Hong Kong Chill Day

Slept in today in our king size bed. Ofc, OL stole the covers during the night leaving me half uncovered.

Forced me to shift to the middle of the bed, where he shoved me back to my side. Lol.

Motivated at 11am. Went to the HK cafe beside the hotel for breakfast. The place seems very popular. Our wonderful waiter wasn’t there so we had to go it alone with the menu.

They had French toast and some sort of egg dish. So I ordered the egg dish by pointing and she said egg sandwich. Then I pointed at French toast and she said porridge. I was like French toast. She nodded.

OL had a sour spicy rice noodle soup dish.

Imagine my surprise when a bowl of porridge arrived. Then a deep fried French toast that turned out to be a French toast style peanut butter sandwich.

Deliciousness.

Then the egg sandwich came. Warm and yummie. A lot of food to eat though.

We came back to the hotel and interneted. Turns out trains aren’t running to CT from NYC this week. Mom tells Me via email. Suggest a limo perhaps? Lol. I got two days of  flights to worry about. The last leg from NYC to CT is the least of my concerns.

So we chill in room.Here’s the view during the day.

The at 2:00 we head over to cinema to watch Final Destination 5 in 3-D. Good thing we watched 4 when in shanghai and discovered we are  both huge fans of FD.

It was a no one under 18 category III movie in HK. I was like wow. We reserve nc17 for serious hardcore movies.

But let me tell you that kind of gory in  3-D requires  this rating. So much gore.  But so cool to see. Intestine knotting gore.

The ending was absolutely satiating and sets the entire series up in a new light. Very cool.

All I will say is never ever will I go for LASIK.

Wandered around hotel and mall. Then came to room. Interneted.

Went to check out rooftop and got locked out. BTW, underwhelming.

Then to room to watch this unbelievable story on Nat Geo adventure about a guy who was wrongfully imprisoned for years in Indonesia on drug charges. The guy fakes mental illness then tries to escape mental hospital and ends up with the psychotics trying to eat him. Then back to jail. Tries to escape disguised as a woman but has moustache and no razor. He’s caught by prison guard who’s moonlighting as buddha seller on beach. Back to jail.Then stabbed and pronounced dead but still alive. Then get out two years later.

Insane. Every time we thought show would wrap up it continued.

Then went to the cafe again. I got chicken in white sauce with rice. And beef satay bun.

OL got beef rice dish. None were that good. Beef is very chewy and fatty. Chicken was supposed to be shredded but was chunks with skin on it.

We came home and watched shows on Maldives.

Air India from Seoul to Hong Kong

We wake at 8:45 for breakfast. Breakfast room gets crowded up. Will miss the fiestily efficient breakfast lady. Too scared to snap a pic though. J

We go back to room to finish packing. Come down at 10:15 to checkout. Very quick. And our cab driver is waiting for us. Our cab has leather cushioned ceiling.

Wow. It’s 75k won since I will pay by credit card. Thank goodness they take them.

Cab ride is nice. A bit hot. OL suggests i say something to cab driver. But the guidebooks all say cab drivers don’t speak English. So I don’t. Ofc, OL has to prove me wrong, so he asks the cab driver to turn up ac. After cab driver does it, OL goes see it pays to ask.

Obnoxious.

Anyway, cab ride is uneventful. Notice foggy/smog and increased humidity. Perfect time to leave. Upside, my cold seems to be improving. Downside heel crack keeps reopening as do cracks in corner of mouth.

We get to airport at 11:00. Air India check-in for our flight doesn’t open until 11:45. We wait. I go pee. Bathrooms are immaculate. I love Seoul Incheon airport. Scope out place to exchange money. Go exchange money while OL waits for check-in to open.

Check-in goes smoothly. People respect the queue here. We are asked to wait 5 minutes for bags to clear. While waiting someone with questionnaire asks where we are from I say America. She walks away.

Another girl comes by later. OL makes mistake of saying Austria. She asks him to fill out tourist questionnaire. I don’t mind until he starts filling it out. It’s seven damn pages long. This is reediculous. One page is okay. Two is pushing it. Seven you’re a nutcase.

People queue up properly again. We go to security. I take off sneakers. Security person tells me to put them back on. Shit. Double knotted. I say that will take a couple minutes and untie and loosen and slide feet in. Then go through security. No wanding necessary.

Meet OL in customs line. Very quickly go through. I see a cultural center/gift shop. We go in. Everything is 100k won $100US) and up. Ouch. Continue onward and I see a souvenir shop and drag OL over. It takes credit cards and is in US denominations. Great. We find a peacock mother of pearl box and I buy it for $45.

Then I get a Starbucks sandwich ham and moz cheese. OL says there will be food on plane. Something tells me to eat lunch anyway.

We then head to the train to our concourse gate 126. Everyone is rushing off the escalator to catch the train.  I can’t be bothered to run. Plus it’s super crowded since the train didn’t pull up and the first car is 100-200 feet behind the escalator I just got off.

