Kermit and Funky Monkey tour Hong Kong

Hi families! We are making the rounds through Hong Kong and are having a blast. One day we traveled to Stanley Market to see what was happening there. The drive over there is beautiful - we saw lots of green hillsides once we were out of the heart of the island, some beautiful beaches, and a lot of interesting shops. We poked around the market first, found some red silk bags to get shipped home in, and then went to have lunch at a restaurant next to the bay. It was warm, but the open air restaurant had fans going and it was quite comfortable.

We walked around Kowloon and stopped in front of The Peninsula. We didn't eat there - high tea is served only on the weekends and we didn't want to go to the various restaurants in the hotel, but we poked around the lobby. Can you say nice? Wow! There is a lot of history in this hotel as well as some very trendy shops. We continued on toward the waterfront because we wanted to see the Doulos - which bills itself as the worlds largest floating book fair.

From their website: "Doulos visits port cities throughout the world, supplying vital literature resources, encouraging inter-cultural understanding, training young people for more effective life and service, promoting greater global awareness, providing practical aid and sharing a message of hope in God wherever there is opportunity."

So, it was a fascinating ship, but the weather was unbelievably hot and humid, so we cut that visit rather short. We had lunch at the nearby Quarterdeck restaurant, which was quite nice and then headed over to the Ladies Market.

You haven't been to Hong Kong if you haven't been to the Ladies Market. It is a neat series of outdoor stalls packed together in the alleyway that extends for three blocks. You can find all sorts of neat souvenirs, shirts, toys, chop sticks, silk items, etc., here. You get to bargain for the price, though, and unless you know what you should be paying you usually pay too much. Our friend wanted to purchase a wallet which was offered for HK$79. After negotiations, she paid a total of HK$60 for two of them. We poked around the shops and one nice shop worker let us take our picture with her. You might not want to post this one on the Internet as we didn't really look at the background. In addition to handbags, she had a lot of lingerie for sale.

Yesterday we ventured to the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens. The grounds are beautiful and it is hard to believe you are in the middle of Hong Kong while you are there - unless you look up and see the skyscrapers in the background. We just had to get our pictures taken with our animal friends. Although there is an aviary on the grounds, our little bird friends here weren't very talkative. In the center of the grounds is a beautiful fountain. We were in front of one part of it, and if you walked around to the other side, it looked quite different.

Tomorrow's adventure is Disneyland! We are so excited - we can't wait to get there!

Lots of love,

Funky Monkey and Kermit the Hermit Crab

Letter from Kermit and Funky Monkey in Hong Kong

Hi families! We have had a really busy time visiting here in Hong Kong.

Last week we went to plant a letterbox at The Peak, and boy did we have fun! We took the train down to Kowloon and walked to the Star Ferry pier. On the way we stopped at the clock tower. Our photographer wanted to make sure he got the tower in - can you see us sitting there on the bench in front of it?

The Clock Tower is a landmark in Hong Kong located on the southern shore of Tsim Sha Tsui in Kowloon. It is the only remnant of the original site of the former Kowloon Station on the Kowloon-Canton Railway. It is built out of red bricks and granite, is 45 metres tall, and is topped by a 7-metre lightning rod.

We excitedly made our way to the Star Ferry - we timed it just right because the ferry was boarding. We took our seats and marvelled at the harbor and the buildings on either side. What a sight! We decided to take a bus to The Peak rather than the tram as it was Sunday and there is usually quite a wait for the tram, so onto the Bus 15 we went. What a ride! We got to pass through town and up and up and up the mountain. It was fascinating to see the apartment towers stuck on the sides of the mountain. At the top, we walked on the Circle walk and had a great time.

We planted the letterbox and then continued on around the circle. There is this awesome India Rubber tree that we got to play in. Kermit wanted to play hide and seek, buy Funky Monkey convinced him that he would probably never be found, so that put an end to that game. We continued around and stopped for a picture at one of the overlooks. You can see pretty well, but there is still a little smog in the air clouding the view. After dinner at The Peak Lookout restaurant, we made our way back to Tai Po, tired for happy after a good day of touring.

Another day we went to the Museum of History in Sha Tin. There was a special exhibit of Chinese treasures from the Shu time period, and we especially enjoyed an exhibit on The Art of Henry Wo-Yue-Kee.

