Part of making this trip count was going to Hong Kong... By myself... Partially cause I'm anti-social and partially cause I wanted to have an adventure on my own and say that I did it
Oh Tom..
4 shirts
1 pants
2 undies
1 bra
1 PJ set
Travel towel
Toiletries
Bag of cords
iPad
Nook
I wore a shirt, undergarments, and pants... I also brought a scarf cause the weather will be similar to LA but there's also a chance of rain
I'm glad I brought the scarf cause the plane ride was cold! Again I flew AirAsia, the flight was about 3 hours and it costed me $178 roundtrip
Hong Kong international airport is pretty large but very user friendly, they mostly speak English cause the island was colonized by the British... I was able to use free wifi at the airport to firgure out where and which bus I should take to get to my destination. My friend got me an Octopus card as a gift so I had money ready to use when I arrived in HK... I decided to take the bus instead of the airport link cause I wanted to save money and I wasn't sure how expensive this city would be just yet... I also brought along $200US with me and had exchanged $50US (400HK) before coming just in case
The bus ride into the city was pretty smooth... It didn't make any stops until it got in to the city, the skyline was pretty so it made for a nice ride, which was about 40 mins. The weather was perfect! I couldn't get over how awesome the weather was! So similar to LA... T-shirt weather!
My hostel, Urban Pack, is located on the corner of Nathan Rd and Cameron Rd... Very close to the Tsim Sha Tsui (TST) MTR station... It's an inconspicuous building but they rent some rooms in the building so it's easy to miss if you don't know what to look for
I checked in, I'm sharing a 6 person room of females only, shared bathroom/shower, and free wifi... I was asked to pay for my room in cash... It was about 900HK ($115) for 3 nights (apparently a really really good price for the area, the time of year, this particular weekend, and Hong Kong in general), but I only had like 450HK on me... The check in guy, Teddy, told me where to go to get the best exchange rate. Awesome... I'll exchange money and have dinner while I'm out... When I was getting ready to leave the people in the hostel were starting a party, they asked if I wanted to go in on any vodka... Blech I haven't drank vodka in years... But what the heck, when in Rome...
Teddy warned me that place is super shady looking, as soon as I saw people loitering outside and looking real shady, I looked up and sure enough I was here! Chungking mansion on Nathan Rd... There are lots of exchange spots... Shop around for the best rate and count the money there before you walk away!
I walked back down up Nathan for something to eat, all the shops on Nathan seemed to be retail stores so I stepped into a side street and found this place
I ordered the pig knuckle soup (34HK/$4.39) and a kumquat hot tea (12HK/$1.55)
The bowl of noodles was huge! And so lip smacking delicious... An abundance of chili oil made this dish so much better... The kumquat tea was a little sweet and bitter, just perfect
I'm really glad I ate that big bowl of noodles cause once I got back to my hostel, the party was on... I was one of the older people among this group so I drank these kids under the bus... They wanted to know what I wanted to mix with my vodka... Haha I said I drink it neat and they freaked out! I was the newest person to join the hostel group that day so they kept cheersing to my name... Hahaha I put away 5 shots before heading to the club and felt nothing... Yes I went to a club
I haven't been to a club in years... I know it's supposed to be a crazy weekend cause of the rugby 7s but I didn't exactly bring clubbing clothing with me on this trip... T-shirt and jeans is fine by me! We took the MTR from TST to Central exit, follow the signs to Lan Kwai Fong... We all got in to the club and danced for a while... We wanted to get drinks so we left to go to 7/11 cause the drinks at the club were too expensive
I saw this while waiting in line at 7/11... Talk about lost in translation... Makes me think of the worlds most mysterious man... I don't always drink fish sauce, but when I do, I want my milk to taste like it...
Drama ensued in the 7/11... Some girl tried to cut in front of people and this couple behind me were not having it... I witnessed what it was like to hear a Chinese girl with a British accent tell off a half Asian girl who doesn't speak Chinese!
Teddy and Sam took my phone and took funny selfies
I handed my phone to a guy to take our pic and he took a funny selfie too!
