In April of 2021, our church family gave us a very generous gift at a celebration of our twentieth year of ministry at Faith Wesleyan. It was given so we could “visit someone special to us.” We knew they meant our son, Reid, who lives in Hong Kong.
Due to COVID-19, our trip was delayed. Finally, on April 15, 2025, we boarded a plane at JFK International and headed for the other side of the world. It was quite an experience, so we decided to share it with the readers of the Weekly — and as a way of saying thank you to our beautiful church family.
Two things made the trip to Hong Kong very attractive to us:
First and most important was the opportunity to spend time with our son. During COVID, we endured nearly four years of not seeing him in person. He was able to travel home last summer, but one week wasn’t enough to fill our hearts.
Second, we wanted to experience Reid’s world. This trip finally gave us the opportunity to see his apartment, to walk through his neighborhood, and to meet his friends. Here’s a brief recap of the trip:
We pulled out of our driveway on Bloomingrove Road at 6:20 a.m. on Tuesday, April 15. We arrived at the airport about four hours ahead of our 2:05 p.m. take-off. Everything went well until I left my passport in my pocket during the security scan. That little mistake led to what the TSA agent called “an unfortunate groin search.” I guess you live and learn.
We landed in Hong Kong around 6:45 p.m. The flight lasted 15 hours, and with the 12-hour time difference, it was now Wednesday evening. By the way, you can Google every location/event mentioned in this article and see pictures.
Reid met us at the airport on Lantau Island, and we boarded a train to travel under the harbor to Hong Kong Island. We arrived at our hotel around 8 p.m. Reid and his close friend, Joseph, a native of the US and Taiwan, took us to The Peak Lookout restaurant on a mountain overlooking Hong Kong’s Central district. After enjoying a delicious meal and taking in the beautiful night-time vistas of the city, we traveled back to the hotel. We got into bed around 11 p.m. — thirty hours after getting out of bed in Williamsport.
Thursday, Reid served as our host and tour guide as we explored his neighborhood, Sai Ying Pun, which translates from Cantonese to “West Camp.” This was where, in the 1840s, the early British soldiers resided as Hong Kong entered its era of being a colony of Great Britain following the Opium Wars.
That evening, we crossed the harbor to the Kowloon public pier. We enjoyed a sunset cruise on the Aqua Luna in Victoria Harbor, and the Symphony of Lights laser show of the skyscrapers of the Central district hosted nightly.
Reid met us at the hotel on Friday, and we ate a traditional Cantonese breakfast at a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant where he often eats. Being a subtropical climate, all a restaurant needs is a small kitchen, a tarp overhead, and some tables and chairs. We boarded the ferry and landed in the Prince Edward shopping district. So many sights, sounds and smells. We cooled off with some sesame seed-based ice cream and a cool drink with Reid, Joseph, and some cats at a small café. On the way back, we stopped for a massage. Awesome.
After supper at the Feather and Bone restaurant, the guys took us to one of their local hangouts called the Ping Pong Bar. I had my first taste of gin. Reid warned me it would taste like a Christmas tree. He was right, but it reminded me more of Pine-sol cleaner. We talked politics and learned about Joseph’s family and work. We settled into bed just before midnight.
On Saturday, Reid and Joseph took us for a traditional dim sum meal at the old Hong Kong city hall. Dim sum translates to “touch the heart.” It is a social experience where servers with carts bring an amazing variety of traditional foods that are shared by the entire table. That evening was spent at Reid’s apartment. Supper was delivered from three restaurants. Reid and Joseph enjoyed Indian food, Heather ate a Thai salad called a Buddha bowl, and I devoured a McDonald’s Big Mac, fries, and a Diet Coke — a truly international meal.
Easter Sunday morning, Heather and I ventured out on our own to find Hong Kong Community Church. Twenty-five minutes later, we were in a setting much like our church in Williamsport. The worship was in English, and we knew every song by heart.
We met up with Reid and Joseph and boarded a ferry for Lamma Island, where we happened to see several teams competing in dragon boat races. We ate lunch alongside the harbor and then walked to a nearby beach, where we enjoyed a relaxing afternoon and a meal before heading back to the city. After taking in a beautiful sunset at Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park, the guys took us to a Ukrainian restaurant called Ivan the Kozak.
Monday morning, we packed our stuff and headed for Lantau Island and a little village called Pui O Beach. We enjoyed supper with Reid and Joseph at the Treasure Island Beach Club and then took an evening stroll with a free-roaming water buffalo.
On Tuesday, Heather and I took a taxi to Ngong Ping to see the Tian Tan Buddha at the Po Lin Buddhist Monastery. It sits high in the mountains and is an extraordinary and mystical place. Reid spent the night with us at Pui O village and then took us to the airport early the next morning. We said our tearful goodbyes and began the long journey home. It all went way too fast.
It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We can’t thank our church family enough for making it possible. We hope this article helps to express our gratitude. We also can’t thank Reid and Joseph enough for being our kind, attentive and generous hosts. They took such good care of us. We left Hong Kong, our hearts overflowing with love and memories to cherish.
