Ztampfilicious

So I have been away for two weeks visiting my old folks back in Jakarta, Indonesia. Back to Hong Kong late last night and this is what happened when I turned on my beloved-4-year-11-month iMac (runs OS 10.6.8):

The start-up chime sounded, then a blank white screen appeared. Eventually, a dark grey folder with question mark appeared at the center of the screen, flashing. Nothing else happened. Nothing I could do except to turn it off using the power button.

I cannot run any diagnostic tool because the optical drive has died about a year ago. So I went to the Apple Support Forum to find out how to fix this issue:

I have followed some of the steps described here: http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1440?viewlocale=en_US

First, I disconnected my mouse and Wacom Tablet. Restarted. The problem persisted: white screen, followed with a flashing folder with question mark. So I turned it off with the power button.

Then I turned on my iMac again. Upon pressing the Option key, a cursor appeared. I connected my Apple mouse, and I am able to move the cursor around. But there is nothing there to click, the screen is a blank white, unresponsive screen (the folder with question mark did not appear).

Next I tried resetting the NVRAM/PRAM since I cannot reboot from the installation CD. After the second chime, the computer restarted but the only change happened was the speaker volume became much louder, which indicates that the PRAM has been reset. The screen stay blank white until the folder with question mark appeared and flashing again…

 What to do now?

Last Wednesday, October 5th is a National Day Holiday here in Hong Kong. My younger step-daughter is visiting us from Australia so it’s time for a family outing! Since the weather has finally turned much cooler now, we decided to walk the Discovery Bay-Mui Wo Trail and then back to Discovery Bay by the ferry. In case you are wondering, both Discovery Bay and Mui Wo are on Lantau Island, the largest island in Hong Kong where we live.

Mui Wo is a rural town on the eastern coast of Lantau Island. The history of Mui Wo dates back to the last days of the Southern Song Dynasty. Fleeing south from the invading Mongols, in 1277 the imperial court sought refuge in Silvermine Bay (at that time known as Mei Yu). In March 1278, whilst attempting a further escape from the Mongols, the penultimate Song Dynasty Emperor Duanzong fell from a boat and almost drowned. After his rescue, he became ill and died a few months later at Mui Wo. Duanzong’s successor, Emperor Huizong of Song was enthroned at Mui Wo on May 10, 1278. [from Wikipedia] Today, Mui Wo is a collection of villages and hamlets, with a beach, fields, and a small wetland that’s home to egrets. The villages have become popular with urbanites looking for a quieter life. Close to the pier and bus terminus you will find the market and a selection of Chinese and international restaurants, mostly serving seafood which you can enjoy while gazing at the sea.

The Discovery Bay-Mui Wo Trail is a lovely one, although we found it was a bit further and harder than we expected (too many steep steps!). Fortunately, the day was a bit overcast with a few drizzles which has mercifully cooled the weather down for us and the view from the top of the hills was indeed beautiful – yes, even on an overcast day! Along our walk, we passed some small villages and a few organic vegetable gardens – quite a rarity in Hong Kong! We had a late lunch at the Turkish restaurant in Mui Wo – it was delicious! We ended the trip with a quick browse at the local secondhand bookshop that carries many wonderful old books before dashing off to catch the ferry back to Discovery Bay.

Here are some pictures that I took on our walk: