Hong Kong

Hong Kong. Quite a city. We docked right downtown and exited the ship through a huge port side shopping mall. Indeed it was hard to find our way out of the mall not only on the first day, but every time we left the ship. I think by the fourth time doing it we figured out that you turned right after you got off the ship, then went straight, then left, then down the escalator, then right and finally out the doors onto a very busy street. Our first stop was “Rio Pearl,” a jewelry store recommended by several people to have some pearls we bought previously restrung (beautiful pearls but poorly strung and weak clasp). They lived up to their reputation because they immediately engaged two people to restring the pearls in front of us. Of course we happened to see a beautiful pearl necklace with a jade piece in the middle, and I could tell that Ronnie had fallen in love with it. So it became her early Mother’s Day present.

We arrived on a Wednesday and the museums were free that day, so we headed off for the Hong Kong history museum. It was one of the best laid out museums we have seen, with each section representing an era of Hong Kong’s history from prehistoric to present. For us it was fascinating we to see how they handled the transition from British rule to mainland China in 1997. The people of Hong Kong generally have quite an independent spirit and the “one country two systems” motto basically means that they function mostly independently. We spent a couple of hours at the museum and when we left it was close to lunch. We passed up the museum cafeteria and ended up in a small restaurant which seemed to well attended by locals. It was on the ground floor of an office building and neither the cook nor the waitress spoke any English. Thankfully there were a couple of patrons who spoke some English, and between the skimpy English translation on the menu and the translation by the other patrons we ordered what we thought was pork and rice for the bargain price of $4 a person.

It didn’t turn out the way we expected so we tried to explain that we had wanted the barbequed pork that we saw others eating. However, somehow what we said was interpreted to mean that we wanted to order a whole new dish of barbequed pork. When this huge dish of pork arrived we were already full from our original dish, so we tired to turn it down, but the waitress and also the cook (who we guessed was the owner) became quite agitated. Wanting to avoid another international incident, we simply said we would pay for it (it was only another $5 or so). We did eat a few bites and it was excellent, and we wished we had that from the beginning. In any case we put the rest in a doggie bag, which we ended up throwing away before we re-boarded the ship (at some ports you cannot bring on board non-packaged food).

From there we walked around the area a bit and then took the subway to what is called “the Women’s Market.” We found it is a street market that sells a lot of women’s clothing and many other items as well. It stretches for several blocks along a pedestrian street. We were not that impressed with the goods for sale, but we did wander around for a while before heading to the nearby Jade market. Now that is a truly impressive market with stall after stall selling pearls and jade of every color and size. Of course the order of the day is haggling, with the best tactic being to simply walk away if you don’t like the price. Yes, we bargained for a few jade items, including a colorful hanging chain made up of all the animals of the Chinese calendar in Jade.

Back at the terminal mall I went to check out some of the electronic shops and was disappointed to find that the prices were generally much higher than the US (for example a $500 netbook computer you could buy in the US for $350). Because the balcony in our stateroom overlooked the harbor and Hong Kong Island (we were docked in Kowloon), we decided to have our dinner on our own deck. Hong Kong Island is crowded with tall buildings with large neon signs showing company names such as Panasonic, Sony, and even AIG. Every night there is a laser light show with lights from the top of many of the tall buildings.

So we had an excellent dinner (you can order from the main dining room menu for room service) overlooking Hong Kong Island and the ferries and other boats in between, and then the light show. The light show was accompanied by music and was quite impressive, almost like a fireworks show. We figured that to have such a view from a hotel room would probably be at least $600+ for the night. Yes, one of the many benefits of being on a ship. After dinner we went back to the metro and took it to a night market where we saw a great variety of more interesting merchandise than we had seen at the Women’s Market. A couple of silk items did find their way into our shopping bags (light and foldable, thank goodness). Walking back to the ship from the subway at night we were surrounded by people and even the usual fake Rolex and suit hawkers (many from the ship did have custom suits or sport coats made, and as much as I avoided it I now wish I had at least had a sport coat made). I don’t think Hong Kong ever sleeps.

This was the first day that we both felt at least a real sense of missing home. It also was the first time we had an extended stop in one port. Maybe there was a connection. In addition both our Cruise Director John and another couple had brought their toddlers on board. Seeing these little children around the ship reminded us of how long it had been since we had seen our grandchildren. The crew had discovered there was free Wi-Fi in the mall terminal, so we went on the ship and got our laptops and sat on benches or the floor in the mall with crew members and emailed and Skyped telephone calls to family until quite late.

