Hong Kong was my home in Asia for seven exhilarating years. People think of this global financial hub as all work and no play, but lion dances and firework displays at Chinese New Year coax smiles out of even the most serious bankers. Turn a busy corner here and you just may come upon pink flamingos or a papier-mâché Mercedes.

A woman dressed for the Cheung Chau Bun Festival in Hong Kong.
Incense coils at a temple in Hong Kong.
Fire dragon procession in Tai Hang, Hong Kong.
Woman making offerings at the Monkey God ceremony in Hong Kong.
An entranced monkey god medium cuts his tongue with glass in Hong Kong.
A man paints his face backstage in preparation for a Chinese Opera performance.
View of the Hong Kong skyline from the Peak.
“Floating” children are suspended above the crowd at the Bun Festival in Cheung Chau, Hong Kong.
A priest performing a ritual at the beginning of the Bun Festival in Cheung Chau, Hong Kong
A man sits back stage waiting to perform in a Chinese opera.
Interior of Man Mo Temple in Hong Kong.
“Floating” children are suspended above the crowd at the Bun Festival in Cheung Chau, Hong Kong.
Pressed chicken on display at a market during Chinese New York in Hong Kong.
Children dressed in costume at the Bun Festival in Cheung Chau, Hong Kong.
Men walking their birds at the Yeun Po Street Bird Garden, Hong Kong.
Fire dragon procession in Tai Hang, Hong Kong.
Race to Pak Tai Temple carrying Taoist deities at the Bun Festival in Cheung Chau, Hong Kong.
Interior of Man Mo Temple in Hong Kong.
Chinese opera performers taking a break backstage.
Preparing for a Chinese opera performance in Hong Kong.
A butcher cuts meat in Mongkok, Hong Kong.