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I can’t believe I saw the final Harry Potter movie in Hong Kong. Perfect timing.
I missed the US release date and we were in London for the blink of an eye. But in HK we stumbled across the Times Square Hogwarts displays and thought we might find it here.
So glad we did. And in English too.
If you’ve been a Potter fan for years, you know the pain of reading the last book. Realizing you had to say goodbye to the beloved characters. But the movies were still to come.
But now, the last movie is out.
However, as the eighth installment in the movie series, this may be the best. Definitely darker than the earlier ones. Some painful realizations and fast growing up for Harry and his friends.
But the movie delivers a satiating ending. It’s all that I imagined reading the book.
The actors I’ve watched mature onscreen all delivered top-tier performances. Immersing me in the story and their character’s drama.
I believed I was right there with Harry saving Draco from a fire, or Hermione and Ron battling the basilisk.
The 3-D. Wow. They need to re-release all the films in 3-D. I’d be first in line. Everything looked so real.
Even the subtitles in Chinese characters were 3-D. Mega coolness factor.
If you catch one 3-D film this summer, make it Harry Potter!
We decided to slow the pace and have a lighter day today. First plan was to climb Tai Mo Shan. That went bye bye when we heard about the hard uphill climb. Also it’s rainy and foggy so there will be no vistas from the top.
Next plan was to head to Repulse Bay and go swimming. We awoke to clouds and a downpour that lasted half an hour and threatened to come again soon.
OL suggests going to see Harry Potter in English. Turns out Times Square theater has it in English and 3-D. We attempt to buy the tickets on-line and discover you can select your seats. Very cool.
However the verified by visa function is not working and I cannot complete the transaction. Grrr.
I need to send some souvenirs back to US via parcel to lighten my suitcase. We ask the front desk concierge and he directs us to the red building across a couple streets. We can’t find it because it’s the building behind the red building.
Postal worker very helpful. Gives me a box to pack. We do that and shipping comes to 225hk$ and will arrive in the US in a month.
We decide to walk over and buy the tickets in advance and grab lunch. We get them at UA Cinemas.
Then hit Maxim’s MX for lunch. We go in the wrong entrance. Then find it across the street from Causeway Bay Plaza on first floor which btw is the second floor in the US. But they consider entry floor the ground floor and next level is first floor.
Line moves quickly. I get Hainan chicken set for 35$ HK and a coke zero. OL get the barbecued pork and rice for $HK 28.
I grab us seats while OL queues up again for picking up the food. Mine is tasty and exactly what I expected. OL likes his as well. Cheaper than restaurants and better quality food. What’s not to love? We’re going back there again.
We wander around the mall and I fall in love with Birkenstocks (the shoes of my teen granola grunge years). I ask for my size 39 and they guy’s eyes bulge like I am a giant. He tells me they don’t carry that size.
We wander to Ben and Jerry’s and then back to cinemas.
We are 15 minutes before 3:30 movie time, but they don’t let us in. So I get a small chocolate popcorn (think cracker jacks with chocolate).
Of course a family of four rushes to get in front of us and none of them know what they want. So we wait while they shout across the lobby asking what each person wants. Ugh.
HK theatre lets you in 5 minutes before the movie starts. The seats are leather and so comfy. They only have 1-2 previews before the movie begins. Nice.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II was an extravaganza for Potter fans. A decadent and satiating ending to one of the best series of my life.
Seeing it in 3-D was wow. Just wow. Loved it! Wish all Harry Potter movies were done that way.
Chinese subtitles were in 3-D which was really cool too.
We came outside to more rain and fog. Though the temperature was cooler. We walked back to the hotel for a rest before dinner.
Had dinner at a nearby place in Wan Chai. OL had beef with peppers and I had pork on crunchy Vermicelli noodles. Tasty and under 100$HK.
We walked to a bakery, Tin Lok Bakery on Tin Lok St. where it was buy 2 get one free on bao. I got a green tea with red bean paste bun and a coconut bun with sesame seeds on top. Best buns so far here. Yum.
Walked to Times Square because I decided I wanted the Harry Potter t-shirt, but they were sold of Griffindor and only had a tiny Medium of Ravenclaw. Should have got it earlier. Grrrr.
Came back to hotel to eat delish buns. Gonna check online for Potter tshirts.
