Christmas Day At Stanley Plaza Mall And Market

The new Stanley Plaza shopping mall is now dog-friendly, with dogs allowed in the cafes and all over the mall so we thought we’d check it out by having a quick lunch in the Stanley area (but this was right after church so we hadn’t picked JD up) for a look-see if there were more activities for dogs nowadays.

The rockstar below couldn’t walk 2 paces without someone trying to take a pic. The owners were game, the dog was not – it kept trying to totter off…

The sidewalk restaurants already allowed dogs before the refurbishment of the little mall which now has more doggie products shops as well as a kiddie bookstore, and we used to come here for brunch except JD didn’t have as much place to run as our other haunts and we could never get a booking at the lone dog grooming place in the area to bathe her if she went swimming in the sea near Stanley Market. Can you say salty car seats…

We find one of the doggie sitting out areas on a clean, wooden deck with a view, but decide to go back to the sidewalk restaurants because 1) We’re starving after the church service and don’t see any good food immediately around (though btw all the shops are open and bustling – we probably didn’t look hard enough) and 2) There are two very barky Samoyeds 3) Didn’t bring the dog anyway – we can sit anywhere

Kings is holding that up because it looks exactly like a couple of pet fresh water lobsters we used to keep in a tank (wanted pets so bad, kept trying tortoises, fish, lobsters – before finally getting JD and then never looking at any other pet again). Lesser-known fact: Pet freshwater lobsters have a very bad habit of escaping the tank. We found a couple dried up behind the sofas and such because they would climb out and crawl everywhere and eventually die when they dried out. Still, I could not watch when he ate the one in the pic. <cringe>

This is Rockstar showing off eating a sea snail. He insisted I take a (tiny) bite before he tried it, but then decided he actually liked eating them and finished the lot (I would not, though it tastes like squid). Does it not look gross? That’s the whole point. I’m supposed to show this pic to any schoolmates at drop-off when school reopens, if they don’t believe he ate a sea snail. Ugh. Boys.

This is Rockstar pretending to feel yucked out from eating the snail… As you can see behind him, the entire place is packed. This is where locals/ not-quite-locals go then, on Christmas Day – when they want to avoid the hoards of Mainland tourists.

We had the same idea (as the people crowding Stanley) – we originally wanted to eat at the Disney Hotels, but Kings had the foresight to call beforehand. The person on the other end discouraged us from coming (God bless them! We live here, we can go when the tourists are gone!), saying the entire hotel was insanely packed and chaotic. I kinda hope (and think) Chinese New Year won’t be like this, but since most Mainlanders don’t celebrate Christmas Christmas, it’s a holiday to be out and about. So we were Where Would The Mainland Tourists Not Be? Quickly rule out Ocean Park which’ll probably be like Disney. Lazy to schlepp to Sai Kung (about one hour’s drive there and another back to our home).

And that was how we ended up at The Boat House in Stanley (where Rockstar met sea snail). With the sun and the dining out, it feels like we’re in Aussieland or something – except it’s still crowded and well you’ve got Hongkies plus umpteen different nationalities of expats who’ve all made HK their home….

It was semi-busy (by crowded HK restaurant standards – it’s already way busier than what we’re used to when we spend Christmas in Australia or San Francisco) when we arrived before 1pm; by the time we’re ready to leave at 2.30pm there’s a queue for tables and there are more and more people crowding into the street.

I stop by the market to buy a pair of jeans (HKD 108 – it was Christmas, I didn’t bargain!) and a long-sleeved rugby shirt (HKD 59). Friendly old local guy. You wouldn’t have thought it’s Christmas day, all the stalls are open and bustling (well, it is HK).

At another stall, a third sweater is a little small for Rockstar and since it’s a market find I’m worried about shrinkage and request a larger size. With one eye on Rockstar running about in circles, I notice the young woman tug hard at the sweater. Swiftly she holds the taut sweater up to Rockstar’s shoulders, then briskly packs it away into those standard little black plastic bags they use in the market, with another sweater I’ve chosen (which was HKD 118). She asks me for HKD 236 – for the 2 sweaters.

“The one in the bag is the same size (as the one I just rejected), isn’t it? Can I see it again please?”

“Erm, not really (the same size), see this one is longer.” Seriously – the difference in length is barely half a cm.

“It’s still not big enough. May I have something bigger?”

Reluctantly she says she has nothing else so I pay HKD 118 for the one that fits. Cheerfully, she gives me my change and wishes me a Merry Christmas.

Well, it is HK.