Birthday Celebration in Hong Kong Part IV: Gifts

Birthday Parties mean Birthday Gifts! And for the celebration of my 90^th in Hong Kong GIFTS is spelled in capital letters!

Birthday Parties mean Birthday Gifts! And for the celebration of my 90^th in Hong Kong GIFTS is spelled in capital letters!

It all began when a former student and teacher on my staff, Margaret, heard that I was turning 90 this year. Her immediate response, “You must celebrate in Hong Kong and I will pay the air fare for you and Jane to come.” This was followed by a message from her husband David (also a former student), “And I will pick up the hotel bill!” Who can turn down an offer like that? Well, actually Jane could and did. She knew what the pace of activities would be in Hong Kong and she knew what it feels like t take that 14 hour non-stop flight from San Francisco to HK and return. So she wisely chose to celebrate only vicariously and that turned out to be just the right decision. Our son Tim decided to go and the hosts said, “No problem. We will pick up all his expenses” and they did. Just to make the air flight a little easier, a couple from my home church, Calvary in Solana Beach, upgraded out flight to Economy Plus!

Public transportation in HK is excellent but we were going all over the place with a very tight schedule. So immediately another female graduate, Tam, spoke up. “I am making available my Mercedes and my full-time driver. She will take you wherever you need to go at whatever time you need her.” We grabbed that opportunity.

When we got off the plane the driver together with Tam and friend John were waiting at the airport in the chauffeured car. We had barely sat down when each of them handed me envelopes. Inside was cash both US and HK dollars to cover expenses and a so-called “Octopus Card” which provides access to all forms of public transportation. And when we got out of the car at our hotel we were loaded down with 4 bottles of outstanding French wine!

As indicated in an earlier BLOG all our meals were more than covered, some by the persons already mentioned above, another by Heman, the Oxford graduate attorney son of Margaret and David and by Paul who hosted a major dinner in Macau with Tam, of course having purchased the firs=class ticket on the hover-craft that provided passage between HK and Macau.

At the first birthday party each table gave a gift, which ranged from a pen, through a lovely little statue of the goddess of longevity, to more little red envelopes, each of which contained cash. At the end of our visit the Concordia School principal presented me with a wonderful photo album plus a remarkable flash drive wrist band which, when plugged in my computer carried complete photo coverage of my entire visit plus photos of the history of the school, including shots of me with the graduates for each of the years I was there. The church at which I spoke gave tee-shirts with the Luther words, “Here I Stand’, and appropriately logoed umbrellas, photo albums and a new Chinese Bible. During the previous day another pastor had given me a book stand in which the Chinese characters of the 23rd Psalm had been beautifully etched.

Naturally, gifts of jewelry, purses and wads of cash were sent along for Jane.

The evening before we left I totaled up the content of all those envelopes. The combined total HK and USA dollars was astounding. The total was not in the hundreds of dollars but was in the thousands! I sat there alone for a few minutes but then sang out loudly in both English and Chinese the immortal words of ”Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow!”

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90th Birthday Celebration in Hong Kong Part III: FOOD

Chinese and food: These two are inseparable. So at my 5-day birthday celebration among Chinese friends this held true to tradition every day. I ate very, very well in Hong Kong which might just be the best place in the world, to eat, even surpassing Paris.

It began with breakfast. My hosts knew that the manager at the Regal Hotel at which we stayed had been her former pupil. So, of course, she arranged for an-up graded room on the premier level with full access to the special afternoon tea, evening open bar , late night  complimentary cocktails and full breakfast.. Since HK is so international it was obvious that the breakfast counters featured not only traditional bacon and a form of hash-brown potatoes, but also all kinds of hot and cereals, porridges, congee, steamed buns, fish, Japanese dishes hot and cold beyond count., bagels and lox, fresh fruit of great variety. trays of pastries etc, etc,

One of the features of dining in Hong Kong is that it is done in private clubs. So I was elegantly hosted  for food at The Chinese Club, The Hong Kong Golf Club and the Bankers Club. I will here go so far as to actually list the specially prepared (and carefully printed out, personally dedicated menu) provided by Tam Kim Chu and her husband at the Bankers Club.  Here it is: Barbecued Whole Suckling Pig, Sautéd Scallops and Prawns with Vegetables, Deep-fried Crab Claws with Minced Cuttlefish, Braised Birds’ Nest Soup with Fish Maw and Seafood, Steamed Sabah Giant Garoupa, Roasted Crispy Chicken, Fried Rice with Shredded Chicken in Cream and Tomato Sauce, Braised E-fu Noodles with Mushroom and Abalone Sauce, Sweetened Red Bean Cream with Lotus Seeds and Lily Bulbs and Chinese Longevity Buns. Yes, that was one meal, all accompanied by outstanding, appropriate wine for each course!

