Hong Kong Day 1

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Flight from Sydney to HK was totally enjoyable. Checking in was painless - the Cathay Pacific check-in was quick with no queues. Although the flight was delayed about an hour due to bad weather in Sydney but once underway the flight was smooth, service - efficient and friendly, and the meals actually were pretty decent and filling. People worldwide have negatively commented on Cathay Pacific's pod seats in economy but I had no complaints. Yes they are a little firmer and don't actually recline but the hard bit of the backrest was actually good support for me and there was plenty of legroom. The A330-300 was quiet (much more than the powerful B777-ER) and I was able to get plenty of shut eye.

We landed in HK just a little behind schedule but in the middle of some pretty thick low hanging fog. As it turned out, the fog was going to hang around for the entire duration of my trip! HK immigration was quick and relaxed and before long I had collected my bags and ready to head towards the city. Chek Lap Kok airport is a pleasant place to be and I am tossing up between it and Changi Singapore as my favourite airport so far. I decided to catch the MTR into Central HK which involved buying an Octopus card and putting some credit onto it. The station isn't far from the baggage carousels and the trains were new and clean and there was only 4 stops before I arrived in Central HK a mere 25 minutes later. The airport line connects to the Central Subway station and is linked to the large IFC mall which is filled with all kinds of stores, high end fashion and numerous eateries. From the IFC, it look me a little while to get my bearings once stepping outside and seeing all the elevated walkways leading away from the IFC. But once I got my bearings, it was easy to make my way to the mid levels escalator and a short 5 minute walk later I found myself at my boutique hotel - Butterfly on Wellington.

I love the location of this hotel, it was central to wet markets, the MTR, the mid levels escalator and plenty of restaurants. Lan Kwai Fong is a short walk down the road as is the central business district. I was given a free upgrade as my pre-purchase room with a single king bed was unavailable so they put me up on the 25th floor in an executive king room. The room was not large by any imagination but was decked out in a classy fashion and everything was clean. So once I had settled into my home for the next 3 nights, I hit the streets to do some exploring. The one thing that hit me right away about HK was the pace and closeness of the action. People were buzzing around carrying out their daily duties, tourists were photographing everything and taxis were zipping about the narrow streets. The other striking thing that I noticed was the cleanliness - for such a high population area, it was cleaner than what I thought it would be. My first port of call was a little noodle shop which serves traditional wonton noodle soup. The serving size is small but perfect for a mid afternoon snack and is a bargain at $20 HKD ... about $2.50 AUD! The noodles were crunchy, the wontons plump with fresh prawns and the soup quite fragrant. It lived up to my expectations and I would have this dish again numerous times throughout the next week at numerous locations.

Central HK is also very hilly, with the peak only about a kilometre from the shore so there are many slopes and steps to navigating while walking around the area. As the day turns to night, neon signs light up directing people to businesses that are located above ground level. I was able to do quite a big lap around Central and made it out to star ferry terminal but I will save the ferry trip for another day. I made it to Lan Kwai Fong which is a popular area with expats and there are plenty of bars/clubs and also a decent mix of eateries. It seems to be a popular place to hang out after work during the week and the locals sure know how to party and have a good time. It is amazing they turn up to work the next morning as they stay out into the wee hours of the night. I was on holidays and struggled to keep up and I didn't have to get up in the morning to go to work.

For a late night dinner on the way back to the hotel I decided to try the famous Roast Goose. Now in Australia, we only have Roast Duck which is normally quite fatty. The goose on the other hand has much more meat and the appears to have less fat. The goose is also much larger than a duck! This little eatery did the goose beautifully, the skin was crispy and full of flavour whilst the meat was tender. So my first half day in HK has been quite eventful and I am enthralled by this fast paced metropolis.

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