coriander in pho

So… I noticed some folks from my workplace are following this blog. It’s not a bad thing, though. It’s just that I will use English moving forward so this blog can reach more audience with one universal language. I might put some Indonesian words here and there or write stuffs in Indonesian, but I’d figured I should let you friends know that this blog will be a bilingual blog 🙂

Anyway, this is a post about my team’s recent Team Meetup in Hong Kong early this month (July 2019). It was my first time in Hong Kong and it was interesting!

Hong Kong was grey when I arrived. I was the last of the team to land on the Land of Dim Sum. Some of them have arrived even a day before our Travel Day. Prior travel day, some of us shared weather information and what to expect/what to bring in terms of clothings and additional equipment such as jacket, windbreaker, and so on.

I noticed Hong Kong’s temperature a wee bit similar with Kuala Lumpur, so I decided to just go with my usual shirts, jeans, and UNIQLO jacket (I got the male jacket as they don’t have my size on female section 😅) One thing that I didn’t expect was the rain, though. Hong Kong is a bit further up north compared to Kuala Lumpur, and seems like summer rain is quite often there. Hong Kong’s rain was breezy and chilly, as you can expect from a land nearby the sea. When I arrived in Hong Kong airport, it might be some kind of me being sentimental sappy as usual, or I can smell a faint scent of sea air (my childhood was in Cilacap, Central Java; a coastal small town with regular sea breeze.)

As the taxi glided down the downtown, I was in awe watching the container parks — filled with containers and shipments. I couldn’t hold my giddiness when I saw the urban part of Hong Kong.

This is a land which forged as trading hub for decades, moulded by thousands of visitors coming and going. You can feel the energy pulsating on every vein of the small streets; folks walking in a quick pace, the brown walls of apartments with stores showing dazzling lights beneath. Amidst the raindrops, you can see waft of steam coming from pau sellers or tea houses.

I spent a good amount of years in Jakarta and additional 5 years in Kuala Lumpur; both are big cities and capital cities — but Hong Kong is bringing ”metropolitan” to another level. This is a literal concrete jungle, and I. Was. Floored.

Anyone remember I once draw a scene of a girl facing an urban area?

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I was, and still am, obsessed with urban sketching; and Hong Kong gave me so much I got overwhelmed. I was annoyed with the fact I didn’t bring my sketchbook (note to self: Bring sketchbook wherever and whenever) because I wish I could capture a glimpse of the town on my sketchbook and improve myself on urban sketching.

We usually start our day at 7 AM; and by starting, means that’s usually the hour Eric got his breakfast at the hotel’s restaurant and followed by me and Edwin 10-15 minutes later. The rest of the team followed not so long afterward and we are off to our co-working space around 8:30 AM.

I’m not really good in crafting words, and our Team Meetup is about us, well, working 😂 so I won’t bore you with the details. Below are the pictures I managed to capture about Hong Kong and the team.

It was a really wonderful experience; Hong Kong and meeting the team (finally! In real life!) There are still other areas I would love to explore, but maybe in another time. Thank you, Hong Kong.