Lunch at the Chinese Club and at the Hong Kong Golf Club were on a somewhat lesser scale but dinner at Hu Tong in Kowloon, overlooking the harbor and at Guincho A Galero in Macau were also at the very top of any list of fine dining. In Macau it was wonderful to enjoy Portuguese sausage as it can only be made in that former colony of Portugal..

There were two large birthday party meals each attended by over 100 and each featured wonderful more traditional Chinese food. At the alumni dinner the meal actually started with a huge birthday cake which was served before the rest of the meal. The meal was not served in traditional Chinese style with dishes in the center of the table and then on individual plates. Rather each entry was a separate serving brought to each guest on a small plate with just that one item. This went on for 12 courses, most of which I did not have time to eat as I busy posing for photos with guests from the respective tables.

I was greatly surprised by the sumptuous catered noon meal served at Concordia Lutheran Church after services on Sunday. It again featured a vast multitude of traditional Chinese dishes served cafeteria style. Two menu items were especially interesting. The first was actually proudly brought to me. It was a large bowl of charred mashed potatoes. This would never be seen at a traditional Chinese feast but the hosts figured I was an American and so they asked this dish to be specially provided for me and it was brought to me with great flourish and humor!

The other feature of this meal was the birthday cake, actually three of them. At a ceremony in the church after the regular worship service the ushers brought up 2 rather small and beautiful cakes which they asked Tim and me to ceremoniously cut. It was then served later at the dinner. However, at the dinner they brought me another piece of cake in a somewhat “messed up” condition. They explained to me: ”This piece comes from the big beautifully decorated cake we had ordered for you to be presented after the church service. However-on the way to church there was “an accident”. The whole top of the cake with all its decorations was totally ruined. ”They did salvage some of the cake and wanted me to at least have a little piece of that, too.

In between all this Tim and I were ready for a simple dish of noodles from a street-side stand. So we asked David Tzang to help us locate one. Well, that did not work out as planned. He and his wife knew of an old-fashioned noodle shop that had become so famous that it was listed in the Michelin Guide. It was so popular that the waiting line stretched half a block and the wait could be an hour or more. So Margaret had gone early, stood in line and in we marched immediately, sat in the crude wooden booths and with waiters whizzing by enjoyed our noodles-accompanied by wonderful pig knuckles which Tim enjoyed so much that it was later announced that he had eaten three portions of them.

90th Birthday Celebration in Hong Kong Part II: Site Visits

It was to establish and support Lutheran Schools that took me to Hong Kong back in l956 so it was high on my agenda to visit a few of them now 52 years later. Therefore the morning after we arrived we were off to Concordia Lutheran School in Kowloon. The school had started with just a couple middle school grades housed in a storefront. Then we received a grant of land from the government and a $100.000 grant from the Lutheran Women Missionary League to build a stand-alone structure. That was my first assignment upon arrival those many years ago. We built a Kdg-12 school, later added classrooms, added an evening school and enrolled some 1,500 students by the time I left. I was principal of that very large operation completely staffed by Chinese personnel. It was a premier school with the highest rate of successful takers of school government-sponsored high school leaving exams in the history of Hong Kong.

Things have changed dramatically. It is now only a Grade 6 to 12 school. The evening school is no longer necessary. It is completely funded with government grants. It continues to have high standards and a tough academic program. Its enrollment is 750. It has a new US$7 million campus complete with all kinds of science and language labs etc. etc.

The faculty and staff were eagerly awaiting my visit. Together they had arranged for a group of top students to meet with me and tell me about their school. Their presentation was all in English, fully illustrated with computer-generated projections. The students told me of current things that were never on the table in my day: optional sequences for high school students, courses in tourism and hospitality, courses taught in Cantonese, Mandarin and English. The students proudly told me of academic teams, sports programs, religious clubs and musicals, sports teams, inter-school visits with schools on the mainland of China and on and on. Very impressive.

They had a carefully prepared session in which I was interviewed. I was pleased to respond to their questions regarding original visions and dreams and about differences between then and now. Finally the interviewing student said “Just one more question, “What is your opinion of President Trump?” That was the question they really wanted to ask!

The next school we visited was Saviour Lutheran School for Special Ed. What a treat. It had always been a dream of mine to reach out to this neglected portion of the population. I was there to help find the site, raise the construction money and get the building started but had to leave before completing the construction and I had never seen the final product. Now there has even been an addition to the building. Kids with special needs ages 6-16 are enrolled. The program is excellent and professionally conducted. A group presented a short musical program for me, including the singing in English of “Jesus Loves Me This I Know For the Bible Tells Me So.” I left emotionally overwhelmed.