We wait for next one. It runs every 5 mins. Luckily, I realize the sign says train other side and we rush across to catch the train.

Our concourse requires 3 escalators to main level. But it has a freaking museum in it. Wow. So lovely.

We go to gate 126. I stop and buy us water on the way.

Then i sit down and eat my lunch.

Those are olives in the bread. Sandwich has a bit of spicy in it. Ofc Korea.  I also have some crackers and some cookies. Then I go down the terminal a bit and find a dunkin donuts where I get a mocha coffee roll. Yummie.

Satiated. Wait for plane to board. It boards at 1:30. Very orderly boarding. Nice. Except as we get to plane our bags are searched again. And our water bottles are confiscated. Wtf?! OL’s isn’t even open. He says I just bought it here. Guy asks for receipt. Why the hell would I save a 2$ receipt for water unless told to do so. This is really extreme. Especially since I’m sick and dehydrate super easily. Fuckingstupid.

And if this is a new requirement they should tell people when they buy the fucking water to keep the fucking receipt. Absolutely tyrannical. What does this do? what does this prevent? Absolutely nothing.

Anyway, we board plane, and the faint scent of curry wafts over us. The seats are very wide and comfy in economy. The floor is carpeted. My tv Ofc is not working. I figure it’s good time to catch up on blog and reading.

Four Cantonese speakers are across the aisle from me. Two thought they were training for gymnastics from the way they climbed on their seats to load over 8 bags into overhead compartment. Redick.

They also talked incessantly while we waited to take off. Ugh.

It’s 3:20 and all they have served is black pepper peanuts and one cup of water. Guess we aren’t getting lunch. Maybe dinner later.

They fed us lunch at 4. We had chicken curry with green beans and basmati rice. Yummie. But lips burning. Yogurt cooled mouth down. Then roll. OL’s roll. And some rice pudding thing.

Lips split again. I can’t believe they confiscated my water. Wth?!

My tv never worked. Read a lot. Blogged.

Then the flight attendants hand out our arrival and departure cards. Dumbass gave me a daparture card when I’m arriving in HK. I have to ask twice for the arrival card before I am given one. Jesus. And the male flight attendants were so rude.

Arrived and those who stayed on plane went onward to Delhi. We got off. Walked through temperature scanners. We were okay. Then immigration. Long line.two agents.ugh. Guy in front of me chats me up. He came from Seoul too. Spending a semester abroad in HK. Studying finance. We all agree immigration better in Seoul. Nicer and faster.

OL and I get through immigration and get our bags.

Have disagreement and then find kiosk for hotel shuttle bus. Half hour wait for shuttle. Loads our suitcases into front seats of shuttle van. Ride takes 1 HR to hotel.

Raining. 35 Celsius and humid. Dropped off at hotel. Nice looking but far away from city.

Check in goes quick at the Harbour Plaza Resort City. Get smallest room on15th floor. Corner room with extra windows but tiny.

The bathroom is pretty tight quarters too.

This bothers me because all reviews for the hotel talk about the huge rooms for Hong Kong and this is smaller than the room we had in WanChai at the Cosmopolitan which is located right in the center of Hong Kong. And we are an hour from Hong Kong Island and 45 minutes from Kowloon. In the boondocks f Hong Kong.

At least the room is non smoking. Thank goodness.

King size bed dominates the room. We barely have room to move around. Ugh.

Wander around area. Find nice cafe, Taste Cafe, nearby and wonderful waiter who translated Chinese menu for us. Super helpful so we leave tip. I have beef and flat noodles. OL has red curry with chicken. I also get satay chicken.

I also had a delish coconut drink with tapioca balls

Walk around, clown around in mall. Get more socks. Then head back to hotel. Email in lobby on free wifi and exhausted.

Leaving Hong Kong

We ask for cab to come earlier and it arrives at 5:55 instead of 6:15.

Ride to airport involves trunk not being shut and us fearing our luggage will fly out onto freeway.

We drive by all the skyscrapers of HK. Sad to say goodbye. Nice to know we’ll see her again before going home.

We arrive in 35 minutes. Check in goes smoothly. Then I hit Burger King for dinner. Random guy conversing with self while eating. Seems more like 2 personalities conferring.

Then we go to immigration where they neglect to mention we need to fill out a departure card. I race to grab them and we slip to back of line to fill them out.

Train to gates. Indian group fighting about something and not paying attention to gates.

Arrive at gate. I leave OL to search for water and return with 3 t-shirts and water. Lol. I love airport giftshops because I can pay in US $ on credit card. And they have things in Barbarian sizes.

Wait at gate 21 to board plane. I insist plane takes off at 9:25. OL shows me online ticket says 9:10 and gate says 9:10.

We board and hang out on runway until about 9:25.lol.

The best is the Chanel girl with her Chanel purse, Gucci carryon, sporting sunglasses and an all black outfit with gaga style heels. She is appalled to be seated in the back of the plane with the common people. The entire plane is economy btw. Someone has delusions of grandeur.

