Wandering in Hong Kong

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Everyone was up at 2:30 in the morning having not completely adjusted to the time difference. However, we all eventually went back to bed and rose at a resonable hour. After our morning Starbucks, we headed off to the Science Museum. Apparently the museum doesn't open until 1:00 p.m. on Tuesdays. If we hadn't lost our Fodors, we would probably have known that. Thwarted for the moment by the science museum, we wandered aimless around Kowloon and eventually took a walk along the waterfront. We stumbled across the "Walk of Fame". Much like Toronto's Walk of Fame, it seems like a cheap rip off of the Hollywood tribute but that did not stop us from taking several pictures with Jackie Chan's star.

We later discovered that the Space Museum is not open at all on Tuesdays and there are probably as many Starbucks outlets here as in Seattle.

In the afternoon we took the Seven Star Ferry across to the Central District. We hiked quite a distance. We found the exit to the Exchange Exhibition Hall of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, but never the entrance. The kids were not nearly as excited about seeing the stock exchange as you might expect, so we gave up early and walked over to the Central Market where our newly purchased Insight Pocket Guide to Hong Kong told us there would be livestock for sale. It was locked up tight. Had it been open, I am sure it would be worth the visit.

We pressed on through the fashion district and hiked up to the Botancial Garden and Zoo. We spent much of our time wandering through alleys where every available square inch was pressed into service hawking goods of one form or another, including a stall which sold only zippers.

Towards the end of the day we ended up at Three-Sixty, an organic food and wine store and ran into fellow Kiwi Sam Neill, who was there promoting wine from his winery, Two Paddocks. He was kind enough to sign a bottle of wine and gave us the name of a friend of his in Reefton to look up.

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Photos

Astrid with Sam Neill
Fellow Kiwi signs a bottle of Two Paddocks Pinot Noir

Comments

[Katherine]

Wow
Imagine the odds of running into Sam Neill in Kowloon... our neighbour Jeff Powis was his body double in a scary movie I have yet to see called Dead Calm. They became friends, and Jeff stayed in Sam's backyard, or so the story goes... Great to hear how you are doing. Keep well and write often! We are living vicariously through you! And get another Fodor's!!!

[Peter]

Fellow Kiwi?
Fellow Kiwi???

[ns]

cool
You lost your fodors on day one? sam neill looks sexy.

[junior]

Kiwi
I like how Kiwi's are green and fuzzy! Sweet too! How long do Kiwi's live?

[CanadianKiwis]

Sexy
I thought Astrid looked sexier

[junior]

Familiar
Who is that guy with Astrid? He looks familiar! But I have to say he looks like a 'Perfect Stranger'.

[Stephen]

Two Paddocks?
I'm curious, what does the branding "Two Paddocks" mean? I know that a paddock is an enclosure where horses hang out - is Mr. Neill a horse afficionado? On the other hand I think that Shakespeare talked of a paddock in Macbeth "... I come graymalkin. Paddock calls..." where a paddock was a frog. Being Shakespeare, this might be apt for an actor.

[junior]

paddocks
I understand that if you don't have the correct keys, you won't be able to get the paddocks off! There must be two of them because they really want to keep people out!

[CanadianKiwis]

???????
EEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!! enough with the debate between my mothers sexyness compared to sam neils ( this is sissy F.Y.I.) avery surpasses them both by FAR!!!!!!!!