Jason (and Kirsten) in the UK

We stopped off in Hong Kong for 3 nights on the way back from the UK to Australia, finally visiting a city that I’ve long wanted to see. We managed to avoid the worst of the snow which managed to cause some problems at Heathrow by a day or two, and landed in Hong Kong having sampled the best economy class in-flight entertainment yet, thanks to Cathay Pacific.

The Airport Express carried us directly into the heart of the city, and from there it was only a short walk to our hotel. However, we soon found that a short walk in Hong Kong is not an easy walk – the combination of masses of people, hilly landscape and some ageing Asian sidewalks combined with our massive suitcases (the only possessions we will access in the next 3 months) to make the walk very, very uncomfortable indeed.

We finally managed to limp our way up to our hotel in the heart of the Lan Kwai Fong area, which turned out to be a very happening part of town filled with bars, restaurants and almost as many ex-pats as local Chinese. Our hotel (Hotel LKF) was booked months in advance and was very nice indeed – kind of a mini-honeymoon suite for the almost-honeymooners (we have just got engaged, if you hadn’t heard in other news).

Some of the highlights from the trip:

• With jetlag in full swing, we took a walk through the Graham Street market, in the western end of the Lan Kwai Fong (LKF) area to see the stallholders setting up in the very early morning. It was a great chance to experience an interesting side of Chinese life in Hong Kong, and made for some great photo opportunities (it was the first outing of my new Nikon D700 and the 70-200 f2.8 combination). Soon after, we headed over to the Lin Heung Tea House nearby, frequented only be older Chinese people reading their morning newspapers. We had some interesting (and dirt cheap) dim sum, but it was the awesome pork congee and the theatre of old Chinese men rushing up the the waitressing bringing out the fresh food that was most satisfying to experience.
• Seeing the contrasts of “East meets West” unlike anywhere else: older people meditating and taking walks in the early morning, while wealthy youngsters (of all races) are still out partying from the night before; expensive Western brands in flashy malls at London prices (and above) while traditional medicines made from deer antlers, caterpillars and thing much rarer are being created and sold 10 mins down the road; people undertaking traditional meditation and burning incense while working in the massive skyscrapers of international finance that tower over the city.



• Freezing our asses off everywhere, but especially on the top of The Peak (Mt Victoria) which overlooks the city. We thought we’d left the cold behind us in in England, but we found it does get quite cold in Hong Kong. We’d only brought a couple of Icebreakers jumpers with us each, and these were no match for the wind and chill at the top of the mountain in the height of hong Kong’s winter. However, the walk from The Peak along Lugard Road to Hong Hong University below provided us with some shelter from the wind and some spectacular views of the awesome city of Hong Kong
• Enjoying the 24/7 buzz that was only matched by New York in my previous experience. At almost any time, there was a lot people doing something, anywhere in Hong Kong. The experience of exiting the Mong Kok underground station into the throng of shoppers on Nathan Road in Kowloon will never be forgotten – even expecting it to be intense, it was a riot of people and neon.
• Haggling with shopkeepers selling ‘real’ fake handbags in the Ladies Market in Kowloon, and finding out that the best way to get a good price on things is to really, really not want to buy anything. We were also feeling lucky to escape with our lives and our wallets after being led to a very dodgy looking 29th floor apartment only to discover it was actually a warehouse selling handbags, albeit at double or triple the street price.
• Finally finding the holy grail of dim sum at Yung Kee restaurant in LKF, after sampling a numbers of others (all good, too) including dim sum in style at the famous City Hall restaurant.
• Hanging out at cool bars, including the rooftop bar of our hotel giving awesome night-time views over Hong Kong and drinking alongside Hugh Grant at another bar nearby our hotel.

Hong Kong was the amazing blast that I had hoped for, and that many who had been had spoken about. While Kirsten was more afflicted by jetlag than I, it was obvious that there are many more reasons for us to return to Hong Kong in the future – its a city that works on a surface level, but I’m sure gets better and better once you get to know the city. I look forward to getting to know it better in the future.

You can see more photos of the trip to Hong Kong here ».