Oh what a night! I got home at like 3 am!... I found out that it's quite difficult to get from HK side back to Kowloon side, MTR stops running at about 1am... The taxis usually don't want to go to Kowloon side because they have to take a toll way to and from both sides, the passenger pays for the way there but the driver won't find a passenger back to HK side as easily so they would have to pay the toll way back which cuts in to their bottomlime so it took a bit of pleading to find a willing driver...
Finally my bed and finally sleep as I would be getting up early to explore
I wasn't sick but I definitely didn't feel 100% the next day... Especially cause I'm going to Big Buddha and Dmitri and Steve asked to join me...
I need coffee... We were on our way at about 9:30am... Big Buddha is on Lantau Island which is the same island that the airport is on, so we took the MTR from TST to Lai King to connect to the Tung Chung line towards Tung Chung... The ride took a bit of time and was on the pricey side
The ride was very beautiful and scenic, it was a bit of a cloudy day but the weather was still fine
We saw great views from the train and quickly snapped pictures, this hillside is a cemetary and it was huge!
Once we arrived at Tung Chung we grabbed a couple of baked goods to fill our stomachs... I noticed a bookstore and a postoffice and asked if I could purchase a postcard to send out immediately
This is me and Steve writing our postcards
The view on the bridge waiting in line for cable car tickets
The line after we purchased our tickets behind us and in front of us... It took like 2 hours!
The tickets are available in a few options, standard cable car roundtrip is 150HK ($19.34), crystal cable car roundtrip is 235HK ($30.31), you can also take one car up and another car down for both experiences but I don't remember how much that costs... You're also welcome to hike the trail to/from the mountain but it's quite a serious hike, then take the cable car to/from for the other half back but it's not cost effective
Finally! The cable car capacity is 8 so chances are you will have to share the car. There's a photographer there to take a commemorative photo of you on the car, you're not obligated to purchase though... Of course when it came it my turn, Dmitri leaned in with a peace sign right in front of my face! He didn't know it but I told him he ruined my picture!
The view is really awesome and it's quite unnerving when you're up this high but you get used to it.. Also it gets quite cold in the cable cars so bring a sweater or scarf... The ride takes about 20 mins
Once you alight from the car, you're led into the Ngong Ping cable car gift shop where the photos that where taken at the bottom were now ready for our purchase... Sure enough Dmitri's peace hand were blocking my face! The picture costs 100HK ($12.90) I think... Again, you're not obligated to buy
Once you get off the cable cars the weather is quite nice
Ngong Ping village
The clouds rolling in looked really cool
The stairs up to the Buddha let me know that I was out of shape... They're nothing to joke about!
Once up here, the Big Buddha is really big!
The view of the Guan Yin goddess temple from the Big Buddha
This is inside the Bug Buddha, they're little plaques with names on them of people who have passed away, sort of like a cemetary... Although I hope they come with life passes on the cable car cause that can be a pricey trip to visit loved ones
In front of the Guan Yin goddess temple I saw these people.. They had like 30 incenses in their hands and they waved them east, west, south and north then posted them in to the large urn... Some of the incenses were the size of rockets!!
Guan Yin goddess temple
The view walking back to Ngong Ping village
I thought there was something wrong with this picture, do you agree?
It's easy to spend a few hours in Ngong Ping village exploring and taking in the magnificent view but we were getting hungry and I wanted to check out Ladies Market so we set out to Mong Kok.
Take the MTR from Tung Chung to Lai King and transfer to the Tsuen Wan line towards Central and exit Mong Kok... I'd tell you to follow the signs but even I got lost... We were 2 blocks in the opposite direction, but we found our way... Surprisingly there's not a lot of food to be had in this area, or maybe we were in the wrong area... We finally found a Taiwanese noodle shop where we settled in. There was only 1 English speaking server there but they had English menus that we could point at
I had a bowl of noodles with chicken wings and yu choy, it was delicious and filling, and only 34HK ($4.39)!
After lunch we headed back to the hostel... I took a nap cause I would be meeting with a friend later tonight and I definitely needed my rest
So I'm meeting with a friend that I haven't seen in probably 7 years... I used to work with his sister and from hanging out with her, I became friends with him...
