The last stop in our Hong Kong trip was Mong kok. After enjoying the view of the Hong Kong skyscapers from the Peak we rushed to the famous shopping area via the MTR. We alloted enough time for shopping for souvenirs and "pasalubongs"(gifts) for friends and families . Mong kok resembles Greenhills in Manila and maybe most markets in Asia ,but still with a twist. For me ,one of the distinctive aspects of the place was the haggling part. The vendors were more aggresive and the whole procedure of haggling was hilarious. Anna wanted to buy keychains for "pasalubong" so we checked out one of the stalls. Anna asked for the price and the asking price was HK$120, Overpricing ! She checked other items instead (feigning disinterest in the first one). At this point the haggling officially began. The moment Anna picked up another item the price of the key chain began dropping, “100″, offered the vendor. Anna ignored her and looked away . “Okay….okay…Filipina you want cheaper?” (by the way they addressed both Anna and I Filipina). “Ninety”, the price dropped again , still we started walking away. One step you make is equivalent to HK$20-decrease in price, “70 !”, the vendor shouted as she was chasing us and was trying to grasp Anna’s hand. “Okay…okay…how much you wanna pay? Tell me !..tell me !”. Anna was only paying HK$35. “Forty”, the vendor almost begged. In the end Anna got two sets of keychains for HK$35 each. On to the next stall. This time around Anna’s haggling talent already had a track record. Since we were in a rush as it was already noontime we decided to cut to the chase. We approached vendor number 2. “How much?”, while pointing to the item. One of the things I’ve learned from this trip to a non-English speaking country is to communicate with the locals using phrases or words only, with the help of course of sign language. Speaking in straight English will just confuse them, what is important is they hear the key words or phrases. “One hundred !”, the vendor answered. “Thirty !” we said. “Get Out!”, the vendor screamed. We were stunned. Though embarrassed , we dashed away laughing at ourselves and at the experience. We pondered afterwards that maybe she was gonna sell the items at the price we’re willing to pay had we followed the procedure.
On our last day in Hong Kong our first stop was The Peak, the highest point in Hong Kong island. We had already figured out how to get there as a result of the previous day’s misadventure when we took the wrong tram and ended up somewhere else.It turned out that there's a specially designated tram that takes tourists to the Peak and its station is near the HSBC building in Central, Hong Kong.Before the tram arrived we had our pictures taken at the tram terminus where an old tram and a machine of some sort that probably ran the tram in the early days were on display. The fare was a lot more expensive compared to the HK$2-regular tram , but it’s worth it because it offered a different kind of ride. The way up to The Peak was so steep , it looked like a 45-degree slope. Every now and then on our way up, the tram would halt leaving us practically hanging. The thought of the tram sliding off the mountain scared the wimp out of me. Although based on records there has been no reported accidents from the time it started operating more than a hundred years ago .
We got to The Peak unscathed. We went inside the Peak Tower which is basically a mall. There was a nice souvenir shop full of interesting trinkets. I liked the items a lot for "pasalubongs"( gift ) but they’re expensive so I decided to do the shopping in Mong Kok which would be our next stop anyway. Aside from souvenir shops there were also fancy restaurants at The Peak Tower. The Madame Tussauds wax museum was also located there. The ticket to the museum was ridiculously expensive. I don’t get why one would pay HK$185 to see wax figures of celibrities. No freakin’ way ! I just had my photo taken beside Pierce Brosnan’s figure displayed outside. Visitors could also go up to the viewing deck for an additional fee to get a glipmse of the harbor and the skyscrapers below. “Puritas” or poor tourists like us just contented ourselves with doing the sightseeing at a lower level outside the Peak Tower. The view was spectacular. Hundreds of tall glass buildings , gleaming under the sun made it look futuristic. I had not seen anything like it. I felt like I had been assigned to watch over the goings-on of a modern world beneath.
