Victoria Peak Photos
Victoria Peak, Hong Kong, China.
Lamma Island Photos
Lamma Island. We went here to go for a little hike and get some scenery. But mainly to getgreat seafood. They had the best scallops I've ever had.
Lantau Island Ramblings
On Friday I took the ferry over to Lantau Island to have a look see at the world's largest Buddha statue. The ferry took me to Mui Wo (or Silvermine Bay) where I hopped on a bus that took the windy roads up to Ngong Ping, where the Buddha lives.
The Buddha was outside of the new Po Lin Monastery. I did a quick tour, just going up the stairs to the Buddha, walking around a bit and walking to the monastery. After looking at incense, I hopped back on the bus and went back to the ferry and to Hong Kong.
That night Moo and I went out for drinks with some friends of his. Then we met up with Fausto (Alex's brother) and more of Moo's friends for some dinner in Central. The food was really quite good. We had pork (of course), fried jelly fish (a little odd), chicken and chiles and awesome won ton soup.
After that the three of us went to this exclusive bar called Drop. To get there, we walked down a little alley to a bouncer behind a velvet rope. Moo was on his cell phone, making business deals and such, he didn't even slow down, he just whipped out his official Drop membership card and we were in. We walked through a velvet curtain and down some stairs into the bar. As soon as we were in the waitresses were all over Moo. "Oh HI Jason!" "We miss you!" "Here's your table, Jason."
We sat down and Moo ordered us pineapple martinis. I was a bit skeptical, but they sure were good. After a few we didn't even notice the alcohol. We hung out for a while as Moo and Fausto talked business and other stuff I didn't quite get. After gracing the rich and the beautiful with our presence, it was time for us to move on. We hit a few more bars before calling it a night and stumbling back to Moo's apartment.
The Buddha was outside of the new Po Lin Monastery. I did a quick tour, just going up the stairs to the Buddha, walking around a bit and walking to the monastery. After looking at incense, I hopped back on the bus and went back to the ferry and to Hong Kong.
That night Moo and I went out for drinks with some friends of his. Then we met up with Fausto (Alex's brother) and more of Moo's friends for some dinner in Central. The food was really quite good. We had pork (of course), fried jelly fish (a little odd), chicken and chiles and awesome won ton soup.
After that the three of us went to this exclusive bar called Drop. To get there, we walked down a little alley to a bouncer behind a velvet rope. Moo was on his cell phone, making business deals and such, he didn't even slow down, he just whipped out his official Drop membership card and we were in. We walked through a velvet curtain and down some stairs into the bar. As soon as we were in the waitresses were all over Moo. "Oh HI Jason!" "We miss you!" "Here's your table, Jason."
We sat down and Moo ordered us pineapple martinis. I was a bit skeptical, but they sure were good. After a few we didn't even notice the alcohol. We hung out for a while as Moo and Fausto talked business and other stuff I didn't quite get. After gracing the rich and the beautiful with our presence, it was time for us to move on. We hit a few more bars before calling it a night and stumbling back to Moo's apartment.
Downtown Hong Kong Ramblings
Today I went back downtown to the Shek Tong Tsui and Sai Ying Pun areas of Hong Kong. At least that's what the map says. I walked around and took pictures and ate food.
I stopped in a little restaurant where there were no english menus or pictures. That should be the best kind. I asked for barbeque pork and got a nice big plate of rice and pork. As it was so good (and cheap - $3 with a coke) I asked for more pork. The place was pretty full so a lady who came in for lunch sat down across the table from me. I used one of my two Cantonese phrases and said hello (at least Moo tell's me that's what it meant) and she said hi back. She was nice and gave me a napkin from her purse, as I was apparently getting BBQ juice everywhere.
