I flew into Hong Kong on Friday afternoon, and I met Philip at the temple around 6. We chatted with a couple of members we knew before taking the subway to our hostel to check in. When I booked our hostel online for only $17.50/night, I thought we were getting a good deal. However, when we opened the door, it quickly became apparent that we were getting exactly what we paid for! :) Hey, there were two beds (let us recall “Rock, Paper, Scissors”) and something that I suppose could roughly constitute a bathroom, so we didn’t really have too much to complain about. After we checked in and put our stuff down, we quickly walked to the Victoria Harbor “Symphony of Lights” to watch the nightly laser show from all the skyscrapers on the Hong Kong Island side.
We woke up on Saturday morning and traveled to Kowloon Tong to attend the temple, and then we went to church headquarters in Wan Chai to see a couple of members and eat lunch. We had a great morning, but I quickly realized that we didn’t think too clearly about our choice of clothes. Think about it. We were two, clean-shaven, white guys who speak Chinese wearing white shirts and ties walking around Hong Kong! I think the people on the subway were confused as to why we weren’t contacting them, and I think all the members and missionaries who saw us thought we were being disobedient for not wearing our name tags. I told Philip we had better obey mission rules until we change out of our “proselyting” clothes. :)
After changing our clothes, we spend the afternoon finishing up buying Christmas presents at Ladies Street until heading to the Tang family’s home for dinner. It was crowded.
I had taught the Tang family near the end of my mission, and I grew to love their family so much. I was so happy to see them again!
We had a huge dinner (certainly a theme for the trip), and then we spent the rest of the evening playing Hong Kong monopoly and Wii.
I admit that it was so nice not to have time restrictions on our visits with members, and it was just so wonderful to see them again and to see how happy they are with the Gospel in their lives.
There is only one word to describe how I felt attending church on Sunday. Bliss. I attended the TST Ward (Chinese) in the morning, so I got to see so many of the members I had worked closely with and also so many of the new members that I had taught. I was looking around at all the families I had been privileged to teach on my mission, and I couldn’t help but feel deep gratitude for the opportunity to associate so closely with so many wonderful people.
In the afternoon, I attended one of the Filipino branches I had served in. I was thrilled to see them again, and I felt completely spoiled the whole time! After church, I went upstairs and found that the members had made me my favorite Filipino food and dessert. I ate until I began to feel physically ill. :)
There was a reason I only ate until I BEGAN to feel physically ill—I was going over to another member’s home for dinner right after! I had dinner with Amy, and her two children, Peter and Tracy. I also taught them near the end of my mission, and it was amazing to see how the Gospel has truly become the center of their lives. I love them so much, and I was so grateful for the opportunity to see them again. And yes…I left feeling physically ill. :)
Monday morning, I woke up, went running on the Victoria Harbor, and then Philip and I went with a member to my favorite restaurant in Hong Kong. I thoroughly enjoyed all-you-can-eat pizza and stir fry for over two hours.
Later that afternoon, Philip and I went back to the area where we served together. It honestly felt pretty weird being back almost three years later, but it was so fun just to walk around and laugh at all the funny things we experienced there. We went to the Mak family’s home for dinner that night. Brother Mak was the first person I baptized in Hong Kong, and since then his son has also joined the church so now their whole family are members. I can’t even describe how different their family is now! They are so much happier! They are kind to each other, and it was so clear how much Brother and Sister Mak loved and adored their children. The whole feeling in their home was completely different than before, and it was amazing to see how their family has made the Gospel the center of their lives. We enjoyed another huge dinner (can you see now why I picked up those 30 pounds?!), and then we spent the rest of the evening chatting, watching bad Chinese television, and singing Christmas songs to the most out-of-tune piano I have ever heard in my life! It was a great night!
Tuesday morning, Philip and I went hiking on Victoria Peak. Even though I have been there over ten times, it is so beautiful and both of us have so many wonderful memories there, we decided we had to go. The weather was gorgeous, the scenery was beautiful, and it was honestly so enjoyable not to be on a time schedule and just be able to enjoy being back in Hong Kong.
Philip and I split up for the afternoon, and I went to visit a member I taught in my last area. His wife was at work, but I was so happy to see and talk to Brother Chan for the afternoon.
Tuesday evening, I met with Fred, another member that I taught for dinner, and then I treated him to a big bag of popcorn. I couldn’t think of a better way to express my love and appreciation. :)
I then went back to our hostel, packed, checked out, and then on Wednesday morning I said goodbye to Philip and got on a plane heading back to the States.
I feel so blessed to spend those five days in Hong Kong. I know it is a rare and unique opportunity to go back and visit your mission, and I found so much joy being in Hong Kong and being with the people I have grown to love.
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