Then primarily for son Tim we went to the site of the home where he lived from birth to age 5. Of course that building has long ago and been torn down and replaced with higher density housing. The squatter hut village just a block away has been replaced with high-rise apartment buildings.  But Tim tried to look over the fence to find where he had played on the slide and climbing bars.

A quick trip to where Tim had been born: St. Teresa’s Hospital. All replaced. Good thing as when Jane went there for his delivery the labor room was on the third floor, there was no elevator and we woke a night watchman to let us in. Jane’s water broke on the way up the stairs and Tim arrived before the Dr. did. But he survived very well and the new building is helping many others do the same today, but I bet there are none named Tim.

The next day I was off to Hong Kong International School. This is another school which I planned, got approved, designed, and was building when a family medical emergency forced our family to leave. Now it is one of the top schools in the world. The recently dedicated lower school is THE BEST I have ever seen anywhere. It even has a full-size swimming pool with a bottom that can be raised or lowered automatically so children can be in water ranging in depth from 1 inch to 8 feet. There is a full-sized kitchen for children to learn, all play equipment is specifically designed for this school. The entrance features an incredible tiled mosaic with tiles made in Italy and laid in place by the kids. It meets all the demands of parents who pay up to $25,000.00 in tuition for their children to attend!. It blows my mind and while everything else that I designed has been replaced the startling cross in the center still sends a message of love and respect for all.

When I spoke to some of the staff on the theme of excellence and learning they announced that the bursary to allow teachers from all over to come and learn here had been named in my honor.

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90th Birthday Celebration in Hong Kong Part 1: Celebration

I am not sure how my friends in Hong Kong heard that I was due to celebrate my 90th birthday on December 10. But when they heard they immediately determined that part of that celebration needed to be in Hong Kong with them as hosts. So they made all the arrangements and I gladly accepted being there November 1 to November7. Jane felt the trip would be too much for her (and she was right) so son Tim accompanied me and that was also a good decision as his youth and internet skills made for very smooth international and local travel.

When I accepted my friends’ kind invitation I had only one instruction:” Keep it simple.” I suggested 11 names of people with whom I thought it would be extra nice to have a good Chinese birthday. We would eat in a room at the hotel and they would come get me for my dinner. I was told to be ready for dinner on the day after my arrival.

They came to my room at the appointed time. When I was escorted to the dining room I was greeted by a roomful of celebrants, 112 person-strong in a brightly decorated room. They were all waiting for me. A very large birthday candle on a very, very large birthday cake was ignited and the group broke into a joyous version of Happy Birthday, first in English and then in Chinese and the celebration was on

In the midst of an incredible ten course meal accompanied by free-flowing wine the program flowed- very ably emceed by Paul Chan Sing Kong-almost all in English! There was a “Biography of Mel Kieschnick Contest” at each table. Then each table selected one word to describe me. A spokesperson from each table came forward and explained why that word was chosen. Key words included trust, leader, farmer, inspiration, mentor, visionary  etc. etc. Each speaker at the podium brought with him/her a gift (more about that later) and made a 3 minute speech which the master of ceremonies had a very difficult, yet humorous time controlling. After each little speech the entire table of 12 persons came forward and a group picture was taken-and I had the opportunity to greet for a second or two each of the 112 wonderful guests. Of course, I was expected to make a speech, which I joyfully did. 

The evening ended when I was presented with a very large artistically designed Happy 90 Birthday Card with many hand-drawn birthday candles and a very large folded poster which contained a picture of each table with each of the guests having signed their name.

After a rousing “ Old Lang Syne” sung twice and an even more joyous” Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow”, the glorious party came to an end.

The second party, too, was a surprise. One of my hosts John Chu had told me that he was accompanying Tim and me to Concordia Church on Sunday morning for Sunday morning worship with that congregation. I was especially pleased with that as so many years ago I had worshipped with that congregation, helped write its first constitution

We got stuck in traffic crossing the harbor between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon and arrived at church late. The service was already under way. Of course we were escorted to the front row. The entire service was in Chinese but they had prepared an English Order of Worship and an outline of the sermon to help Tim (and me follow). After the service there were speeches and then opportunity for my former students-including also 4 who (some with tears in their eyes) told me they learned to read and write in a simple little evening school I had organized some 50 years ago, Then a big congregation dinner followed. The catered food (Chinese) was wonderful. Naturally there had be another gift-giving ceremony-and hundreds of photos as everyone had a cell phone camera and was anxious to record one more memory!