Hong Kong Markets

---

Jumped on the bus around midday and headed to Mong Kok – the area famous for all the Hong Kong markets.

Both Tracy and I were quite hungry so we headed straight for lunch in a back street traditional noodle café. We had dumplings – prawn balls in a big bowl of soup and noodles (think those noddle soups in wagamamas). It was what I would describe as a ‘locals’ café, and I did get shot a few quizzical looks by fellow dinners as a westerner walking in which was quite amusing. It was the kind of place you love to go as a traveller, seeing the real working side of a place, but would never go. Guided by Tracy’s expert knowledge I have been lucky enough to have many of these experiences which have made this trip unforgettable. After our noodles which cost HK $30 for both (£2.50!) we headed to the markets.

Firstly we wandered around the locals markets, which sold anything you required, lots of clothing stalls, household items, bags etc and I this is where I purchased my HK souvenir - a pretty bag. We then wandered along the ‘pet’ street which is where you purchase your pets from in Hong Kong. It felt cruel seeing fish in bags for sale, cats / hamsters / gerbils / rabbits and dogs in cages in shop windows, but I guess in a way it’s no different to a pet store in the UK. After this we headed to the markets which are aimed at the tourists – just streets and streets of massive market stalls selling stuff. All the stalls were selling fakes, the whole area was loud, busy and just too much to look at. It was easier just to wonder past and soak in the atmosphere rather than pay attention to what was on the stalls, and after you have seen one fake mulberry you have seen them all to be honest!

After satisfying any shopping needs we jumped on the train to central, here we headed into the Hong Kong conference centre, looked at the flower of Hong Kong statue, watched a helicopter land on a tiny helipad in the harbour next to us and admired the view of the harbour in the day. The fog was quite bad today so it was a good job we saw it yesterday. We jumped on the ferry to TST and then on the bus to Hang Ho for dinner. Tracy and I went for sushi, proper sushi and it was soooo yummy, and we both got our fill of beautiful salmon for a while! We then walked back to Tracy’s and relaxed with a glass of wine, some chocolates and a film.

---