Woke up at 9ish to get ready for dimsum at Maxim’s Palace in City Hall. Wanted to beat the noon crowd. Doors open at 11am so we plotted to be there for door opening.
We planned to take the free hotel buses, but the 10:15 was an intense free for all kinda thing. Felt like might get herded on the wrong bus.
So we went back to the reliable #6 bus which drops you in Central and departs from the front of the Cosmo Hotel.
The octopus card is so useful–just tap it to board the bus and it deducts from your card. No need for exact change.
OL has the idea to get off near the Peak tram, so we do. Two steps off the bus and and older Brit asks us where we are going. We say City Hall and he asks why we are here. I throw OL under the bus and say it was his idea.
Brit guy has lived in HK 25 years. He just returned from a trip to Lake Tahoe. Tell him I lived in San Diego. He escorts us most of the way and then shows us the underpass and indicates where City Hall building is.
He told us that the new HSBC building had to have millions of dollars of renovations because feng shui expert said escalators were placed wrong.
He also pointed out a building under construction and said that it was office buildings which were torn down to build ritz carlton which was torn down to now rebuild office buildings.
Very interesting fellow. And super nice to help us out.
When we part ways, OL navigates us to City Hall. We make out way to second floor at 10:40. First in line. Lol.
The entry doors are made of glass and behind the green velvety curtains. The room is all crystal chandeliers, white wainscoting. Very elegant and posh. Overlooking Victoria Harbour.
The waiters are so attentive. The dimsum ladies helpful. All the carts have the food names in English and Chinese. The tea a flavorful jasmine.
And the dimsum. Steamed pork buns, baked pork buns pastries, sesame balls, shrimp noodle crepes, barbecued pork noodle crepes, sticky rice in lotus leaf, steamed eggplant with bean paste, taro puffs, shanghai dumplings, shrimp dumplings.
Stuffed. Six pots of tea and I can move again.
The dimsum place floods with people around 12pm.
The people watching is amazing. Group dynamics at their best.
By the time we leave, there is a line waiting for tables.
We waddle out and head to Des Voeux Rd Central, which is all fifth avenue shops. boring for me. Much of HK feels like malls and shopping. To Li Yuen St for street market.
Wander among stalls of Graham St. Which is like an outdoor alley of fruits and veggies. Got to see more of the old HK in Sheung Wan.
Walked through Soho on way to Man Mo Temple. Walked through antique stores before visiting the temple. The temple is the best one we saw in HK. Definitely worth a visit.
However, the tourists completely disregarded the no photo sign and used flash inside the temple, while people were praying and lighting incense. So freaking disrespectful.
We paused at the park across the street before continuing on to Hillier St. There were several restaurants and we decided we must hit Sheung Wan for food sometime.
Saw a bit of Bonham Strand and Wing Lok St. Main drags. Took subway from Sheung Wan to central, saw the Chater Garden which has some nice picture possibilities. We went inside the Bank of China Tower and got visitor passes to go to the 43 Rd floor observation area for nice views of the city.
Mist and clouds made visibility low, but we still enjoyed ourselves.
We continued onward, to The Peak Tram. Used our Octopus cards to ride the tram up. It’s a bit warm inside and not comfy at all. But a great HK memory. Especially since the tram almost goes vertical.
The place the tram stops, the Peak Galleria, is a tourist trap. And they had the dirtiest bathrooms I’ve yet experienced in HK. Don’t freak out at the squatter toilets, continue back a few stalls and there are toilets.
We went to the ground floor to exit and stumbled on the picturesque restaurant. From there, we meandered down a foggy one lane road that doubled as the Morning Trail. Total escape from the shopping.
We got to see the tropical wonderland that is HK’s heart.
We walked 0.6km and then returned, opting to take a bus back to Central instead of the tram. Once was enough for us.
The bus got a bit crowded, but dropped us in Central where we could grab a subway to Sheung Wan for dinner.
Weirdly, all the restaurants we remembered seeing didn’t seem so appetizing anymore. We went into one, sat down, and I just couldn’t work the menu. So we went to another. The food was so-so. The milk tea was wicked bitter. Sugar made it almost drinkable.
Another trip to McDonalds in Times Square.
Alarm goes off at 8:30 and I leap from my bed eager to see the big Buddha. OL doesn’t move.
I get dressed and start checking email. One of OL’s eyes slits open. Mornin.
