May 24

We spent our last full day abroad seeing the sights and culture of Hong Kong. Hong Kong is an island city of 7 million people and only 20% of the citizens have a car-the remaining 80% take public transportation (mainly buses). Gas prices here are about $9 per gallon (U.S. dollars). Due to Hong Kong's status as a British colony until 1997, there is a lot of British influence here and there are many differences between Hong Kong and mainland China. People drive on the left side of the road, have a different currency (the Hong Kong dollar), and speak Cantonese-a language that varies slightly from Mandarin (the language of mainland China). There is also more English speaking here-which makes things just a little easier for us. 

We started out walking down Star Avenue along the famous Hong Kong Harbor. The famous movie stars of China are commemorated with statues and hand prints on the walkway along the water front. Jet Li, Jackie Chan, and Bruce Lee were some of the familiar names we walked by as we enjoyed the view of the harbor. Next, we spent most of our day at the Hong Kong Ocean Park on the Kowloon side, located right on the coast. Along with the breath-taking scenery there were many attractions. We enjoyed a scenic gondola ride over the mountain where there were roller coasters, marine animal and aquarium exhibits, dolphin shows, gift shops, restaurants (McDonalds!), and last but not least, some amazing amusement rides. Everyone got in a lot of laughs, thrills, and some good sunburns.

After that, we went to visit the Hong Kong Jockey Club at the Happy Valley Racecourse. Happy Valley is an area of Hong Kong that is very luxurious and has nicer homes and stores. The Hong Kong Jockey Club was established in 1884 but people of the area were racing long before then. The Hong Kong Jockey Club actually contributed greatly to the Hong Kong Ocean Park (the amusement park), which was formed in 1977 and managed by the club until 1987. The Hong Kong Jockey Club first started racing horses that were crossed with Arabian stallions and the native Chinese "running" horse breed. We toured a museum that showed the Club's history-it was interesting to see horse racing being so prominent in Asia. In the museum was the skeleton of the racehorse "Silverlining," the first horse in Hong Kong to win a million dollars. We went out to the horse racing track located right outside the museum. It was interesting to see a racetrack in the middle of the clustered city. There were actually several soccer fields (The Hong Kong Football Club), a basketball court, and a running track within the horse racing track itself.

We then went to our last supper as a group-a traditional Chinese meal and some birthday cake in celebration of Dr. Bott's Birthday, which is on May 26th. After some great traditional food we piled onto the bus and travelled back to the hotel. Bright and early tomorrow we leave for the Hong Kong Airport where we begin our long journey home-We leave for O'Hare International Airport at 11:40 and after a brief visit to Chicago we will arrive in Sioux Falls by 7:35 p.m. We are looking forward to seeing you all soon! On behalf of everyone, we would like to thank you all SO much for your support-We couldn't have gone on this great adventure without the encouragement from our friends and family.

-Bloggers Shelby and Lea