HONG KONG BLESIUS

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

"IMVUBU"

This is the vessel IMVUBU (top). Kathleen and I have been "boat sitting" while our friend Mark is away visiting family and friends in South Africa. The two bottom photos depict our view from our "dinner table" which is located on the back deck. If you "squint" at the bottom photo you can see the IFC building (K's office tower) and "central" Hong Kong in the distant background. Notice the air pollution that hovers over HK... unfortunately, squinting is not necessary.

This marina is located in Discovery Bay on Lantau Island.

Thank you Mark!

PAPER SNOW

I loaded Kathleen's umbrella up with a half pound of white confetti the other day and placed it by the front door and waited for rain. A couple of days later the rain arrived. When she left our flat with her umbrella in hand, I quickly grabbed my camera and positioned myself in the open window 25 floors up. I watched as she exited the building and headed to the corner to hail a cab. When she reached her cab hailing destination she opened her "protection" and alas a small blizzard covered her. I have to entertain myself somehow... :).

Sunday, May 10, 2009

CARLEN CORBETT :)

We (Kathleen, Phyllis and I) went to Phuket, Thailand for a few days of fun in the sun. We landed on Wednesday morning and headed to the Twin Palms Resort at Surin Beach. On the way we saw an elephant being transported in the back of a truck... a first for me. We eventually got to the resort and settled in. The girls enjoyed the pool while I went out and scouted the area. While surveying the beach I ran into Luke Condo Remmers, Mudt and Jack the dog as they cruised "the boardwalk" of Surin Beach on the surf mobile. I had not seen LCR in 25 years and it was great to see him again and catch up for a few hours while we consumed some Sarin beers beachside. After a while the girls joined us and we all talked until the sun went down. LCR departed around 8p.m. or so and the three of us had a tiki torch lit dinner on the beach. After dinner we headed back to the resort and went swimming for a bit and then went to bed.

Overnight and back in California we received word via our Blackberries that Carlen Corbett Rhodes was born (7.2 lbs, 19.5 long) at 11:12 a.m. The next morning I awoke early and headed to the beach for early morning photos (see top photo). That day the girls had a shopping adventure and I went with LCR to Kalim Beach for my first surfing lessons which were provided by Luke. After a short lesson on the sand I grabbed the board and headed for the water. First attempt... wipe out! Second attempt... success! Third attempt... success! Fourth attempt... success! Then while preparing for my fifth attempt I was stung by a jellyfish on my ankle and chest. I survived obviously. After a great afternoon at the beach I departed for Sarim beach and had a massage on the beach (1 hour=$8usd). I met up with the girlies soon afterward and we all had dinner and then headed back to our room. Next day we chartered a small speed boat and explored the islands on the east side of Phuket Island. This was a great experience. Phyllis and I walked through a small and long cave which opened up to a pristine lagoon. We saw things like an iguana, a toucan bird and several brilliant colored fish while snorkeling in the coral reefs. We got back to the resort quite late and had dinner. The next day was our last and we basically enjoyed the pool and met up with Luke briefly on the beach. Oh yeah, I got another $8 massage. We then departed for the airport to head back to Hong Kong.