HK and Macau: Wet and humid

---

Geo: 22.33, 114.18

Left Adelaide on Wednesday and spent the day travelling. It was a flight to Melbourne and then a 9 hour flight to Hong Kong, Because of timing and the humongous queue at Passport Control we had to go straight to the gate, No Lounge for us!! Arriving in HK at 6pm local time it was a very quick transit through customs and immigration and then on to the Airport Express for a train ride over to Kowloon. From there, there was a free shuttle bus which was to drop us close to our hotel, The only problem was we were stop number 6 in a loop which took 40 minutes to go what turned out to be a 5 minute cab ride! We checked in, went for a short walk to check out the bright lights on Nathan Road then opted to dine at the hotel after buying essential supplies from the 7/11 across the road.

The next morning, after eating our 7/11 yoghurt and buns we went down to find Yvonne Mullins and Geoff and Pauline Gardner who coincidentally are staying here too. After a catch up and chat we ventured out into a rainy and misty but very humid day. We found the closest Metro station and bought a day pass then it was a short train ride to Tsim Sha Tsui, the vibrant area near the Harbour. We had stayed at the Sheraton there during my only other visit to HK in 1984.We crossed over to the Avenue of Stars which has plaques a la LA commemorating stars of HK's film industry. There are so many more skyscrapers here now and the view across the water to HK Island is still stunning,

Because it was so wet we tried to go to the Museum of Art, but found it closed due to renovations. Next to that is the Space Museum but that didn't open until 1pm. So we walked down to the Terminal and caught the Star Ferry to the island. At least these haven't changed at all. The trip across Victoria Harbour is still a thrill. As we alighted there we saw the Maritime Museum and as it was still raining went in, This is a relatively new museum and contained exhibitions depicting the growth of Chinese ships and sea exploration from early times. There were some great models of ships and junks and life size models of pirates and explorers. We spent a good hour and a half there learning much about the history of Hong Kong and Chinese activity around this area,

From there we walked up to the Central shopping district looking for somewhere to eat, In HK and China most restaurants are on upper floors and it is often hard to work out which sign belongs where, Finding little to tempt us we got on the train to Causeway Bay where the guide book said there were plenty of restaurants, We ended up at a Pizza Hut on the third floor of a shopping centre, At least there was free WiFi and I contacted our friend Kate McDnnell who used to work at The Rising Sun but now lives here. We arranged to meet her about 4-30.

To fill in time we caught the train back to Tsim Sha Tsui and tried to go to the Space Museum but the queue for tickets was too long so instead we opted for a beer at the Sheraton. We then travelled back to Central on the train and found Kate's workplace, Bookazine a great book shop in the Landmark Shopping complex. It was lovely to see her again. She then took us to the "escalator", Since 1984, one of the differences I have noticed are all these elevated walkways for pedestrians to get above the busy streets and traverse the areas safely, This escalator is a series of moving stairs which go up the side of the mountain towards the Peak. Running alongside these are many small bars and shops. We went to one, The Peak Bar and spent an hour or so chatting over a glass or two of wine. From there she took us to a tiny Szechuan restaurant where the owner, an elegant older Chinese lady. served us some spicy chicken, great fried rice and Chinese vegetables. Delicious,

To finish the evening we went for a night cap to a bar with a sign saying Members Only. Kate knocked at the door and spoke to the hostess who then took us in to this elaborately decorated bar, Kate said it was called The Feather Boa . They mainly served cocktails so we had a very large G & T, It was like the waiting area of an exclusive bordello!! Much merriment was had from the night and lovely to see Kate once more, A taxi back to the hotel for a well earned rest.

Friday morning it was still misty with showers, We decided to go to Macau for the day. This entailed an hour long ferry ride after a reasonably long walk to the Terminal. Even though both HK and Macau are now part of China they still act like separate countries so we had to go through Passport Control to exit the one and enter the other, We found we could avoid the queue by using the Over 65 line. One advantage of being old!! Once in Macau we took a taxi to the Old Town and walked up the narrow streets to the famous façade of the Church of St Paul. The Portuguese influence is still very strong here, There were many beautiful European looking buildings lining the narrow streets and the main square in front of the Town Hall was very attractive with a large fountain. This were packed with tourists, mainly from Mainland China, It is summer school holidays so lots of families. The climb to the church was not too bad and the sun even came out briefly, The rest of this Jesuit church had burnt down in the late 1800s but the façade is now considered one of the most important Christian Shrines in Asia.

Again we went looking for somewhere to eat, The streets were lined with shops selling pork jerky and almond biscuits but there was nowhere to sit for a leisurely lunch. In the end we went to the Grand Lisboa, one of the very garish casinos which have multiplied here in recent years. We were turned away from their top restaurants because of the dress code( yes, we were in shorts and looked bedraggled due to rain and perspiration) but we had a lovely meal in their "Coffee Shop" which was a large restaurant with an expansive menu. Fletcher's Sole Meuniere was pronounced delicious while my Sea Bass with a Portuguese sauce was very tasty though huge in quantity. Washed down by an enormous glass of beer we were very sated.
From there a taxi took us to the A-Ma Temple. This dates from 1480 and is near the spot where the first Portuguese arrived, A typical Chinese Temple there were many locals burning incense and leaving tokens to the Buddha statues. A short stroll from there was a lovely square and next to it the Mandarin's house, This has over 60 rooms and dates from the late 1800s. The architecture is ordered around tranquil courtyards which let in light and breezes. We also walked past the Moorish Barracks, very Spanish design now used as a government building.
We then tried to find a taxi to take us back to the ferry. Eventually we found a bus stop and hopped on the 10A bus which successful dropped us there. Then a few hassles getting on the ferry. The ticket we had bought stated that our return time was 10-05pm but the man who sold it to us said we could come back any time. We wanted to board the 6-05 and we were told to go to the Standby line which was filling fast. So Fletcher decided to press his point with the official there. There was much protesting and waving of arms, Fletch stood his ground but the man wasn't budging either, Eventually he said if we paid the equivalent of about $A 10 more each we could upgrade to Super Class and we could catch the 6-05. Done!! It then turned out that the extra gave us upstairs seat, an"airline "type meal and free beer!! Bargain. We returned to the Hotel about 8 pm, rather bedraggled, with sore calves but having spent an interesting couple of days!!

---