The skyscrapers of Hong Kongare the stars of the Symphony of Lights Show. I had read that the best place to watch it from was at Tsim Sha Tsui on the Kowloon side. In that area you can also visit the Avenue of Stars which is Hong Kong’s version of the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Along the avenue ,which is facing the ocean, you can find hand imprints of local celebrities. While waiting for the show to start we searched for what could probably be the most famous hand imprints we could find, that of Jackie Chan’s. We found not just Jackie Chan’s hand imprints but also Jet Li’s. It’s interesting to note that both gentlemen have small hands. The show started at exactly 8pm. The buildings were emitting colorful neonlights, lasers and all sorts of light effects that seemed to be dancing to the music played in the background. We could also hear a narration in Mandarin or maybe Cantonese, I’m not sure ( how could I tell? ). The show lasted for less than 20 minutes. It was kind’a disappointing that there weren’t that many buildings that participated but still it’s one of a kind show. I was also disappointed that while we were at the harbour we only saw one junk, a traditional Chinese boat with its signature sail.
After a full-day itinerary we ran out of camera batteries so we failed to take as many pictures as we had wanted. Even with a number of letdowns, I was still happy and in awe of the sights.I regret not having gone there at daytime as the view would have been wonderful as well. We forgot that somewhere in that area was the famous clock tower of Hong Kong , I don’t know why we just lingered at one area on the avenue while waiting for the show to start.
It was time then to call it a night , so we headed back to where we stayed and had late dinner again.
We only had few hours of sleep on our first night in Hong Kong as we had to get up early since our itinerary was full on the second day. It was drizzling early in the morning when we searched for a place to eat . We ended up at Maxim’s , (a fastfood but at least it's not Mcdonalds).I hate eating at fastfoods when I'm abroad because it defeats the purpose of the trip which is to experience new things.
Our first stop was the Wong Tai Sin Temple. I included it in our itinerary not for any historical significance ( it’s not even that old) but because I wanted to see an authentic chinese temple and to observe how the Chinese pray. I bought joss sticks which was very important as it would serve its sole purpose of being a prop during picture taking. I just bought the cheapest bundle for HK$5. When I asked the vendor how much it cost , she simply showed me a HK$5-coin. Okay. I went on and lit the sticks and then “hoy !”, Anna called my attention. She had noticed that I lit the wrong end of the sticks. Ooops! Suddenly, I became hesitant to have Anna take my picture because they might perceive it as a mockery of their customs and religion or worse blasphemy. Right next to me was another tourist , a Chinese-looking woman at that who didn’t have a clue either of what she was doing. She was holding the joss sticks while grinning to the camera. Realizing that I had company, I continued. We went inside the temple. Everything that we saw was really foreign to us. There was one thing in particular , I was not sure what ritual it was but I saw someone shaking a bamboo cylinder full of sticks. When one of the sticks fell, it was exchanged for a piece of paper bearing the same number as the stick. They read what’s on the paper so I figured it was probably one way of fortune telling. After a few shots (outside at least as cameras were not allowed inside the temple ) we left and made our way back to the MTR station to head to our next destination, Disneyland.
We had agreed not to get inside the park and pay an absurd entrance fee when there’s nothing there to see except mascots and other kiddie stuffs. I was never a fan of those cartoon characters , not even as a kid. But just for the sake of having something to brag on facebook we still wanted to have our pictures taken at the entrance at least. We took the MTR from the Wong Tai Sin station on the Kwun Tong line then we got off at one of the interchange stations on the Tsuen Wan line. “Interchange” is one of the two words you’d often hear at the MTR, the other is “Mind the freakin’ gap”. It annoyed me after hearing it a thousand times. From the Tsuen Wan line we got off at Sunny Bay interchange then headed to Disneyland Resort station. The train looked different this time. It had the Disney theme. The windows and handles were shaped like Mickey’s head and were really cute. Instead of the usual seats at metros it had blue couches covered with velvet. At every corner in each carriage was a statuette of a Disney character. If I’m not mistaken I sat next to Minnie. The station at Disneyland also had the same theme. It’s designed in a Victorian style making it looked so magical. You’d feel like being lost in a magical kingdom , in the middle of nowhere since the park’s location is in a remote part of Lantau island. ” A Whole New World”, which is from the movie Alladin was being played when we arrived at the park, so even from the outside we could still feel the Disney air. It was only 10am but the sweltering heat from the sun was becoming unbearable that we decided to leave, again, not without a dozen or so pictures taken of course. We headed to our next destination , Tian Tan Buddha.
