Hong Kong

Hong Kong is probably the perfect definition of the word “city.” The place is bustling all the time with big double decker buses, double decker trams, taxis and hoarders of pedestrians always brushing past you as you walk through the streets.

In Hong Kong I stayed in Tsim Sha Tsui, which is in Kowloon. The place is full of cheap guesthouses and finding accommodation there was easy. The accommodation though was not of the greatest quality, it was quite small and not in the nicest of neighbourhoods but the location was central and suited my purposes well enough.

Watching the light show across Victoria Harbour on my first night there was incredible to see. After seeing the harbour before in movies and on TV, the scale of it was much larger in real life. Taking the tram to the peak which overlooks the city the next day gave a real indication to the sheer size of the city.

While there we visited the Big Buddha statue. To get there we had to get an overpriced cable car ride, which went for about half an hour. Unfortunately, the day was so misty that we couldn’t see anything from the cable car. I was quite disappointed in the end by the Big Buddha. Sure it was big and Buddha like, but the whole area seemed to be a tacky scam geared at taking stupid tourist’s money. For example you could not visit some areas inside the monument without purchasing an extra ticket.

The food in Hong Kong was also different… compared to the Malaysian Chinese food I’ve become used to anyway. I found Hong Kong food is less geared towards flavour, and more towards healthiness. For example, the food there was far less sweet than the food you can find in Malaysia. I also took the opportunity to try some different foods while there including a variety of odd things at dim sum, and a watery tofu dessert, which to my surprise actually tasted quite good.

Ocean Park was also a highlight of my Hong Kong trip. Being a huge fan of roller coasters I chose to visit this park over Disneyland. It’s very much like Sea World in Australia, with a few added extras. One of the best added extras would have to be the Giant Pandas. An-An the panda just sat there eating bamboo leaves the whole time, and really did look like it was a guy in a suit. The rides at Ocean Park were the standard theme park fair. I was able to confirm my love for roller coasters by sitting in the front seat of the two roller coasters they have at the park, and enjoying every second. The only problem that I found with the park was that it was too big, which made it troublesome to get around. To get from one side to the other you need to take a cable car, and then to negotiate your way around that side you need to take a series of really long, really slow escalators.

In Hong Kong I also travelled briefly into the New Territories, or the burbs of Hong Kong – where lots of the people live. About an hour out of town I was surprised with how busy the place still was. There were heaps of tall buildings everywhere which would put most city centres to shame.

See videos of places visited:
Victoria Harbour light show:


The Abyss Ocean Park - Hong Kong (take 1)


The Abyss Ocean Park - Hong Kong (take 2)


Dragon Rollercoaster Ocean Park - Hong Kong