Morning Exercise in Belchers Bay Park

     T'ai chi is what you see, starting around 8 most every morning in parks and public spaces around China and Hong Kong.  This morning I decided to walk across the street and check out the t'ai chi in Belchers Bay Park.  As soon as I found a bench I sat down and watched a dozen or so late middle-aged women doing the graceful choreographed traditional dance to recorded music that I used to watch last year on the apartment grounds in Shenzhen.  After the dancers finished I wandered through the park and watched assorted groups and individuals doing their t'ai chi and other exercises.  On the far side of the park I ran into a group of 30-40 mostly older people going through an exercise routine.
     After I'd been watching this group for a few minutes a pleasant woman named Grace came over and introduced herself and invited me to join in.  Why not, I thought, and accepted her invitation.  She led me over to the older gentleman I'd already discerned was their leader and introduced me to him, a Mr. Lee.  Several others then introduced themselves and had me come and stand by them so they could tutor me.
     I went through the rest of their exercises with them for the next half-hour or so, with lots of eager hands-on help from the people around me.  Some of the stretching, squatting, lunging, balancing, rotating and resisting moves felt familiar.  Some were unfamiliar.  For example, we spent quite a few minutes bending, pinching and working over fingers and their joints (to keep the hands in shape for calligraphy, I suppose).  We applied pressure to both sides of the the jaw with the hands and slid them slowly up toward the ears.  We put each elbow into the palm of the opposite hand and then rotated the palm around the elbow--good for blood pressure, I was told!  The most unfamiliar activity was the repetitive slapping of limbs that I've observed Chinese people doing so often.  We slapped the arms in a couple places, the armpits, and then the calves, knees and thighs.  One of my mentors came over several times and showed me how I needed to do it harder (ouch!), otherwise it's no good, he said.  I assume this activity is to help blood circulation.
     After we finished the exercises, I chatted with the 5 or 6 people who'd introduced themselves to me.  I learned a little bit about them, and they asked me how long I'd been in Hong Kong and if I live nearby, as they all do.  They encouraged me to come back again, maybe even tomorrow, as they meet there every morning at 9.  They told me that there are several others from abroad who come.

     I asked to take a picture of those who were still there just before I left.  Here they are.  The woman on the far left, Janey, was very kind and attentive to me.  Next is Ellen whose family was originally from Taiwan, she said.  Mr. Lee, the leader, is in the light gray sweats.  I didn't meet the man in the brown sweater--he was getting advice from Mr. Lee after the regular exercise session ended.  Elizabeth in the quilted coat said she grew up in Hong Kong, lived in Calgary for 35 years, and now is back in Hong Kong taking care of her 92-year-old mother.  On the right is Shiva, who came to Hong Kong from Nepal 20 years ago and owns a restaurant just down the street from our apartment.  He was very friendly and insisted that I bring my husband to come eat at his restaurant sometime, which we'll do.
     I ran into Ellen on Belcher Street late this afternoon on my way home from a walk.  She saw me first, called out my name, greeted me with a big smile, and told me that she'd just picked up some prints she'd had made of the photos she'd taken this morning at the same time I'd taken a few pictures.  She handed me a set of 3 prints and said she hoped she'd see me tomorrow morning.
     What a friendly introduction to the neighborhood from lots of new people!
     And I just checked:  no bruises tonight from the arm and leg slapping, thanks to all the help showing me how to hold my hands correctly.