Mother Nature didn’t want to cooperate with brilliant sun and azure skies. It’s early June in Hong Kong and the harbinger of the monsoon season was manifesting itself with heavy grey clouds shrouding the Hong Kong skyline and swallowing Victoria Peak. It threatened heavy rain and thunderstorms throughout our stay but by some miracle, nary a drop of water fell on us leaving the umbrellas at the bottom of the backpacks.

The temperature though is jungle hot and humid. No part of the human body is left dry. There’s a continuous cascade of sweat that rolls out of your pores. It makes us reconsider our packing strategy where we should have brought more bras and underwear! It’ 32 degrees celcius (90F) but with 91% humidity making it feel like 41 degrees (105F). My glasses and camera lens fog up instantly as I exit super air conditioned hotels, shops and restaurants. Edema attacks our fingers as they swell to giant proportions looking like fat little stubs. 

But we don’t mind the discomfort. After all this is Hong Kong, a city we have longed to visit. The journey starts with a ride in a Tesla from the airport that we organized with our hotel (will review it in a separate blog). Our driver Winsor provides interesting facts about Hong Kong as we are whisked away for our 25-30 minute ride to the hotel. He even demonstrates the ridiculous acceleration of the Tesla where you are driven back by the sudden g-force. Tall and abundant apartment buildings dot the lower mountainous ranges of many of the 261 islands that are part of the Hong Kong peninsula. 

Previously a British colony until the 100 year old lease from China expired in 1999, Hong Kong continues to prosper as the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China where it enjoys a great deal of autonomy from her formidable overseer. Slowly China begins it’s infiltration into the territory and who knows what the future will hold in thirty years from now when the fifty year arrangement where Hong Kong retains it’s autonomy and own laws will expire. For now, the prosperity is undeniable.

On first arrival, we do a walkabout to orient ourselves and try to keep awake until after dinner. Three hours later, we’ve walked along the shoreline near the Avenue of the Stars now under construction until 2018, to the Kowloon public pier which affords a spectacular view of the Hong Kong skyline across Victoria Harbour. 

Next is walking up Nathan road, a shopping and food mecca. We’ve never seen so many high end designer watch stores in our lives. They are everywhere in Kowloon and Hong Kong island! In this day and age where the smartphone keeps time and many people shun the one app only bling around the wrist, expensive designer watch are a status symbol for many over here. The area is also abound with designer clothiers, custom suit tailors, restaurants and large Chinese banyan trees. The unfortunate side of Nathan road (and many other streets) is the constant barrage of fake designer watch hawkers attempting to lure you to some back alley. Unbelievably they stand right outside the entrance to Rolex or Cartier etc… with impunity! 

We return wearily to our hotel for an early dinner and finally abandon ourselves to sleep.

Day 2 starts with even more ominous clouds. We booked a four hour walking tour with Big Foot Tours to see the Western and Central District of Hong Kong island to have a local experience and learn more about the culture and traditions of the people. The hotel’s shuttle bus takes us to the Tsim Sha Tsui metro station where we buy our Octopus card that will allow us to use the Metro, buses, trams and even the Star Ferry to cross back Victoria Harbour. The experience is what you would expect from a large metropolis. The subway is efficient and very crowded. It whisks under under Victoria Harbour to Central Station where we meet our guide Maggie, short for Magazine and not Margaret as she explains with a laugh. Her English name she selected when very young after her parents emigrated to Hong Kong from mainland China, an undertaking she is eternally grateful to them. 

Maggie explains that this move provided her with an education and so much possibilities for her own child now in college. But she is sad that her cousins, aunts and uncles still living in mainland China have a much lesser standard of living and do not have the opportunities that she and her family have. As a resident of Hong Kong, she maintains both a Hong Kong and British passport and she can cross the border into mainland China so much easier. But this is not the same story for many mainland family members. It may take years of applying for permission to the Chinese government for travel to Hong Kong as so many crave the opportunities offered there.

We begin our journey with first a look at the skyline and its many skyscrapers, most built with Feng Shui in mind. Feng Shui (pronounced fung shoi in Cantonese), meaning “wind” and “water”, is the traditional Chinese art that determines the positioning of objects and buildings to ensure harmony and ensure the natural yin/yang balance bringing good fortune. It is deeply rooted in Hong Kong culture but not necessarily so in Chinese culture. A Feng Shui war erupted in 1990 when the Bank of China Tower was built, designed by renowned I.M. Pei, ignored Feng Shui principles. It’s angular knife-like corners is purported to leach negative energy to the surrounding area. The HSBC building nearby, built entirely out of metal (no concrete) to ensure good Feng Shui, was changed to protect itself. Two metal guns pointing at the Bank of China Tower were added to its roof repelling bad forces. 

Later, the Cheung Kong Center was built between the Tower and HSBC and is said to have been designed to balance out and absorb the negative energy coming from the Bank of China’s cleaver sharp edges. 

Our walk included travelling on the mid-level escalators in the Central District which run 800 meters (over 2600 feet) which makes them the longest outdoor covered escalators in the world.

