old vs. new

one of the great things about china and hong kong in particular is their reverence for things of the past while not being afraid to venture on into the future. the mix between old and new was so strange to me...probably because i've never seen anything so old before!

here are some of my favorites since there is no possible way we could post them all...old first, then new:

the great wall...

in rain or shine!

This is part of the beautiful Po Lin Monastery on the island of lantau. ryan is a bit irreverant, don't you think?

okay, so am i...
this is also on Lantau...it's the Tian Tan Buddha Statue, the largest, outdoor, sitting, bronze buddha. pretty impressive. i also liked the statues that were surrounding the buddha...this is in macao, a former portuguese colony that is now owned by china. there is a part of the city there where the streets are all paved with these black and white tiles in large swirls and different designs. it was pretty cool! these are the "ruinas de st. paulo" in macao...ryan in tiananmen square with Mao's mausoleum in the background...

the forbidden city. this thing took us nearly THREE hours to walk through! amazing. a beautiful fishing village on Lantau called Tai O. the houses are built on stilts...it was one of the only places in hong kong where the buildings aren't a bazillion stories high...and now for the new...

hong kong is pretty famous for this building in its skyline...the bank of china...it is so cool in real life!

this is #2 international finance center...also lovingly referred to as "the batman building." ah, christian bale. it seems like everything and everyone is so busy in hong kong, but they're really not. i felt like i was surrounded by millions of people (because i was), but no one was really in a rush...that's just how life is for them.

On our first day there, we went up to victoria's peak to check out the view...and what a view it was! you can see the bank of china on the very far right there...
and this is the same exact view at night. bank of china is the building with the criss-crossed lights and #2 intnernational finance building is that tall one near the center. these buildings were a-ma-zing at night...so colorful and brilliant!
and yes, ladies, he's still taken......and so am i. te he he.
(thanks for the ghosting instructions, julia!)