Day 1 - Flying to Hong Kong
We stayed at Jennifer's house Wednesday night in Orange County since we had to be at John Wayne airpot at 5:30am the next morning. I was surprised to see so many people at the airport this early until I remembered John Wayne's Noise Abatement regulations.
We make it to San Francisco airport a little over an hour. Here's Oakland from the other side of the bay.
Since we had 3 hours to kill before our next flight we all decided to have a hearty breakfast. I'm assuming you
know who had the beers and who had the bloody marys.
Our flight to Hong Kong from San Fracisco was exactly 14 hours. Midway through our flight I look up at our map to see us flying over Alaska and Russia. Jimmy and I assumed flying over the Pacific Ocean would have been faster. Must be a flight pattern thing.
I never thought I would ever see Eastern Russia. It was definitely a sight to see.
This part of Russia consisted of miles and miles of curvy rivers and snow.
Some people on our flight felt they had to look at this hours at a time.
After having a guy stand behind Jimmy's seat for hours, constant meetings and 'little miss diva' sitting behind us, we finally landed at Hong Kong International Airport at 8pm Friday night. The first thing we did after passing Customs was purchase a MTR Airport Express Travel Pass ($220 HKD / $28.39 USD). This ticket offers 3 consecutive days of unlimited travel on the MTR and 1 ride back to the airport (optional) since Mitch and Shirley recommended we take a taxi to our hotel.
Here's Jimmy driving us to our hotel. I think he forgot that the driver's seat is on the right side of the car. Even though our cab ride was 21 miles the fare was only $245 HKD ($31.61 USD).
The beautiful W Hotel in Kowloon, Hong Kong! This franchise hotelier really knows how to mix art, fashion and music into a hotel.
The sixth floor lobby which features the Living Room (bar) and Kitchen (restaurant).
We'll be sharing an 'Ocean View' room for the next few days.
After getting situated with our room we go to the Living Room bar and have a few drinks. By this time it was nearly midnight. The girls went back to the room after we finished our drinks.
Jimmy and I however wanted to explore the neighborhood.
We found ourselves at Stormies. Stormies is located at the center of this hotel/residential neighborhood of West Kowloon. We chose to stay here because it was very lively and they were playing Usher and 2Pac music. It sorta felt like a home from home.
Day 2 - Dim Sum, Victoria Peak & Sneaker Street / Ladies Market / Temple Street
Elements is located below our hotel. This mall is very similar to South Coast Plaza except it's three times larger, underground. This mall is also connected to the Kowloon subway station and walking distance to the Austin subway station. Other than all of your typical high end clothing stores, my two favorite stores here were Pret a Manger and ThreeSixty. I believe we ate at Pret a Manger for breakfast three of the five days we were here. The food at both stores were very affordable which helped us save money throughout our stay.
We go downstairs, walk through Elements to the Kowloon Station. We head south under the Victoria Harbour to the Hong Kong Station.
We walked about 10 minutes east to City Hall Maxim's Palace, one of the best Dim Sum restaurants in Hong Kong.
Dim Sum was originated in Hong Kong so how could we pass it up?
The food here was very delicious! Our bill however came out to be much more than we expected ($1007 HKD / $129.94 USD). Either way the dim sum hit the spot! Lucky for us we came at 10:30am. By noon there were probably 30-40 people outside waiting for a table. Hey Jimmy, you might want to pay attention when you pour your tea...
After dim sum we walk south to the Peak Tram. Along the way we encounter the various skyscrapers that make Hong Kong. To the right is the HSBC Main Building. Rumor has it that the lego-like construction gave rise to rumours that that HSBC was unconvinced by the impending 1999 handover of Hong Kong from Britian to China and constructed a building that could be taken apart and shipped back to the UK. Is this myth true or false? No one really knows. As for the building to the left is the world famous Bank of China Tower.
After walking through the cold wind we make it to the Peak Tram. A round trip pass per adult is $65 HKD ($8.38 USD) per person.
The line was quite long. Group picture time!
I heart Mai :)
Here comes the tram! The Peak Tram first opened in 1926. Today, more than 4 million people ride the Peak Tram annually, or an average of over 11,000 every day. Up we go!
Bruce Lee is much taller than I thought! There's a wax museum located inside The Peak called Madame Tussauds.
If you complete all five stages you will be granted good health, luck and fortune for the coming year. Here's Cuc hoping for brighter career opportunities.
Here's Jimmy wishing his family and friends for good health. I also tossed a coin down the wishing well for good fortune.
Cuckie the sheep and the rest of us horses!
Here's the view of Hong Kong from Sky Terrace 428. Neither Jimmy nor I took this picture since neither of our cameras could capture the beatufiul view. Also, CLICK HERE to take a look what Victoria Harbour used to look like back in 1936.