Finally the OL beast rises.
We walk to cafe Kenon for our typical breakfast. Leave the hotel by taxi to Hong Kong subway station. Navigate the station going to level 3 underground to get on the subway.
The Octopus cards were super handy. Scan to enter and when you get off subway scan again to deduct fare. Just tap your wallet. Ofc, OL’s doesn’t work in his wallet.
The subway is very clean and well-organized. Ride to Tung Chung stop at the end of the orange line. 30 minutes to arrive there.
A quick walk across the street takes you to Ngong Ping 360, the cable car to the big Buddha and the monastery. There are several types of tickets. I recommend you order yours online the day before to jump the line.
If you don’t mind heights, splurge on the crystal cable car with the see-through floor for 169$HK. Otherwise, go with the basic cable car for 115$HK but be prepared to wait.
Overall, we spent 45 minutes in line. Then we took a cable car ride of 25 minutes with 6 other people. Great shots and views. Watched planes taking off from the airport and saw the big buddha.
Fog impaired our view of the Buddha. Grr. We stopped in the Ngong Ping Village for lunch at subway. The sandwich meal set is a nice deal at50$HK.
There are free Shaolin performances in the village square. The shops are mostly overpriced tourist traps. Best souvenir places are closest to the monastery and the Buddha.
The walk to the Buddha is pleasant enough. The 268 steps is a workout especially in high humidity. Sweat dripped into my eyes heat. The Buddha is awe-inflicting.
The monastery has some ornate and lovely temple rooms.
Given the oppressive clammy heat, we skipped the Buddha poles with the heart sutra and the fishing village.
We took the cable car back down and subwayed back to Times Square. Hit the food court where you order, pay a central cashier, then bring receipt and pick up your food.
Had dumplings and sweet and sour chicken. No bones. No cartilage. Very tasty.
Walked back to hotel for a rest. Around 8:30 we head out for late dinner. This time we strike out. Can’t find anything that has what we both want. I wanted congee or wonton and OL avoids eggs. Some reason we couldn’t work these together.
Ended up at cheap and bad restaurant. Over salted everything. The wonton was some shrimp dumpling. The broth so salty I couldn’t drink it. One bite and I was done. OL had the broccoli and oyster sauce.
Swung by McDonalds for me and I ate a burger in the room.
God, I hate cantonese food. When I was in Beijing it was so easy to eat. But here it’s all cartilage and tendons and tails and on the bone. Ew.
After yesterday’s exhausting Kowloon on foot self guided tour of 10 hours, we decided to make today a chill day. We slept in until 10:30. Then we got dressed and headed to our favorite breakfast place, Cafe Kenon.
Too slow to motivate though. We got there after 11:30 and couldn’t get the breakfast menu. So we left and wandered around Times Square. Things were looking pretty bleak until we stumbled on a McDonald’s.
OL loves McDonalds and I’m a huge fan too. Problem solved. Double cheeseburger meals for both of us. And breakfast costs 58 HK$.
Search for giant bottled water and meandered near World Trade Center. Finally get some at 7-11. Then back to hotel to freshen up.
We have the best concierge ever here at the Cosmopolitan hotel. They are wonderfully helpful. He tells us we can catch bus 6 or 6x to Stanley a block up the hill from our hotel on the opposite side of the street.
Tomoko recommended the street market to us as quintessential HK experience. Buses btw require the octopus card or exact change. They will take more $ than required for ride, but never make change.
It’s 8.4 HK$ each to Stanley. We get on bus 6. Double decker bus and we head to top. The bus driver starts driving and I nearly fall back onto OL on the stairs up. Once safely seated, we drive through a tunnel heading toward Tomoko’s.
We pass Repulse Bay beach and decide to check it out on the way back. Great scenic ride. But very bumpy on top level.
OL watches the sign to see where the next stop is and also picks up on how others hit the bell button to request a stop.
We arrive in Stanley in about 20 minutes. The bus stop is super close to the market. Literally across the street.
As we enter the market, I tell OL, we are going to walk through once before we buy anything. 5 minutes later, I’m making a purchase.
Picked up T-shirts, fans, box, picture, and scarves.
Loved this outdoor market because the sales people weren’t pushy and they had prices on things but sometimes would bargain a bit. The prices were much more reasonable than the Temple Street Market in Kowloon.
