This move to China has meant completing a lot of “firsts” for us. It’s my first move out of the United States. We are teaching in real classrooms for the first time. This is the first time we’ve been completely dependent on public transportation. We have eaten so many new foods, obviously for the first time. The list goes on.
Running for the Hong Kong border. And nachos.
Aubrie’s tourist visa needs renewed every sixty days – more details about renewing a visa in a later post, but for now, just know that you have to leave the mainland to “reset” your visa – so we took off for Hong Kong last weekend. It was a little dizzying with all the new sights, sounds and smells. The “old” sights, sounds and smells of Shenzhen are still pretty new, to me at least, since we’ve only been here about a month!
This trip to Hong Kong was the first time we couldn’t rely on our phones. Phone service with China Mobile does not work in Hong Kong so to use our phones, we would’ve had to buy a new SIM card to use just there. We may buy some for future trips if we decide we’re going to spend enough time there to make it worth it. It was a throwback trip: we asked people how to get places and we bought a map from a vendor on the street. We could use our phones when we had WiFi. Luckily, we found an Apple store in the mall closest to the metro station. We sat until the employees peppered us with questions asking what service we were there for. Then we left to wander the city.
Since we have so much “new” around us, it was nice to stumble upon a Hard Rock Cafe in Hong Kong. We just happened to see a poster for the place while we strolled about. After asking three people, we found it down a narrow road and up a little hill, just past a Mexican place that I mentally logged as a solid Plan B if we couldn’t reach our goal before our hanger/hangriness got the best of us.
So much English.
We were greeted at the door by a hostess whose mastery of the English language allowed her to use some slang. “What’s up,” she asked, smiling and reaching for menus. It was music to my ears. And I wasn’t even inside yet, where the real music actually was. Like the other Hard Rocks we’ve been in, the inside was decorated with musical memorabilia from all different genres. Music videos played on a giant screen mounted behind a stage set up for live music. While it was a small comfort to hear music lyrics in English and be able to read a majority of the signs and decorations, the real comfort was the food and drink.
First we ordered drinks. We’re savvy enough to recognize some of the tourist traps; in this case, the souvenir glass that comes with the drink and almost doubles the price. Back in Maine, we would’ve passed on the take-home glass. We sold SO many glasses before we moved. Nobody needed as many glasses as we had. However, starting out here, we’re a little low on housewares. When we found Walmart, we stocked the cupboard with three mugs, three glasses, three plates and three bowls. There are only three of us living together, but having just enough of everything means we/I need to wash things constantly. So we got three fruity drinks that came with mason jars to take home. Unfortunately, none of us saved a picture of said fruity drinks. And they were gone too quickly.
Nacho appetizer, it’s OUR appetizer
We love nachos. Kim has a tank top that says “My mind says gym but my heart says nachos.” When she wears it, I take it as a subliminal message to seek out and order nachos wherever we end up that day. Sure, she could just be wearing it because it’s thin and comfortable, but I know deep down, there is a need for nachos, all the time. It was a no-brainer to order them as a starter. We were not disappointed. Unfortunately we were too ravenous to take a picture before we dug in. However, we did capture our entrees: Aubs ordered 1/3 rack of ribs that came with fries, coleslaw and baked beans. Kim got a small Harvest salad and I had their Cauliflower burger.
I immediately took the top off my bun and put that to the side – gotta cut calories somewhere – and dug right in. My patty was crunchy on the outside, hot and moist on the inside. It tasted savory, meaty and a little cauliflowery but it was blended perfectly: there were no large chunks of vegetable in any bite. The cheese was amazing. The fries were seasoned but for the most part, just ordinary fries. Aubrie’s ribs were saucy but not to spicy and fell right off the bone. Kim’s salad was crunchy, except for the tortilla strips, which were slightly stale. That was the meal’s only shortcoming. We toddled away very satisfied. When we’re back in Hong Kong and craving some Western food, we may go back to the Hard Rock. Especially if we need more glasses.