I walked by a lot of medicine stores that were selling different fungi, squid, bark, birds nests, shark fins (not a fan of that) and spices. The smells were strong and pretty neat. Some of them smelled like the concoction of herbs and roots I drank when I was sick a few years ago. I could see how endangered animals like snakes and other creatures could get wiped out over here. There were tons of shark fins, snakes and horns of various animals. A bit strange. I took the tram back to Central and went by the travel office where I got my Chinese Visa and bought a ticket to Beijing. My dad said I should take the train back from Guanxio (or something like that), so I'm flying into there from Beijing. I'll have 5 full days in Beijing, which should be enough to visit the Summer Palace, Forbidden City, do some shopping and see the wall.
After a traditional nap, I met up with Gerry to get my new tuxedo in Kowloon. The rentals here are pretty expensive for a tux, and it's only $50 more to get a custom made tuxedo - so I'm getting myself a tux. And I'm getting new shoes made for only $40. Hopefully other people will be getting married, or else I'll have to come up with another excuse to wear a tux.
After the tux fitting, we met up with Moo and Moo's dad for dinner at a swank restaurant. It's one of those places where they put your napkin on your lap. Which is a little strange. But the food was awesome, I had a crab that was scooped out and mixed with breading and spices and put back into the crab and baked with a crust. Pretty damn good. Moo got a dessert that had dry ice under the bowl, it looked cool. After a few beers, we said goodbye to Moo's dad and hopped on the train to Hong Kong island. Then in the cab ride home I lost Moo's cell phone that I had been using and just put $40 on. So we're on to his last backup phone. Which I promised not to lose. It was my pants fault.
I stopped in a little restaurant where there were no english menus or pictures. That should be the best kind. I asked for barbeque pork and got a nice big plate of rice and pork. As it was so good (and cheap - $3 with a coke) I asked for more pork. The place was pretty full so a lady who came in for lunch sat down across the table from me. I used one of my two Cantonese phrases and said hello (at least Moo tell's me that's what it meant) and she said hi back. She was nice and gave me a napkin from her purse, as I was apparently getting BBQ juice everywhere.
I walked by a lot of medicine stores that were selling different fungi, squid, bark, birds nests, shark fins (not a fan of that) and spices. The smells were strong and pretty neat. Some of them smelled like the concoction of herbs and roots I drank when I was sick a few years ago. I could see how endangered animals like snakes and other creatures could get wiped out over here. There were tons of shark fins, snakes and horns of various animals. A bit strange. I took the tram back to Central and went by the travel office where I got my Chinese Visa and bought a ticket to Beijing. My dad said I should take the train back from Guanxio (or something like that), so I'm flying into there from Beijing. I'll have 5 full days in Beijing, which should be enough to visit the Summer Palace, Forbidden City, do some shopping and see the wall.
After a traditional nap, I met up with Gerry to get my new tuxedo in Kowloon. The rentals here are pretty expensive for a tux, and it's only $50 more to get a custom made tuxedo - so I'm getting myself a tux. And I'm getting new shoes made for only $40. Hopefully other people will be getting married, or else I'll have to come up with another excuse to wear a tux.
After the tux fitting, we met up with Moo and Moo's dad for dinner at a swank restaurant. It's one of those places where they put your napkin on your lap. Which is a little strange. But the food was awesome, I had a crab that was scooped out and mixed with breading and spices and put back into the crab and baked with a crust. Pretty damn good. Moo got a dessert that had dry ice under the bowl, it looked cool. After a few beers, we said goodbye to Moo's dad and hopped on the train to Hong Kong island. Then in the cab ride home I lost Moo's cell phone that I had been using and just put $40 on. So we're on to his last backup phone. Which I promised not to lose. It was my pants fault.
Hong Kong Photos
Hong Kong, China
Downtown Hong Kong Photos
Downtown Hong Kong, China.
Peng Chau
After waking up from my nap and watching another episode of Dead Like Me, I ventured out to the small island of Peng Chau. The ferry ride was pretty cool, tons of boats and ships running around across the bay.
