Blogs from Kowloon, Hong Kong, Asia - page 104

Jet lag day My first day in Hong Kong I lived in some kind of daze like Bill Murray in Lost in Translation. I didn't get enough sleep on the plane and so I had to fight falling asleep the whole time. First impression, overload of my (numbed) senses: the buildings, the signs, the smell... and people asking me ' a tailor made suite for you sir?' every five seconds. As it was a clear day, I went up to Victoria peak directly for some good views of the city and a nice hike up to the peak. The evening I've been checking out the amazing lightshow that HK island is after dark... Oh! and I also managed to get lost in a shopping mall!?!?! Hey, they are huge! Where did all the Chinese people go? ... read more

We had decided that getting the train to the airport was a good idea as we were pleased with previous journeys. This train journey was a little different. We waited on the platform for the train which was only 10 minutes late, which was fine as we had several hours to spare. There was lots of people but that was Ok as it was a terminal station so the train would be empty. What we didn't count on was that everyone including ourselves had third class tickets. We got onto a second class coach & moved down the train to the last third class carriage which was already full & we just managed to squeeze into a space in the the aisle. Although an express train it seemed to stop at every rinky dink station & ... read more

Arrived at Hong Kong International airport at Chek Lap Kok at around 7.30pm in the evening. A cold blast of wind hit everyone, signalling a change in climatic conditions, and everyone rushed to pull out jackets, sweaters and pullovers from their bags. Stepping out into the freezing air, and into the stone-cold tarmac, everyone clambered onboard the airport shuttle bus en route to the main terminal building. Waiting for an hour or so for the usual custom formalities to be cleared, everyone streamed out from the Arrival section of the airport and dissipated, dispersed and intermingled with the rest of the airport crowds. Bought an Octopus card (an EZ-link card analog) and proceeded to the bus interchange to board bus A21 bound for Mongkok. Should have taken a photo on board the bus, but oh well. ... read more

Right then, I'm finally on me way at last and have arrived safe and sound. Plane trip over was well cushtie coz the two people next to me didn't turn up so had a full 3 seats to lie across. watched war of the Worlds which was a lot better than I expected considering I fooking hate Tom Cruise! lol When we were getting towards Hong Kong you could see all the mountain peaks poking through the clouds, it looked mint! I took some pics but they don't do it justice really. My flight was actually cancelled because of the snow so I ended up landing in Hong Kong about 3 hours later than expected but I managed to get to the hotel fine so it was OK. The Concourse Hotel I was in the first ... read more

Ever since I was in 12th grade and read an article about Hong Kong and how great the city was I have always said I would move there and life would be better. I’m convinced after being there it probably would. Hong Kong is a marvelous place, a mix of traditional and modern, both in the right amounts. Most of the ship (580 people) bailed on this wonderful city and went to Beijing, China. I decided way back in August when I needed to make the decision whether or not to purchase the Chinese Visa that I was going to spend my 5 days in Hong Kong. On the first day I went on the city orientation. Like many before it we were paraded around like third graders on a field trip, even having to keep ... read more