Hong Kong Adventure

Adventures with Napoli…

With the visa that I was issued, I am required to leave the country every 30 days. This will all change once I get my working visa but for this first month I decided to head to Hong Kong since I’ve been dying to go there and it is relatively close.

I first met up with a friend from PLNU, Brandon Napoli, who has been working on his MBA in Guangzhou (a large city about an hour away from Hong Kong). He planned on joining me for my trip into HK and I was excited to have someone to travel with over my birthday. I arrived in Guangzhou, after spending all night on a train from Kunming, and made my way to the subway station to meet Brandon at the stop nearest his apartment. It was nice to see a familiar face and I was excited to see a new side of China. We went to the markets to do a little shopping, of which I refrained from purchasing anything although I needed to find a nice winter jacket. After shopping and touring the city a little, I crashed in on Brandon’s evening Mandarin class and met some very nice foreigners. We all enjoyed each other’s company but had to split to get some sleep for the adventure into HK the next day.

Brandon had a final in the morning, so I was able to get some rest. Therefore we didn’t leave until the afternoon but got into HK with enough time to walk around the city as the sun was setting. It was my birthday and what better way to celebrate than to enjoy a McDonald’s McFlurry while watching the city light show across the bay on HK island. There are several buildings that participate in the nightly event that simply show off a Vegas style light show that lasts maybe 15 minutes; nothing to wow the masses but none the less a beautiful sight; so vibrant and full of life. The same feeling I had when I first visited New York had come back to me. And even though both cities are very unique from each other, they also possess several similarities.

We explored HK Island the next day traveling to the south side at Stanley Market. It was fun to finally visit some of the places my Dad had talked about for so many years as a pilot traveling here. Now I know where all the DVD’s and North Face knock-offs come from. After a morning in Stanley, we came back to Central and hiked Victoria Peak. The tram ride would have taken 50 minutes after waiting in line; we hiked it in 45. As the lactic acid poured through my legs from the climb, I couldn’t help but break out the biggest smile for I have been anticipating this view for the longest time. I was ecstatic to see the birds-eye view of the city in person. HK is a fascinating place that stems from British rule and has now grown into its own being. If you think HK is China, think again. Although Beijing claims ‘one country, two systems,’ HK is clearly an international city that has advanced in many ways passed not only large cities in Mainland China, but also those in the US. One example is the Octopus Card. This is a card that can be used primarily on the subway but also at 7/11, McDonald’s, parking meters, etc…. How genius is that idea, one card that can pay for just about everything you need in the city but isn’t a credit card. Too bad the US is already owned by credit card companies and a system like this may never emerge in our greater cities.

Anyway, back to the view… The sun was setting and the lights began to flicker as we hiked back down the hill. I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to see one of the largest/busiest cities in the world; this is China’s New York. Once down the hill we headed back to Kowloon. We had some dinner and walked the Temple Street Night Market where you can find just about anything you need. We were tired from walking so much and crashed out around 8 that night watching the Deadliest Catch as the Z’s overcame us.

The next day we headed out for Discovery Bay where we would meet and stay with my Dad’s friend for the night. We took the ferry over to this amazing community that reminded me a little of Avalon Bay. There was lush vegetation and a nice x-pat community plaza with restaurants and outdoor seating that would appeal to anyone who likes to socialize. We met Mr. Swofford and headed up the hill to his extremely nice pad overlooking the bay. It was a beautiful day, finally warming up into the 70’s. Brandon and I set off on some trails that go around the island (Lantau Island). We enjoyed a good 4.5 hour hike to the nearby town of Mui Wo and back again. We saw a snake on the trail and some impressive views from the top peak. We hassled a crab on the beach at Mui Wo and enjoyed being back in nature away from the city. After the long hike we showered up and headed down to the plaza for a surprisingly delicious MEXICAN meal. Who would have thought that some decent burritos were lying right there in HK. We picked up some chocolate and goodies and headed back to finish the night with a movie. What a day it was. And the best part was we had the most comfortable bed I had slept on since I left home!

The following morning we got cleaned up and said our good-by’s. Brandon and I had decided to check out Macau for the heck of it. We barely made our boat that left from central but got it just in time. It was a large catamaran that jets across the bay to nearby Macau. We had to go through the whole exit/entry of countries thing and exchange money AGAIN for Macau is its own entity. Once there we were a little confused… we kept saying to each other, “It looks like… but just isn’t.” The city sort of looked like Vegas (as it’s suppose to be modeled after) but just isn’t. Truthfully, it’s very dirty, old, and a poor man’s version of Vegas. HK actually did something with their independence from Mainland; Macau is simply lost. There are large hotels like the MGM, Venetian, Sands, Hard Rock, and Wynn. But all of them are scattered about. Without a central strip, it just doesn’t feel the same.

We made the most of it however walking around and seeing old forts and what-not. We saw an old fort that seemed like it belonged in Europe and we also saw San Paulo’s ruins which were neat. Macau stems out of Portuguese rule which was actually convenient. Knowing Spanish helped in understanding the Portuguese street names and directions. The best part of Macau was actually trying to find a buffet we had spotted on a billboard coming into the city. We ended up taking a taxi back to the billboard to find out where it was (frustrating because the meter kept running despite being stuck in traffic), then a free shuttle all the way across town to the City of Dreams. We found the buffet and did work on it. Stuffed from the Asian buffet we walked around the Casinos and then made our way back to the Sands Casino on a free shuttle (it was close to our hostel). I taught Brandon craps and proceeded to lose 200 MOP which is like 25 bucks… no big deal. Tired, and broke, I was excited to head back to the hostel and pass out. We’ve been going hard for awhile and I’m in need for a rest!

We woke up early the next morning anticipating and 4 hour bus ride back to Guangzhou. We successfully managed to get through customs, which looked like the border crossing from TJ to the US, and were glad to be back in Mainland. I was glad to have had Brandon on the trip and am anxious to get back to normalcy after having traveled quite a bit. If you've never been to Hong Kong, I highly recommend it. If you do it right, you can see a lot even on a budget. I hope you enjoy reading my adventures :) Stay tuned for more to come early next month.