Stanley St. Market is the place to pick up all your tourist treasures. It was also a bit cooler because we were on the water.
Then we went to get lunch everything along the water is 120$HK per person and up. Eek. So out of our budget. So we wander around.
At the main entrance to the market find a Delifrance. Sandwiches and spaghetti dishes in the 30$HK to80$HK range per person (7$HK ~1$).
This is where OL and I have a sorta fight. We are heading back toward the expensive waterfront restaurants that we agreed were too expensive. I say let’s go to the sandwich shop (meaning Deli france), but he thinks I mean the waterfront sandwich shop.
We realize we fight over weird shit where we agree on the goal but miscommunciate on the getting there. But we are usually in agreement as we disagree.
Delifrance has tasty sandwiches. We then head back to the waterfront. Sat by water and chatted. Then we hit a couple temples. Worth seeing. Great air-conditioned bathrooms in the Stanley Plaza. Though the whole mall is being reconstructed around you.
We catch the 6x to Repulse Bay but make the mistake of getting off at 110 Repulse Bay. Which means we have to walk 1.5 miles and 4 bus stops to the actual Repulse Bay Beach. Along a treacherously curvy road. With double decker buses and single person wide sidewalks.
Finally reach the beach and it’s OL, Kour and 100 mandarin speaking tourists. Stick my feet in the water and of course giant waves gets my pants wet. Looks like I peed myself.
Sand was super coarse felt sharp and painful to walk on, but as we got closer to water it got softer.
Picked up a couple pebbles. 7ish we found bus stop back to Wan Chai. Btw, the sun sets early down here. Like 7:30.
Bus dropped us right in front of Cosmo hotel. Right next door to our Cosmopolitan Hotel. Nice.
Rested up. Then out for dinner. Stumbled on Sichuan place near Times Square–Lip burning spicy. Eggplant. Then sweet and sour spare ribs. Tasty. Had hong kong tea yummie. Cooled mouth off from Sichuan spicy eggplant.
We got me a pineapple bun, hit the ATM and found the basement food court at Times Square. Explored the MTR subway system. Bought the octopus card. A refillable transportation card for subways and buses.
Asked our concierge about how to get to Lantau Island Giant Buddha and planned tomorrow’s itinerary.
We were awakened at 3:30 am by some drunk ass munch repeatedly sliding his room card into our slot (causing a beeping noise) and then when it didn’t unlock he proceeded to jerk the handle and try to force his way in.
This went on for a while before it woke us up. He tried about 11 times. I wanted to kill him with a rusted nail to the eye.
I get trying 1-3 times but don’t you stop and check the room number. Wtf?
So we finally fall asleep.i wake up to OL’s alarm clock 9:30 am. He doesn’t. So i get up and bring it to him. Without opening his eye more than a crack, he turns it off. OL makes me look like a morning person.
I get up and get ready. About 29 mins later, OL slithers out of bed. I do email as he gets ready.
Breakfast is easy at cafe kenon which has become our place. A Caucasian jogger comes in and demands that his order be brought outside to him. He also demands to know the orange juice contains sugar. I can’t stand when people get persnickety and overly demanding.
OL and I watch the guy doing stretches outside. Total nutcase.
We return to room after eating and prepare for day in Kowloon.
OL navigates us to the star ferry station in Wan Chai. Ride over is gorgeous views of Victoria Harbour.
We disembark and head to Nathan Road. How many Rolex and Tiffany’s does one street need? 6 and 2 it seems. We head to Ashley Road for lunch. One woman tries to corral us into an elevator to the restaurant.
We leave because it’s very confusing how it works. End up at Delicious Kitchen. Great eggplant dish. OL loves his cashew chicken. I did not like my sweet and sour pork because it was a pork ball with bones and cartilage. I hate cartilage in my food. But the service was good.
We stop in a park to rest on our search for Tin Hau Temple. Later we wander up to what we think is temple street but it isn’t. We realize we overshot the temple.
Double back, we stumble on stalls selling sex toys. Cause that’s where you want to buy your vibrator.
A few more blocks and we find the temple. Guess what? The park we rested in is the backyard of the temple.
Dumbasses. Tin Hau Temple is very incense filled. Air is so heavy and thick with incense you can barely breathe. Compared to temples I saw on the mainland this is a definite to skip.
