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Published: October 30th 2012
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So after all the buddha siteseeing and working up an appetite, the next morning it was time to check out Tim ho wans, an imfamous dim sum house known for thier delicious fresh made bbq pork buns, amazing dim sum, and a 2 hour long wait. We try to be proactive by arriving 40 mins before it opens to line up. Apparently we were not the only ones. But thankfully a man came out, taking the first group lucky enough to make the first cut, and the second group, gave us a number and time to be back. We walked around Mong Kok for a bit, checked out future shopping spots, and then eagerly headed back. When we got inside, the restsurant was very small, i estimate 40 seats or so, our table was built for two, but they put a mini stool beside it to accomodate three. The first dim sums come out and quite frankly they are fabulous. The har gow is really fresh and the dough is perfectly chewy. Then the moment i have waited for, fresh baked bbq buns. The have a flour sugar butter mix on top so its sweet and crunchy with the salty sweet
pork inside. So delicious. And worth the wait.
After our fill we walked down to Tung Choi street where ladies market was in full swing. Lots of great bargains to be had, but almost overwhelming. Mong kok is a super vibrant neighborhood, packed with people and cheaper shopping. But a couple hours was enough for me. Starting to get dizzy again.
That night we go to check out the Halloween bash at Ocean park. Ocean park is this theme park, with rides and sea affiliated gift shops. For Halloween they turn the whole park into a halloween night, full of haunted houses. They have people dressed up in elaborate Costumes , in full character, walking around growling at people, or scaring the younger teen girls into high pitched screams. They dont break character and stop for every requested photograph. Halloween is almost like christmas here and i love the dedication they put towards it. If i were younger i would love to get dressed up with my friends and spend the night at the park. But im older, and tired, and we manage one ride and 3 haunted houses before its quitting time. Makes me miss being home
and celebrating halloween myself.
Monday is free day!!! Time for Shannon to explore by herself and time to give my friends romantic time. Any one that knows me knows too that i cant really be around people all the time before it drives me crazy. Well crazy was 2 days ago so time to take myself out for exploring. My mission is to first stop at this bakery famous for thier pineapple buns. Kam wah is the name and getting there was the most frustrating thing if my travel career. Traveling in hong kong, by yourself, and not knowing chinese is hard. The street names that are in english, i feel are strictly for the english speakers. I would assume that a street called bute street would be easy enough to translate, but no.. I would ask people where the street was and they looked at me like i had two heads. Then i would show them on my map, and they were still confused. Great if the locals dont know the street im looking for is, how the hell will i find it? And when i would look at the map it never seemed to make any sense.
I am usually really good at directions and finding my way around and using my memory to retrace my path, but in Hong Kong it has been extremly difficult to navigate myself. So here i am in Mong kok, looking for bute st, no one knows where it is, i walk from block to block with only an image saved on my ipad. I do have a map in hand but its not really helping me either. I walk the next block, glance at my map again... Ok bute street is past mong kok road. Where the hell is mong kok road? Did i pass it a long time ago? I couldnt have. Is the map wrong?( i actually considered this as a possibility, but i know by experience, the maps and gps in the world are designed to be acurate. dont question it or the travel gods will make you lost. ) I turn a corner here, cross a street there, and in the distance i see it. A bakery. Wth fresh pinapple buns. I get closer and realize yes this is it. She looks at me and without speaking her nod asks me what i want..the language barrier
makes me hesitate. She stares at me impatiently and i nervously look around and see the picture of the famous bun on the wall. I quicky point to it. She grabs a bag ready and waiting, unimpressed that many a blog has rated it to be the best. I quickly pass her 8 hkd and scurry off, and in true foodie fashion, whip around to take a picture of the exterior. The bun was warm and sliced in the middle with a square of butter in between its layers. It was delicious, And worth the trek. Ok now my day has started. So i hop back on the mtr and go down a couple stops to Diamond hill. My next mission is visiting Nan Lan gardens and across the street is Chi lin nunnery. I walk down the path to Nan lian and already its beautifully landscaped gardens catch my eye. Its a publc park done in the Tang dynasty style. Its regulated so every thing follows specific rules and regulations. In the middle is this tranquil pond with a bright orange foot bridge that contrasts against the lush deep greenery around. In the middle is a golden pagotoa. The
grounds also have different species of trees and bushes and have labelled them all. In the backround of the park you can see skyscrper condos. It is an amazing refuge from the hustle and busle of hong kong life.Its calming to stroll around the grounds taking in all the scenery. I walk across the street and Chi lan nunnery is even more breath taking but in a different way. when you step inside,it opens up to this court yard with a temple off to the right. Gargoyles spew water out of their mouths into a calming lotus pond. inside the temple there are the shrines set up to Budda, but all the different Buddhas and their meanings. People come up and kneel down on the cushions,placing their forheads to touch, and rise giving the three bows with thier Hands. Its interesting watching the spiriuality here and how you can watch people go about their day, walking down the street, pass a Temple and turn to bow , then continue on. Coming from my perspective, which is not religious. Its interesting to observe their culture and meaning behind everything they do and the gods they worship. I love learning more about
the culture of it all, and maybe because it doesnt seem as cult or stiff with man made rules i can open up to it. This is a definite highlight of my day, even my trip!
Ended the day with a quick stop at snoopyland. Of course i had too. Plus it was attached to a mall. Two for one
Well looke like all thats left is shopping and eating. And i dont know whose getting more overfilled, my body or my visa. Both need a serious crash diet when i get back!
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