We met at the Jordan MTR station and we walked over to some place I couldn't read the name of.. He asked me if I liked yellow or white, hot or cold and then he ordered for us...
This is the menu, I couldn't order it again if I wanted to! Apparently this place is known for their rude service and it's ok!
I had a warm bowl of egg white custard that has the similar texture of silken tofu but tasted like egg tart custard.. It was sweet but slightly eggy, very good! We also had an egg sandwich... The bread was so soft and had a slightly sweet flavor, the eggs were so soft and perfectly seasoned... Not dry and not runny, just perfect! (The spaghetti noodle soup in the background was not ours, but it looked good!)
After this snack we walked to another area and got dinner... But not too much cause we will eat again with his friends! Hahaha.. Crazy right?
Braised goose with bean sprouts and razor clams in black bean sauce
Scallops with glass noodles and fried garlic
The razor clams were delicious but a bit over cooked, the scallops were definitely overcooked but the noodles with the fried garlic were really nice. The goose was really good, not dry and the sauce was really good too. I don't really like bean sprouts so I didn't eat much of it but they were still cooked very well and had nice texture... My friend said this wasn't the best goose around and it made me think if I thought this was good, then what does the best goose taste like?
Afterwards we took the MTR to Central and walked in circles that I wouldn't be able to trace back to if I ever got lost... We went to Angel's Share, a whiskey bar in the Lan Kwai Fong area... We stopped by to say hi to another friend who wasn't working so he had a nice glass of whiskey and were on our way
We walked to Yardbird, a place I've been wanting to check out so I was excited... Although I was quite full and didn't know how I'd fit more food in but I was determined to do so... Yardbird was started by a young American couple from New York, she a front of house background and he in the kitchen. They implemented a western style of service and got rid of the service charge HK restaurants are known for.. Instead they insist you tip the servers what they deserve, which allows the staff to work hard for their money
Some of my friend's friends were already there and eating so we joined in... The room was packed and barely had walking room... I tried their KFC (Korean fried cauliflower) and the Fried Chicken - the cauliflower tasted good and spicy but there was too much batter and the cauliflower was overcooked to a mushy point... The Fried Chicken was fine... It had a nice crispy fry to it but it wasn't mind blowing... I was rooting for this place to be awesome cause it gives me inspiration... The atmosphere was very much like a party, the servers were all too friendly and it was everything that I despise in a dining experience... Maybe it was just this crazy cause of this particular weekend so I would definitely go back for a full experience, order more food and see what it's normally like
His friends did order a 1.5 liter bottle of cold sake though... I had 2 shots!
And now pre-debauchery, me and my friend on Lan Kwai Fong
We went to a club where there were 2 tables waiting for us with service... Yes back to a club!
...Debauchery... (There was also a jäger bomb before this)
My friend apologized beforehand knowing that he would get drunk and would lose me, he had taught me how to tell the cab driver I wanted to get to the Kowloon side without really stopping them to talk to them, so I thought I'd be fine... Luckily as soon as I walked out of the the club I ran in to Sam from my hostel and asked to get back with him... There was some drama involved with a girl of his... But finally we got on a bus and got back to the hostel! Finally sleep at 4 am....
The next day was a gloomy and rainy day so I slept in a bit and decided I would go try Tim Ho Wan today. Teddy (a hostel employee) said he loved that place and asked to come along... I didn't mind since it would allow me to order more food... It was also nice cause he know his way around and I didn't have to get lost to get there
We walked through some market places which were really cool to see...
This guy was selling all kinds of pork products on the sidewalk, it was great!
Tim Ho Wan at the Olympian Center off Olympic MTR station... This guy was making super delicious and expensive dim sum at a high end place but decided he wanted everyone to be able to taste his food so just started a couple of small restaurants to do so... Now four out of five of his restaurants are Michelin starred and it's the most inexpensive Michelin meal you'll ever eat! I was thrilled!
Yea there was this many people waiting in line for dim sum at 2pm!