The next morning I got up early and went by myself on the subway to the Wong Tai Sin Temple, a Taoist temple with a beautiful garden that I wanted to see, and Ronnie stayed behind to use the mall Wi-Fi some more. When I returned we headed out together and took the ferry to Hong Kong Island. After an exhilarating but brief ferry ride, we walked on connected walkways above the city streets for many blocks, finding our way to the escalators. Yes, there is a connected group of outdoor escalators going up the very steep hill that rising above the shoreline of Hong Kong Island. I should have counted how many escalators we went up, but I was so fascinated by the sights of the city that we could see below us as we traveled upward that I did not think to do so. The escalators are covered, defined by level (low level, mid-level, etc.) and I would guess we went up at least 25 or so different ones.

At the top of the last one I had been told by others on the ship who had been here that we could walk a short distance to the lower stop of the tram funicular that takes you to the top of Victoria Peak, called simply “The Peak.” It also said on my little map that it was a “20 minute walk to the tram.” Guess again. Well, it may be, if you can figure out how to get there. We walked several blocks in the right direction then came to point where you had to take a gradual street going up, or a steep outside staircase going down. I asked a crossing guard working for some road construction and of course found she spoke no English. I tried to sign the idea of going up on tram, but we got no where. Finally, we chose the staircase and went down several flights. Then we met an American family walking around, and the Dad told us he had been there before and that we needed to go up to get to the tram. Back up to the staircase and back to the crossing guard. I told her the tram wasn’t down, knowing, of course, that she could not understand a word I was saying. It made me feel better.

It was overcast but still starting to get hot and humid. We walked up a slowly winding road going up through a wooded area, and after many minutes we arrived huffing and puffing at a hotel. Seemed promising until we talked to the doorman, who told us the tram stop was a LONG way down. Guess the Dad was wrong about which way to go. The doorman basically said that at this point we might as well keep walking to the Peak. “20 minute walk,” he affirmed. Since there were taxis there I suggested to Ronnie that we take a cab to the top. She was fed up at that point and was determined to keep walking. Finally we came to the beginning of the trail to the top, and saw a sign which said “30 minute walk to the top.” Doorman was obviously a bit off. Up and up we went, around and around we went, up and up, huffing and puffing some more with our clothes soaked to the skin from perspiration. We actually saw one fellow jogging up past us and I got a bit excited when I could see the top.

When we arrived at the Peak we were so wet and tired that we hardly cared to see the view, which was almost totally blocked by the fog. It turns out there is a large mall at the Peak called the Galleria, and also lots of shops in the top of the tram called The Tower (this rather strange looking building shaped like a U) with many restaurants and stores. Ronnie had Starbucks and I had a sandwich from a little French shop, and then we took the tram down. The tram is so steep (almost 45°) that the seats are actually set at an angle on the floor. Nice ride down, but of course all we could think was how great it would have been to ride up. At the bottom we walked along several more elevated walkways and made out way down to the subway stop. We took the metro to an old renovated colonial style building (that had been turned into a market) recommended on the tour map, but there was not much to it. Back on the metro we went past our previous stop to where we caught a mini-bus to the Stanley Market for a dollar. We thought it would be a short ride, but we didn’t realize we would be riding all the way to other side of Hong Kong island. It was actually a beautiful ride of a half hour or so past a picturesque harbor along a hillside road with lots of greenery.

Stanley market is located on the water near another large Colonial building called Murray House and it is has become a tourist destination with lots of stalls selling all kind of merchandise from junk to beautifully crafted art. When we walked in I saw a shop selling nice silk ties at 4 for about $10 US. We picked out 4 only to discover further along in the market you could buy 12 for $10. Oh well, I tell myself the quality may not be as good, but what a difference in price! We had a good time looking around for an hour or so before heading back to the mini bus stop. The mini bus left us off at an area called Times Square, and it indeed feels a lot like New York’s Times Square with massive amounts of neon signs and shops. We walked around the area a bit before taking the metro back under the harbor.

By the time we got back to the mall at cruise terminal we were tired and decided we didn’t want to eat on the ship (dinner in one of the dining rooms usually takes a good two hours), so we were missing some decent pizza and found a California Pizza place in the mall. Irony again, of sitting eating California Pizza in Hong Kong looking out the window at our docked ship. The Asian toppings we ordered did make it quite tasty, however. Hong Kong is a truly electric city and we would love to go back at some point.