Things to do in Hong Kong!
This month, Virgin Australia started daily flights to Hong Kong from Melbourne. So we decided to hop on a plane, and visit the land of fashion and skyscrapers! I am usually a psychotic planner when it comes to holidays, but this time, I had no clue what to expect or where to go.
When we arrived 9 hours later, there was a kerfuffle about which hotel we were at. There are lots of hotel chains with very similar names. I blamed my husband for changing our booking at the last minute, but luckily for him, they eventually found our reservation and we could finally get some sleep!
The hotels were very grand with modern facilities and gold everywhere. Every second shop was a watch or jewellery store. I wondered how many Rolexes they actually sold to warrant having so many of them! The area we stayed in was known as Kowloon, and was close to the TST promenade where the skyline can be viewed in all it's glory. However, the harbour reeked of sewage and was next to a very busy highway. The skyline was obscured by thick cloud, and I wasn't sure whether it was pollution or bad weather. It pretty much rained the whole time we were there! I would describe the weather as "muggy".
I was also upset to find that I had just missed Noir playing at Volar the night before- bummer! Nevertheless, we slept very well, and were up early the next day ready for adventure. My husband wanted to go to Times Square- an enormous shopping mall with designer labels galore. I bought a Juicy Couture tracksuit on sale, but I must say, things aint cheap. They are pretty much the same price as in Australia. I didn't see any replica stores, but there were foreigners pulling us aside offering fake handbags, watches etc. I was worried that if we showed any interest, they would take us into a dark alleyway to a group of thugs and we would be obliged to buy something whether we wanted it or not.
Public transport is pretty cheap and easy to navigate. We travelled by subway most of the time, but taxis were also cheap. For the subway, you need to buy an Octopus Card. This card can also be loaded with credit and used to make purchases in stores. However, we just bought the single trip ones. I wanted to check out the Hello Kitty Secret Garden Cafe. This was not easy to get to, and the area that it was in made me feel like we might get jumped on the way by Kerope and friends! It was so worth it, though. Delicious food and excellent service. I would definitely go back there. I tried a Rose Latte, and it really tasted like roses!
When we arrived 9 hours later, there was a kerfuffle about which hotel we were at. There are lots of hotel chains with very similar names. I blamed my husband for changing our booking at the last minute, but luckily for him, they eventually found our reservation and we could finally get some sleep!
The hotels were very grand with modern facilities and gold everywhere. Every second shop was a watch or jewellery store. I wondered how many Rolexes they actually sold to warrant having so many of them! The area we stayed in was known as Kowloon, and was close to the TST promenade where the skyline can be viewed in all it's glory. However, the harbour reeked of sewage and was next to a very busy highway. The skyline was obscured by thick cloud, and I wasn't sure whether it was pollution or bad weather. It pretty much rained the whole time we were there! I would describe the weather as "muggy".
I was also upset to find that I had just missed Noir playing at Volar the night before- bummer! Nevertheless, we slept very well, and were up early the next day ready for adventure. My husband wanted to go to Times Square- an enormous shopping mall with designer labels galore. I bought a Juicy Couture tracksuit on sale, but I must say, things aint cheap. They are pretty much the same price as in Australia. I didn't see any replica stores, but there were foreigners pulling us aside offering fake handbags, watches etc. I was worried that if we showed any interest, they would take us into a dark alleyway to a group of thugs and we would be obliged to buy something whether we wanted it or not.
Public transport is pretty cheap and easy to navigate. We travelled by subway most of the time, but taxis were also cheap. For the subway, you need to buy an Octopus Card. This card can also be loaded with credit and used to make purchases in stores. However, we just bought the single trip ones. I wanted to check out the Hello Kitty Secret Garden Cafe. This was not easy to get to, and the area that it was in made me feel like we might get jumped on the way by Kerope and friends! It was so worth it, though. Delicious food and excellent service. I would definitely go back there. I tried a Rose Latte, and it really tasted like roses!
Speaking of Hello Kitty, I wanted to go to the Hello Kitty Dim Sum restaurant. I usually don't enjoy eating Chinese food, but when in Hong Kong... As soon as we got to the restaurant, we noticed a very loud, obnoxious man swanning around, yelling orders, plonking plates onto tables in an aggressive manner. He came and took our order, but we were seriously considering just leaving. We agreed to just order some dim sums and get the hell out of there. Yes, it was the cute decor that you'd expect from the Hello Kitty name. But his behaviour was totally the opposite of cute. It was clear that they were very understaffed, and the one waitress looked utterly miserable. The dim sums were cute and tasty, but it was like they gave up halfway through making them, and didn't even bother to put the eyes on the remaining dim sums!
On the one day that it didn't rain, we decided to go to Disneyland. Apparently there is a Disney train that goes there, but we felt exhausted, and decided just to catch an Uber. The Disneyland was quite small compared to the one in Tokyo. The rides were completely different, though. I loved this haunted house ride called Mystic Manor. We also watched the Fantasy Parade, and that totally made my day!
We didn't catch the ferry to Macau because we're not that into gambling. And to be honest, I'm not that into shopping, either. I think Hong Kong would be a great place to spend a few days if you've got money to burn! If I do visit again, I'll have to check out the nightlife, and go back to Victoria Harbour on a clear day.
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