Luckily we didn't wait too long
We ordered too much food but it was all so good!
Glutunous rice with pork steamed in a lotus leaf - so F'in delicious! Apparently it's usually sold out but they had some today so I got to enjoy it! The rice was nice and sticky but not soggy, the sauce and pork had so much flavor
Chicken feet and pork spareribs - typical chicken feet, nice and gelatinous. The spareribs were good with the addition of mushrooms or some sort of root like thing
And now for the infamous pork buns... These pork buns changed my life! I was expecting the typical baked pork buns with the sticky glaze on top but when these came, I knew they would be different... The top looked like a web-like crust of meringue was brushed on top and baked so crunchy. I could smell the awesomeness pulsating from it... I had to resist the urge to put it in my mouth immediately as I would burn my tastebuds! As soon as I was able to bite into it, the shell was nice and crunchy and sweet, the filling was sweet and fatty, everything I look forward to in a pork bun... It was one of the best things I put in my mouth in a long time
We also had pork and vegetables wrapped in beancurd as well... That's what's in my chopstick... Also very good and filling
Overall the meal was excellent... I think we paid $15 for everything... Pretty inexpensive for Michelin status and really good... It was all typical dim sum food, nothing different with the exception of the pork buns.... Those pork buns have invaded my dreams since... So maybe just go for the buns!
Since I've been crying about the quality of coffee in Southeast Asia, my friend told me about some coffee shops I should check out, again I trust his opinion so I picked the closest one to me and made Teddy navigate me after lunch (more like linner)
Knockbox coffee is in the Mong Kok area... A quaint coffee shop seemed perfect for this gloomy day and I was so excited!
I asked for a hand dripped coffee, the girl asked what region I would like and I said Africa and asked if the Rwandan was available, she said Rwanda is in Asia... Yea, no I'm pretty sure Rwanda is in Africa...
I like a place with rules... It means they care
Yea... My coffee was 65HK ($8.38)... You read that correctly, I paid almost $9 US for that cup of coffee! It was a fine cup... Not the best I've had, but definitely better than the Nescafé bullshit I've been subjected to the past 2 months... This'll hold me over for a bit
Even though I just had coffee, it didn't counteract the effects of a lovely msg filled lunch... I went back to the hostel and took a much needed nap
While I napped, I had asked Teddy to do some recon on some Shanghainese soup dumplings (Xiao Long Bao) and we went to King's Lodge to fill my craving for dinner
They gave us tea and this appetizer immediately upon sitting... I don't know what these were but they were addictive! The texture was so squeeky and crunchy, I couldn't stop eating them! It looks like celery but they definitely weren't... Anyone know?
XLB - pork and crab with soup.... Need I say more? So incredible with vinegar and ginger!
Shrimp XLB - again, need I say more? Tasted like seafood broth... Really good but not as good as the original XLB
After dinner we headed back to the hostel, it's my last night but I was still heading to Lan Kwai Fong for the big event... Saturday night! We all took the MTR to Central again and this time LKF was a zoo full of people dressed up in costumes and drinking on the street... There were so many broken bottles and trash everywhere!! It was like Vegas in a smaller space so people were just going buck wild! We went in to a club but there were so many people we couldn't dance or enjoy ourselves so we went back on the streets and danced and drank there... We headed to a HK style diner to get a late night snack and then came the dreaded time to find a taxi to get to the other side..........
Let's just say it took a whiiiiiillleee... And that I almost got in to a fight with 2 guys on the street.... Let's just leave it at that...
Getting up the next day sucked! I had to catch a flight back to Bangkok so I checked out of the hostel and Sam told me which bus to catch to get to the airport. I thought it'd be similar to the one I took to get there but this bus stopped at every stop instead of just a select few... It took me an hour to get to the airport and I got to the gate just in time for them to line up and start boarding! Phew... Thank god I don't check in luggage!
There's so much more of Hong Kong that I still need to explore... The first chance I get, I'm returning to that country and I'm spending some serious time there.... Maybe not as much time on Lan Kwai Fong but I really can't wait to eat more and see the rest of the islands! That place was incredible and interesting!
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