Someday I'll Return to the Trails of Fushimi

林の中を吹きぬけてくる風は冷たくて気持ちがいい。

The blast of cool air from the forest depths feels great.

Macau scooters

The amount of scooters in Macau is crazy. I'm sure it doesn't come close to Vietnam or other places though. Still, its a noisy ruckus all day long and most of all I am amazed I don't see more accidents. People weave in and out of traffic full of other cars and buses.



But in a city where parking spots go for a premium price, it makes economical sense to get something you can park without breaking the bank.

Macau - Rua Do Lilau

I first visited this little street back in 2008 after I finished studying in Japan and took a trip to Hong Kong and Macau. At the time it didn't mean much but it was a nice area with some older Portuguese buildings. In 2011 I realized that Christy actually grew up and lived along this street. I loved it even more after that.



It is much quieter and peaceful around this area. The street nearby is one way and has vehicles thundering down it all day long but it isn't so bad compared to where I lived. My house was right next to a major thoroughfare in the northern part of Macau.



These houses have sat for years untouched. There is nothing but decay inside. How do I know? Christy and I went inside one day to explore and it was rather interesting. That will be in a follow up post. It's curious some developer hasn't bought them and built something new. I suppose they are some sort of heritage property and people would get angry if they were demolished. The inside would take thousands of dollars to restore so that's out of the question too.

I can look back fondly on these places. I just wish it hadn't been cut so short.

Ma On Shan - November 24, 2014

I had to leave Macau on November 19th but that whole ordeal is a story in itself which I will tell later. So with no immediate plan I took advantage of my time in Hong Kong to do some hiking.



Ma On Shan Country Park is in northeast Hong Kong. People continually forget Hong Kong has lots of beautiful nature and hiking trails. The city overshadows most of that unfortunately but if you get out, you will be highly rewarded.





You can take a bus/taxi up to the trail head but being the 節約 man I am, I walked. It was more like a hike in itself than a walk though. I'm not too interested in writing a detailed report of the trail but more interested in sharing the sights along the way.



That is the peak of Ma On in the distance after coming up what are known as the hunchbacks (I almost died from being out of shape and the heat even though it was November). They are lumpy peaks that slowly rise and fall for a decent stretch. You can see this later.





Those are the hunchbacks.





A friendly hiker hooked me up with a candid photo looking east toward Sai Kung. I ended up walking most of the way down to the city and catching a bus back to Kowloon.











If you look closely you can see a few hikers in the middle of the trail. It's always so great to come off a peak and look back at what you accomplished. I also feel for the poor suckers dying on their way up.







After I winded my way down, I did what any person in Hong Kong would. I ate Subway along the harbor and watched fish mongers sell their product. Nah, that doesn't really sound typical at all. I was just in the mood for Subway. What can I say? This hike lifted my spirits a bit after leaving Macau but I wished that I had shared it with Christy.

Just Happy I'm Here

Ever since I left Japan I felt so lost. Nothing seemed like it was working out. Nothing seemed worthwhile. I didn't know what I was doing. I felt like something in me had died and I wouldn't ever get it back. Last year was confusing and ripe with disappointments and joys. I got into Macau only to be kicked out and applying for graduate school was an emotional drain. I thought I wasn't going anywhere again and I was looking at a repeat of the same past year in a whole new gleam of negativity. It's like this dark image of sakura. Pretty, depressing.



I can thankfully say that things turned a corner in the past week. I'm going to graduate school in student affairs at a school in Michigan. This is the best news I've heard in quite some time. I hope to work in international student services at a university in the future and it feels like the right step in order to make that a reality.

I feel the blog calling me back. I can't split myself from the path this blog has put me on. It's then and me now. The spring brings some joy back to my mind. So much is waiting. I'll go find it again.