Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

I spent just shy of forty-eight hours in Beijing earlier this week, my first trip abroad in the 2020s! It was for work, of course, but owing to an incredibly lucky coincidence, it just happened to snow during my brief interlude in the Chinese capital. Not a few scattered flakes, mind you, but honest to goodness snow!

This, in and of itself, is apparently pretty exceptional... Accordingly to nearly everybody I asked, while it often flurries in the colder months, Beijing rarely gets more than a dusting. For some strange reason, however, I had really expected it to snow. I just had a feeling as I made the preparations for this little jaunt.

"You are very lucky to be here during this special time," I was told on multiple occasions. And I knew that was an accurate statement. Once I realized my good fortune, I just knew I had to make the most of it.

Yes, to have a significant dumping of gorgeous white powder—covering the iconic imperial structures of the ancient city—during this split-second sneeze of a visit was a very lucky quirk of good timing. I may never have the chance to see it like this again. And I made sure I took full advantage.

There were moments when it felt as though I was looking upon the city for the very first time, although—this being my fourth trip—I can now lay claim to knowing the place fairly well. The snow added a newness to everything, and an impossible quality of purity, at least for the short string of hours before metropolis took its customary toll on cleanliness.

I also experimented by taking the zippy train that links Hong Kong to the mainland, instead of flying. Open for over a year now, the high speed line is a pretty impressive feat of engineering. I mean, think about it: Hong Kong and Beijing are separated by 1,516 miles—about half the distance between the East and West Coasts of the continental United States—yet, in a mere nine hour train ride, barrelling northwards at an astounding average speed of nearly 170 miles per hour, I reached my destination, with only six interim stops: Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Changsha, Wuhan, Zhengzhou and Shijiazhuang. You've heard about the slow boat to China... Well, here's the fast train!

What's more, I finally stayed in a hutong hotel I've been eyeing since my first trip to Beijing back in 2017. Because I normally have lots of meetings squeezed within a short span, it has always made sense to stay somewhere a little more connected to the main downtown areas where my clients' offices are located. But this time, with only one meeting in a relatively remote location anyway, I at last got the opportunity to experience The Orchid.

Let me tell you a little bit more about it, because it really was what they call a charmer. You'll find it tucked up a few small alleys off one of the main streets of Beijing's Gulou neighborhood, near the imposing Drum and Bell Towers, not far from the enchanting Back Lakes that make up the Houhai district.

The main building is set around a traditional central courtyard, but the Orchid has also acquired several non-connected units—one of which I happened to be assigned—in the neighboring alleys, all only a quick stroll from the nucleus. So while you can still easily mosey up to the lobby or front desk, or take your breakfast in the charming restaurant, you really get the feeling that you're living among the quarter's residents, as opposed to lodging in a hotel.

Simply put, I had an incredible stay. I just loved being in the middle of the vast warren of hutongs, those photogenic narrow lanes that have come to define Beijing for so many foreign visitors, myself included. And I'm sure future trips to the city will see me calling on the friendly staff at The Orchid again, as I don't intend for this first visit to be my last.

Speaking of the Drum and Bell Towers, I also finally made it inside those two iconic structures, which I’ve left curiosity unexplored during my previous visits to Beijing. It’s a little weird, I guess, but because I know I’ll be returning with dependable frequency to the city, I actually like knowing there still remain multiple attractions I’ve yet to check off my to do list.

Of course, I also veritably feasted on amazing food, always one of the defining features of a trip into our vast neighbor to the north. Calorie-counting is certainly not among my 2020 New Year's resolutions.

From delectable Yunnan fare at the set-menu-only Dali Courtyard, to delicious mutton roujiamo that I chanced to find when I arrived an hour early for that meeting, to some of the best dumplings I've yet sampled at a place called Mrs. Shi's, to one final spicy Sichuan lunch with my buddy Clément before heading back to Hong Kong on Tuesday afternoon, it was a gluttonous stretch indeed!

But my most enduring recollection will be of the snow! And how fortunate I was to have seen it. Had my timing been off, even by a day, I would have missed the whole thing. And who knows when it will happen again next?

