Tree Time On The Fragrant Harbour

Given the choice, I would rather shop for a Christmas tree for myself. Given the role it plays in the home for nearly six weeks, I’ve often spent more time buying a tree than a desk or even a guitar. There’s also something wonderfully urban and satisfying about carrying your Christmas tree home on your shoulder! Only once have I gone into the forest with a saw and although that was a beautiful tree, it was also full of eggs that filled our house with grasshoppers a few weeks later!

Buying a Christmas tree here in Hong Kong is a funny old thing. Most “real” Christmas trees available here are shipped in refrigerated containers and sold via mail order. Last year we bought a decent, if fast wilting, Noble Fir through our club. This year they had lovely printed brochures advertising that trees would be available till December 18. However, by mid November they were “Sold Out.” Of course, complaining was pointless since the problem was not their fault (blame-passing seems to be the essential Hong Kong business strategy – more on THAT, next year!). So we placed an order through L’s office plant company.

On Friday, our first tree of the season arrived. Of course, tree is a generous term in this context – it was more of a ball-shaped bush with a twig sticking out the top. The tree was supposed to be between 5 and 6 feet tall, but my guess is that apart from the star, the highest ornament would have hung about three and a half feet off the ground. Moreover, the tree had (as is often the case), been heavily pruned into it’s current, tortured, shape.

So, we sent the ugly bush back. Through our building’s concierge we found another company and made a hasty second order.

Our current tree has a lovely shape, but is, well, slender. I’ve taken to calling it the supermodel tree, for obvious reasons. At least we don’t have to trim this one and the lights and decorations hang wonderfulyl (photos to come). If anything it works better in our space, not blocking all the natural light from the main window behind it (last year’s tree made us feel a little too much like we were in the Forest).

[tags] Christmas, Christmas Trees [/tags]