We are flying Air Asia to Phuket. It’s a step above Easy Jet. The stewardesses greeted us with a typical Thai greeting of hands pressed together and a slight bend forward, saying hello in Thai.

But it’s a giant fall from Cathay Pacific. Everything costs extra. Seats. Food. Water. A blanket. Surprise they don’t have pay toilets.

It’s a 3.5 hour flight to Phuket. We are about half way through it.

The Walled City and the Hong Kong History Museum

Early wake up to journey outside the city proper to Yuen Long district to see an old walled city in Kam Tin.

Breakfast at Cafe Kenon on Canal Road East. OL gets his typical breakfast of yogurt and I get my British breakfast and cappuccino.

We go back to room to prepare for our mini-adventure. Decide to take bus to Central from stop outside Cosmo hotel. Bus 10 arrives and we jump on. At Central subway stop we disembark and walk through underground link to Hong Kong station.

At Hong Kong station we take the Tung Chung line to Kam Cheongsam and transfer to the West Rail Line to Yuen Long. The subway transfers are pretty easy and the subway ride uber smooth.

The public restroom at Yuen Long station is decent for a pee break.

We asked the info booth guy how to get to Kam Tin. He checks map and tells us bus 74k or 64k at exit G2.

Exit the station and sense this will be difficult. But we’ve come this far. And everything else in HK went super easy.

So we descent to the buses. Find our bus. And try to figure out which stop to take. Unfortunately, the bus stops are confusing with multiple names at one circle on the map. So we think it’s seven stops since it’s seven names down.

However it is really four. Eek. Luckily I notice we are at the next stop and we hop off and walk back.

Here’s where things get confusing…again. The Kam Tin walled village is actually called Kat Hang Wai. There are info signs but nothing for the Kam Tin walled village. Just Kat Hang Wai. So Walk that way.

And find an old wall around a bunch of apartments. The moat had been replaced with a cement moat.

We paid the $HK 3 to enter the main gate. The wall is still intact, but everything inside the wall is newer. Somewhat dingy. But nothing like the old walled city described in the guidebook.

Um and cockroaches the size of my thumb. There wasn’t much to do or see inside for tourists. I kinda felt like i was intruding on someone’s property. Like I shouldn’t be there.

As we walked back to the entrance and old woman wore a Hakka style hat and asked if we wanted a picture. She was cute and so we did.

OL took 2 pictures and then she said enough. We walked back to the bus stops and waited for a double decker to take us back to the subway.

Minor problem, the subway wasn’t marked on the bus stops. So we guessed at where we needed to go. And guessed wrong. By one stop. So we got off and walked back in Yuen Long. I munched on a red bean paste bun to keep my energy up. Got back on the subway.

Decided to spend the afternoon at the Hong Kong Museum of History. We stayed on the West Line to East Tsim Sha Tsui. Exited via exit p2 and searched for lunch food. But this area is all 100+HK$. Ick. So we circle and found Delifrance to grab sandwiches for $HK 116 total.

We walked onward to the museum and got momentarily caught in the line for the air and space museum. Turns out Wed is free museum day. Luckily we get into the Hong Kong Museum of History, which turns out to be a phenomenally cool museum.

Organized in 7 time periods, you get a discovery channel walk-through of Hong Kong: natural environment, prehistoric HK, the Dynasties, folk culture in HK, opium war and HK handover to British, early growth of the city, Japanese occupation, and modern metropolis and return to China.

We spent about 2.5 hours wandering through the exhibits, but skipping the movies.

It was especially cool to have explored the city and see what the areas once looked like. We even saw a model of the Kam Tin walled village we visited earlier in the day.

The giftshop however had nothing museum related. Very disappointing. It was just a giftshop for Hong Kong. I wanted to buy a souvenir but couldn’t find one specific to the exhibit. Not even a Hong Kong Museum of History t-shirt.

We walked back to the subway taking the Tsim Sha Tsui train to Admiralty and switching to the Chai Wan line for one stop to get off at Causeway Bay station and Times Square.

Stuck behind affectionate boyfriend and pissed off girlfriend. Highly amusing to watch. Then we parked our butts on benches in the mall for a spell.

We exited and went to take pics of Harry Potter movie advertisements.
Finally ending up at Maxim’s MX on Hennessy Rd. We both got the roast duck and other roasted meat dinner set that came with soup, rice, tea and veggies for $HK 41.

Then hit Tin Lok bakery got peanut butter bun, coconut bun, and custard bun. All yummie.

Came back to room to pack for Thailand.

Movie Review– Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II

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!

Harry Potter and Tin Lok Bakery–Wan Chai Day

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.

Maxim’s Palace, Sheung Wan, and The Peak

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.

Let’s Go To Stanley!

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.

Hogwarts in Hong Kong

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.

From London to Hong Kong

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.