From the atmospheric lanes surrounding The Orchid to stunning Jingshan Park, where I headed to survey the legendary Forbidden City from on high, to the charming Back Lakes, the whole town seemed to come alive under a blanket of white.

And I got the impression the entire population ventured outside to enjoy the occasion: teens making snowmen, toddlers throwing snow balls, couples wandering along hand in hand, shutterbugs snapping endless photographs... with everybody flashing massive smiles at me every time our eyes met.

Beijing is a colorful city during any visit, but somehow, the juxtaposition of pure white against such vivid shades seemed to accentuate the visual sense of splendor. The reds were redder, the blues bluer. It was almost overwhelming in its magnificence.

Yes, even though it had mostly melted by the time my meeting ended around 3:30 on Monday afternoon—reduced to darkening, sooty piles on the side of the road because the temperature had risen to 39°—I'll keep the memories of how the city looked that morning for a lifetime. In fact, there was something about how brief it all felt that augmented the magic.

I've been lucky to see many beautiful things in this beautiful world. I hope to see many more. But Beijing on Monday was simply one of the loveliest sights I've ever laid my eyes on.

The End of an Era

Well this feels like a pivotal New Year's Eve. More than any other since the first time I celebrated the holiday in Hong Kong in 2009. Yes, the 2010s are saying their farewells, with the 2020s ready to make a bold entrance. The end of one decade and a new age about to start. 

Many people have pointed out of late that this mindset is pretty arbitrary and more than a little silly. What law says 2010 and 2019—separated by nine long years—are henceforth joined together under an irrefutable canopy, while 2019 and 2020—split by a mere nanosecond—are conversely divided by some equally irrefutable barrier? What, that is, besides humanity and the way we've thought about the passage of time for God knows how long!

Let's face the music; it's just easy. Thanks to the look of our numbers and the way we've chosen to tally years over the last two millennia, 2010 and 2019—sharing the first three of their four digits—are destined to be linked. 2019 and 2020—sharing only the first two—are mismatched. (Maybe the reason the shift from 1999 to 2000 seemed like an even weightier jump was because those years don't share even a single digit.)

And it might seem trivial at first, but, like all things, once we've lent it significance, it becomes meaningful. And we've attached meaning to this convention for far too long to suddenly change course now.

For you can't really argue with history, can you? We like to break eras down into groupings of years that each share the same tens place. The Roaring Twenties. The Swinging Sixties. Even something as simple as the Eighties.

What was it exactly that made each year between 1960 and 1969 indelibly swinging that vanished at the stroke of midnight on 1 January 1970? I can't pretend to know. But I'm sure that when we evaluate the past, we talk about the Sixties and the Seventies as distinct decades. And so we will about the 2010s and the 2020s. So just embrace it. Today is the end of an era.

What I also know is that 2019 has been a phenomenal year for yours truly. It's closed off a most spectacular decade in a most spectacular fashion, with an amazing combination of momentous personal milestones, a ton of travel to new places, special time spent back home with family and friends, and, quite simply, a helluva lot of fun. 

And so here they are... the twelve photographs I've chosen to sum up the year that draws this wild decade to a close.

January

Due to our tiny flats, it's a rare event indeed when my friends host a dinner party here in Hong Kong. 

February

When Heidi invites you to be her plus one at a wedding in Tulum, Mexico, you don't think twice about accepting.

March

It was a short return to the Lion City in March. These guys ensured it was also a sweet one!

April

Of course we hit up Happy Valley Racetrack when Logan came to visit back in April.

May

Who doesn't love a little Cinco de Mayo action?


June

My squat is a tad awkward, but no other snap from our ten year 'Nova reunion has as many amazing people crammed in!

July

Impromptu boat days are one of the joys of a Hong Kong summer!

August

A once-in-a-generation celebration with a once-in-a-lifetime friend

September

Friends who get married in Bali are great friends indeed! Thanks—and congrats—Roger and Mabel! 

October

Out on the Upper West Side of Manhattan the Saturday night—well, technically, the Sunday morning—before Halloween!