We took off the the "country side" one night and travelled to Tai Mei Tuk, a little fishing village not too far from Tai Po. We got to ride on the top level of the double-decker bus. There we ate at an outdoor Thai restaurant which had just opened. They had neat tables with huge umbrellas over them and since it was so hot, they had some fans nearby to help keep you cool. The food was wonderful and it was very pretty when the sun went down.

We have been to Meghan and Caitlyn's school, which is quite different from the school in the US. The buildings for the Secondary (that is Year 7 through Year 13 or grades 6 through 12 in the US) are six stories tall! They have an indoor pool and tennis and soccer (they call it football) courts on the rooftops. How cool!

Next week we are going to Stanley Market, and will send more pictures then. Take care!

Love,

Kermit the Hermit Crab and Funky Monkey

Kermit and Funky Monkey see the Volcanoes!

Hi, families!

We are having a great time here in Hawaii. Since we last wrote to you, we visited the Volcanoes National Park and have been swimming. The B's didn't get any pictures of us at the volcano - man it was really windy. We would have been blown away! But here is a picture of what we saw, anyway.

There were craters, rough lava, smooth lava, cinder cones and then by the sea we saw the sea arch. Unfortunately, the surface lava is flowing in an area that they have closed to the public because it is not safe to go there, so we did not see any new surface flows.

The next morning we went swimming at Hapuna Bay. Man, the water was so nice and warm. The waves on this side of the island are more gentle, and the bay is a little protected. We loved sitting on Little B's swimboard and just floating around. We were really glad that we were carried to the water, though. That sand was HOT!

We'll sign off and get ready to head to a new beach! Hope to write again soon. Kermit the Hermit Crab (and Funky Monkey)

Kermit and Funky Monkey visit Hawaii

Hi, family. I am in Hawaii with Funky Monkey (and the Wandering Bs) and am having a great time. We have been to coffee farms and got to see different ways to grow coffee, and of course, taste the different blends. We have been swimming a lot. Somtimes we go to a beach close by - its got a really long name, but most people call it A Bay. It is fun, and the pool at the Hilton is awesome.
Wednesday was Little B's birthday (HAPPY BIRTHDAY LITTLE B!), and she wanted to have lunch at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company. Here is a picture of us together. Funky Monkey really likes to get dressed up with the plumeria flowers we find here on the island. Isn't she (or he, wer're not really sure) cute?
After lunch we went to the market to shop, and then in the evening we went to the Hilton's pool to watch the dive-in movie. It was a lot of fun. Here's a picture of us together in the lounge chair waiting for the movie to start. We did not get into the pool because we didn't want to get wet, but Little B and she-who-must-not-be-named enjoyed swimming and watching the movie. After it got dark we could see the stars because the sky was so clear. How cool! Well, got to run and see what else we can discover.
Kermit the Hermit Crab (and Funky Monkey)

Kermit meets Blue Bunny

How exciting. Kermit meets Blue Bunny

for the first time. They were impressed that they had matching eyes!

Time to pack and do a little letterboxing and site seeing!

Kermit meets a park ranger!

Hey, family! I have missed you so much, but these Wandering B's have kept me too busy to write. Just a few lines to let you know what I have been doing.

On July 7 we visited a really cool box in Goodyear Metro Park, Akron, Ohio. It was called Goodyear Duck and Waddles: you should know it well since you planted it! Attached is a picture of me (you need to look closely) sitting on the sign at the park along with a picture of she-who-must-not-be-named looking through a familiar and important tree. Just as I was stamping in my signature stamp, a very friendly park ranger asked us what we were doing. We told him we were coloring stamps (which was true). He indicated that he had never seen anyone stop to do this on a trail. So we had a very nice conversation with him all about travels and his work as a NATIONAL PARK RANGER in Washington state. Want to bet he knew exactly what we were doing? But he was very nice and continued on his way around 10 minutes later. We like to think we left a good impression on him of letterboxers even if he wasn't sure we were.

We also visited the Oxbow Trail Letterbox (A Must See) and the Fall Spree Series #5 (by Wee Walkers). Wow! What a view! I didn't know I had traveled so far above the river. It was a fun walk, and we saw many birds and even a deer with her fawn. How cool!

After visiting with their family and friends, The B's headed off toward Bowling Green, KY, with a few stops along the way. I'll write more about these trips later!

Love,

Kermit

Kermit heads out for adventure

Kermit the Hermit Crab says goodbye to Trexx and his visiting pal, Goldie, and heads off with the Wandering Bs for adventure. He was very excited and kept nodding in approval (he's a bobble head) as he was introduced to his new letterboxing family.

Big things will be coming for our shelled friend!