After a long journey from Cambodia via Bangkok, we arrived in Hong Kong and a long-awaited visit with our friends MC, Doug, Kaia and Skye. MC has lived in Southeast Asia for many years and throughout the last decade we have had some visits in Singapore, Hong Kong and in Ottawa when she came to Canada for a visit. It was great to have our family’s together and also great to stay in a house, enjoy the company of another family and have someone to play with the kids – in this case, Madeline now had a young friend in Kaia. It was also great to have access to a kitchen and avoid restaurants every day.
Hong Kong is an exciting city. It is very cosmopolitan and international. As a result it is quite multi-cultural and interesting because you really do not feel you are in Asia at all most of the time. It has a very efficient public transport system which is helpful when you are moving around 7 million people over various islands. It still reflects its touch of Britain in its pubs and street names but it is predominantly Chinese in many ways.
It was also a bit of sticker shock for us and has been the most expensive part of the trip. After weeks in countries living off a few dollars, we had to make an adjustment in our thinking (and spending). Here were some of the highlights:
The Peak and the View
The Peak rises above Hong Kong Island for a spectacular view of the city. Funny enough, The Peak sits in a valley but still provides one of the best views of Kowloon and the surrounding islands. MC and Kaia joined us on our first day. We hiked down from the Peak and landed in the Botanical Gardens and Zoo which was a great respite from the heat. It was (again) 35 degrees each day.
The Buddha on Lantau Island
During the weekend, Doug and Kaia joined us for our trip to Lantau Island and the “Buddha on the Hill”. The cable car has been inoperable for a few weeks so we ventured by the ferry and couple buses through the mountains reaching the Buddha. It’s hard to imagine why they built this statue here but it was quite majestic and the views were incredible. We decided to go to a beach town and take a different a different ferry home and enjoy a couple beers and nachos while we waited.
Dim Sum
A visit to Hong Kong is not complete without a great Dim Sum lunch. Doug and MC brought us into the city where we went to a great restaurant for traditional dim sum. We tried lots of dumplings (a continued favourite of the kids), jellyfish, pork buns, fish, prawns and egg tarts. According to Joshua, this meal has jumped into the Top Three meals of the trip.
The Night Sky
If you recall a few years back, SARS hit Kong Kong pretty bad. It hit the people, industry and tourism in ways that took quite some time to recover. One of the ideas that was brought forward was to create alight show of the skyline – one of the most famous in the world.
Each night the towers of Hong Kong come alive with lasers, lights and music. It does sound a little kitsch but its fun to watch and the urban landscape here is quite something (and the kids really enjoyed it as well!!)
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