Ely and beyond

A week has passed and this has been my first opportunity to put pen to paper - or fingers to keyboard. We are sitting in Hong Kong Airport, waiting to board our flight. So much has happened.

On our final day in Bury, Keith and I decided to drive over to Ely to explore the Cathedral and see where Oliver Cromwell lived. It was a glorious final day to be in England. Not a cloud in the sky, and it was almost balmy in temperature. Ely Cathedral is set upon a hill and it stands among the fels - tall and majestic and visible for miles. The late afternoon sunlight made the cathedral sparkle. It is a Normal building that is austere and plain inside. I loved the floors with its simple green and red marble floor. There were floors with rustic quirky paving stones. The ceilings and stained glass windows were majestic. The simplicity of the building allows the colours from the windows to dominate and shine. We enjoyed wandering around and found the burial place of a bishop who had met with Ricky and engaged in vigorous debate - both disagreeing with one another.

We then went and wandered past the home of Oliver Cromwell. Outside there is a seat with Mrs Cromwell's favourite recipe for Roast Eel. I decided to pass on jotting it down. We drove back to Bury watching the sun set. The colours were soft and muted and seemed to capture the soft light we had experienced during our time in England.

We had a final dinner out with Susan and Ricky who treated us to a feast. It was a fitting final evening after a wonderful week staying with them - we shared so many stories and laughter and fun. It was a truly memorable visit. We were up at 5am the next morning to drive to Heathrow.

We watched the sunrise this time and it was a beautiful way to leave England. Twelve hours later we arrived in Hong Kong to bright warm sunshine, heat, freeways, bridges, noise, highrise towers in overstated abundance, people and people and colour. It was a completely overwhelming arrival and felt like we had moved from the fridge into a simmering wok. We found our Hotel - the YMCA which is located right on the harbour at Kowloon. My friend Melinda met us there a couple of hours after our arrival. What a joyful and happy reunion we shared!

We set off in our coolest clothes and sunglasses and caught the ferry across to the Island and then walked up to the cable car to travel to the Peak. The glorious weather had followed us and Hong Kong was fairly clear. The assent was steep and I wanted to keep my eyes closed, but refrained as the view was spectacular.

Hong Kong may be densely populated and have more high rise buildings in a smaller space than anywhere else in the world, but its harbour and mountains seems to give it an air of order and beauty. We walked beneath tall trees that gave us a sense of coolness. I couldn't get over the walkways that join places and buildings. We were able to walk from the harbour to the cable car - at least one km, and not cross a single busy road.

Once at the top, we sat and marvelled at the view, the size of this city and the number of people who inhabit and visit this tiny space. We sat and talked and talked and laughed and talked some more. We haven't seen Melinda for two years, so it was good to catch up on her life and her family.

We watched the sun setting over the ocean, visited the Dymocks bookstore and browsed and finally had dinner at a Japanese restaurant overlooking the harbour. The outlook was glorious - Hong Kong at night is almost magic with the lights and different colours on the buildings. We felt we had arrived in a tropical hot pot of vibrant colour. My brain felt overstimulated and I longed for bed.