Here's a quick video of Victoria Harbour from The Peak.
The whole gang at the Sky Terrace 428.
One of the five stages of good luck and fortune. A romantic moment with Mai...
A bro-mantic moment with Jimmy.
One of Jimmy's friends recommended Café Deco. We did not eat much since we were still full from dim sum.
Okay, time to head back down. Boy was it crowded!
We're almost at the Hong Kong station to take back to our hotel. I think this is Statue Square.
Okay now we're hungry! Earlier in the week Jimmy and I were wondering if the McDonald's in Hong Kong would have anything different from the U.S. menu. This McDonald's was located in the Kowloon subway station below our hotel.
They did have one item, the GCB. What is it? CLICK HERE to find out. Hey, I didn't know you can wear shorts and sandals while working at McDonalds. Oh, wait a minute...
Next door to the McDonald's is a noodle restaurant called Super Super Congee & Noodles. A large bowl for 24 HKD ($3.10 USD) was a steal! I think Cuc ate here twice.
Afterwards we went upstairs to our room to rest for a bit. Here's a picture of the sun setting from our hotel room window.
We walked to the Austin station and took the subway until it ended at Hung Hom. After that we took the East Rail Line to the first exit: Mong Kok East.
Tonight we are going to explore three shopping districts: Sneaker Street, Ladies Market and Temple Street.
Here is Sneaker Street which is located on Fa Yuen st. between Argyle st. and Dundas st. Ladies Market is actually the next block parallel to Sneaker Street, as you can see Mai and Cuc proceeding forward on the lower right hand side.
Here's Jimmy looking for a pair of sneakers that are not found in the U.S. He did find a few pairs but not to his liking. Two words to best describe Sneaker Street: Over Stimulation. There were shoes...
... and shoes...
... and mores shoes. Even though there were a surplus of shoes, most of them were at full price.
There were a lot of great outdoor food vendors. This one had a large line. I'm not exactly sure what he was making but it looks to be hot pot, rice bowls.
Here's Ladies Market. This is more of a flea market. Lots of toys, clothes and knock off items.
This is the main strip of Ladies Market which is located on Tung Choi st. between Argyle st. and Dundas st. Super crowded, it's well worth the visit. Lots of stores, street vendors and restaurants as well.
And lastly, Temple Street located on Temple st. between Jordan rd. and Man Ming Lane. Temple Street's items in my opinion lack quality and variety. You're better off shopping at Ladies Market.
However Temple Street had block-long outdoor restaurants that were all packed! Should we go back here for a late night dinner?
Once we get to the end of Temple Street (Temple st. & Jordan rd.) we took a cab ride back to our hotel. Cab rides start at $20 HKD ($2.58 USD). As we cabbed our way back the meter hardly moved for over 5 minutes! Our 10 minute cab ride came out to only $24 HKD ($3.10)! Mitch wasn't kidding when he told us the cab rides were affordable. At any rate, it was a little pass 11pm and all of the restaurants in Elements were closed and none of us were feelin' the restaurants located with Stormies. So Cuc asked one of the employees at the hotel which restaurants he would recommend at this hour. The first one on the list was sorta like a Denny's. We went there and walked out. Nothing special (plus it took forever for a waiter to take our order). The second restaurant would be a little more 'adventurous'.
The weather was perfect to be eating outdoors!
We ordered the beef and broccoli, fried rice, chili-garlic shrimp and of course a lot of beers.
So it's almost 1am. The girls were tired but Jimmy and I wanted to go to Lan Kwai Fong. Lan Kwai Fong is like the Sunset Strip of Hong Kong. The girls took a cab back to the hotel. As Jimmy and I walked towards the Jordan rd subway station we forget was that the subways close at midnight. Should we take a cab ride to the other side? The cab rides are pretty cheap. Unfortunately we decided not to go so we took a cab ride back to the hotel and let's just say our cab driver did not enjoy our rendition of Whitney Houston's 'One Moment In Time'! lol
Once we got back to our room the girls tell us that their cab driver DROVE ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD! Yikes!! What a crazy night. I was the first one to take a shower and first one to knock out. Unfortunately I missed out on some "extra craziness" afterwards!
Day 3 - Big Buddha & Ozone @ The Ritz Carlton
We've been here for two days and we have yet to see the rooftop swimming pool.
The infinity pool on the 76th floor. One of the highest infinity pools in the world. Then it just hit me, the tallest building in Los Angeles is 75 floors high.
Right now would have been a good time to jump in the hot tub with the cold weather and all.
Hong Kong and it's sea full of skyscrapers.
