Note: Lisa Schwark has written many articles for our Kids Corner and she continues with her kid-friendly style in this recollection of Jackie's Global Friendship Tour 2006.
by Lisa Schwark
Kath has taken us On The Road With Jackie Chan. We’ve all had the wonderful experience of being where Jackie’s been on the road through Kath’s amazing way of putting us right there in the moment. But, Jackie also has some amazing things to see right in his own backyard. And what better way to enjoy them than with my new family members (also known as fellow Jackie fans). It was great to be able to share these experiences with them.
The first corner of Jackie’s backyard that we got to see was The Chi Lin Nunnery. Kath has lots of pictures of it here. It’s so beautiful, it literally takes your breath away. Here’s Cousin Judy strolling along the walkway:
It was such a beautiful day the day we were there. Look at this gorgeous sky:
That’s Cousin Kath in the photo. She doesn’t really like her picture taken, but sometimes little nephew Nic catches her in a shot.
The next spot we visited was the Bird Market. What a great place. Even though there is a lot of chatter with the birds, it’s actually a quiet and calming place to be. Everyone seems very relaxed - the bird venders as well as the people walking through the market. This man was VERY relaxed:
Here are Judy and Kath. I think they were trying to figure out what the name of the bird was they were looking at:
There were several I had never seen before. Like this parrot. It had a blue ring around its eyes:
It sure did like Kath’s shirt! There’s some more pictures of the bird market here.
When you check out Jackie’s backyard, you simply must go to the Jade Market. Even if you don’t intend to buy anything, it’s an experience you must have. It’s an inside market with rows and rows of vendors selling everything from jewelry to statues. So much to see! Kath helped me at first, since I was nervous about haggling. And that’s a part of going to this type of market. You are expected to haggle.
But soon I was doing it on my own and found that it could be fun! In fact, I had a hard time leaving. Thank goodness Haarsha and Judy were patient. They didn’t seem to mind that I wanted to see everything. My goodness! Look at all this beautiful stuff! When you go, I have a feeling you’ll have a hard time leaving too.
Next we visited a section of Jackie’s backyard that many people are familiar with- Waterloo Road. There’s lots to see there, and the energy level here is always high. It’s a fun place to be. Here’s silly niece Jura hanging out in front:
And here she is in the back:
Kath had to work that day, but we were able to say hi to her. And you’ll never guess who we happened by. Big Brother’s son, Jaycee! The whole family was very happy to see him. He was on his way to work also, but he stopped and filled everyone in on what he’s been up to.
That sure was a highlight of the visit.
Now the Giant Buddha isn’t right in the backyard. You have to take a detour to Lantau Island. But I think it’s worth the hop skip to go there. Like the Chi Lin Nunnery, it takes your breath away because it’s so amazing. I think Cousin Haarsha especially enjoyed it. You can just barely see her there standing on the level below the Buddha.
It’s HUGE! And magnificent. Next to the Buddha is the Po Lin Monastery. In front of the Monastery, you can light incense and say a prayer or have a quiet moment. We didn’t want to intrude on Haarsha’s quiet moment too much, but here she is lighting some incense.
The incense sticks are cool. Here’s a close up of some of them:
Aren’t they beautiful? Another beautiful sight at the Monastery was a pond that was off to the side. As Nic and I walked up, we could hear a frog chirping and that was all. No other sounds. It was so peaceful.
Besides the frog, we found another little friend at the pond – a turtle. Look at the amazing markings on its shell.
And of course the Monastery itself was out of this world. You can see more pictures of the Giant Buddha and Po Lin Monastery here.
In the middle of our backyard visits, Big Brother invited everyone to brunch. That’s a whole other story in itself. What a great time that was. Here I am with long lost cousin Heidi from Germany. I was soooo happy to see her.
Kath and Cousin Kitty sure were happy to see each other again.
Here’s little nephew Sean. Isn’t he a cutie!?
He used to be very sick. We’re all very happy that he is well again. Sean hadn’t seen Big Brother in a while, so he gave him a pen with their picture on it as a gift. Big Brother has such a caring family. Here’s Big Brother with little nephew Nic. Well, he’s not so little anymore. He’s grown a couple of inches since Big Brother saw him last.
After brunch, Big Brother invited us to his home in Sha Tin. It’s a beautiful place. Big Brother has many collections there that are fun to look at. Here’s a bunch of us having a look around.
Big Brother has pictures everywhere. We all know not to fall asleep when he’s around!
Nic is a huge Anime fan. So he was happy to see this on Big Brother’s shelf - A complete series of the Dragon Ball Z DVDs. If he had had time, he would have sat down and watched them all. Big Brother has many, many more collections. If you want to see more, you can go here and here. Unfortunately, we couldn’t stay all day. Here’s me, long lost cousin Heidi, little nephew Sean and his dad, Uncle Richard, leaving. We really didn’t want to leave, but we had more backyard visits to make!
