Covert Ops

Yesterday was the birthday of Amy, undeniably the most pixie/leprechaun-ish of us Fulbrighters. She’s tiny (in terms of physical height), perpetually cheerful, and a consummate prankster (e.g. putting a fake cockroach in Susan’s bag of chestnuts). So, we decided to pay her back in turn…

The Plan
1) Buy lots of balloons (and an air pump to make things easier).
2) Wait until she leaves for work.
3) Blow up aforementioned balloons.

I started working solo around 10 AM upstairs in our apartment, figuring it would take a while. The first problem I ran into: how to store/carry lots of blown-up balloons? Not having a large garbage bag, I thought for a while, then remembered my poncho from Malaysia…which is essentially a large plastic bag =P It made an admirable balloon carry-sack.

Around noon, Emily called to say the coast was clear, so we moved everything downstairs and continued blowing up more balloons. Sam and Mari came to help, which made things go more quickly…by 1:30 PM, we had a few balloon-related injuries but a very impressive result:

Emily had to go to work and Mari had to run errands in Zhuhai, so Sam/Susan/I took turns apartment-sitting until Amy got home. The super-nice security guard downstairs was in on the trick, so (as requested), he told Amy that her room was flooded. When she and Emily came upstairs, we were waiting outside, pretending that Emily had called us to ask for help cleaning up. Amy figured something was up because Emily had apparently started laughing at the security guard’s claim, but she certainly wasn’t expecting the flood she saw in her room =P

Ahhh!

Fwoomph!

We completed the celebrations with a big dinner at Mexicana (expensive but yummy) and a brief stop at Ladies’ Night in the Venetian. I normally wouldn’t go to something like Ladies’ Night, especially since I had to teach on Thursdays last semester, but this time was actually nice because we got a lot of comfy seats in the corner for our big group and the music wasn’t overly loud, so we could actually carry on normal conversation. My first vodka-and-cranberry was weak enough to be palatable (my dislike for the taste of alcohol equals my sensitivity to it), so we passed a couple hours pleasantly before catching a late-night bus home.

"Supreme Nachos" made us realize how much we all missed salsa/guacamole

Soft beef tacos with rice =D

Happy birthday!

December birthday bash

A few weeks ago, Sam, Susan, and I realized that no fewer than five of our friends in Macau all had birthdays in mid-to-late December: ETAs Austin and Holly, Grinnell fellow Brian, UM GA Karen, and UM student Henry. (Actually, we later realized there were a couple more, but those were the main ones we were celebrating). Unfortunately, late December is exactly the time that we will all be split up traveling with different family members/friends, so we decided to plan a preemptive surprise joint birthday party, aka big family-style dinner + cake, then go out for drinks afterward.

The evening started off at Azita's parents' restaurant, a small place near the border gate with 7-8 tables, and we took up two of them! Susan and I went early to sneak in the cake (a 1-pound fruit and cream confection from St. Honore's), then the others came in dribs and drabs, eventually totaling 17 people. Azita's parents were super-nice...her dad is apparently the only chef in the kitchen, so we felt bad about getting so much food, but I guess it wasn't any more than that number of ordinary customers would have ordered. We even tried to help by pre-ordering some things so he could prepare them earlier, but then we realized that wasn't going to be nearly enough food...we ended up getting about 15 different dishes ^^;

Some of the many delicious things

The devious part of the night was that we had told all the birthday people that it was a "big holiday gathering" to celebrate the end of the semester before we all split up to travel, but once everyone was there, we whipped out the birthday crowns!

Karen and Brian putting on their crowns

Niko (an exchange student from Finland), Austin, and Emily

The second part of the birthday surprise was the cake, and also this massive card that St. Honore's had thrown in for free. All the birthday people took photos with the card, but we eventually decided to save it and all sign it for Holly, since she wasn't at the dinner (she was busy at debate team). After we looked like we couldn't eat any more dinner, Azita's mom brought out the cake, with just enough candles so each of the birthday people got one to blow out.

Happy birthday...