I picked up a pork bun and walked around the area near the docks. There wasn't too much going on, but a lot of neat alleys and walls to check out. Yes, I said the walls were cool, that's a sign of growing old - staring at walls.
I hung out on the waterfront for most of the afternoon. I picked up some shumai and another pork bun. And M/Ms for dessert.
There was a little old lady (ok, lots of them) who sat near me and stared in my direction. I have to say that she scared me a bit. She had this little cane that she'd rap on the ground as she walked. She got up once and just stood there with the cane hitting the ground. I grabbed my M&Ms a little closer to feel better. She went away to scare another person.
It was a pretty cool town/island, lots of little apartments and houses. And a graveyard on the top of a hill. They have pictures of the people on the graves, which is a little strange. And writing in red ink. Which would be scary on Halloween at night I think. I took another ferry back to Hong Kong after a neat sunset. The sky is hazy here, which gives a nice orange tinge to everything, even before sunset.
There was a little old lady (ok, lots of them) who sat near me and stared in my direction. I have to say that she scared me a bit. She had this little cane that she'd rap on the ground as she walked. She got up once and just stood there with the cane hitting the ground. I grabbed my M&Ms a little closer to feel better. She went away to scare another person.
It was a pretty cool town/island, lots of little apartments and houses. And a graveyard on the top of a hill. They have pictures of the people on the graves, which is a little strange. And writing in red ink. Which would be scary on Halloween at night I think. I took another ferry back to Hong Kong after a neat sunset. The sky is hazy here, which gives a nice orange tinge to everything, even before sunset.
Mon & Tues
On Monday I bopped around downtown Hong Kong. Jason's fiance Gerry took me to a shop to get my visa for China. Now I just have to remember to get an airplane ticket. We also went to a few shops to find me a new shirt, as my clothes seem to be more fitted for cooler weather (and apparently they shrunk when I crossed the date-time line on my way here.) I picked up two shirts (one with spandex!) for $10.
I was waiting to meet up with Jason and Gerry for dinner and I needed a snack, so I did as everyone else here, and picked up an order of fries from McDonalds. American food? you ask. They eat it here, so who am I to argue. Welll, about an hour and a half later I realized why not to eat American food here: diahrea. Luckily I was in one of the nicest shopping malls I've ever been to and they had very nice toilets. The walls of the stall were stone that were nice and high. And a little man walking around the bathroom with a little spray bottle, spraying overpowering perfume. He seemed to keep coming back to where I was.
Anyhoo. I waited for Jason to get off work at a little square with fountains (the kung-fu guy below). The building looked pretty cool so I layed on my back on a fountain bench to get a better look. The next thing I knew there was a police officer standing over me. "Blah blah blah." I looked up at him, "Huh?" "No sleeping here." "Oh. Sorry?" Crap. He walked off and I got my bag and scedadeled away. I met back up with Gerry and Jason and we ran over to Kowloon to do some wedding shopping. We went into a building that had 4 floors of just wedding stuff. It was funny to see all these women walking in front of their men who were carrying things with their heads down saying "yes dear." Or however it's said here.
We went left there to find a favorite restaurant of Moo's. Moo and I started looking for some stomach medicine, cos I wasn't about to miss out on some authentic hole in the wall Hong Kong grub. I had to make another run to a bathroom, this time in another McDonalds. Damn you super sized french fries! We went to dinner in this little place that had 5 foot 6 ceilings and awesome noodles. I got an order of tripe and fish balls. Moo was nice enough to eat the tripe for me.
Yesterday, Tuesday, I decided I was going to run up to Victoria Peak, which is right behind Moo's place. He said it was 2.8 km from the start of the trail, so I figured "How hard could it be?" They know how to build hills here, it was a super steep hill, I saw a rock roll up the hill faster than me. The view from the top was pretty awesome, you could see all of Central and the south side of the island. The tallest building downtown seemed to be just as high as we were, but maybe it's the optics of smog and oxygen deprivation from the jog. My book says the hill is 1500 feet tall, so I doubt the building was that tall. But who knows.
