Season's Greetings

Click pics to enlarge. Above, a typical dai pai dong. Below Right, my downstair neighbor's treat.

Letter from Hong Kong (20-18): Season's Greetings from doctorjohn

As awkward as it may seem during these times, I wish you all a meaningful Holiday Season. Hold your breath (literally) and don't do anything rash. Save your energy for your audio journey. As for myself, stuck in HK for longer than I expected, I have been going through my "residual" hifi holdings in HK (and that's still too much to behold), with some surprising rewards that you shall hear about. Also, it is great to re-visit many CDs that I have missed (still many here, mostly pop).

The Hong Kong Scene 

Even during this Fourth Wave, HK soldiers on. Early on in the pandemic, HK locked down and enforced strict mask wearing and social distancing. Recovery was fairly fast and mortality rate stayed pretty low. Being a truly international city, HK could not, and cannot, really enforce rules like those in China, and so suffered subsequent waves, which were (and are) miniscule by US and European standards. My observation is life is at least as much as usual as in NYC, not to mention in much of America, Europe and many places elsewhere, but much safer. Still a lot of people on the streets, with crowded markets when people are staying home for the holidays. Restaurants are open for dining, though with limitations (flexi, depending on the situation, so right now no dining in after 6 pm). Crowded public transportation.

Mask Wearing, Sacrifice and Civics NYC is pretty good in this. Most people are wearing masks. But HK is better - virtually everyone is donning one. Before this current Fourth Wave, I met with my yumcha group, Sang, WSS and Raymond and shidi and friends, and I gradually got used to taking off my mask. But as the Fourth Wave emerged, I became more careful. It is a courtesy to wear a mask, like when I visited Raymond at his home, with his wife and boy present. You would not want your friends, or hosts, to worry (and they may not tell you about this). Is it a personal sacrifice to wear one? Yes, it is. Imagine HK in the summer, with almost tropical temps and full humidity, people complied. What is wrong with making a personal sacrifice for the common good? Nothing, and good for you. If you ask me, I totally understand personal freedom but, during these times, I really think civics, even more than equity training or anything else, is something that has to be re-introduced in much of the world. There are so many people that are just not civically minded. It is disgusting. It overlaps with selfishness, but is an even worse trait. I wonder what Plato, Confucius and all the wise men will think of our current humanity (or lack of).

Trust, and People feel safer Governance is by no means perfect here in HK, but there is nonetheless a much clearer message about the disease than what I can see in the US an Europe, and people depend on it. It is amazing that my gated community has daily mahjong games with all the neighbors participating (windows open or in the courtyards). My downstairs neighbor, as you can see, laid out his fine liquors for a welcome drinking session. What is behind this? Not bravura, but a trust that everyone is civically minded. And we are. It is something to be proud of, not scorned at. There is an easily observable difference between now and when I just came out of quarantine - less people around and, in my circle, less gatherings. Overall, you have to give it to the HK people for their self-discipline, for being relatively prudent in behavior.

I eat out very little, but I do have some favorites. Here are some of what I have enjoyed with my limited freedom (下面有幾家我認爲元朗最好的食肆，都是大排檔，大都在同一個地方，可以一次一網打盡):

Whenever I could (not right now) I love having early morning tea and dimsum (large restaurants cater to the elderly, and open around 6 am). Here are some of the humble things I had earlier: L, Rice Roll with Minced Beef and Congee with Fish Fillet; Middle, Steamed Rice with Pork Pattie; R, Assorted Dumplings and Lotus Leaf Wrapped Glutinous Rice with Chicken.

Now we move on to mostly dai pai dong's (open-air no-frills eateries) and hole-in-the-wall's. L, Fabulous Steamed Rice with Pork Ribs (元朗千色廣場冬菇亭張光記，千萬不要去錯隔壁虛有其名的泗記) and BOTTLED COKE, the way it should be (any drink tastes worse in aluminum cans); R, Fisherman's Congee (with slivers of dried squid, pork rind, fish pattie and minced beef) and Stir Fried Noodle (推薦這家不起眼的地茂冠華老粥舖，在長沙灣，坤記對面；套餐比大陸還要便宜，圖 $21! 質素一流，粥底夠綿，麺不軟；這次是短期再次光顧，上次的自家油炸鬼也靠譜；如果你在附近，記得要捨坤記而取冠華！)

Two kinds of Rice Roll: L, Street Vendor version (rolls are mass produced) with mixed sweet and hot sauce and sesame seeds. Some like sesame sauce with it but I don't; R, more expensive version with dried shrimps, made in front of you, solidified from liquid by steaming (又在千色冬菇亭，善心粥品，腸粉彈牙，薄而幾乎透明，香港現在沒幾家可以比美；沒吃過它家的粥。順便介紹隔壁的鄭洪記，是我吃過最好的老式廣式雲吞，小小的，沒有蝦，比任何麥x記好多，不過它的麵一般，要吃粗的，或米粉或净吃，湯更不正宗，定要加腩汁。雲吞我是買回家的，$64 一斤。）

Left, an old cha chaan teng in Shum Shui Po that I have frequented for decades (華南冰室). Shown is a typical set meal. Key is the nai cha, Tea with Milk, HK's own variant with condensed milk. The white bread typically has the crust cut off; I like soy sauce on my fried egg; note the rice noodle soup with roast pork is served with fork and western spoon; no chopsticks in cha chaan teng's! Crazy tradition, right? Note also the wooden booths, now garnished with plastic shield during the pandemic; Middle, Noodle with Beef Brisket （這在鄭洪記轉角的滿記，麺比前者好，彈牙，湯更不用說，正宗，曾見老闆用火槍烘魚乾；雲吞是多蝦那種，有它不少的捧場客, 牛腩入味但有點硬。湯好多葱，我是喝光的。此家是 $10 店出生的，但認真，曾經區内有多家，現只餘這檔。像大雲吞那些比它差的卻比它多店，是爲劣幣驅逐良幣。); Right, coal-fire roasted Pork Belly and Chicken, which I wrote about before (這在元朗的另外一個冬菇亭，交通廣場那個，這添記的無敵碳燒肉，雞和鵝，絕對值得你專程入元朗去吃。留意它家賣完即止，午後可能沒得吃，而燒鵝和燒雞10點多才有，又是限量，所以要早去。區内比它更有名的金記和天鴻都比它貴，而沒它好。)

Youtube Now for some playful music. Below is Saint Saens' Caprice, after an Etude in the form of a Waltz, as arranged for violin by Ysaye. It is little known, but a favorite of mine. Yan Pascal Tortelier, son of the great cellist Paul Tortelier, is an accomplished violinist, though he is known now as a conductor.