Today we're going to see the Big Buddha at Lantau Island. Google maps says it takes 40 minutes to get there by subway but in actuality it only took 20 minutes.
We take the subway until it ends at Tung Chung. There's a really large outlet mall located outside the station.
I was really looking forward in taking the cable car up to see the Big Buddha until one of the employees here
told me that the cable cars were undergoing maintenance for two months. This really bummed me out. Heck, I
was considering going back into town but Mai convinced us to stay. We wait in line for 15 minutes for a bus and
the bus ride was an additional 40 minute to go up the hill. The bus ride one way was $27 HKD ($3.48 USD).
Ngong Ping. I couldn't find much history about this location other than it's been a tourist attraction since 2005.
Cuc thinks she's some sort of ninja!
As we walk down the path we see something at the corner of our eyes. It was the Big Buddha on top of the hill!
The Tian Tin Buddha was created back in 1993. The statue was formed out of 202 separate pieces of bronze. It is surrounded by six smaller bronze statues known as "The Offering of the Six Devas" and are posed offering flowers, incense, lamp, ointment, fruit, and music to the Buddha. These offerings symbolize charity, morality, patience, zeal, meditation, and wisdom, all of which are necessary to enter into nirvana. Visitors have to climb 240 steps in order to reach the Buddha.
*Whew* Finally made it! Boy I'm out of shape but it was well worth the climb. You can go inside to view 'the lotus' but no pictures were allowed.
The view from above was quite breathtaking.
Here are two of the six 'Devas'.
The weather was much sunnier and warmer away from city. A beautiful day to be out and about.
Thank goodness Mai convinced us to stay. Traveling out here to Pnong Ping was well worth it. There's something peaceful and surreal about being here with nature and the Buddha.
Rows of incense was burning in front of the monastery.
Jimmy doin' his thing...
Mai and Cuc (behind the tree) praying for their uncle and grandmother which were both Buddhist.
The Po Lin Monastery. The monastery was founded in 1906 by three monks visiting from Jiangsu and was initially known simply as "The Big Hut". It was renamed to its present name in 1924. The main temple houses three bronze statues of the Buddha – representing his past, present and future lives – as well as many Buddhist scriptures.
As you can see the interior is very vibrant and colorful.
Mitch and Lan recommend we try the vegetarian meal. The meal for four was $280 HKD ($36.13 USD).
I actually thought it was pretty decent. Not great but decent.
Ngong Ping must have been doggie heaven. There were plenty of dogs just walking around and sleeping everywhere.
We walk through the Ngong Ping Village and checked out a few stores. Midway through you
can hook a left and the buses are right there to take us back to the Tung Chung terminal.
Again it was another $27 HKD ($3.48 USD) ride back.
Jimmy and Cuc take a brief nap back at the hotel while Mai and I have a drink at the Living Room bar. An hour later we would walk up to the Ritz Carlton.
The OZONE bar on the 118th floor of The Ritz-Carlton. Designed by architect Masamichi Katayama from Wonder-Wall.
Notice the various colors in each picture. The colors of the lighting change every 15-20 seconds.
Cheers to us at the highest bar in the world!!
Here is the outdoor open air bar. The patio was open but the bar was closed since it was really cold outside.
Ozone bar has an incredible interior and incredible views of the city. However Mai said it best, "This place is too boushy". Our waitress was not attentive like most waitresses we've come across in Hong Kong plus you get a pretentious feeling from everyone inside. But then again, this 'IS' the Ritz-Carlton.
Day 4 - Macau, China
Good morning...
We take a cab to the China Ferry Terminal and take the Turbojet at 11:30am to Macau, China. One way is $151.00 HKD ($19.43 USD). A very important pointer: You must bring your passport AND the immigration slip that was given to you at the airport once you arrived into Hong Kong. You can not board the Turbojet unless you have both documents with you. Thanks for the heads up Mitch!
The seats on the ferry were very comfortable. If you get seasick easily however that would be another story.
The ferry ride is exactly 1 hour long. Once you get off the ferry you must go through Customs before you can step onto Chinese soil.
Thanks for grabbing this for me Jimmy! Most of the cab drivers in Macau do not understand English.
This tourist map has everything in English and Chinese. Just point on the map where you want to go and you're there.
Outside the terminal are shuttles from each casino. We would take the shuttle to the Wynn Casino .
The various casinos throughout Macau.
The Wynn of Macau. Opened on September 6, 2006. The Wynn Macau also features 600 hotel rooms and suites,
approximately 212 table games and 375 slot machines.
The swimming pool at the Wynn.
The lobby inside the Wynn.
The only highlight of this hotel in my opinion were the jellyfish behind the front counter.
