Still in HK

Thanks for the comment, Zsofi! Actually, I've been spending 5 mins a day on the internet-that's why my blogs have been so short, but I know what you're saying. So Dad is in the hospital. When Felice and I got back from shopping on Tuesday, mom and dad still weren't back, and a call from mom confirmed that they were still at the hospital. Like I said, that was Tuesday. It's Saturday now and we may still be here Monday. We had hoped to leave on Thursday for SHanghai. He has a kidney infection and they have to IV him antiobiotics. He's getting better, but it's been slow. Most importantly, they don't want to let him out and find that he needs to come back. All that being said, we're having a good time here.
I forgot what we did Wednesday. Hopefully I'll remember soon.
Thursday we took the Star Ferry across the bay to Hong Kong Island (we're staying on the Kowloon side) and took a long, extremely scary bus ride to Stanley market. They had the usual tourist fare, but Felice and I also purchased each a beautiful red ceramic vase. It wasn't too crowded, and much emptier than when we last went, like everything. Last time we were in HK, we were here for the transition to Chinese rule in 1997, and the place was packed.
Friday we went to the largest outdoor bronze Buddha in the world, with accompanying monastery, on the island of Lantau. I wish I could show you all pictures, but you have to walk straight up 5 or so flights of stairs to reach a huge buddha sitting in a lotus position. From the top, you can see the whole island. It would have been spirtitual were it not for the multiple helicopters in the area assisiting in the buildilng of some random large compound.
As Felice said, we would be having a better time if we weren't stuck here, but we are taking advantage of being here. Uncle Mike is flying in today (he's a pilot for United) so we'll see him for dinner. It's been a little frustrating here language-wise because I can't tell if I don't understand them because they're speakign Cantonese or I am stupid. I will feel a lot better when we are in a solely Mandarin speaking area and I can work my Chinese magic. It is so much more Chinese now than then. Very little English is spoken compared to the past. I apologize for my thoughts being so disorganized. It's been a bit stressful having dad in the hospital. He's definitely goign to recover, but we've had to make sure we're spending a lot of time with him, and he's definitely depressed about how much he's missing.
On a happier note, I finally heard from Ron. He left for France on Monday/Tuesday, and I hadn't heard from him until I checked my mail last night. He seems like he's doign really well, and the fact he didn't have time to email is a good sign! I'm glad we'll have this summer apart to do our own thing, grown on our own, etc.
Since we've been here a while now, Hk seems a lot more like home. I know my shops to go to, what to order at some local restaurants, and the route to the hospital by heart. I'll be glad to continue on our trip, though, and I'm excited to get an even better familiarity with my area in Beijing.