Dinly and Henry with their candles

Karen taking a stab at cutting the cake (pun intended)

Azita insisting that Henry "read" the card

With many thanks to Azita's parents, we departed for NAPE, the "party zone" of Macau near the statue of Kun Iam, on the waterfront of the channel between Macau and Taipa. We ended up spending most of the night (until we went home around 1 AM) at this relatively new bar called House Cafe, which was shiny and white and clean, but the drinks were only ok (for the price) and the smell of perfumed potpourri inside was overpowering. Luckily, it wasn't that chilly out, so we put a bunch of tables together and basically took over half the patio area. Perhaps the most amusing thing was a big screen that was playing fairly old/awkward music videos...it would have been a lot more fun if there was karaoke to go with it heh.

I didn't get much sleep once I got home because I had to proctor the ACT this morning, but no time for a nap now because I have to get some gift-shopping done before my friend Matt flies in to HK tomorrow. I know I've failed at blogging catch-up so far (I thought I was doing pretty well to have at least one post a week) but I'll definitely be working on it over break, between baking cookies and doing all that other holiday stuff back at home =D

Do you have what it takes?!

Another batch of visitors this weekend: the first round was 7 HK ETAs (Jessica M, Mai Choua, Laura, Sarah, Allison, Jesse, Layton) and Allison's boyfriend Charlie. Brian, Mari, and I met up with them at the ferry terminal but they wanted to do different things, so I ended up going with Jesse/Layton/Allison/Charlie to the Macau Tower while the rest went to lunch in Senado.

Why would we go to the Macau Tower, one might ask? Why else, of course, but to go bungee jumping! As the website proudly proclaims, the Macau Tower boasts the highest bungee jump in the world at 233 meters. The Hackett company also offers several other adrenaline-pumping options, such as walking around the top of the Tower, or even climbing the mast. I was wearing a dress, so clearly I wasn't about to go, but the four of them opted for the deluxe bungee jump package, which includes photos and a DVD of your jump. An interesting psychological point: you have to buy the tickets at the base of the tower, and they're non-refundable, so you mentally commit even before you get to the top =P

While at the base, we paused to take a couple photos of the many model Macau Towers around:

Lego Tower (next to the Toys 'R Us entrance)

A larger model one level down
"Oh great, we have to carry a spear and have our feet on fire?"

The elevator ride up was slightly disconcerting, even for me. They run on the outside of the Tower so you can get glimpses of the surrounding area, showing just how high you're going...

Fifty-something stories up and counting...

When we finally got to the observation deck, the view was kind of hazy, but still pretty awesome:

Macau (easy to spot the Grand Lisboa)

Taipa (the NW corner)

The jumpers, however, had other things on their mind. This teddy bear (one of several hanging around the deck), was not exactly inspiring =P

Whee!

After filling out the usual waivers and such, they all got harnessed up and ready to jump: first Jesse, then Allison, then Charlie, then Layton. The guy actually offered to let me put on a harness and go out to the balcony for free, but I elected to stay safely inside and just photograph from there =P

In the (indoor) waiting area
L->R Charlie, Allison, Jesse, Layton

Jesse had a mildly frightening moment even before getting outside - one of the more senior staff suddenly pulled him out of the waiting area saying, "You have the wrong harness on." That fixed, they got outside, had their feet Velcro-ed together, and all successfully made the jump. What amused me most were the other non-jumping tourists on the observation deck who would all collectively gasp anytime someone jumped...obviously, after seeing all four of my friends jump (and a few people before that), I was a bit jaded.

5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

Layton spotted me while getting his feet Velcro-ed

After they got to the bottom, all four came back up to meet me, get their bags back, and review their photos/videos. They all got certificates showing they had made the jump, which they can now show off with pride =P As scary as it sounds, the process is actually quite safe - dozens of people do the jump every day, and as far as I know, they haven't had any accidents. Besides the bungee cord, there are also multiple guide wires, so it's not possible for a gust of wind to blow jumpers into the Tower or out into the water. Obviously, if there was a typhoon warning, they'd shut down the whole operation. I still doubt that I'll ever do it myself, but it's nice to know that others have survived.