Next stop is Senado Square (or Largo do Senado). Senado Square is a paved area in the center of the former Portuguese colony of Macau, enclosed by the buildings of the Leal Senado, the General Post Office, and St. Dominic’s Church. The square is paved in the traditional Portuguese pavement.
The Senado Square Fountain.
Hmmm... which way to go? Today we'll look for The Ruins of St. Paul's & St. Dominic's Church.
Walking through Senado Square was pretty intense. It was extremely crowded with locals as well as tourists.
We can see the Ruins of St. Paul's right up ahead!
Jimmy buys some fried squid balls.
The girls get their boba fix at the Pork Chop Bun.
The Ruins of St. Paul's. This structure was destroyed by a fire back in 1835. There are exactly 66 steps leading up to the structure.
Here's a video of St. Paul looking down into the plaza.
Next to the Ruins is Na Tcha Temple. Built in 1888, this Buddhist and Taoist temple is dedicated to the worship of the deity Na Tcha.
After walking back to Senado Square we run into a little wine bar with free wine tastings. How can you say no to free wine?
Our last stop is St. Dominic's Catholic Church. The church was built in 1587 by three Spanish Dominican priests, and it was where the first Portuguese newspaper, A Abelha da China (The China Bee), was published on Chinese soil in 1822.
Next we take a cab to the southern part of Macau to the Venetian hotel. Please take a moment and look at this picture carefully. This is neither fog nor overcast. This is smog at 2pm. The smog here is extremely thick which I think gave a few of us headaches halfway through our trip here in Macau.
Last stop in Macau is the Venetian Hotel. The hotel tower offers 3000 suites, over 3400 slot machines and 800 gambling tables.
The Venetian was incredible large and beautiful. This casino was poppin' like it was Saturday night in Las Vegas except today is Monday afternoon!
Next stop the food court. If you like Asian food then this is the spot for you. 24 restaurants including Japanese, Chinese, Vietnamese, Indian, Malayasian and Korean food (pizza and Fatburger included). Jimmy had the goose and rice.
I had the Pho and egg rolls. Done and.... well, almost done.
Free shuttle service is provided by the Venetian hotel to the ferry terminal. We purchase the 6:30pm ferry back to Hong Kong ($170 HKD / $21.94 USD) because I wanted to see the Symphony of Lights show at 8pm. By the time we get back to Hong Kong and go through Customs it was already 8:15pm and the show is 15 minutes long. Oh well, next time.
We go back to the W Hotel and get one last drink at the Living Room bar. Half way through the evening I tell the manager that the service here at the W Hotel is much better than the Ritz-Carlton. Five minutes later he comes back with a round of free shots for us! Cheers to our final night here in Hong Kong!
Day 5 - Departure ...
Farewell W Hotel. You were very very good to us. We were definitely spoiled! Great hotel, easy
access to public transportation, affordable restaurants in a safe neighborhood.
We go to the very bottom of the Kowloon station and use our 1 Ride Airport Express Travel Pass. Our flight to San Francisco was only 10.5 hours unlike the 14 hour flight to Hong Kong. Then we flew from SFO to LAX and made it home by 2:15pm Tuesday afternoon.
I want to thank everyone who made this trip possible. Thank you Mitch and Shirley for hooking us up with United Airline tickets. Lan and Mai for booking us the rooms. Cuc for keeping in touch with Mitch and informing us with the 'little details' necessary for our trip. Jimmy for providing technology, taking many pictures so I could put this blog together and keeping us laughing from beginning to end. And thanks to the group for being patient with me as I tried to guide all of us through the streets and subways of Hong Kong.
Lastly, for those that would like travel to Hong Kong some day, you can probably see everything in 5 full days. A few venues/locations/attractions that I would have like to have seen that we missed were:
- Lan Kwai Fong
- Stanley Market
- Murray House
- Mak's Noodles
- Avenue of the Stars
- Symphony of Lights
- Wooloomooloo Rooftop Bar
- Hong Kong Park
- Times Square, Causeway Bay
- The Lobby Lounge at the Intercontinental
- Nan Lian Garden
- Din Tai Fung Restaurant
- Yardbird Restaurant
Thumbs up to efficient public transportation (MTR), cheap cab rides, clean restrooms and predominantly English speaking locals. Thumbs down to the cable cars being closed and our waitress at the Ritz-Carlton. Thank you for viewing my blog. I hope you enjoyed it!
George :)
awesome blog Bui! looks like you guys had an awesome experience in HK :)
ReplyDeleteGreat blog!!I really enjoyed it :)
ReplyDeleteso jealous! your blog was so detailed and informative I dont think I need to go there now
ReplyDelete