November

Celebrating the decade that's passed since my move to Hong Kong at Sha Tin Racetrack!

December

'Twas the night before Christmas, when I discovered Fredric has a fondness for candy canes!

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

This was, by all accounts, an exceptionally outstanding Christmas. All the elements came together to create an unforgettable holiday season, from its earliest appearances back at the start of the month, continuing in their crescendo towards the big day itself, and winding down with a lot of casual recovery and relaxation over the rest of the week that followed. Yes, the last Yuletide of the 2010s was surely a success, and I’d like to take some time to put together a quick recap of the festivities.

Of course, once Thanksgiving has come and gone, Christmas is already upon us, at least in terms of decorating. I make it a point to wait to do up my apartment until the first of December, but—needless to say—not everybody is quite so patient. I’ve written many times before that Hong Kong goes crazy with its lighting displays, often festooning the entire façade of an enormous harbor-fronting skyscraper with seasonal embellishments.

These never fail to amaze me, and this season, after ten years of viewing the displays, I was still stopped dead in my tracks at several points to take in the impressive sight and snap a photograph or ten.

The Peninsula, grande dame that she is, also got supremely decked for the season. There's an undeniable grace and beauty this building lends to Salisbury Road any time of the year. But I think I love it most of all when those elegant December snowflakes are added to the mix.

Yes, in spite of all that's gone on here over the past string of months, Hong Kong still got dressed for Christmas in her usual fashion.

And after years of postulating about it, I finally buckled down and bought a real tree for my own apartment! I’d toyed with the idea over the past few Christmases, but one thing or another always got in my way. So it’s an utter delight to be writing this under the lights twinkling on my nearly seven foot tall fir, bedecked with candy canes and those same stalwart ornaments I purchased for my first Hong Kong Christmas back in 2009.

I wish I could say I picked out a prized beauty from the dozens of trees available at Hong Kong’s famed flower market. Alas, while I headed out there one evening many weeks ago—and stocked up on poinsettias, complemented by a bag of fresh roasted chestnuts from a street vendor, during my visit—the trees themselves were outrageously overpriced. Full and tall and proud, I must confess, but costing several times the amount I had hoped to pay.

I love the romantic idea of traipsing over to Prince Edward and selecting the perfect noble evergreen. But the reality of the situation would also then entail lugging the thing back to Happy Valley in a rented van, plus carrying its hefty bulk up the six flights of stairs awaiting you once you’ve arrived in my building. It was just not to be.

Enter trusty (albeit boring, commonplace) Ikea, which not only offered remarkably cost-effective specimens, but also threw in free shipping—including a delivery man willing to scale my steps! Of course, the catch is that you don’t choose a specific tree, sorting through the multitudes to find your ideal. All you decide is whether to go for the small option (between four and five feet) or the large one (between six and seven feet). Mine turned out to be a little barer than I would have liked. But, all things considered, it was a great bargain.

And, I must say, the smell of the pine needles and the, well, the realness of a genuine tree, have injected a great deal of holiday happiness into my life these past weeks. Many nights after work, I’ve voluntarily ensconced myself in my living room, with all the lights plugged in, just to bask in the gloriousness of the scene. (True confession: I deliberately doze off on the couch more frequently this time of year than any other, falling asleep to Christmas music and visions of sugar plums.)

In addition to the apartment, my colleague Cherry and I also took it upon ourselves to decorate the foyer of our office this year. I found a bag of holiday decorations—really just some garlands and a few worn, miniature trees—behind one of the desks, and we lovingly set them up to lend a little festive cheer to the workplace.

I amassed way too many Christmas cards from Saint John’s Cathedral Bookshop back in early December, too. (The same place I procured my chocolate Advent calendar.) I just couldn’t help myself; I fell in love with so many varieties. In the end, I wound up sending out just shy of twenty-five cards, while I bought something more like sixty, so I have ample supply when the holidays roll around again in 2020!

Hong Kong’s Christmas events started well before my trip to Hanoi, including that all around spectacular weekend where SantaCon Saturday meets International Race Day Sunday. With the exception of Rugby Sevens, I’d probably rank it as the greatest event of the annual social calendar. And I immersed myself in it fully this go around.