Then. Find the real Temple street and pick up some souvenirs. Embroidered pictures, beaded bracelet, t-shirts.
We go back to Nathan Road to hit a mall and pee. The bathrooms are always in the exits. But very clean and nice. So weird.
We rest in bubble chairs at Miramar Shopping Centre and then head back to Temple street for the night market. But it’s not what we expected. Not stalls with lots of foods. More restaurants with exotic foods. Nothing we’re in the mood for.
We go back to Ashley Roadw and end up at Delicious Kitchen again. Awesome wonton soup for me and fried shredded beef with pepper for OL.
We walk over to the Avenue of the Stars and see the Hong Kong Island skyline. Wow. Double wow. Stunned. Then they do the Symphony of Lights at 8pm where the buildings light up and shoot lasers into sky.
It runs 15 minutes and is very popular. Get there at least 30-45 minutes early for a good spot.
We head back to the star ferry exhausted and are swarmed by drunk Brits singing and acting obnoxious. Ugh. They clog the line for the ferry tokens. We sit and wait. Let them take their own ferry over.
We get back to Hong Kong island and walk home. OL leads the way. Stop at cute Chinese place in Wan Chai with good picture menu and Chinese soap opera on tv. I have lemon chicken.
Back to room where another rainstorm breaks out. Hand washing pants and bra. Feet are so tired. They may never walk again.
We slept 12 hours last night. Woke up at 9:15 feeling human again. Big plus of being in a tropical New York? My hair is super curly. Like Marilyn Monroe in the Amazon.
We take our time getting up then head toward Times Square for breakfast. End up at Cafe Kenon again. Get inside as sky opens up again. Seems to rain intermittently all day but only for 10-15 minutes at a clip.
Repeat yesterday’s breakfast. Except OL opts for hot chocolate. Then we walk back to hotel for bathroom time and serious teeth brushing.
Couple in subway seem to have broken up. She has moved out and set up her own tent across from his.
We decided to check out subway system at Causeway Bay station today and then grab a quick lunch before adventuring to visit my friend Tomoko in Repulse Bay.
Except we changed our minds and never made it to the subway.
Instead we checked out the Hong Kong Exhibition and Convention Center. Of course as we walk, rain breaks out. OL picks up an umbrella at 7-11 which is very popular in Hong Kong. It rains most of our walk there. Luckily, there are overpasses that keep us sheltered as we cross multiple lane roads and navigate around the buildings.
Lots of restaurants with English menus there. We decide to grab lunch there. After we get some pics of the harbor. Rain however has brought it’s buddy fog along and our shots are pretty craptastic.
We go see the reunification monument, a giant bahinia flower. Then we make our way back inside to lunch at a place that had a huge queue an hour before.
Stroll in and order a beef satay roll and a pork, shrimp and bean sprout omelette. Yum.
OL has another curry dish.
We hit the clean restrooms and head back to our hotel to go to Tomoko’s.
We get the front desk to write her address in characters. Then we get in a cab and head over. It’s amazing. Gorgeous. Jaw slamming the floor view of water and mountains.
Her son Taizo is adorable and sweet. A fun companion for us.
We catch up on the past decade. Gulp. Has it really been that long?!
We swim in her in ground pool. Then we look at pictures from Beijing circa 1998. Awesome memories.
We meet her husband and share a delicious pork and vegetable dinner. Fun talk about traveling.
Tomoko and her husband share their tips on things to do in Hong Kong. Stanley Street Market. Temple Street night market. Central longest escalator. Maxim’s dimsum in City Hall. Symphony of Lights laser show from Avenue of the Stars. Included driving home on overpass Stubbs Road and not tunnel. Stunning views of city.
Then we grabbed some fried pork cutlet at a Japanese place in Wan Chai since I forgot to take my medication with dinner. Delish squared.
Return to hotel and planned tomorrow in Kowloon.
The airline apologized multiple times for my tv not working. So unlike US airlines. Landing went smoothly. Taxi on runway took longer than usual due to intense fog. Appreciate pilot taking his time when he couldn’t see.
Exiting took a bit of time since ginormous plane.
Immigration was a breeze. Customs simple. So not UK style.
Then grabbed luggage and hit ATM. Dispensed 500$hk bills which are equivalent to $70 US $. Decided to take taxi to hotel. Cost 338 HK $. Driver not speak or read English presented slight challenge. But he tried and we tried and taxi attendants helped out. HK is very friendly city. So un-New York.
