Done with Hong Kong

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The pace slowed down a bit for the last few days we've been in Hong Kong, and we finally started to get around to the tourist spots in town. I think I left off after the party in the studio.

So yes, I guess that would put us on about January 4. We started the day by taking the bus to Stanley Bay, which is on the southern side of Hong Kong Island, and opposite of the city which is on the north. I had always thought that the island was entirely occupied by the city, but that's not true at all - it's actually quite a big island, but since it's so mountainous, only a small area is suitable to build on. So there are several inlets and bays in the southern side of the island which are actually quite peaceful and where all the rich people live.

Stanley was a really nice place which had a promenade along the beach which reminded me a lot of Europe. The prices reminded me of Europe too. After paying $30 HKD ($5CAD) for a 2 person breakfast every day, it felt really bad to pay about $100 CAD for lunch here! Oh well, the view was nice and it felt really good to get out of the city for a morning. The hustle and perhaps even the bustle of Hong Kong starts to get pretty annoying after a few days. So many very small people have walked into me over my time here that I'm getting pretty close to punching them 😊.

After Stanley we went up to Victoria Peak with the 120 year old tram system they have here. Man is that nuts. It's a little cable car that goes straight up the mountain at about 45 degrees. Seriously, it felt like we were going to die. The peak itself is gorgeous - looking out over the city really gives you an impression of how small it actually is and maybe why it feels so damn cramped in there.

Then on the night of the 4th we went to the night markets in Mong Kok which was another interesting experience. It was pretty funny walking along with a couple Chinese people down those markets because they would all walk past everything fine, but as soon as the shopkeepers saw the big tall white guy they went nuts. I've been the target of lots of these guys now for the last few days. It was a novelty at first, but now it's plain annoying! Good thing Sheena taught me to swear in Cantonese! Dui Lei (F$*# Y*0) - very helpful - and fun. Oh, and the Dai Pai Dong or street food is pretty interesting too, although the restaurants here are super dirty. But nobody seems to mind, so I've just gone along with it.

Then we had a few days where we didn't do a whole lot of note. Just chilled out and saw a few temples in the city. Until yesterday when we went to see the big Buddha in Lantau island. This is one of the bigger Buddha statues in the world and it was pretty cool to see. That and you take a really long gondola across to the island which is cool. We visited the monastery there, and burned some gold for the dead. I enjoyed playing with the fire until I burned my hand. Then I cried a bit. But it was okay, because we got dessert. I like dessert. My hand hurt though.

Then we checked out Maria's studio where she films her cooking show. It was pretty sweet - there was a recording studio there too. Sheena scored a whole bunch of clothes from the dressing room and Maria cooked some shark fin soup on her set. We were on the camera monitors the whole time... that was unsettling.

Today we didn't do too much either, just toured around a little more. I'm definitely ready to head on to Thailand now - Hong Kong is a cool place, but it's way to crowded, busy, and loud for me. We're both sick of staying in a tiny apartment with 7 people too and we're ready for a nice shower etc.

So, I'll drop a note when I can from Thailand.

Ciao,
Ryan

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Photos

Victoria Harbour
Taking a look at Hong Kong Island from Kowloon

Friggin' Short People!
This happened frequently.

Coconut King
Having some coconut juice in the night market