Saris and Elephants

At the beginning of August I spent 6 nights in Hong Kong for a week of shopping, eating and gossip (I met up with my good friend from university while I was there!). Landing at Hong Kong airport was one of the most spectacular arrivals I have experienced. As you start to descend you see all the islands and boats dotted around the sea below, and then Hong Kong, with all its lights and skyscrapers, appears through the clouds.

Hong Kong is a vibrant city, a mix of Chinese flavoured with British colonial touches and gaudy neon lights everywhere you look. Most city skylines look much the same as each other, but here the buildings are all individual and unusual. From the Bank of China building (said to have bad feng shui due to the angular, praying mantis-like appearance) to the towering International Finance Centre, to the smaller colonial buildings; no two are the same. In the evening these buildings come to life with the daily sound and light show which is best enjoyed from one of the harbour side bars.

Behind them all is Victoria Peak where, after taking a tram to the top, you have a spectacular view of the city below. Incidentally, the day we visited Victoria Peak was the first day of what turned out to be a force 8 cyclone, probably not the safest weather to be in a tram clinging to the side of a mountain!

I managed to squeeze a lot of sightseeing into the week, visiting the various districts of the city and went for a day trip to Macau, an ex-Portuguese colony with a distinctly European feel and a lot of casinos! On the day that the typhoon hit we had booked a dolphin watching boat trip. Oblivious to the storms of the previous night we woke early and headed down to the meeting point to join our boat trip. It was only when we got there that we registered the rubbish strewn streets and windswept trees. Unsurprisingly, the boat trip was cancelled and we had to make alternative plans for the day. Because of the extreme weather, all public transport had stopped, and most shops and sights were shut for the day. Down at the harbour we saw the local news crews filming the damage, before heading to the only place open – the cinema, where we watched a Chinese movie. I’m still not sure what it was about!

Away from the commercial shopping areas and designer shops, there are the night markets with a more Chinese feel where you can buy almost anything, including a good bowl of noodle soup! Although you can never completely get away from the fake handbag and watch touts that lurk on every corner. I also had my palm read by a fortune teller in the Temple Street Market, I will have to wait to see if it all comes true!

Hong Kong is an exciting, bustling city with a lot to see and do, although I have to admit I felt a little claustrophobic being surrounded by all those skyscrapers. I would definitely recommend a visit; the dim sum and Peking duck alone are worth the trip and taste even better with the Hong Kong skyline in the background!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 7th, 2009 at 12:04 pm and is filed under Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.