Hong Kong is stunning even after rainstorm in fog. Think of a tropical NewYork. Tons of sky scrapers amidst greenery and mountains.
But so fucking hot and sticky.
Get to hotel by 8am but can’t check in until 2pm. Ugh. Drop bags and set out for Times Square area with hotel map. But on less than 1 hour of plane sleep. So muddle minded. Took us a while to find our way because we had trouble figuring out where we were on the map. Ten minutes of map turning in front of hotel to orientate selves. Lol.
OL and I put our collective half brains together and found Times Square. They had. Replica of Hogwarts train and 9 3/4 track. Inside mini version of Diagon Alley. So cool. Nothing was open though. But the mall had a/c. Ahhhh.
Continued our search for breakfast place. Half hour later return to first cafe we saw. Nice. $5 Bfast. Coffee. Two eggs, toast, hash brown, baked beans.
OL had yogurt.
Required to keep walking around to kill time. Saw World Trade Center. Searched for restaurants and found door store. Lighting stores. So random.
The bamboo scaffolding reminds you that the urban jungle has its roots.
Finally in Times Square mall eating ice cream at Ben and Jerry’s. Obnoxious gaggle of kids playing game. Keep hitting my chair. OL looks at the end of his rope. We decide we can’t do anymore. We need to rest. So we go back to hotel.
Thank the saints we can check in! Get lovely room on 23rd floor overlooking quiet side. Graveyard. Mountains. Gorgeous view for $75.
Room is lovely and modern. Beds firm but with down comforters. Bathroom is modern and lovely. We crash for a few hours. Or at least OL does. I wash pants by hand, check email, unpack.
I crash at 3:30. OL attempts to wake me up 5:30 and learns why my mother hates doing this. I wake up when I’m screaming and sitting up. He said I look scared to death of him. I have no memory of him. I remember being scared to death of someone in dream.
Once I get back to my mind, we head out for dinner. Wander around Times Square. Found a place with English menu. OL has curry and rice, I had chicken on bone and pork congee. Delish congee. Then I grabbed a pineapple bun. Yummie!
Figure out the “subway” which does not have the characters for di tie and confuses the heck out of me is really an underpass to get you across a few streets quickly. Cuts our walking time to Times Square down by 10 minutes. A couple lives down there in a shanty tent.
We got water and headed back to room to shower and finally get clean. We collapse into bed by 10pm.
The alarm rings and I leap out of bed ready to shower. My face is bathed in sweat from our non air conditioned room. Great.
Problem #2: it’s not 7:30 but 5:30. Ouch. So I get back into bed and meditate. Finally pass out and then the alarm goes off a few minutes later.
This time chipper Kour is replaced by cranky clumsy kour. Who cannot wake the hell up.
By the time I’m at breakfast pouring coffee, I’m almost awake. Bounced off an elderly man. Toast with cheese. Yum.
Taxi to airport is only 33 pounds. Half of what we paid to get to hotel. Not cool how taxis ripped us off to get to hotel.
Checked in for flight online yesterday, so check bags with Cathay Pacific, which went uber smoothly. We wandered to the security check out and that went smoothly…for me. OL got the pat down. But he kinda liked it so all good.
The airport has few seats in terminal 3. So we window shopped. I got a British bear from Harrod’s. So cute.
Boarding went fine. Check you in before you get to gate. So we are herded into small room that had to be a fire hazard to wait to board plane.
The plane is a double decker. Wow. Never been on one before. There are 60+ rows. We are in 49. There are 3-4-3 seats per row.
OL is next to Brit named Katherine. I know because her obnoxious three year old brother keeps yelling “Hi Katherine” the entire flight from the row behind me.
Evidently, he just learned how to talk because he won’t shut up the first 2 hours of the flight. Thank God for ear plugs.
Watched Sucker Punch. And didn’t get it. Guess I’ll have to read the wiki summary because I have no idea what was real and what wasn’t. Story sounded cool. But left me befuddled.
Great fight scenes. Quick moving movie. Just don’t quite get what it all meant.
Food was okay. Nice utensils and serving cups. I had diabetic meal which they think means low fat and tasteless. I prefer more fat in my food. It tastes better.
