Hong Kong

On Saturday 3rd December we flew from Singapore to Hong Kong. We arrived at Changi Airport to find a huge Pokemon themed Christmas display. As you can tell by the look on my face, I'm rather excited about the giant Pikachu...

My sister-in-law Norshidah met us at Hong Kong airport as Warren was playing a rugby match that afternoon. That afternoon/evening we were invited to a house-warming party at the home of friends of Warren and Norsh who live out on Lantau Island quite close to the airport. We took a taxi to the house and dropped off our luggage. Since we were a bit early for the party we then took a bus to the nearby factory outlet shops for bit of a look around. Warren met us there, and after picking up some supplies at the supermarket we headed to the party. It was good fun. We had previously met a few of Warren and Norsh's friends at their wedding, as well as on previous visits to Hong Kong, so it was great to catch up with them again. One of Warren's best mates, Jason, also happened to be in Hong Kong for a few days for work, so it was awesome seeing him as well. 

Warren used to live in Sai Wan Ho on the east of Hong Kong Island, but since marrying Norsh they have moved in together into an apartment in Shau Kei Wan, just one station further east on the MTR. The new place is very similar to the old in that it is directly above a market, and is also a walk-up with no lift in the building. At least the new place is only 3 floors up, compared to his previous place which was on the 5th floor! 

Since our last visit to Hong Kong Warren and Norsh have also inherited a 'fur-baby', Rambo, who is a real character and well and truly rules the roost! Our daily alarm clock tended to be Rambo jumping all over us in bed when he decided that he needed some attention...

Will and I usually use Hong Kong as a stop-over on our trips back to the UK, so like in Singapore, we had already done a lot of the main tourist attractions. Will hadn't arranged a university visit in Hong Kong, so took the opportunity to catch-up on some of his work. One day I left him working in peace and made the long trek (via MTR and tram) to the Hong Kong Wetland Park which is right up in Tin Shui Wai near the Chinese border. My MTR train was disconcertingly empty, a totally different experience from using the London Underground!

I had a lovely day wandering the extensive park and checking out the birdlife. There are a couple of hides where you can sit and watch the birds. They tended to be full of serious birders, I did get a touch of camera envy!

They have done the park nicely with lots of boardwalks crossing the extensive wetlands. 

I do enjoy my birds, so was happy to come across a few that were kind enough to let me take their portraits... I would love one of the super-zoom lenses that would enable me to take some much better close-ups, it might have to go on a 'wish-list' for the future, maybe when we eventually upgrade our DSLR camera.

Aside from the birds, I also came across some other wildlife.

As dusk began to fall I thought I had better start making my way home. It felt slightly odd having a huge nature conservation area in such a built-up urban setting.

One day Will and I took the bus out to Shek O beach on the extreme south east of the island. We had a lovely day with a highlight being an excellent lunch at a little beach-side Thai restaurant. The duck curry was amazing (and huge!).

One evening we attended a special meal which Warren had arranged at a very cool little restaurant in Sai Wan Ho, just around the corner from his old flat. The restaurant is called Little Kitchen and it only does 24 covers per night. Its concept is that you have your seat for the night, so can enjoy a leisurely multi-course set menu fine-dining meal, with byo wine. It was a great evening and the food was top-notch. The menu changes weekly, and they guarantee that you will never have a dish repeated. We had a very enjoyable evening with excellent food, wine and company. I only took pictures of a couple of the courses, so below is the duck main, and a pear-based dessert.

I also realised that, despite taking loads of photos of their cat, the only one of Warren and Norsh we took was during that evening! Here it is below, with Jason on the left.

The last major excursion that Will and I did in Hong Kong was the Dragon's Back hike. We took the same bus that we had taken on our day at the beach, but got off a few stops before Shek O at the beginning of the trail. The trail is very well sign-posted and we had a great day climbing right up to the top of the ridge and getting spectacular views over the surrounding area.

 

This area is renowned for its paragliding and just after we had passed the summit we came across the takeoff point. Someone was just about to launch, so it was interesting to stop for a while and watch them eventually get airborne after a few aborted attempts.

That was the end of our time in Hong Kong. It was lovely being able to spend so much time with Warren and Norshidah, and we appreciated all of their generous hospitality. We've loved visiting them over the last few years on our travels to or from the UK. This was the last time we'll see them in Hong Kong as when we are next in that part of the world they will be living in Singapore.