Hong Kong: Gallery 5

January 21, 2011, Saturday

Miles flown:  8067 miles New York JFK to Hong Kong HKG + 1569 miles Hong Kong HKG to Kuala Lumpur KUL
Flight time:  24h 35 min (20h 55 min + 3h 40 min); return on Jan 23, 20h+
Landed:  7:55 am at Hong Kong HKG
Left: 4:15 pm to Kuala Lumpur KUL
Landed:  7:55 pm at Kuala Lumpur KUL
Returned:  ~9 pm at New York JFK, January 23, 2011

I booked my ticket too late, so the direct flights to Hong Kong were too expensive and I had a connection via Vancouver.  I'd never been to Vancouver, but all transit passengers were confined to the aircraft while it was cleaned quickly.   Cathay Pacific has an excellent entertainment system, and I watched several movies (all on demand), and during the New York-Vancouver segment, the aircraft was virtually empty.

While this was just two days before Chinese New Year, Gagosian kept to its regular hours.  It wasn't opening until 11, so I took a cab for Tuen Mun to visit my friend S and his family.  This time I caved and took a cab, as a bus would just be too taxing after a transpacific flight.  S's wife fed me homemade corn bread and tea, while we all chatted and watched their kid whip up some amazing Lego structures in no time.

S insisted on driving me to Central.   We walked past Occupy Hong Kong underneath the HSBC building.  The protesters had a reduced presence compared to when I saw them a month before. 

Occupy Hong Kong, photo taken Dec 2011

When we arrived at Gagosian, two other Challengers had already arrived and were waiting for their stamps.  From their conversation, I guessed that one was juggernut3, who writes for the art blog Arrested Motion.  I had been following the travails of my fellow Challengers virtually prior to my trip, and I knew that three people were racing for the top.  Juggernut3's last stop was Hong Kong and was the third person to finish.  I chatted with them briefly, and it was really nice of juggernut3 to take a photo of me and the other Challenger, who I'm guessing was estefue.  He subsequently finished in Beverly Hills, based on Gagosian's Facebook pages.

gago11 in black jacket and estefue (I think), courtesy of juggernut3 of Arrested Motion

S treated me to dim sum at Luk Yu Teahouse, and we met another friend for a quick coffee before I set off for the airport via the Airport Express.

Prior to landing in Kuala Lumpur, the flight attendants walked down the aisles and sprayed a disinfectant, supposedly following some rules.  I'd never seen this before.  Upon arrival, I caved and took a cab again.  While the airport is far from the city center, the fare, around $25, wasn't outrageous.  I spent the night and the next day and a half with my parents, flying home Monday Jan 23 at 1:45 pm, the first day of the Year of the Dragon.

Previous Gagosian gallery visit:  Lichtenstein's Chinese landscapes, Dec 22, 2011
Airfare:  $1660.15
Hotel:  free, thanks to mom & dad