We are 3 hours into flight now. OL is watching a movie. I am tired and going to meditate.
So we passed out for an hour. Until screaming baby woke me up. Bathrooms are lovely on this flight. Routinely cleaned and include hand moisturizer. Heavenly since the soap makes my skin split open a few hours into most flights.
Katherine has continually flirted with OL. I think he likes it because he is being all charmy with her.
Kid finally shut the hell up. Breakfast was omelette. Tasty with salt. More fruit. I added shortbread in too. Everytime it’s hot beverage time, the plane has turbulence and we never get them.
Watched Wizards of Waverly Place and How I Met Your Mother. Then my stupid tv froze up. Took an hour and a half and two requests for them to fix it. But they apologized several times which was uber nice.
Read more of the Stephen King On Writing book. Feel like each pages teaches me something I will need.
OL got a set of six cups during the flight. No flight attendant would take them back.Hysterical.
We are landing in an hour. This was a 10 hour flight. TV helped make it fly by. We land at 6:55 am HK time. Middle of night in London.
Looking forward to another fun immigration experience.
OL arrived and we stayed up until 2 am giggling like schoolgirls on sour patch kids. He settled in and the ambulances stopped running by our room around11pm.
Caught up on our cab rides. OL was dropped off at a car service to get here by his cabbie. Found out we both got ripped off on cabs. Oh well what can you do in a foreign city?
Woke up and showered. Breakfast buffet is carb heavy. With some soft cheeses. So OL ate at hotel and Then came with me to JJMoons for a big breakfast of bacon, sausage, Black pudding, hash browns, baked beans, and toast. And a latte.
Afterwards, we headed to the Tower of London, which is about 20 stops way. We go to buy tube tickets and OL tries to help and end up adding two children’s tickets to our purchase.
On tube lots of people watching.
We saw a business man working his man clutch, posing with it against his hip with arm extended to hold on to the overhead pole. We saw an Eddie Munster look alike with a super tight grey bicyclist shirt and bright red basketball shorts. Wow.
By accident ended up on other side of the Thames by London Bridge. We meant to do it because I decided that that tube stop was where the Tower of London was. Oopsy.
Luckily with the day pass, we could jump back on the tube to finally arrive at Tower Hill. Did I mention that we had no street map of London. So when we arrive, we wandered and eyeballed where to go.
Queue up for TOL, split up and wait it out. We get up there and get our tickets. You have to queue up to enter.
Stopped at restrooms and paid 30pence to pee.
Okay so the TOL…was underwhelming. Pretty on the outside and picturesque to wander around, but the inside exhibits are a waste of time and money. We picked the three exhibits the TOL website recommends if you only spend an hour there.
The White Tower was hellaboring. And impossible to exit. Every exit leads to another exhibit.
The Medieval Palace was majestic on the outside. Inside, however, it felt sparsely decorated and well shabby. Minus the chic. This was a palace? I’m not seeing it.
To salvage the visit, we went to see the crown jewels. They were the best part. Cool to see. Not that many on display though. Had to watch movies of the royals in the jewels.
We decided to check out the Beauchamp Tower. Faced with narrow spiral staircases, I dispatched OL to take the pics while I sat outside with the ravens.
Then we wander to the traitor’s gate, which is slightly submerged in neon green water. Ew.
We hit a giftshop and left in search of food.
For 17-19 pounds, i expected way more. This was a 5 pound Dog and pony show.
Nothing nearby so we took the tube to Holborn and had lunch at a lovely Thai place near Museum Row. Hit the oldest occult bookstore in London, the Atlantis Bookshop. Souvenir shopped too.
Then onto Hyde Park, which I decided must be located at the Hyde park corner tube stop. And it was. Lovely park. Beautiful flowers. Nice lake.
Around 4:30, we both feel tired out. Head back and take tube to hotel. On ride, OL leans in to tell me something and bursts out laughing because he finds it so hilarious. At hotel, prepare for Hong Kong flight. OL spends 3 pounds to print our flight info out. OL kills an ant queen.
Dinner at Nando’s chicken place. Peri-peri sauce. Delicious.
Guy at Tesco sees my water bottle and goes Oh My God. Walks way from register and disappears. Like the water bottle seriously disturbed him. OL took it out of packaged group which is totally allowed in Austria but not here evidently. Oopsy.
Return to room and pack for next leg of journey.