Whether drinking Coronas with a view of the skyline, or belting out “All I Want for Christmas is You” on the Star Ferry, or wreaking havoc along the MTR escalators, SantaCon always makes for a grand day from start to finish. And although I rocked up solo, I very quickly found the friends with whom I’d be spending the day. I mean, there were probably around three hundred Santas to choose from, so I guess this isn’t really a big surprise.

Some of these came in the form of new buddies with whom I struck up random conversations; others were from unexpected encounters with people I already knew—some, like my friend Kayla, who I hadn’t seen in years! By the time I headed home that evening, my Christmas spirits were sky high.

The next day I trekked out to Sha Tin for Hong Kong International Race Day—and was absolutely gutted to learn that the Jockey Club decided to forego their traditional HKIR baseball cap, which I have collected almost every year since my first visit to Sha Tin for International Race Day in 2009. Due to the civil unrest, they also opted to nix the traditional fireworks display that sees impressive pyrotechnics shot off into the air after the conclusion of the final race. Still, I can’t say anything else negative about the day. But here’s hoping that by December 2020, things are back to normal again on all fronts.

After spending the first several races in the public area, I then was invited to join my friends Kathy and Lou—and Kathy’s entire family!—in the Owner’s Box, because her dad's horse Glorious Forever, a champion in last year’s two thousand meter Hong Kong Cup, was again running today.

Although he fared much worse this year, it was Kathy’s sister Karan’s birthday, and the whole clan was duly celebrating. It was a great way to cap off yet another wonderful December day at the track.

As I’ve noted before, there are so many pieces of the Yuletide puzzle, that all play their own role in the season, some tiny, some large. For me, this season was chock full of almost everything I require to have myself a merry little Christmas.

Holiday movies and television shows are a must for me, from classics like The Thin Man, Miracle on 34^th Street, It’s a Wonderful Life, and The Shop Around the Corner to Christmas-themed episodes of The Honeymooners, Mary Tyler Moore, The Office, Friends... even What's My Line? Whether watching at home or occasionally on my desktop at work, I love revisiting all my favorites (and, from time to time, discovering a new addition for the list).

I stocked up on the egg nog, of course, courtesy of Taste, an international supermarket in the Hopewell Centre in Wan Chai. I kept one bottle in our office fridge to liven up my morning Nespressos with a little holiday cheer, and another one in my apartment, to create stronger drinks as the Christmas schedule allows.

And I felt just the tiniest bit gluttonous about it, but I bought my marrons glacés from the Maison du Chocolat this year. The past few Noels, I’ve saved a few bucks by procuring less deluxe French candied chestnuts from various places. For me, Christmas just isn’t complete without them, but I decided to splurge on the top of the line morsels to see out the decade.

And, at long last, I tracked down mistletoe in Hong Kong! In Christmases past, I’ve scoured the flower market and countless florists all over town, ranging from the high end to the mom-and-pop varietals. Never fail, I have totally bombed in my endeavor. But, this year, I lucked out!

I was heading back to the office after a client meeting one morning last week, and I decided to pass through ifc en route, to pop into posh CitySuper to scope out their gingerbread houses. As fate would have it, the equally posh Flannel Flowers, located just next door, had several bundles of the holiday weed in stock.

I was on the phone as I passed and did an excited double take, for I’d definitely dropped by in previous years, seeing as this would be the kind of place to sell rare goodies for homesick Americans looking to recreate their traditional Christmas down to the tiniest detail. “This is the first time you guys have sold this, right? You didn't have this last year?” I asked the shop girl.

“No, we haven’t had this before," she replied, "but it’s quite special.” She then proceeded to convince me it was wise to spend HKD 100—or about USD 13—on some. It didn’t take much effort on her part. Now that I’d found it, I probably would have paid a lot more. As they say, Christmas comes but once a year. I've loved pointing it out to people when they've dropped by over the past days.

