Queen of the Bazaar

What a lovely afternoon we had.  First we had a fun rhyme rehearsal after school.  Then we met the Hills and Mas for Tonkatsu and Katy and Olivia had one of their magic playdates when they were so loving and funny together.  Then, Debbie, Debbie's Mother-In-Law Kate and I took Katy to her first "proper" Hong Kong Bazaars - the small but iconic CAB Bazaar at St John's Cathedral, and the big and fancy Bazaar at the Helena May.  We had a lovely visit to St John's, where Katy would have made both Grandmothers proud if they had seen her take herself quietly over to a pew to pray, and then quietly go into a chapel to pray before asking Mama to help her light two candles.

Katy enjoyed choosing Christmas gift bags, which we buy every year, from the legendary June Lee and the ladies of the St John's Cathedral Committee. We also loved picking out some cute Christmas tree ornaments made by communities all over the world.

We loved the Helena May Bazaar too, across the road.  There was lots of fancy jewellery for Katy to admire and try on, and the ladies all made a big fuss of her, one giving her candy and jewellery!

 I thought it could have been a bit of a nightmare at first as Katy was initially wanting to buy everything, starting from the Barbie shop outside lunch.  But in the end it turned out to be a fantastic opportunity to learn about budgets and saving, and looking and not spending, and enjoying the shopping experience without buying a lot of stuff.  Katy has taken to saying "I would love one of those but I know I'm not allowed to have it..."

We also enjoyed meeting Lorette Roberts.  Katy has one of her original watercolours - an alphabet of Hong Kong, and we took the opportunity to pick up another print as a memento of Hong Kong.

Lorette was thrilled that Katy drew her a picture and a card.

After a tiring afternoon trying on jewellery, we retired to the Helena May Courtyard and fancy function room with the groovy palm fans.  It was lovely to have a drink there.

And a blueberry muffin.  I tried to get Katy to have scones in keeping with the surrounds, but she insisted on her muffin!