I'm a blogger!!!!

Greetings from Discovery Bay, Hong Kong!

(That's Zoe and Retta's son, Jack, just hangin' out at the playground)

My friend, Retta, told me that I could do this all by myself, and here it is - a place for friends and family, who are oh so far away, to keep track of the four Hicks here on the other side of the world. I know that Retta has fun posting pictures and writing about their family's experiences, and I am looking forward to sharing with you the crazy world we find ourselves living in at times. . . The latest development in our lives, the one pressing in on us the most, is the fact we must move within the next month. The owners of our flat, who are now living in Seoul, Korea, have sold this 1,000 sq. ft apartment for a cool $1 million (yes, that's U.S.). The owners are not investors, unfortnately, and they are eager to move in, so we are on the flat-hunt again today. My sister heard me doing the dishes the other day while we were talking on the phone and she said, "Are you doing the dishes?" I said, "Yes." And she said, "You mean that flat is worth $1 million and it doesn't have a dishwasher?" I said, "Yes, Welcome to Hong Kong!" The really negative part for us is that rents have shot through the roof, so we are more likely than not going to be moving into something smaller and not so newly renovated. Well, the consolation is there are so many in the same boat. Although it's a very, very small consolation. But, as my sister-in-law has been known to say, "It is what it is," so we have to find something here pretty quickly.

On a brighter note, we had a wonderful time having dinner at The Peak last night with friends from Ridgefield, who now live in the U.K. We took the Peak Tram up and back and the food was delivious, the views spectacular and we had a lot of fun catching up and sharing our experiences with friends. In fact, I may head out to "help" them find the Jade Market so they can do some Hong Kong shopping - okay, I know it's a sacrifice on my part, but that's just the kind of person I am. . .

I will post more pictures after I upload them from my camera. Stay tuned, folks!!



Carol