Musings of an Idiot

Hong Kong - Part Deux

After disembarking and going through the immigration process again - I walked back towards the Star Ferry terminal to catch a ride back to Kowloon side, so I could leave my day pack behind and travel light. Hong Kong Island has this amazing network of walkways in Central district which runs through most of the buildings, shopping complexes and offices, so you don't really have to get down onto the ground level if you don't intend to. It makes getting from one place to another while walking a breeze. On my walk to the Star Ferry terminal I was confused as half the walkway was filled by groups of women sitting around- chatting, playing cards, gossiping etc. and it was a bizarre sight. My first thought was that maybe they are using it as a way for social activities and didn't think much more of it and kept walking to the Ferry terminal.

At the guesthouse I got talking to Raymond and was telling him about my experience in Macau and casually asked him why there were so many people in HK who were shopping and he mentioned that it was a 1 week holiday in mainland China asthey were celebrating 6th anniversary of communist China, which is why there were heaps of tourists from mainland visiting HK - primarily for shopping as goods were cheaper for them by 30-35% in HK {especially the luxury items}. That kind of explained why I saw so many chinese with tourist maps as well.


After the brief chat I headed off back to Central district to see if I could catch a tram to see more of Hong Kong. Trams run on Hong Kong Island along with normal buses, MTR and cars and it is probably the cheapest mode of transportation there. A one way ride costs HK$2 flat for anywhere on the route and it is an awesome way to see the city because they run at a relaxed pace which means you can see more of the city - especially if you are sitting on the top deck. I caught a tram from Central to North Point and back and it was a great ride, seeing the city alive, going about it's business.


By the time I came back to Kowloon side it was pretty late and I decided to try and search out some Sichuan restaurant {since there are various kinds of cuisine available within Hong Kong}. After a good walk around and exploring the area I found a restaurant {can't remember the name} that specialized in Sichuan cuisine and I tentatively walked upto the 2nd floor and it opened out into being a proper restaurant. All the people in the restaurant were in groups and eating is definitely a social thing in Hong Kong/China I suppose, so it was a weird feeling having people stare at me because I was sitting alone and having food on my own. The food was amazing and I was so engrossed in it, so I didn't mind the stares. I settled the bill and went back to the guest house to call it a night. I had a huge day planned ahead of me the next day and I decided to be extra precautious and wanted to set an alarm,so I switched on my cellphone and I was pretty taken aback when it wouldn't switch on properly. I don't know if it was the long haul flight or if it was something else but it wasn't working and I was kind of annoyed but at the same time kind of thankful because I was in HK and I could buy a cheap cellphone - atleast that was the plan. Since there was no other option I decided to trust my body clock and went to bed, making a mental note about the change in my planned itinerary.

I woke up pretty at 6.00 AM on my own, got ready and hoped for a better day. Being Monday - I knew there wouldn't be as much crowd and I was feeling quietly optimistic. First thing I did was try out congee at a local fast food chain called Cafe de Coral. It was filling and made me feel ready for the big day. I caught the ferry to Central and then used the walkways to get to Peak Tram station without getting down onto the roads {and my directional senses and navigational skills seemed to be back to normal}.On the way to Peak Tram station, a couple of roads were blocked off by women sitting around and doing the same things I observed the day before. They were doing some kind of strike/protest against something because I came across a couple of rally speeches. That kind of satisified my curiosity as to why all these women were just hanging out on the streets. I didn't enquire what the protests were about or anything since it wasn't my time or place and kept walking to the tram station.

The peak tram took all of 15 minutes this time around and since it was still pretty early in the day and the visitor information centre at the peak wasn't open I decided to just take a moment to enjoy the stillness over a cup of hot chocolate at Pacific Coffee Company. The hot chocolate was amazing and it gave me time to flesh out what I wanted to do. Once the information centre opened I queried them about trekking from the peak to Aberdeen and also about a visit to Lamma island and about best place to buy a cheap cellphone. The hike to Aberdeen would've taken about 2.5 hours and I quickly decided against going to Aberdeen. Instead I took a walk around the trail around the peak. You just get onto Luggard Road and pretty much keep walking and you'll end up where you started in about 45 minutes time. I would highly recommend doing this walk because you get some mazing views of Hong Kong, some of which just take your breath away.

After the walk, I caught the tram back down and figured I would miss the next ferry to Lamma Island as I wouldn't be able to get to the ferry terminal on time. The decision was then to check out mid-level escalators which take you up to the mid levels of the district. That again proved to be a good decision as I soon found a couple of roads that I was looking for. The use of escalators is free and is a good way to see the usual way of life in HK. I then walked down and checked out a couple of eating joints that I was looking for on different roads around there. And since I was in the area I also decided to check out Man Mo Temple to kind of provide a balance to all the churches I had visited the day before.


The Man Mo temple was being renovated/repaired but it still had amazing atmosphere. There is lots and lots of incense smoke and burning candles and incense and nothing more - which was refreshing to see.



After the temple I was walking back to the Ferry terminal when I found Mak's Noodles {77, Wellington Street, Central} - a highly recommended place if you are looking for traditional Hong Kong style wonton soup noodles and I have to say it didn't disappoint. It was an awesome lunch and the taste kept lingering in my mouth for atleast another hour after I had finished lunch and the best part was that it was reasonably priced too.

Labels: Hong Kong, Travel

posted by Amit @ 12:45 PM