Saturday, May 8, 2010
Saturday in Hong Kong. Another great breakfast in the hotel Club lounge. British corned beef hash for me, American corned beef hash for Catherine - I won! Headed back to the room to catch the Calgary Hitmen in their WHL championship-winning game on the Slingbox. They were up 4-1 when I turned it on and that’s how it finished. Well done, guys! Now go get the Memorial Cup! Found out there was a flight change to the Cambodia leg of our trip which will reduce our time there. Have now decided to spend an extra day in Siem Reap and one less in Phuket to maximize our visit. Hotels changed, transportation pending. Will try and sort flights out when we get to Bangkok. Today’s plan is to explore Kowloon. We took the subway to the gold fish market. Most impressive subway system we have ever used. Very clean and well organized. The gold fish market was fascinating. Hundreds of bags of fish ready to be sold as pets. Aquariums are popular as the apartments are too small for dogs and cats. As we made our way to the gold fish market, we passed through the home renovation shop district. Amazing to see so many shops side by side selling tiles, faucets, door handles and the like. Incredible selection - we have a long way to go to catch up in Canada. The shops are organized in districts where every shop in the area sells similar products. Great for comparison shopping and getting the best price. The various markets were heaving with people - Saturday seems to be shopping day. This was particularly true in the ladies district where knock-off designer bags were all the rage. After exploring the various shopping districts, it was time for afternoon tea at the Peninsula Hotel - one of the things to do in Hong Kong. A 40 minute wait and we were seated in the grandiose lobby. Overall, a pleasant experience but the scones did not make our top five list! We went back to the Inter-Continental Hotel to check out the afternoon tea selection in the Club lounge, only to find they had better scones and clotted cream and these guys were included in our daily room rate! After a second round of tea and scones, we went to sit by the pool for a while before heading off to the nearby Harbour City Mall for some last minute shopping. This is the largest mall in Hong Kong and the biggest one we have ever been in. Teeming with shoppers and back to back designer shops. Every name brand imaginable. A paradise for lady shoppers! We walked around a bit and then headed back for our nightly ritual of evening snacks at the hotel. A quick walk up and down the neon light spectacle of Nathan Road dodging the fake watch and bag dealers before heading back to pack for Cambodia and turn in for the night.
Saturday in Hong Kong. Another great breakfast in the hotel Club lounge. British corned beef hash for me, American corned beef hash for Catherine - I won! Headed back to the room to catch the Calgary Hitmen in their WHL championship-winning game on the Slingbox. They were up 4-1 when I turned it on and that’s how it finished. Well done, guys! Now go get the Memorial Cup! Found out there was a flight change to the Cambodia leg of our trip which will reduce our time there. Have now decided to spend an extra day in Siem Reap and one less in Phuket to maximize our visit. Hotels changed, transportation pending. Will try and sort flights out when we get to Bangkok. Today’s plan is to explore Kowloon. We took the subway to the gold fish market. Most impressive subway system we have ever used. Very clean and well organized. The gold fish market was fascinating. Hundreds of bags of fish ready to be sold as pets. Aquariums are popular as the apartments are too small for dogs and cats. As we made our way to the gold fish market, we passed through the home renovation shop district. Amazing to see so many shops side by side selling tiles, faucets, door handles and the like. Incredible selection - we have a long way to go to catch up in Canada. The shops are organized in districts where every shop in the area sells similar products. Great for comparison shopping and getting the best price. The various markets were heaving with people - Saturday seems to be shopping day. This was particularly true in the ladies district where knock-off designer bags were all the rage. After exploring the various shopping districts, it was time for afternoon tea at the Peninsula Hotel - one of the things to do in Hong Kong. A 40 minute wait and we were seated in the grandiose lobby. Overall, a pleasant experience but the scones did not make our top five list! We went back to the Inter-Continental Hotel to check out the afternoon tea selection in the Club lounge, only to find they had better scones and clotted cream and these guys were included in our daily room rate! After a second round of tea and scones, we went to sit by the pool for a while before heading off to the nearby Harbour City Mall for some last minute shopping. This is the largest mall in Hong Kong and the biggest one we have ever been in. Teeming with shoppers and back to back designer shops. Every name brand imaginable. A paradise for lady shoppers! We walked around a bit and then headed back for our nightly ritual of evening snacks at the hotel. A quick walk up and down the neon light spectacle of Nathan Road dodging the fake watch and bag dealers before heading back to pack for Cambodia and turn in for the night.