In the end, I didn’t get my gingerbread house from CitySuper but rather from Great, another ritzy supermarket over in Pacific Place in Admiralty, a few days later. The one I settled on wasn’t your typical variety. Instead, it was a dog gingerbread house, complete with a sugar Fido. And I customized it to suit my own little pooch. Since the house's inevitable post-Christmas destruction, I’ve even been sure to share some of the pieces with him.  

Continuing the tradition of “Up on the Housetop,” my annual Christmastime rooftop bash, I had a group of friends over on Tuesday evening the week before the actual holiday. I had to squeeze it in early because many Hong Kong-based friends fly back home or head off on Christmas vacations. The nature of a mid-week party kept the alcohol intake lower than that of my usual weekend gatherings, but it was still a noteworthy addition to the memorable litany.

We had mulled wine a-plenty, Santa hats galore and a seemingly unending string of Christmas tunes emanating from my laptop. And it was wonderful to ensure ample time to celebrate with some of my best friends.

Starting Tuesday, it turned into a pretty busy week, because after my party, I wound up at the track with Matt and Ana on Wednesday for the last of the pre-Christmas race meetings. Of course, Santa Claus was there, but he didn’t bring me any extra luck. None of my bets hit. 

But Thursday might have been the high point of it all! Saint-Germain, the wonderful French brasserie around the corner from my place, organized a raclette dinner with “all you can eat” melted Swiss cheese and charcuterie. I booked a table and invited friends to join along, and I am already looking forward to the January installment, since Saint-Germain plans to continue putting these feasts together once a month between now and the time the mercury rises with the coming of spring.

I also hesitantly bought a ticket of the Nutcracker again, put on by Hong Kong Ballet. Perhaps my greatest Christmas surprise this season is how utterly phenomenal it was. For me, Tchaikovsky’s spirited ballet is an integral part of the holiday. And I must admit, I’m pretty spoilt. I grew up outside New York City, and trips up to Lincoln Center to see Balanchine’s legendary production were a common Yuletide occurrence for the Parisi family.

My first attendance at the Hong Kong version was in 2011, when I went with Amy and Chiara. I remember the three of us wincing as the Cavalier visibly struggled to catch the Sugar Plum Fairy during their Grand Pas de Deux. Now, don’t get me wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed the show that year. It certainly helped get me in the Christmas mood. And I'm not trying to say that it was laughably bad or amateurish. But it was nowhere near as impressive as New York City’s.

Five years later, in 2016, I again made my way to the Hong Kong Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui to see the show, and, again, my verdict was that the quality of the dancing was certainly capable but somewhat basic. Still, just being in the Grand Theatre listening to the spellbinding music is enough to warrant the price of a ticket. But I longed for a more eye-catching production.

The following year, my friend Sophie and I came up with a novel solution, since she shared my assessment of the local Nutcracker. Instead of exchanging the highest quality of dancing for the novelty of three dimensional dancers, we opted to book seats at a screening of the Bolshoi’s Nutcracker in a TST cinema. Obviously, the Bolshoi is one of the few dance companies that can give New York City Ballet a good run for its money. And it was surely a treat to see such a storied production.

But this year, the day before Christmas Eve, I was toying with the idea of going to the Cultural Centre a third time. And I’m so glad I followed through. I must say, the Hong Kong Ballet has gotten markedly stronger since 2016, and if this is the new normal, then I’ll be a regular attendee from now on. Yes, I’m proud to report that we finally have a fabulous Nutcracker in the SAR.

To complete the illusion of being in New York City, I prefaced the show with an amazing dinner at the nearby Langham Hotel’s Main Street Deli. Feasting on an enormous Reuben and fries (plus a ginger ale) in a spot-on recreation of a Manhattan diner really did the trick. I think I have a new holiday tradition on my hands for those years when I'm unable to return home for the holidays!

A few noteworthy anniversaries have also come and gone during the Yuletide reveries. My blog just hit the tenth anniversary of its initial post, written all the way back on 22 December 2009. And on Christmas Eve itself, I celebrated the tenth anniversary of my inaugural visit to what I now lovingly treasure as my Hong Kong home, my Happy Valley apartment. Yes, it was a Christmas Eve barbecue hosted by dear old Sonia, two and a half years before I’d move in to the place myself. I’d been in Hong Kong a mere six weeks, marking my first Christmas away from my family, doing my best to make new friends under the circumstances.

