Tuesday, January 24, 2017

Day 15 was the 30th December 2016

Day 15 was the 30th December 2016 and it was our last day, but our flight was a night flight so we had one last full day before we flew back to England.



We planned a slow morning to pack and get ourselves together for a long day and night. We filled one suitcase with clothes and one with souvenirs, then forced our remaining clothes and shoes into the third case which we took to a local charity shop. They looked a bit confused but once we had explained we did not want any money they took it gladly.

We checked out and put our luggage into the hotel store and set off to Victoria peak. It was not a holiday but the queues were still staggeringly long, so we opted for a taxi, that took us straight up and cost significantly less than the tram. The weather was not clear but the views were still good and we again avoided the throng of people by using the free look-outs rather than the paid ones. We walked up to the Governor's house and around the grounds and out came the sun and I did some yoga and our daughter some handstands on a remote view point.



It began to feel like the last day and our energy levels began to wane, so we took our last taxi down to the tram office and then walked through the botanical gardens and zoo as the light faded. We watched the monkeys tucking in for the night and the local feral cats coming out for their evening prowl.

In hindsight I wish we had gone down to the harbour to see the lights but the truth was I was glad to see the airport and to sit and wait patiently for the flight home.

We cashed in our Octopus cards and brought sweets with the money and I pooled the remainder of my wife's money and mine to buy a garish orange watch. This last purchase was a nod to my one previous visit to this airport ten years ago. Then with my son in tow I brought a garish orange watch and we ate at Popeye's, now ten years later, with my daughter in tow, we did exactly the same.

In some ways this trip had been as much of an exploration for me as it had for our daughter. Here she 'fitted in' in a way I had never seen her fit in before, she was at home amongst her own people. Her westernisation was inevitable but her roots would always be in the East.

My journal was written and I sat on the plane as it roared through the night sky. I could make rash comments about seeking new horizons and expanding my worldly view, the truth of the matter is our son, dogs and bed were all we craved and in a matter of hours we would be home.

第15天是2016年12月30日,这是我们的最后一天,但我们的航班是一个夜航,所以在我们飞回英国前我们有最后的一整天。

我们计划花漫长的早晨进行打包,让我们一起度过漫长的白天和黑夜。我们装满衣服在一个手提箱和另外一个手提箱装满纪念品,然后把剩下的衣服和鞋子放入第三个手提箱,我们将它带到当地慈善商店。他们看起来有点困惑,但一经我们解释,我们不想要任何钱,他们很高兴地接下它。

我们退了房,把我们的行李寄放在酒店,出发到维多利亚山顶。今天不是假日,但排队的队伍仍然惊人的长,所以我们选择了一辆出租车,带我们直接上山顶,费用明显低于电车。天气不太晴朗,但景色仍然很好,我们宁可使用付费的瞭望台,再次避开一大群人使用免费的瞭望台。我们走到总督府和周围的广场,太阳出来后,在遥远的观景台上我做了一些瑜伽,我们的女儿做了一些倒立。

现在开始感觉像最后一天,我们的能量水平开始下降,所以我们最后一次搭出租车到电车办公室,然后走过植物园和动物园,随着阳光渐淡。我们看着猴子在夜晚睡觉,和当地的野猫在晚上出来觅食。

事后看来,我希望我们有下到海港去看灯光,但事实是我很高兴看到机场,坐下来耐心等待回家。

我们兑现了我们的八达通卡,用这些钱带了糖果,我把我妻子的钱和我的剩余部分集中起来买了一个耀眼的橙色手表。这最后一次购买是一个默契,我前一次到这个机场是十年前。然后我和我的儿子一起,买了一只耀眼的橙色手表,我们在大力水手餐厅吃晚餐,现在十年后,我和我的女儿在一起,我们做了完全一样的事。

在某些方面,这次旅行对我来说和我们女儿一样是一种探索,在这里,她以一种我以前从未见过她的方式装扮,她是以在自己家里的一种方式。她的西化是不可避免的,但她的根将永远在东方。

我坐在飞机上写我的日记,当飞机吼叫穿过夜空。我能轻率的下评论,可是我没有办法厘清关于寻求新的视野,和扩展我的世界观,因为事实是,我们的儿子,狗和床都是我们现在所渴望的,在几个小时内我们将会到家。

No comments:

Post a Comment