this is HONG-KONG!!!

what is hong-kong? amazing.


The frenetisism, the ordered chaos, the history, the sheer scale of it. Hong-kong streets are a kaledoscope of neon signs, bins of dried seafood, snack vendors foracious shoppers colliding as a spectacle, yet flowing in massive throngs almost effortlessly, a disorienting dream.
Luckily we were met by some big smiling faces as we got off the bus from the airport. Maggie Blue and Hoi Chui are an inspiring couple, who run a burgeoning theater company in the great city. Their work draws on traditional and physical theater as well as dance and puppetry.

While in hong-kong we stayed with them in the once small fishing village of sai kung, about a half an hour outside of the city by light bus. (light bus is kinda like a rocket ship for 16 people) While at their place we had great time made a great crab dinner with local crabs bought right off of the boat.

Aside from creating theater productions that will be touring globally within the next coupla years Maggie-Blue and Hoi Chui are also busy giving workshops to school children in creative intellegence and ecological awareness. Chaa and I were lucky enough to travel deep into HK suburbs to a chinese public school as the official media crew to record a workshop. After the heroic tumult that is traveling through HK at rush hour we arrived at the school on time at nine in the AM…. Very fun.. a puppet show played in a big pop-up book that travels through time to teach the kids a respect for nature and how it sustains us….

www.alltheatreco.com/bio_hoichiu.html

We then toured a teaching eco-garden called Kadoorie Farms. The farm was started by two british men post second world war, mostly to train the many refugees flooding into the area in local farming techniques and giving micro loans in the form of pigs and implements to help start up. The men believed that wealth was a sacred covenent and that they had a duty to enable those more vulnerable.

www.kfbg.org.hk/

The farm is a sprawling mountainside tract of 134 hectares. Incredibly lush and well cultivated. We toured the site on a rainy and cold afternoon. Maggie Blue and Hoi chui often offer their eco-puppet show there for the school children. There is also artist in residence space and considerable garden sculpture built on site. It was really surprising to find such an incredible example of a teaching garden/sustainable living and artistic center in hong kong which is other wise a cluttered and chaotic hyper capitalist utopian/dystopian nightmare/wonderland… if you catch my drift…

We went to the history of hong kong muesuem which I would say is a must in the city…There are many excellent muesuem but this one alone could take a couple of days. What surprised me was that this thriving tireless massive moneied metropolis has sprung up from a small tribal fishing village in the span of 150 yrs. wow… I don’t think this will be the first time on our journey that we will be witness to such rapid development… whoa china!..

www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/History/en/aboutus.php

next BANGKOK!