From Hong Kong to Manilia

Hey ooooooo!
Wow i feel as though so much has happened since i last wrote to this thing. My second and third day in Hong Kong were simply amazing. After making the mistake of canceling the second night at my original location. i was out on streets at noon so it was a little bit of a mad rush to find a spot on the double. I again decided to look past the lack of reviews for my new hostel and set my eyes on the fact that it was the cheapest deal in town. If you have ever been to Chung king Mansion you know that things are not as they appear. Listings for 4 different named hostels might very well be one and the same as they try to dodge bad reviews. I settled on London Hostel because like i said, the price was right for a single bed room. Well yes the price was low but right? yikes. I spent a good portion of the evening keeping my eyes peeled for a screw, nail or other slim metal object to insert into the door frame as the lock was clearly not preforming its sole purpose. As luck would have it a shiny screw called to me from the tiled side walk, i crouched and tried for about 5 minutes to pry it from its hold. I would estimate that a good thousand people passed me during the process. ah well, they didn't know where i was staying and if they had i bet they would have helped. I found the people of Hong Kong as warm and welcoming as they were generous. Amazing people, and the simple effort of learning "thank you" in Mandarin and Cantonese brought smiles to there face every time i tried them out. Now that i no longer had to worry about my rooms lack of security it was time to find dinner. Earlier in the day i had stumbled on a hole in the wall where i ordered pork dumplings. I found out ath this place was very famous and i could tell by the 100 pictures of the owner and clearly important stars of the hong kong stage and screen. what luck. I sat and ate next to a lovely women who clearly out ordered me and after learning what she was eating "sour spicy dumpling soup" i knew i had to come back somehow to get it later. So there i was on my way back, sure i knew just where it was... well, i also found that Hong kong streets look a LOT a like. I spent the good portion of an hour saying "this street, not this one, damn, ok back this way and cross this street and shit, thats not it either" But i found it. i settled down and since the menu was in Chinese i had made sure to memorized exactly where on the menu the soup appeared. I ordered and soon was joined by a guy name Kyle. He sat and we struck up a conversation. We talked about politics and religion and world affairs, truthfully it was more about girls, food and gambling. Kyle was the man, he watched as i had the best soup i might have ever had in my life. It was filled with pork dumpling, tofu, bamboo, minced pork annnnd "whats this"? before he could answer i knew what from an eppisode of bizarre foods. at the bottom of the bowl of soup i had just finished was congealed pigs blood. he confirmed my diagnosis. Well, as i was told many times in regards to this trip, "do it for the stories". so i  looked at him and down the hatch a wiggling cube of pigs blood went. You know it sounded worse then it was really, but i dont think i will have it again. Kyle ordered more food and ordered me to try it. Far be it from me to disobey a interior decorator on his home turf. The meal had come to and end, and with a flash Kyle took my check and paid my bill. I tried to stop him but again, home turf rules. What a guy. He then disappeared into the night heading to his 8:30 pm hair cutting appointment. I was left in awe at the kindness of strangers. Still not fully on hong time i stuck it out on the streets for another hour or so, but really only cause i got lost a half dozen times and ended up in a basement challenging a guy to street fighter V. i stood no chance, he clearly taught me a lesson about video combat, so i, as i left, became the teacher and taught him a lesson about how to bump a fist in proper fashion, it was the least i could do. I slept with one eye open that night getting up a few times to check my trusty screw but all was well. I got a early start on the day and was checked out of the hostel (which just entailed slipping the key under a random unmanned door) and in the park with my full gear searching for the so called "Chinese garden" that had alluded me the day before. As i traveled i was lured by the sound of music, i followed my ears and came upon a group of grandparent, aged gray haired men and women playing instruments and singing. I kept my distance and sat to listen. The music was so sweet and beautiful and the players seemed to be having a unbelievable amount of fun, they had been doing this their whole life. Soon i was offered a seat within the circle but i, not wanting to disturb this scene, refused. Well, that didn't stop them and i found myself in middle of Hong Kong, a serene Chinese garden and a circle of kindred people. I couldn't understand them and they couldn't understand me but they got a kick out of my clapping and swaying. They played one song after another and the only time they broke was to pass around a jar full of candied orange peels. My hands were made to open and i two was given some. They played for an hour and i didn't move, instead i was transported to a lost time. It was truly one of the most magical experiences of my life. I feel odd admitting it but they sang and played so beautifully that i teared up. I will never know what they sang about but i believe it was about love, beauty, honor, history and a time forgotten by the city that buzzed just outside the gates. But here in this place, these carriers of the torch would not let the fire go out. I will remember it always. If you have read this far i will tell you that i have made it to my hostel in Manila and after getting a new sim card and contacting a farm in northern Luzon (http://www.encaorganicfarm.com/) tomorrow i head out to work for my room and board. I may be out of range of any internet but i will write when i can, might be as long as a week when i will descend from the rice terraces of Banaue to the beaches of Boracay. Be well friends. one of these days i will figure out how to attach some pics, i got a few gems.