The Skyline at Night

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WOW! Hong Kong is totally amazing! I could see myself returning here one day!

First things first, we headed out to ride the famous Star Ferry to get across the harbor to Hong Kong Island. We didn't have much time so we walked around a bit and then met up with the others for dinner. Afterward, we walked down to the harbor to watch the "light show" a.k.a. the "Symphony of Lights".. which was awesome. The Hong Kong skyline is nothing other than incredible. I could have slept outside just to keep staring at it. We hopped back on the ferry and then took the sky tram up to Victoria Peak to get some different views. Unfortunately the fog up there was so thick that we couldn't see!

The next day, Mitch, Mary, my roommate and I went out to Stanley Market to do some shopping before I took the harbor tour. On our way we got to see the famous "Building with a hole" near Repulse Bay. It had something to do with their belief in Feng Shui. After the harbor tour (got lots of great pics!), I did some exploring on my own (picked up some peanut butter!) and ended up meeting Mitch and Mary at Dan O'Ryans for a delicious, western meal. It was a little pricey, but worth every penny. The streets of Hong Kong look like New York City... with lots of high dollar shopping! The people speak both English and Chinese, which is a welcome change... along with lots of other Western customs (i.e. a seated toilet! yay!) Our hotel is about a mile away from the harbor (where all the tourist action is located).

On my last day, Mitch, Mary and I decided to check out the "longest escalator in the world" which was pretty cool to mark off my checklist! It was Sunday, and all of the "maids" were "off". Apparently, nearly every home in Hong Kong has a personal maid who lives there and does all the laundry, cleaning, cooking, etc. The majority of these women are from the Philippines and there were literally thousands of them in the central area... just spending time with each other and socializing. That afternoon I decided to split off and look for the "Edible Excretions Toilet Restaurant". I know, I know, but I just couldn't help myself! I just had to see this themed restaurant because it truly was kindof interesting to see how they had toilet seats as restaurant seats, toilet bowls as plates, etc. When I finally arrived there was a pretty long wait.. I tried to get in, but the wait just became too long and I didn't have enough time to spare. I met up with Nick that evening for a glass of wine from one of their famous hotel bars located at the top of one of the skyscrapers. Again, I was in heaven. The view was so awesome and we enjoyed a great conversation over a couple of glasses of wine. It was a perfect end to my time in China.

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