinner she organized, I greedily—and immediately—accepted her offer.

Let’s just say, the New Punjab Club will almost certainly find its way onto the itineraries of many of my future visitors. It was that good.

The next day was Cinco de Mayo, which I often point out is one of my all-around favorite days. I made a vow in this blog last May, upon realizing that this year it would fall on a Sunday, to coordinate a boozy brunch to commemorate the celebration. With my recent trip to Mexico only strengthening my convictions, I am happy to report that I followed through with that promise.

I was joined by a bevvy of international friends, including Omar, from Mexico, his girlfriend Sarah, from Canada, Myles and Chun, from Hong Kong, Mel, from Scotland, Dmitry, from Russia, his wife Eileen, from Singapore, Gargi, from India, Max and Celine from France, and Dave from Australia.

As you can probably guess, the venue I selected was Agave in Wan Chai, my perennial favorite Mexican restaurant in town. And with their incredible four hour long free flow margarita brunch, you can bet nobody went home hungry or thirsty.

  

I’m not sure if you remember my AirBnB guest Jennie who stayed in the flat back in December 2017? The one who made immaculate feasts in my pint-sized kitchen and opened a German goods store near HKU MTR Station? Anyway, I bumped into her at her shop one day at the beginning of the month, and we managed to reconnect. It turns out my timing was spot on, because a few days later she was moving to a new location among the traditional shops of atmospheric Sai Ying Pun—and she invited me to the opening party!

I stocked up on Ahoj-Braüse, sauerkraut and special dog treats for Fredric, all while sipping some wine and gorging on Jennie’s delicious homemade chocolate banana cake! I plan to be a frequent visitor to her shop once again.

A massive highlight of the month was the all-too-brief visit of my cousin Marisa, later the same night. Marisa, now a proud mother of two, finds herself in China for work a couple times a year, but usually just flies through Hong Kong on her way to the factories in Guangdong province. This time, due to a client meeting, she actually had a night here! And I jumped at the chance to spend some time with her.

The evening started rather urbanely, at a recently-opened jazz bar called Darkside in the brand-new Rosewood Hotel in (you guessed it) Kowloon. One of the factory owners with whom Marisa works was even gracious enough to treat us, as we enjoyed a sophisticated evening of port and live music. 

But when he was ready to go home, I steered Marisa and myself towards Lan Kwai Fong. We had Kill Bills in Geronimo and Jell-O syringes outside the bar formerly known as Stormies. (I won’t even patron the joke that took over Al’s Diner. But the compromise I’ve reached with Stormies’ replacement is never referring to it by its new name. Thus, it will henceforth be known on this blog as the bar formerly known as Stormies. It’s kind of the Sears Tower of Hong Kong.)

Our brief reunion ended with cocktails on tap at a Wyndham Street watering hole called Draftland, and then Marisa—whose flight was at 10am—headed to her Kowloon hotel via taxi. But I made her promise to finagle more Hong Kong time into her next itinerary! I may or may not have lingered a little later into the night, owing to an unexpected encounter with a flock of my friends heading to Volar.

The last weekend was taken up with the unexpected visit of another out-of-towner, Motez, who had a job interview in Shenzhen and opted to make a weekend of it. Apparently, the customs authorities on the China side of the border decided Tunisian passports do not qualify for “visa on arrival” status (although official sources indicate the contrary and Motez has entered successfully before).

Anyway, it wound up being a memorable whale of a weekend, an onslaught of way too many beers, meals and late nights. I even got Motez hooked on What’s My Line? over the course of a few evenings.

The culinary high-water mark for me was yet another phenomenal Sichuan lunch at Red Pepper in Causeway Bay, which has proved itself a dependable stand-in for my late, lamented American Restaurant. I was so impressed with their spicy Chongqing-style chicken with chilis on Saturday that a photo I took of the dish now serves as the wallpaper of my Blackberry.

Motez and I also indulged in multiple beers at Tai Kwun’s Armoury, a half-indoor/half-outdoor bar overlooking one of the complex’s most atmospheric open spaces: the parade ground. The Armoury is quickly become one of my new go-to post-work happy hour spots, and the place that’s most helping me stick to my mid-year resolution, thanks to my frequent visits. I’m really glad the rain help up long enough for Motez and I to savor a few pints there.

Other entertaining stretches of hours were spent in Happy Valley, SoHo, Lan Kwai and Wan Chai, including one evening that kept us out until 7:30 the next morning—and involved stops in all the neighborhoods just mentioned! So, you see, I wasn’t exaggerating when I labeled Motez’s visit a “memorable whale of a weekend.” But, really, the whole month has had its fair share of highlights.

Even last night was about as great a Tuesday as you can expect in May. A Burmese pop-up restaurant called Pansodan recently opened for a three-month stint in Sai Ying Pun. Of course, I sent out a general alarm to my Burma travel buddies, Derek and CriCri. And we all met up to over-indulge in the gluttonous tasting menu last night.

Make no mistake; the food was delicious. But reminiscing with those two over our shared memories of that trip back in 2016 even overtook the cuisine for me. Under normal circumstances, a wonderful waitress like we had last night, Rupa, and a table candle that unexpectedly exploded mid-meal, would be the most unforgettable moments in a dinner.

But when you’re with Derek and CriCri, munching on tea leaf salad and si chat khauk swe, reflecting over the exotic destinations of Rangoon, Bagan and Inle Lake, the cream rises to the top. Oh, how I long to go back!

Well, in spite of the rain that’s still steadily falling outside my window, I’m about to head down to the track for the last of the three “French May” race nights that have been run this month. Sadly, once I’ve returned from my trip to the States, there remain only three mid-week meetings before the summer hiatus. So even if I get a little wet, I’ve still got to take advantage. Wish me luck, and here’s hoping the summer has lots of sunshine in store! After what we've put up during the month of May, we’ve earned it!