Of course, I couldn’t resist the temptation to host a second rooftop party this season, on Christmas Eve itself to commemorate the anniversary. And I actually co-hosted the event with my fourth-floor neighbor Ines, from Poland. You see, over the past year, Ines and I have become pretty good friends, so much so that I invited her to our rooftop Thanksgiving back in November.

When I mentioned that evening that I also planned to have people over on Christmas Eve, she excitedly asked if she could join and bring along some pals of her own. She then informed me she desired to make it a true Polish Christmas—where the major celebration takes place on the 24^th—by cooking traditional foods like golabki (cabbage-wrapped minced beef) and a delectable beetroot soup called barszcz with homemade dumplings known as uszka.

We had a good crowd, and everybody seemed to have a wonderful time. And don’t worry, although we partied until the early hours, I made sure the milk and cookies were left out for Saint Nick. Perhaps I should have left him some mince pies instead, as I still have half a dozen left over that I’ll need to finish in the coming days!

I somehow still made it to Saint John’s for 9am service on Christmas Day, one of my favorite church events of the year. As Washington Irving wrote in his beautiful Old Christmas stories, “I do not know a grander effect of music on the moral feelings than to hear the full choir and the pealing organ performing a Christmas anthem in a cathedral and filling every part of the vast pile with triumphant harmony.”

When they burst into the sanctuary singing O Come, All Ye Faithful, chills ran up and down my spine. And departing to Hark, the Herald Angels Sing provided an equally memorable finish.

Then I met Kevin, his wife Lynn, their children Harry and Isla, and a group of their mates, for an unbelievably upscale Christmas lunch at the Mandarin Oriental in Central. I’ve had Christmases in restaurants before, but never anywhere like this! From oysters and caviar, to prime rib, to literally incessant Champagne, it was top class all the way.

Mercifully, Hong Kong’s British heritage means that we are grandfathered into commemorating Boxing Day—the day after Christmas—as well, which couldn’t have been more welcome this year in the wake of those ceaseless bubbles.

I did make it a point to wake up early, so that I could place my traditional call to my family celebrating at my cousin Victoria’s house in Brooklyn. Whenever the Parisis gather to celebrate major events and I am unable to join in person, I almost always pre-arrange to call either my father or sister so that their phone can be passed around the table for me have a quick chat with everybody.

Instead of doing anything big afterwards, however, I opted to spend most of that next day curled up on the couch with Fredric, sipping egg nog, watching Christmas movies and tv shows, and generally enjoying the strange allure of relishing doing very little indeed.

The morning started with egg nog. And eventually I worked up the energy to mull the remains of several half- and quarter-full wine bottles that had gone unconsumed during the Christmas Eve gathering two nights before. Shockingly, the results were utterly delicious.

Friday, we were back to work, but the return was short and sweet. By mid-afternoon I was at Sarah and Joel’s house in Big Wave Bay to close out the season in a most memorable fashion. They convinced me to stay for the night in their guest room, within sound of the surf, allowing us to spend some quality time together this morning, which was as early as expected, considering they have a five month old baby and a delightful four year old daughter... not to mention their rambunctious golden doodle Sandy!

So this morning included home cooked bacon rolls and a glorious beach stroll-cum-play session. Oh, what a Christmas!

Since moving here in November 2009, I’ve stuck around Hong Kong six times for the holidays and gone back to the States four. (Once, in 2012, I had just moved to Singapore to open a new office for my former company and spent the season in what I thought would be my new home.) I must say, people often think it must be depressing for me to be here during this time, that I’m effectively stuck far away, friendless and alone.

In actuality, while nothing beats a good, old fashioned American Christmas—and I surely miss my family more than ever come 25 December—celebrating the holidays in Hong Kong with an international set of friends and traditions is yet another reason why I feel so fortunate I’ve been able to call this place home for the last ten years!

So, yes, I know I’m a little late, but I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, and I wish you a very happy, healthy and successful 2020!