Its Raining in Hong Kong...

Getting on the plane bound for Hong Kong Yesterday was exciting, to say the least - we had no idea what to expect - all we had seen were pictures! Our flight was super awesome, lasted for about 7 and a half hours, had some good food, and finally just some time to sit and think. As we flew over Indonesia, the rolling green hills and islands triggered memories of flying over the PNG bush.... spotted with villages. We came nearer and nearer, and soon I was looking down on the South China sea off the coast of Hong Kong, full of fishing boats, and ships carrying who-knows-what all over the world... we began flying over land, and I saw a cluster of high-rise apartments and skyscrapers... "Wow" I thought, This place is huge, much bigger than Perth anyways!! Then, as we flew over the next hill, i saw another, and a few miles away, a few more bunches of these monumental steel and glass beasts... I realized Hong Kong was much much bigger than Perth! In fact, i think you could fit all of Perth in a single section of Hong Kong. We got through customs and everything fine, noticing how blessed we were to speak english as a first language. As we stepped out into the muggy air, a light scent of the ocean/fish/cigarettes filled our noses, and we knew we were in another place! The team piled our luggage on one of hundreds of double decker busses that fill the streets of H.K., And took the three-quarter hour night-time journey to the city center. Through tunnels, over bridges, under and over other roads with layers of overpasses... past millions of colorful lights that make Hong Kong so unique... I wondered just how many people lived in a single buidling, I thought "how amazing is this place!? Only two words come to mind to describe this sleepless, lively city - Big.... and Overwhelming... Its getting late into the evening, and there are still hundreds of cars on the roads, people in the streets, construction going on... plus the barrage of advertisements and signs that light the streets.... Flying over, this place looked calm and bright, but as we got into the heart of the city, at the base of these skyscrapers, we found out how much was happening. In the midst of all these thoughts, I realized how easy it would be to become blinded to the mask it all is, the empty well it has become as people search for something to satisfy them. You might not notice, like me, the homeless lady reading the newspaper under the stairwell as we walked home after a night of gazing at lights and eating authentic chinese food... it would be all to easy to get caught up in it all, but that is precisely what we are here not to do- we are here to notice the un-noticed, love the unloved and help the helpless, shine light into the dark places that fill the hustle and bustle... We arrived at our hostel, found on the 10th floor of a grimy-looking apartment building, late at night, and attempted to take our cold showers in the closet-sized bathroom. Then we put in for the night, after a long day of travel, and lots of new experiences... This morning we woke and 3 of us took a self guided tour of the neighborhood, found some random shops, and even bought some fresh cucumber juice... nice to try once, but I may wait a while for the next one. Then we ran in out of the rain and met as a team for some brunch, then had an awesome time of worship, and then intercession for the city around us... its all a bit new, overwhelming, and uncomfortable... but we need that oh so often....

Now for the next adventure.... train ride to Beijing....