The rest of the day was quiet by comparison, but still a lot of fun. We stopped for lunch at Dumpling Town (it's so sad that they haven't found a decent dumpling place in HK, because they're all the way out in Tai Po) and walked around Senado a bit, then met up with the others at Venetian to catch the 6:00 Zaia show (yay for a 200 MOP discount!). I couldn't take any photos of Cirque de Soleil, but the acts were incredible even though the storyline was tissue paper-thin. All my YAGS buddies definitely would have appreciated the fire juggling: staffs, poi, jump ropes, and more ;-)

After a late dinner in the Venetian food court (first decent Mexican food I've had in Macau!) and singing Happy Birthday to Emily (over a chocolate Starbucks donut =P), most of the HK folks hopped on the convenient Venetian shuttle bus to the ferry terminal, with just Jess M staying overnight. From the fun we all had, though, we know they'll be back for more!

National Day: Happy 60th birthday to the PRC!

Thursday morning started off with a bang, literally - people were setting off firecrackers in the street, which woke me up waaay too early considering we had stayed up late chatting with Azita and Joseph the night before. Amy had deviously invited Azita to see their apartment, planning to have an early surprise birthday celebration.

Azita making a wish on her chocolate “peanut” cake (made by Holly)

Anyway, I stayed in for the morning to avoid all the craziness outside, but around 1 PM, I hopped over to the ferry terminal to pick up Jessica L and Jessica M, two of the Hong Kong ETAs who had come to visit for National Day. We met up with Brian and Mari as well, then headed out to explore what Macau had to offer on National Day.

The first stop was Tap Seac Square, where there were plenty of Mid-Autumn Festival decorations, but there was also a huge open-air concert/carnival going on, with things like mini-car driving and an inflatable obstacle course for the kids (oh, Richfest memories!) I was especially amused by this moonbounce that is supposed to resemble the Guia lighthouse and fortress:

Ta-da!

Between Tap Seac and Senado, we also found this charming side street with cobblestones, Portuguese-style buildings on both sides, and these mildly freaky pinata-style bunny lanterns.

Look into their eyes, I dare you...

They're even creepier up close

At Senado there wasn't much for National Day, besides the big gate that's been there for a while, but we also went up to St. Paul's and saw some more Mid-Autumn Festival decorations there, like this massive lantern:

The top part spins!

Of course, by now I've been to Senado many times, but I still manage to find something new and/or amusing on every visit. This trip's highlight was the sign advertising one of the street shack eateries across from Lemoncello gelato...possibly the least appealing translation EVER:

Eww.

For dinner, we opted to try some Portguese food in Taipa Village, where there are lots of supposedly good restaurants. Our first choice was unfortunately super-crowded, so we ended up at Pinocchio, which opened up their second floor because there were so many diners. The restaurant had a cute menu and nice facility, but pretty mediocre food and absolutely awful service. We asked four times why we didn't get a basket of bread (as everyone around us was), with four different responses:

1) Let me check with the manager.
2) You have to order soup to get bread.
3) We ran out of bread!
4) It's coming, it's coming!

When we finally got our food (we were one of the first tables seated and one of the last to be served), it was pretty disappointing. I had ordered the pork chop rice, thinking it would have a savory sauce soaking through the rice similar to what we had at Fat Siu Lai a couple weeks ago, but instead it was a bowl of rice, with a pan-fried pork chop on top (that was at least 1/3 bone), slathered in ketchup (of all things). Ick. After scraping off most of the ketchup and cutting out the bones, I ate it because I was hungry, but it was still barely palatable.

They need someone to be their conscience

To make up for the bad dinner, we tried to go to the Altira hotel to watch the last night of the international fireworks festival, but the view wasn't that good (too much reflection from the glass) and Austria just failed. As Jessica M. said, "I was expecting the Alps [in fireworks], or at least the von Trapp family!" What we got instead was a rather bad show with awkwardly long pauses (so long that we thought the display had ended twice before the actual finale). It was so clearly the worst of all the entries we had seen, we figured that either Austria had been paired with China on purpose, or they had been paid off or something.

As might be expected, China went all out for their National Day fireworks display, with massive bursts that went even taller than the Macau Tower! All in all, quite an impressive National Day celebration =D