During our visits, we had to stop and eat. One place we stopped at was a Thai Restaurant. The server there was so friendly and the food was great. But best of all, the company was fantastic. Seven of us new family members from all over the world were there.
There was Haarsha from South Africa, Heidi from Germany, Judy from Hawaii, Kath from Hong Kong, and Mary from Rhode Island USA. Then me and Nic from Wisconsin USA. Nic took the photo so he’s not in it. We had a wonderful time eating and chatting together for quite some time. In fact, Judy missed her boat. Literally. She was supposed to meet up with some more JC family members at the ferry pier, but missed her boat. That’s what happens when family gets together and starts yacking.
Our next stop was another visit to Waterloo Road. This time we were able to take some time and do some visiting. Uncle Willie and Uncle Solon were there. Lots of family members stopped to have a chat with them.
We made it up to the rooftop and could have stayed there for hours. The view was great and the company even better. But it was time to go, and continue our backyard visits. You can see more pictures of Waterloo Road here: and here.
Our next stop was a very special backyard visit. Big Brother’s studio!
This is when we first walked in. Everyone was so excited! The studio is still being renovated, so walking through was a little tricky sometimes. Remember the railing Kath leaned on at the set of Rob-B-Hood and found out it wasn’t a real railing? Here’s where it was. You can see that there was red and white tape over it so we all knew not to go near it. Big Brother wanted to make sure we were all safe.
And here’s the view from the railing. Yup, wouldn’t want to fall over that!
Big Brother Jackie had many, many beautiful items stored at the studio. This gorgeous screen
and this amazing bookshelf.
And of course there were things you would expect to see in a studio like a rack of costumes.
But I think something Big Brother really wanted all of us to see was this-
the trash and recycle bins he had out. Big Brother is very concerned about preserving the environment and planet and would like everyone to chip in and help. Of course, we did.
After going through the studio, we went out back and there was Big Brother to greet us.
Solon and Willie were there too.
And of course brother Ken is always close by making sure everyone is safe.
He looks serious in this photo. But we all know what a funny guy he is and how much he likes to have fun. Poor Kath is often the target of his jokes. After Big Brother gave the kids rides on his Segway
he thanked us all for coming to visit and asked if we had fun. It’s always fun visiting Big Brother! On the way out, Nic drooled over some of Big Brothers cars and motorcycles.
And we ALL wished we could try out this baby –
Big Brother’s RV!
Well, we knew our time with Big Brother was over, but the backyard visiting wasn’t. Onward! Next stop – Jumbo! That’s the big floating restaurant. We had quite the journey there. Our group consisted of Kath, Judy, Haarsha, Mary, Nic, and myself. None of us really knew how to get to the restaurant. But keeping a sense of humor is a JC trait. So even after a couple of wrong turns, Kath and Nic were still in a teasing mood. They both constantly carry cameras with them. You may remember that Nic was the unofficial “official Kids Club photographer” three years ago - Kath being his mentor. Well they had a “camera show down.” Who can raise their camera the fastest and take a picture first? You can guess who won this round. After a few more detours (one being a man trying his very hardest to sell us a ride on his sampan, but that’s a whole story in itself), we made it to the Jumbo pier,
and we were finally on our way.
The detours were worth it. It was beautiful both inside and out. Take a look at this staircase inside. Beautiful!
And this amazing mural.
And check out this nifty hot plate we all had at our spots at the table. At least I think that’s what it was. We all put our plates on top of them.
Check out this cool seat Mary is sitting on and the dragon screen behind her.
Yes, the Jumbo was truly an original place to visit. But again, the best part of this backyard visit was being with my friends who I now consider my family. After a while, the beauty of the restaurant took a back seat to the conversations going on at the table, the laughter and the beautiful smiles on everyone’s faces.
There was one more backyard visit we did, but we didn’t get any pictures of it. We toured the University of Hong Kong. What a unique University! Quite the blend of old and new. Our new friend that we met on the Tour (and now brother) Daniel, went along with us. We met up with our tour guide, Jackie. Yes, that’s right, Jackie. Our tour guide had the same name as Big Brother! He gave us a wonderful tour, explaining the history of the University and all of the buildings. Some were built in the 1800’s and some additions are very recent. We were so interested in the tour we didn’t stop to take photos. I’m so glad Daniel came along. He’s from Australia, but currently going to school at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. So he had some good questions for Jackie. This isn’t something you would normally think of doing when visiting Jackie’s backyard, but I totally recommend seeing the University. It’s at a beautiful location on top of a hill, and there is so much history there. Bring some friends and family! It’s something you’ll want to share.
Being on the road with Jackie Chan is really amazing and something I wouldn’t miss. But being in Big Brother’s own backyard with my new extended family, is something I will cherish forever. It’s something I know I will do again in the future. For many families, reunions don’t happen often. But I’m sure I’ll be reunited with my JC family sometime. Then we can do more exploring in Jackie’s backyard.