By Dorothy
It has officially been a full week for most of us in Hong Kong and we’re finally getting a little more used to the environment here. I was super excited that it was finally time to meet with our host students to prepare a meal together. We were separated into groups of 3 and got assigned one PolyU student to each group. In the group I was assigned, it was me, Brenda, and Chi. A lot of the other students prepared meals at 11 AM, while my group would not meet up with our host student, Ebby, until 4 PM. On our way to meet Ebby at the library on Poly U’s campus, we got a little lost but eventually found her. Ebby told us that her parents wouldn’t be home since they were in Mainland China with her grandma, but that we would get to meet her sister and that she invited her best friend Sofun to cook with us. We all walked to Hung Hom station from the Poly U library and took the MTR to Tai Po station which was 8 stops from where we were. When we got to Tai Po station, Ebby told us that we would be going to buy chicken wings and Chinese BBQ pork at a store across the street and then going into Tai Po market for seafood and vegetables.
When we went into Tai Po market, the smell of fish hit my nose immediately. The scent was pungent but also extremely fresh. It was a lot more crowded than I expected and I had to keep a fast pace so I wouldn’t lose Ebby, Chi, or Brenda in the sea of people there. Ebby’s best friend, Sofun, ended up meeting us near the fish section. Ebby told us that Sofun was a master chef and that she would be leading the cooking for the meal and choosing all of the ingredients. We went to get scallops and shrimp and then went to the vegetable section to get minced garlic, spring onion, tofu, and bok choy.
After purchasing all of the items, we walked to Ebby’s apartment which wasn’t too far from Tai Po market. We all washed our hands and listened for Sofun to give us directions on what we should do. In the family room, me, Chi, and Brenda prepared the scallops and shrimp first by stuffing them with garlic and adding vermicelli onto the scallop shells. The shrimp and scallops were then put into the steamer for 15 minutes. Sofun prepared the fishball and vegetable soup and honey garlic chicken wings on her own since the kitchen was a little too small for all of us to fit in.
The meal was extremely delicious and probably tasted even better since we were all starving. We took a bunch of photos, shared stories about our traveling experiences, and exchanged social media information. Ebby also brought out playing cards and we were able to play a few rounds of slap jack. Eventually we realized that it was past 10:30 PM and that we should head back to the dorms. It was such a great day getting to know Ebby and Sofun and I’m extremely grateful for their hospitality. They made me feel like I had a place to call home in Hong Kong. Even though I miss California and my family here and there, I feel like I will always have a connection here thanks to Ebby and Sofun. I hope one day they can both come visit California so I may return the favor!
