Saturday, April 17, 2010

Hong Kong Adventure

April 5th: I'm on the ANA (Asian National Airways) plane to Hong Kong, a 4 hour flight. Unable to sleep, I take advantage of the extensive movie selection and watch "It's Complicated," a great 50-something movie starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, and Steve Martin. Upon landing, I stop at the Hyatt Regency help desk at the airport and am taken to the taxi stand. They tell the driver where to take me; the Hyatt Regency Sha Tin Hotel in the New Territories, and off I go.



Upon checking in, I can see that I've picked a great spot. This is the sole hotel I've arranged for on my own (the rest having been completely taken care of by Kentaro and his wonderful family), and I must say I've made a great choice. My room 526, happens to be on the same floor as the Melo Spa. So on the spur of the moment I stop in the spa and schedule a 1 1/2 hour facial, and a 1 hour foot massage.


Then I head for the fitness center, since I haven't done any weight training for a whole week. Kentaro offered to let me take their camera with me, but I declined. Wish I hadn't! The fitness center itself is pretty typical, though large and well-equipped. It's the view I wish I had a shot of. The long glass outer wall gives you a breathtaking view of a large mountain with a waterfall flowing from its side in one spot. Below this, you can see the gorgeous deep blue of the Hyatt pool, the sea-green contrast of a large round fish pond next to it, and off to the back, steam from the bubbling hot tub. After a one hour workout, I go back to the room and clean up, then take the elevator down to the dinner buffet and a glass of Vueve.


I don't know if this is a trend I've missed in the U.S., but the modern hotels in Asia all seem to require that you put your key card up to a reader to use the elevator. Probably a safety feature. Anyway, it can get a bit cumbersome, as you need to pull the key out and press it against the reader any time you want to go up or down. Otherwise, you're going nowhere!


Feeling totally relaxed after my workout and dinner, I go back up to the fifth floor for my appointments at the Melo Spa. It's pretty neat. You get your own private spa room for your treatment, complete with hot tub and a terrace to go out and enjoy the great view (the same one you get to see in the fitness center). After this, a blissful fatigue sets in and I return to my room for a rest.


As you can see from the pictures (1 above, and left), I have a beautiful room. It overlooks Victoria Harbour and, due to the glass wall between the bathing and sleeping area, looks very large, spacious, and modern. In Asia the custom is to first take a shower, then soak luxuriously in a large, deep tub. Usually the two are separate, as in my room. I've booked three nights here, to return to Japan on the 8th at about 6 a.m. So I really don't have much time in Hong Kong. But that is okay. I only came here for one reason. Bruce Lee.


Yes, that's right. Bruce Lee. The man who has been my hero since my karate days back in the late '90's. I discovered him as I tried to come to grips with my feelings about having to fight every person in the club (including burly high school football players and other men). Bruised and fearful, I needed a hero who could convince me that small did not mean a lack of power. And, in Bruce Lee, I found him! 5'7" and only 135 pounds, he was the most perfect physical specimen I ever saw, with the fastest reflexes and incredible ("real world") power. Not to mention being extraordinarily good-looking.


I remember when I still used to practice criminal law, I would go down to Recorder's Court in Detroit and pull out Bruce Lee's book, The Tao of Jeet Kune Do. I'd sit and read it in the courtroom while waiting for my case to be called. From this book I discovered that there was much more to Bruce Lee than a "merely" being the best martial artist who ever lived. He was also a deep and intelligent zen philosopher.


In fact, I credit Lee with being the catalyst for the start of my own spiritual journey. I remember feeling an inexplicable thrill of inner comprehension the first time I read his words, such as "Wisdom does not consist of trying to wrest the good from the evil, but rather in learning to "ride" them, as a cork adapts itself to the crests and troughs of the waves." Or, "The perfect way is only difficult for those who pick and choose. Do not like, do not dislike. All will then be clear."


Wow. For someone who came from a Christian background, such words were completely beyond my ken. Since my early Bruce Lee days, when I sat in my gazebo, reading his training books and practicing finger jabs on paper targets, or punching a small ball on a string to train my response reflexes, I have been unabashedly a devoted fan. My former husband used to say, "You're in love with Bruce Lee." He was right. And I still am.


Kentaro's Father remembered this from their trip to America ten years ago. (When I first met Kentaro, I had hoped he could tell me more about the way of Zen. However, he was more interested in Western ways during his time in the U.S., and said he didn't know much about Zen.) But his Father did, and sent me books about it. And when I planned my trip to Japan this spring, Yoshimasa-san remembered, and suggested I include a trip to Hong Kong, since I was in the neighborhood.


Now I was here. And with only two full days in Hong Kong to see what I could see about Bruce Lee, there was no time to loose. Thank God for Google! You can become an expert about an area very quickly. For example, I learned that Bruce Lee's former home in Hong Kong was now an "hourly love motel." (Decided not to go there.)


And, I learned that the first Bruce Lee Exhibition had just been unveiled on 21 March 2010 by his wife, Linda, and daughter, Shannon Lee, at the 34th Hong Kong International Film Festival (see picture above). As luck would have it, the very last day for that event was April 6th, my first full day in Hong Kong. I decided that would be my first destination in the morning. And before I left, I would make sure to see the famous Bruce Lee statue overlooking the harbor.

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