This morning we had a more leisurely start to the day and gathered in the lobby to walk to the BSD office for our breakfast meeting. A box breakfast included scrambled eggs, toast and juices. We then set off to catch the tram (using our electronic Octopus Card for entrance to the tram and the bus)
that then took us to the bus station for a tour bus ride through the southern section of Hong Kong and then under Victoria Harbour to Kowloon where we drove by many sites including the major universities,
the old city of Kowloon, the plant market filled with flowers, trees and plants for every occasion.
We got off the tour bus at the large shopping mall making King of Prussia look like a general store. The mall is nine floors of shopping bliss!!!.....at least for folks who like malls and who like shopping. Everyone had some time to go over in small groups to explore around the mall. We met back up after some purchases for a lunch of real Chinese dim sum. This meal was extravagant by any standards but the colors, the textures, the smells and the artistry was like nothing we have ever seen in the States.
Stuffed with our many plates of samplings and feeling like we want to lay down in the street for a nap we "solider on" for more shopping at the technology market!!! Oh, the sacrifices we must endure in the name of culture!!
Was that enough shopping....oh, NO! We were joined by another of the BSD crew, Sean, who used his contacts to get us huge discounts for any sneaker shoppers at the Nike flagship store. A number of us tried the local public toilets which amounted to holes in the ground and then headed to the Ladies Market.
While not just for ladies, this is an outdoor extravaganza of blocks after blocks of canopies and tents offering not only everything you could imagine but even some things that probably should only have been on display in the evening....
Using our electronic Octopus Card again, we went underground to grab the MTR subway system changing trains several times and being so many floors under ground that we lost count.
Our time back at the hotel allowed for showers and rest time for all of us. And then we were off to dinner at 7:30pm for Moroccan. We walked about 20 minutes from our hotel and arrived at what looked like inside as a tent complete with pierced lanterns hanging from the ceiling and north African music playing in the background. I will admit to thinking of Casa Blanca but didn't share that with our travelers with the only result of proving that their Headmaster is older than they originally thought.
The selections of lamb, couscous, grilled vegetables, tagine, and a wide variety of fish on our students plates I thought were extra-ordinary as they consumed everything with true gusto. 
However, when I sat back and listened to the conversations between the Hill Top students and our hosts for the evening about Brexit, the 2047 Hong Kong anniversary and if China would allow independence, the politics of Taiwan and of course our favorite movie selections I sat back with a smile of great pride in watching these students thoroughly enjoy the company of people they only just met in a country in which they have only arrived and eating food that they have never seen with such comfort and joy in the moment.
Just before heading to bed we had an organizational meeting talking about our day, our biggest surprises and then to talked about our plans for tomorrow in which we start our first coding class. We are all tired but I complimented them on things like: working on a few words of Chinese, trying so many new foods with enthusiasm, leading groups into new locations and being sure that no one is lost. They have really been aware of their surroundings and the people in them.
that then took us to the bus station for a tour bus ride through the southern section of Hong Kong and then under Victoria Harbour to Kowloon where we drove by many sites including the major universities, 
We got off the tour bus at the large shopping mall making King of Prussia look like a general store. The mall is nine floors of shopping bliss!!!.....at least for folks who like malls and who like shopping. Everyone had some time to go over in small groups to explore around the mall. We met back up after some purchases for a lunch of real Chinese dim sum. This meal was extravagant by any standards but the colors, the textures, the smells and the artistry was like nothing we have ever seen in the States.
Was that enough shopping....oh, NO! We were joined by another of the BSD crew, Sean, who used his contacts to get us huge discounts for any sneaker shoppers at the Nike flagship store. A number of us tried the local public toilets which amounted to holes in the ground and then headed to the Ladies Market.
Using our electronic Octopus Card again, we went underground to grab the MTR subway system changing trains several times and being so many floors under ground that we lost count.
Our time back at the hotel allowed for showers and rest time for all of us. And then we were off to dinner at 7:30pm for Moroccan. We walked about 20 minutes from our hotel and arrived at what looked like inside as a tent complete with pierced lanterns hanging from the ceiling and north African music playing in the background. I will admit to thinking of Casa Blanca but didn't share that with our travelers with the only result of proving that their Headmaster is older than they originally thought.
The selections of lamb, couscous, grilled vegetables, tagine, and a wide variety of fish on our students plates I thought were extra-ordinary as they consumed everything with true gusto. 
However, when I sat back and listened to the conversations between the Hill Top students and our hosts for the evening about Brexit, the 2047 Hong Kong anniversary and if China would allow independence, the politics of Taiwan and of course our favorite movie selections I sat back with a smile of great pride in watching these students thoroughly enjoy the company of people they only just met in a country in which they have only arrived and eating food that they have never seen with such comfort and joy in the moment.
Just before heading to bed we had an organizational meeting talking about our day, our biggest surprises and then to talked about our plans for tomorrow in which we start our first coding class. We are all tired but I complimented them on things like: working on a few words of Chinese, trying so many new foods with enthusiasm, leading groups into new locations and being sure that no one is lost. They have really been aware of their surroundings and the people in them.
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