A lot has happened since I've returned, so I'll try to cover it all in one big post. :)
My idea of flying from Hong Kong to Korea to the United States to Canada was a bad one. The flight from Korea to America wasn't bad because there was no one in the seat beside me. People were very well behaved, and the crying children were far enough away not to bother me. The food was awesome on the flight as well. I ate lots of Korean spicy stuff that was wonderful.
Amusing anecdote: While on the plane, I saw an American a few seats in front of me trying to eat a noodle dish with chopsticks. Instead of slurping them up like normal Asians, he was lifting up an entire mess of them into the air and trying to dangle them down into his mouth. I had to force myself not to laugh.
Customs and immigration upon arrival in North America were relievingly boring. After that was complete, I was back in Canada, with my parents waiting eagerly at the arrivals gate. I was happy to see them. I think I was a little weirded out by seeing them. It felt like just yesterday I had been saying goodbye to them, and suddenly here I was again, saying hello.
Despite the fact that I was greasy from having travelled for over 24 hours, and jetlagged, we decided to grab dinner at the Bifteque. (A fancier restaurant in North America.) I spent the entire meal yapping about Hong Kong, and also trying to restrain myself from talking too much. I'm always afraid that I'll annoy people by talking about HK too much.
Amusing anecdote: While at the Bifteque, after deciding what we wanted to order, I nearly nearly nearly yelled out for a waiter in Cantonese. That was the freakiest feeling. I think that's when I realized I was really back in Canada - I had become so engrained with the culture in HK, I didn't realize what had become second nature to me.
After dinner we returned home to Owen Sound. I passed out in the back seat because I still had my cold, and I hadn't slept very well on the plane. I didn't wake up until we got home. I wish I could say something exciting happened, but nothing did. I tossed my bags into my room and attempted to sort through all the crap I collected during my travels.
The next day I just walked around Owen Sound getting reaquainted with the city. It was neat to walk around with a different viewpoint. There's one retirement home in the downtown area - I used to think it was so tall and neat... Now I look at it with derision. Tall? It's only 5 floors! That's so tiny! The town was amusing, but rather dreary to look at. None of the leaves on the trees had bloomed, so it was depressing a bit.
That evening I went to the town of Port Elgin. My mom had found me an apartment there for the summer, so I went to check it out. Within about 15 minutes of seeing the place I had given the guy his cheques.
The next day I went to Kitchener. The purpose of the visit was to go clothes shopping, since most of my clothes didn't fit well after being worn so much, stretched, and whatnot during my 8 months in HK. I had a good time despite being exhausted and sick the entire trip.
On the first night my mom and I decided we wanted to go have Chinese food. My sister took us to a Chinese buffet... This was my first time having "Chinese" food since I had come back from HOng Kong. Oh my God. It was hilarious. I kept laughing hysterically - there were only 2 dishes out of 20 that remotely resembled REAL Chinese food. Mom and Mel kept chuckling at my reactions.Amusing anecdote: While sitting at the restaurant, I suddenly got all excited because I saw a guy coming in wearing a shirt with a Canadian flag on it. I was thinking, "Oooh! Look! Another Canadian!"... Then I remembered, "Oh yeah, I AM in Canada. Dumbass." I was so used to getting excited by seeing other Canadians during my travels that it was habit to keep an eye out for them.
After dinner, my sister took my mom and I over to her massage school. Then we walked downtown Kitchener. We stopped by a Chinese grocery store and I was all happy because I realized I could buy all kinds of dumplings and stuff when I go back to school. (They even have Barbeque Pork buns!!!) My mom was horrified by the foods I had to eat. Silly mom. We then stopped by the "Hong Kong Plaza" and as you can see, I had to snap a few photos.
After dinner, my mom and sister decided to go to the nearby casino. I didn't feel like going but they weren't about to drop me off first. Instead they drive to the Casino (getting lost in the process), and then LEAVE ME IN THE CAR while they went gambling! I was so frickin' tired I ended up sleeping (and it's a good thing too because it was cold cold cold. I used all their jackets/sweaters as blankets and slept while they were gone.
The next day was the shopping spree. I bought lots of stuff. It was so much fun being able to clothes shop! I wasn't able to buy anything while I was in HK because the clothes there are built for tiny little stick people who are half my height. So new clothes make me happy. Not much else happened that I can remember - we went out for breakfast and dinner, and then returned back to Owen Sound.
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