You asked for pictures.

This is a little embarrassing but this is our new home in Kowloon.  We are located right on the harbour, so we view the lights of Hong Kong island as we sit in our living room.

This is what is known as the wet market where we buy our meats, vegetables,and fruits.

A little rubbery but good.

Our local shop keeper who makes sure we get the freshes vegetables.

The tall building at the end of this road is where we work each day. I know there are several tall buildings, just chose one.

We are on our way to catch the bus to cross the harbour to go home.  We try to leave work a little early so we can beat the rush of people. This is a slow day on the street.

This building is where we attend church each Sunday. Businesses occupy the ground floor, we occupy the next two floors. This building is in Kwai Fong. To get there, we catch a train at the MTR, transfer to another train, walk through two shopping malls. It is then a short walk through the neighborhood of Kwai Fong.

This is Meagan, need I say anything more.

This picture was taken from our bedroom window when we were visiting Taipei, Taiwan. This is the Taipei temple. The tall building in the background is, I believe, building 101, which is the tallest building in the world.

This is the apartment complex where we live.  We wanted something small and intimate but we would have to commute from mainland China to find something like that.

Hard at work in Hong Kong

Elder Rippy at his desk on the 10th floor of the church office building located in Wanchai on Hong Kong Island. The picture below is his view of the harbor. If you look closely you will see the water between the buildings. The reason that you see him smiling is because he has such a wonderful view and his wife is making a funny face while she takes this picture.

 In this picture you can see the iconic conveyance of people called the "ding ding". This term comes from the sound this trolley makes at every stop. It is a very narrow trolley which transports a ton of people by packing them in like sardines. For seniors, those of us over 65, we ride the trolley for about 14 cents from one end of the city to the other. The trolleys have been around for a long time.  Much of Hong Kong's identity surrounds the ding ding and the Star Ferry on which people have been crossing the harbor for, at least, 80 years.

Our Hong Kong Home

Trying to get back on the blog circut by updating everyone about the Rippy's in Hong Kong. We have included three photos to acquaint you with our Hong Kong home for the past 3 months.  As you can see it is not spacious but very comfortable.  We would have been content to live there our entire mission, but due to circumstances beyond our control we have moved across the harbor to Kowloon. Before I explain our new living arrangement, let me tell you about the pictures on this blog.
The picture above is the master bedroom.  Large and spacious, it is not. We had a great bed and enough space to enter the bed from each side.
The picture on the right is our kitchen and laundry room.  The white object next to the refrigerator is our washing machine. We used the top of the washer as counter space where most of our food preparation took place. The picture below our kitchen is our extra bedroom or walk in closet depending on if we have a visitor. Sister Rippy had a wardrobe and I had a wardrobe.  The rest of the space was used for storage of other items we could not put anyplace else. Living in 600 sq ft.gives new meaning to living with only what you use. In this circumstance a person truly becomes a minimalist. The great part of living in this apartment is that it is located in the wanchai district of Hong Kong. This is the old and somewhat funky part of Hong Kong. The wet market is a 2 minute walk to acquire freah vegetables, fruits, and meats. The trolley(Ding Ding) runs every few minutes in front of our building. We have loved it here and we will miss the ambiance of old Hong Kong. Slowly, we are becoming more and more competent in utilizing the various modes of transportation that moves over a million people a day. We love and miss our family but we are so happy being here doing what we are doing.  We are convinced that serving God is where a person can experience true joy.  We feel it everyday and thank our Heavenly Father for the priviledge. You are in our prayers as we think about you daily. We love you, Elder and Sister Rippy

shopping in Hong Kong

Sue, shopping at the local wet market. This amazing street has all the meats, fruits, and vegtables needed for the day's meals. Everything is fresh daily.  The fish are still flopping on the tables or they flop off onto the street. ummm, apetizing.

What is it like to live in Hong Kong?

Here is what we have learned in our first month in Hong Kong about Hong Kong. Superman would spend most of his day leaping over tall buildings. There are many. Two people can live very comforably in 600 sq ft. It is like living on a boat without the rocking. A person can cook good meals without an oven. You do not die without a dishwasher. There is this neat rack you put your dishes in and they air dry. A person can still invite friends in when there is laundry hanging on the indoor clothes line without feeling embarrassed. You might say we live half the week in a
Chinese laundry. Part of the morning and evening routine is to empty the dehumidifier of the accumulated 1 1/2 gallons of water twice a day. By doing this, one can lower the humidity in the room and your clothes don't take days to dry. You can go anywhere you want to in Hong Kong by walking or by trolley (ling ling)or by bus. Public transportation moves over 1 million people a day with amazing efficency for a small price. Each street in Hong Kong has a product theme. When we walk the 1/2 mile to work each day we can walk pass all the plumbing fixtures, or all the shoe stores, or all the high end car stores. (Ferrari, Mercedes Benz, BMW, Porscha, Rolls Royce, Bently, Volvo, Lotus, Mazarati) It is like being in a large outdoor Home Depot. Where would I go for plumbing or where would I go for watches? There are 30 stores on one street that sell only watches. In between these stores are thousands of small cafes that sell mostly chicken, pork, and rice or something you cannot describe that is deep fat fried. You may opt for trying the hanging plucked birds of all sizes that are in various degrees of being cooked. A favorite could be the duck neck and head hanging in the corner. There is a haze/smog in Hong Kong that is produced by mainland China that happens every day. It is the exception, at least at this time of year, that we have a clear day. More on Hong Kong later. We think about family and friends often and continue to extend the invitation that if you are in the area, please stop by. The Rippys

Falling in love with Hong Kong

The attention to the new missionaries has been really quite nice.  Last Friday we were honored guest at the home of the area president, Elder Anthony Perkins.  He and his family have lived in Hong Kong for the past 15 years.  His home is located on the top floor of a high rise apartment building that over looks a bay tucked away in a corner of Hong Kong Island.  On a clear day, Pres. Perkins says he can count as many as 50, at any point in time, cargo ships passing by on their way to Hong Kong harbor.  This evening with the area presidency allows them to get to know new couples (that would be us) and to thank those couples who were going home.  It turned out to  be a wonderful evening.  The three members of the area presidency and their wives were there plus the outgoing doctor and his wife.  All three of these men are general authorities who faithfully and tirelessly serve wherever they are called. Not surprisingly, their wives are just as impressive.  The evening ended with everyone sharing their testimonies of Christ and His church.  As you would guess your mother and I demonstrated our usual composure.
Another highlight of the last 10 days occurred last evening when we attended the Hong Kong Temple. The temple is located in Kowloon so it requires some travel to get there. What an absolute treat. This temple is beautiful. The polished stone and woodwork is exquisite. The simplicity of decor would excite Ray. One vase on a table can be a perfect look. The session was  in Cantonese so two of us had to wear head phones. Little subtle reminders that we are the guest in this country of over a billion chinese people.
If you can't tell Hong Kong has won my heart.  I walk around the streets in the Wan Chi District, where we currently live, and feel like I am taking part in some movie based on a story of suspense and intrigue. I need to post this  before I get carried away, so until next time, joi gin. (good by)  We love you, Elder and Sister Rippy