Hong Kong part 1 - The discovery


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Asia » Hong Kong
January 25th 2009
Published: January 30th 2009
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Hong Kong, 16th January
We have arrived in Hong Kong, we left Malaysia early and at a lovely 29-34deg C. I think this is the best thing to do as you get time in the new city on the first day and have plenty of time to settle in and explore.

We arrived at 10am to a low of 14 and a high of 20deg C Brrrr, chilly, must have had a tail wind because the 3hr & 55min flight took only 3hrs woo hoo! The trip from the new airport in Hong Kong is a real eye opener the bus is about $40HKD ($8Aus, yea 5:1) and high tech. It has a running commentary in 3 languages including info on what bridge you are on and what station you are arriving Etc. The trip to the hotel was a sample of things to come. We alight (did you like that word, the computer on the bus used it) the bus at the central station and the first obstacle is getting our luggage sorted for carrying......Hmmmm this could take a while......there we go all sorted! Ha! now the trek to the hotel.

I was told “ It is just down the road a bit” now maps are generally to scale but I don't think our was, must have been a miss print? We hit the ground running, and after the first 100m we are good, we turn the corner and bang a wall of Hong Kongese, our hotel seems to be located slightly past the 2km of shoulder to shoulder Hong Kongese we have just walked into. The lovely people we have began walking with are there because there are a string of shops selling all manner of dried sea food. Do you know how ugly a dried sea cucumber looks? sheesh! I think harvesting these things is doing them a favour.

The people are there doing their thing and they stop and look at something without any warning, no hand signal no head turn just stop!! It is so funny cos you just bang into the back of them and the good thing is they don't care about that. I guess when you have a dense population in a small area you get used to getting bumped a bit. Any how we get settled in the hotel and go out for a walk and get something to eat and a bit of a recon of the area. As we wander around with our heads looking skyward, mouths open I think Lynne drooled a bit. The first day or two in a new town Lynne has a shine of excitement and enthusiasm being emitted from her face behind the camera and in her walk sort of a bounce.

Time to call it a night. I caught an advertisement on the telly I have to relay to you. Advertising is different here and the stuff advertised is different too....Did I here you say “essence of chicken?” This subject raises some questions...Essence of chicken? How did they extract it, how much do they have in stock, did the chicken give it up willingly or was it extracted by force. These are the questions the television commercial did not answer and I will never know.

17th January, now we are having some problems with our bodies so we didn't do much today...DON'T PANIC, IT IS NOT SERIOUS. Just the normal travel stuff.

Ok feeling better today, we will hike to the Victoria Peak, believe it or not it is on Old Peak Road...no I kid you not, a
You what!You what!You what!

You want my picture! Well ok but only my good side.
lot of the streets here are named after some strange stuff, I guess that is what you get after so many years of British rule. Reached the last section of the road that heads up at a large ascent and we were unprepared for the angle....ok so re-try tomorrow.

18th January. What a great day we rode the one of longest escalator systems through the mid levels ( a cool and easy way to get up a hill) then the walking began, we were ready for it today so it was good! I mean it was a feeling of enjoyment I haven't had since we began our tour. Steep would also be another word to describe it and as for the view....WOW....WOW....WOW. We...well I took some pictures but they don't do it justice I will try to stitch together a panoramic shot from a multi shoot I tried....test out my skill here. We reach the top and do the tourist thing, you know buy tickets to the viewing platform on the top and after a series of pics we then go for coffee. This area is a curious sight. Many people are walking their designer dogs up here. Yes
Why do women gather in the streets?Why do women gather in the streets?Why do women gather in the streets?

This is a strange occurrence you can see on weekends and public holidays. Women gather in the parks and on walkways and just chat and eat!!!!!
it is a good walk for them (most don't walk, they are carried up) but when you mix German Shepherd, Poodles, Shitsu many other ugly purse size mutts together in one place you get trouble (which is fun to watch). So over a coffee and cake we watched as the many canines interacted, luckily no casualties.

19th January. We will attack Nathan Road today....I can't believe the amount of money being spent on stuff (mostly by women....OOoo! that will land me in hot water). I look around and see so many beautiful women here but it is easy to see that they are high maintenance, out buying more of the same but different. They are dressed like they are attending a royal gala performance and buying more bling than you can shake a Snoop Dog at. Of course we were looking for more practical gear like low heel boots....err...um well. I was looking for practical stuff any way. Walking...walking...walking stopping and looking sorry “no size! so sorry” is the cry from the sales assistants. Lynne has big feet......Hehehehahahaha! Time I call, after what felt like about 5km or more. I didn't mention the bloody fast subway system we took
Lynne in control again...Lynne in control again...Lynne in control again...

Or wishful thinking!
to get here bare in mind I have nothing to compare it to but it was a hell of a lot faster then any above ground train I have ever travelled on. One thing that is so easy here is the transport system is fast, cheap and you won't be waiting more than 2 minutes for it.

20th January. Zoological gardens. It is free, I haven't been to the zoo since our family went to Sydney and my daughters oooo'd and aaaa'd the hippos and giraffes.



Additional photos below
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Night view...Night view...
Night view...

Orrrr! pretty!
Slow exposure light showSlow exposure light show
Slow exposure light show

Cheep camera does not do a good job.
The subway train.The subway train.
The subway train.

It is a long walk from one end to the other...but they move a lot of people!
The tram to the peak.The tram to the peak.
The tram to the peak.

150 or more people getting off a tram along a narrow walkway.
On the mid level escalatorsOn the mid level escalators
On the mid level escalators

Well Ok, if you really want to take my picture you can! But you really should ask your husband.


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