After the jog I went back to Moo's place and promptly fell asleep. Which turned the rest of my day into 'vacation day' where I lazed around and watched downloaded movies and tv shows. Here are some pictures from Monday. I'm heading out to Peng Chau today after a little nap.
I was waiting to meet up with Jason and Gerry for dinner and I needed a snack, so I did as everyone else here, and picked up an order of fries from McDonalds. American food? you ask. They eat it here, so who am I to argue. Welll, about an hour and a half later I realized why not to eat American food here: diahrea. Luckily I was in one of the nicest shopping malls I've ever been to and they had very nice toilets. The walls of the stall were stone that were nice and high. And a little man walking around the bathroom with a little spray bottle, spraying overpowering perfume. He seemed to keep coming back to where I was.
Anyhoo. I waited for Jason to get off work at a little square with fountains (the kung-fu guy below). The building looked pretty cool so I layed on my back on a fountain bench to get a better look. The next thing I knew there was a police officer standing over me. "Blah blah blah." I looked up at him, "Huh?" "No sleeping here." "Oh. Sorry?" Crap. He walked off and I got my bag and scedadeled away. I met back up with Gerry and Jason and we ran over to Kowloon to do some wedding shopping. We went into a building that had 4 floors of just wedding stuff. It was funny to see all these women walking in front of their men who were carrying things with their heads down saying "yes dear." Or however it's said here.
We went left there to find a favorite restaurant of Moo's. Moo and I started looking for some stomach medicine, cos I wasn't about to miss out on some authentic hole in the wall Hong Kong grub. I had to make another run to a bathroom, this time in another McDonalds. Damn you super sized french fries! We went to dinner in this little place that had 5 foot 6 ceilings and awesome noodles. I got an order of tripe and fish balls. Moo was nice enough to eat the tripe for me.
Yesterday, Tuesday, I decided I was going to run up to Victoria Peak, which is right behind Moo's place. He said it was 2.8 km from the start of the trail, so I figured "How hard could it be?" They know how to build hills here, it was a super steep hill, I saw a rock roll up the hill faster than me. The view from the top was pretty awesome, you could see all of Central and the south side of the island. The tallest building downtown seemed to be just as high as we were, but maybe it's the optics of smog and oxygen deprivation from the jog. My book says the hill is 1500 feet tall, so I doubt the building was that tall. But who knows.
After the jog I went back to Moo's place and promptly fell asleep. Which turned the rest of my day into 'vacation day' where I lazed around and watched downloaded movies and tv shows. Here are some pictures from Monday. I'm heading out to Peng Chau today after a little nap.
Hong Kong Ramblings
I've been in Hong Kong for a few days, staying with Moo at his apartment in the Mid-Levels. His place is right by longest escalator system (in the world?) We've been going out and eating, had some awesome noodles at some place I wouldn't be able to find again or order from.
On Saturday Moo showed me around the Central district and Causeway Bay. We rode on the double decker trolleys and went through a bunch of stores looking for stuff to buy. It seems like Hong Kong is a big shopping area, so if you dig on shopping, this is the place for you.
We even got a pre-paid SIM card for Moo's spare phone, which I'm using while I'm over here. Everyone walks around with cell phones attached to their neck, so I was just wanting to fit in. If you like to have large phone bills, feel free to give me a call (852 6449 6074). hahahha.
Yesterday we went over to Stanley and had lunch with some of Moo's friends from Singapore. It was a nice place overlooking the ocean. One of them brought their dog, an Alaskan Malimut (?), which is one of the largest dogs I've seen.
Halloween Party Pics
Here are some more pics from the Halloween party.
She-Ra, Wonder Woman and the Lasso Of Truth
She-Ra, Wonder Woman and the Lasso Of Truth