Posted by Bone at February 24th, 2008
This is the noonday gun, it goes off every day at noon, and is a lot louder than I and everyone else stood near it expected. The guidebook described it as one of the last colonial remnants of Hong Kong, so I felt duty bound to view the firing.
The post title refers to the fact that this is the actual gun referenced in the Noel Coward song “Mad Dogs and Englishmen”, which is fun.
Posted by Bone at February 24th, 2008
This… apparently. I wasn’t really sure what people in HK ate for breakfast, in my guidebooks it seemed as if people basically ate the same thing for breakfast lunch and dinner.
I wanted to get something from a cake shop since all the stuff in them looks sooo nice, but none of those shops have seats, and I didn’t want to eat whilst walking. I wandered through Causeway Bay (an area filled with shopping centres) and found a traditional little restaurant, I assume its the HK equivalent of a greasy spoon. And ordered the item at the top of the breakfast list.
Working from left to right: tea (you get this free with pretty much every meal), two fried eggs, a steamed milk bun (which was gorgeous), freshly squeezed orange juice, and macaroni pasta with abalone ham and soup….
It didn’t taste bad, but its not really what I expect to find in front of me at brekkie, I think I might just go to one of the cake shops tomorrow morning and either bring the food back to my room of sit in a park with it.
Oh yeah, total cost for this meal, HK$31 or about £2.20.
Posted by Bone at February 23rd, 2008
Posted by Bone at February 23rd, 2008
Wow.
The flights here were okay, both late setting off but on time to arrive. On the AMS-HKG leg I had an aisle seat right at the back of the plane, which was great because I could lean the seat back for the whole journey without disturbing anyone, there was a space behind the row so I could easily stand and have a little stretch. I was next to the galley which meant a lot of foot traffic, but also guaranteed that I’d be the first person offered any food or drink, and therefore the best selection. There was no seat-back video screens which was a bit annoying, since most flights have that nowadays, but luckily I’d downloaded 11 hours of podcasts at the Bewley’s hotel, Manchester, the night before. Once thing which was awesome about the flight… real, metal cutlery. I never thought we’d see the day again when people were trusted with metal on a flight. I didn’t sleep on the flight, which was a pity, but I never do so I expected it.
The airport at Chep Lak Kok is on a scale I’ve never seen before. When we landed it just seemed like any airport, but this place is so big that you actually get a train from your gate to arrivals. And baggage reclaim itself is about the same length the whole of Liverpool airport. I got the express train to the city, which was quick but didn’t offer good views (it goes under the harbour, not over). Then I used my newly purchased Octopus card (basically an Oyster card that you can use in shops and on public transport) to go a couple of stops on the underground to Wan Chai, then got a bit lost finding the hotel (streets seem to stop and start at will here), dropped off my bag and went for a wandern since I couldn’t check in for two hours.
Basically, imagine that instead of flying from Manchester to Hong Kong, you flew from Manchester to the set of Blade Runner and you’re about halfway there. All the buildings are tall, no matter how small the plot size is they seem to sprout out of the ground to about 20 stories. They also seem to not mind putting massive, gleaming skyscrapers next to run down and ramshackle apartment blocks that I will generously say could do with a fresh lick of paint. I’ve seen a few buildings with the famed bamboo scaffolding shown in the photo.
It’s very noisy here, because of the constant hustle and bustle combined with car horns being used at any given opportunity. And there are people everywhere, which I know is to be expected, but still, they’re everywhere!
Everyone speaks great English, I bought a Cantonese phrasebook at Manchester airport, but it looks like I won’t be needing it.
Food is really cheap, I got lunch for HK$40 (with a service charge), which is less than £3, and could only manage to spend HK$143 at dinner. At dinner I ordered ’sliced chicken with sweetcorn and rice’ from the menu, and some spring rolls, and when it arrived it was chicken and sweetcorn soup, with a bowl of rice on the side. I guess I got what I ordered but it wasn’t exactly what I expect!
The hotel is very nice, my room is on the 10th floor and I’ve got: a massive bed (bigger than my one at home), LCD TV and DVD player (I’m watching Liverpool vs Middlesbrough live right now), big windows with a view up the mountainside (and tower blocks in the foreground, naturally), and a nice big bathroom which has glass walls, which means I need to close the curtains to the room when I shower. I’ve also got a little fridge which is very much needed since even though its the colder and dryer season I’ve found it to be warm and humid (19 celsius with 86% humidity). Don’t worry mum, I will take pictures of the room but I thought you’d want a description!
Ok, its midnight here and I’ve had about 5 hours sleep since… Thursday, so that’s your lot for now!
Posted by Bone at February 21st, 2008
Posted by Bone at February 19th, 2008
Posted by Bone at February 18th, 2008
Posted by Bone at February 18th, 2008
I’ve mentioned wanting to go to Hong Kong a few times on the blog, and now its happening! On Friday!
I know, its a classic bit of Bone forward-planning, organising a holiday on the other side of the world four days before he actually goes, but I got a great deal and now I’m getting rather excited about all the stuff I can do in the 9 nights.
Posted by Bone at February 16th, 2008
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Not as good the second time through, but the movie is a magic trick... so it shouldn't be.
0.3
Really enjoyed it, clever enough for adults simple enough for kids.
0.3