Then a bonus! A street lion dance that marked the opening of a new business. The men in the colourful lion costumes danced to the beat of the drums and at the end one of the lions rose up and grabbed the suspended lettuce hanging underneath the entrance to bring good luck and fortune to the new owners.

We enjoyed a sugary flower tea at one of the many medicinal stores and jasmine tea at another to observe a traditional tea pouring ceremony. 

The Central and Western districts are not for any PETA fans or for the faint of heart. In the Sheung Wan Market, you will see many dried everything from dried mushrooms, shrimps, sea slugs or plants like ginseng to deer antlers, deer fetuses, snakes, shark fins and birds nest. You may want to google the last two items to learn more.

On other streets, food stalls offer fresh fruits, vegetables, meat and fish. The fish on display have been filleted open leaving the internal organs intact with still beating hearts. Fresh blood is poured on frequently to keep the fish fresh on the ice. 

Another Chinese traditions is the burning of offerings. Decorated paper bags and papier-mâché called Joss paper, some in the form of objects like houses and cars, filled with fake money (also called hell bank notes) are purchased from the many stores which are then offered as burnt-offerings to the deceased. We found several buckets afire along the road.

The Man Mo temple provided a quiet respite from the heat. Red spirals hang from the ceiling smouldering with incense. You can mark your donation with three beats on the drum and three more on the large iron bell.

The best advantage having a local guide is going to local eateries that the average tourist would not dare to go. You might be the only Caucasians in the restaurant which seems to be forever filled to capacity with locals. The noise din in Fung Shing is extraordinary loud. The dim sum is superb and you can down it with lots of Jasmine tea.

Though we said goodbye to our guide, the day wasn’t over yet. The Dragon Boat festival was taking place in the harbour. Men and women from all over the world competed in marked lanes to see who was the best. A cold San Miguel beer helped cool us down as we watches a team from B.C. win it’s heat! As we were getting ready to leave a sudden strong wind whipped the sand ahead of us creating this enormous dirt tornado. Like a horror movie, people began screaming and running for cover like Godzilla was coming for them. I was one of them. Chris merely turned his back and covered his beer. 

As suggested by many friends, taking the Star Ferry to return to the Kowloon side is evocative of an old era of maritime dominance. The seven minute ride will afford you scenic views of the harbour while providing a nice respite from the heat (not to mention tired feet!).

For a great before dinner drinks with atmosphere, head off to Aquaspirit on the 29th floor of One Peking. Be prepared to pay about $25USD for one of their drinks but the view! Warning if you are scared of heights as you are sitting by giant glass wall and it’s a long way down. But you will get one of the best view of the Symphony of Lights show which begins at 8 pm each night. Forty buildings illuminated with coloured lights, laser beams and searchlights on both side of the harbour are all synchronized to music.

Then head on downstairs to the 7th floor. Have you ever had Chinese vegetarian? Neither had we but at the suggestion of our guide we went to Kung Tak Lam Shanghai vegetarian restaurant. The experience is similar to the Dim sum where it is frequented by locals and the noise level is a few decibels.

On our final day, we headed off to the many markets on the Kowloon side. Using the MTR and our Octopus passes, we were whisked up Nathan Road to the various markets.

Meandering through the various street we sample freshly made and still warm egg tarts which are like little pies filled with an egg custard. Later we came across the Pet market which is like pet store after pet store all beside each other. Aquarium fish in water are hung in plastic bags on walls or door frames. The Mong Kok Bird market is not for bird lovers to take a stroll down to. Though situated in a lovely treed area and ringing with bird songs, dozen of stalls line the garden route selling pretty little and big birds in cages with thousands of live crickets trapped in bags waiting to be lunch.

The Flower Market will wake up your sense of smell with orchids, roses, orange trees and other exotic flowers. Be warned though that many of the markets above have “no photo” signs posted though I managed to sneak a few.

Finally, a lady or a man shouldn’t bypass the Ladies Market. Some streets are closed to traffic and like a flea market atmosphere you can bargain for clothes, electronics, souvenirs, jewelry etc…

Later at night, a return to the Temple Street Market was a must. Like a bazaar, there are more stalls offering similar items as the Ladies Market but you can have your fortune read and if you go just off the beat you will find a few more adult variety stalls selling “intimate” items if you understand my meaning. 

But the best thing about Temple Street Market is the food! Tables are set outside by many of the restaurants there. 

Within seconds of sitting down, you can order a beer. Be warned, when we were asked if we wanted beer, we weren’t asked the size. Our lunch size was just 3/4 can coke size. But here think of the size of a bottle of wine…each! 

The selections were varied but lots of seafood, noodles. Even for someone who may be squeamish about local cuisine there are choices that will satisfy. The spicy shrimps on a stick were yummy though we prefer ours stripped of shell and head. 

Our only disappointment was that we weren’t able to visit Victoria Peak. The weather kept the peak shrouded throughout our stay so there was no point in queuing for the tram to go up to see clouds.

We enjoyed our stay in Hong Kong and hope that you can make it your destination one day.

Look for our next blog from Bali and a review of our hotel in Hong Kong.

Cheers,

Chris and Danielle