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Published: July 23rd 2010
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What a contrast. I was in the swing of china. Used to being harassed for photographs, stared at, glared at, talked to. Elbowed out of the way. I arrived in Hong Kong. I took an escalator out of the train station and people queued for it. I got a taxi to Jordan station where my friend Herry (who I met in Mongolia, remember? http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/blog-493994.html) lived and I didn't get ripped off. I went on the subway, people said excuse me. Hong Kong was great. Lots of people spoke English and everyone was happy to help. When I stopped to look at a map someone would come up to me and ask where I wanted to go. I hadn't realized how much I had missed what we call polite behaviour. There was no spitting in the streets, no smoking inside, the toilets had soap and even toilet paper. The luxury was unbelievable.
That first evening (and several following) me and Herry went shopping. Ah I was so excited to have some new clothes. I don't consider myself clothes obsessed but I like pretty things and two months with only two t-shirts, I was really fed up!
For me, Hong Kong
was a holiday from travelling, the busy city with its neon lights and spotless streets and lack of tourism was the perfect antithesis to being on the road. I didn't do much. I saw the light show and wandered the markets. I spent a day on Lantau island seeing the big Buddha, there I met a middle aged English couple who seemed to delight in my Britishness and bought my bus ride for me!
I bought a notebook computer in HK from the Monkok computer centre- 4 bustling floors of rather dodgy electronics stores. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the one I bought isn't too dodgy, seems OK so far!
I stayed with Mark and Herry, sleeping diagonally on their sofa for four nights. Then, not wanting to outstay my welcome I checked into a really dodgy hostel in a place called Chunking mansions -essentially India in the middle of HK. The whole building smelt of curry and getting in and out was almost impossible due to the volume of touts. It was aright though, I found a small alley full of porn shops that allowed me to bypass the main entrance hall. I didn't get mugged
or anything and it was actually nice to be in a dorm again,even though the tininess of the 4-person room was such that all four people could not stand on the floor at once. In fact, the bathroom was so small that you could only sit sideways on the toilet and logistically, the only way to take a shower was to stand with your feet under the cistern or sit on the toilet!
As the room was so small I didn't spend much time there. One place I went was to catch up with a friend from high school. That was nice. He seemed just the same, if a bit more serious and grown up- to be fair we never really talked at school, he just tripped me up and giggled. He did that less this time.
The day after I moved into the hostel I met up with Herry and a guy from coach surfing called Leo. We went on a day trip to Lamma island, a car free tropical haven. Leo is originally from Hong Kong although now living in the USA. He knew Lamma well and was a good guide. We walked across the island
which took a few hours. It was an easy walk but the humidity and lack of shade meant that it was quite tiring. Herry lost her wallet along the way so after a delicious fresh seafood meal we get a chance to meet the local police. They were really nice and pinpointed the wallet within a few hours to 'tofu man' a stall selling silken tofu with ginger sauce that we'd rested at earlier in the day. When I got back to the city I went to a western supermarket and I indulged in brie and a baguette for supper. Oh my god it was good. Chinese food is nice but I do like variety.
Hong kong, apart from its lack of easy cheap street food is good for eating. Ah dim sum, my love, my life. During my stay, I had several helpings of turnip cake (lo bak go), a fried paste of chinese turnip, dried sausage, shrimp and onion, perhaps my favourite cantonese dish. I also indulged in a number of different cha sho (BBQ pork) products, which are frankly irrestistable. And har gow (prawn dumplings) and siu mai (pork and prawn dumplings). Oh yum yum yum!
And Cantonese bakery products. One thing I really love is glutinous rice dough, you buy it steaming on street corners in the form of little patties filled with red bean paste or seafood or pork. Its an amazing thing. Its is almost clear and so stretchy and warm, greasy enough to melt slightly in your mouth. Im also quite into the pastry that Cantonese egg tarts come in, to the extent that I almost acclimatised to custard which has never been one of my favourites. I have to admit that a suggested visit to a tiny little dim sum cafe with 1 michelin star actually caused me to delay my plans to go back to China. It was good although I think I've been spoilt for dim sum by UK china towns. When I was little we used to go to be regular customers at the Yang Sing in Manchester. Oh my god, the sticky rice there was amazing. Glutinous rice mixed with chinese sausage, chicken, egg yolks, shrimp, vegetables, seasoned to perfection and steamed in a lotus leaf. Is it wrong that I am sat in China craving a Chinese restaurant in Manchester?
Anyway, the dim sum trip
was also nice because Andy (who I had been travelling with) and Alexis (who I met in Xian) had both just arrived in HK and came along. It was so nice to see them again. We had a comfortable western day. After lunch we went to find a cinema, in hope of seeing the A-Team movie. It wasn't on so we watched 'from paris with love', a predictable but engaging spy-based drama by Luc Besson,who directed Angel-A and Leon, (two very good films in my opinion). We also treat ourselves to a Starbucks, mmm, the sweet bitterness of a mocha and some high paced cinematic violence. To summarize, Hong Kong was the perfect antithesis to too much wandering around Chinese temples!
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mummy
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memories of the Yan Sing
perhaps your memories of the Manchester meals were all the sweeter for being shared with your loving family!! HK food memories now have me salivationg after nearly 40 years! keep blogging xx mummy