Also known as the Giant Buddha, Tian Tan Buddha is a large bronze statue of Buddha, and located at Ngong Ping Village, Lantau Island. We took the train again from Disney station to Sunny bay then to Tung Chung , thanks to the unlimited ride on the MTR courtesy of our Octopus card. Taking the MTR is very convenient, fast and cheap especially with an Octopus card. The downside though is you’d be missing out on the sights as it’s a subway on most lines. The Tung Chung station is just across the Ngong Ping 360 which is a cable car. The ride takes you to the Giant Buddha in just 25 minutes. TWENTY FIVE ? It sounded scary , it meant we would be dangling over the ocean and the mountains for almost half an hour. Nevertheless, we were looking forward to experience it as we’re up to a little adventure but only to find out it’s closed for a week to undergo maintenance. Aaaaargh ! It was the first letdown on our trip. There was another option though , a second option , a very far second.... we traveled by bus instead but it took much of our time as one way took 45-boring minutes.
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When we got to Ngong Ping Village it was raining "pandas and dragons" so we took to one of the souvenir shops in the village. I didn't expect a storm during our trip because I had checked the weather in Hong Kong during that time of the year .We checked out the items, ngeeeh! way too expensive. When the rain stopped I looked for the Buddha but I couldn’t get a glimpse of any enormous bronze structure. I thought the Buddha was still covered with the thick fog. When I turned around I was stunned by the size of the statue looking down from the top of the hill. He was so huge and it was kinda’ eerie because I felt like He was just observing everyone below. We climbed up the hill and enjoyed the view from the top. I realized that the storm earlier was a blessing in disguise because after it had cleared up the 268-step-climb became a breeze sans the humidity.
The Giant Buddha is not old, it was completed in 1993. It sits on what looks like a lotus flower. Underneath the statue is a building. We went inside and we saw framed photos of how the statue was assembled after it had been shipped from mainland China. One particular photo shows how big the statue is as one of the construction workers is only as tall as the statue’s index finger. Around 3 pm we went back to Hong Kong island to go to Victoria’s Peak , said to be the highest point in the island. We hopped on a tram , it cost HK$2. It moved at a snail’s pace but we didn’t mind because we were busy observing everything that we passed by. After a while we realized that it wasn’t moving to any higher ground so we decided to get off. Several nose bleeds later after asking directions from the locals we learned which tram to take to the Peak. It turned out that there’s a specially designated tram that takes tourists and locals to the Peak and not just any other tram. We agreed to postpone our trip as it was almost 6pm and we still wanted to watch the Symphony of Lights showwhich takes place every night at 8pm. That being our last night in Hong Kong ( it was only a 3D2N trip) meant that it would be our last chance to watch it.
Hong Kong Ocean park is one of the most famous theme parks in Asia. When I was creating an itinerary for our Hongkong trip I made sure that it would be on our list of must-visits since I would have a lot of firsts there. Anything that I hadn’t experienced or seen yet would be worth a visit. Among the things that I was looking forward to were the rides in the park like the roller coaster that I hadn't tried yet as I had never been to any theme parks . I was also excited to see the pandas , the dolphins , the sealions , and the list of attractions worth seeing or experiencing goes on .The entrance fee of $208 was $23-higher than what was quoted online. After paying for our tickets we went to buy bottled water and I got worried when I found out that it cost HK$16 or around P95 for something that would normally cost P15 in Manila. It seemed like I had underestimated the cost of everything in this tiny island but still it didn’t dampen my spirits at all.
After the expensive bottle of water quenched my thirst , we looked for the pandas right away. They are housed in a fully airconditioned building that mimics their natural habitat. That section of the park is aptly named Amazing Asian Animals. The pandas were so adorable that a little girl screamed in excitement when one of them walked towards our direction. I'd seen a lot of panda pictures but i did not expect those lazy creatures with their big round black eyes and thick black and white fur to really look like stuffed toys in reality. The whole time we were there one of them was just sleeping , at least I thought he was ( or maybe he was just leaning on a rock). Another one hardly moved and when he did it was because he had to poo which I fortunately or unfortunately captured every moment of it! In that part of the park we also saw their cousins the red fox pandas who were as lazy as them as they were just perched on the tree the whole time. Another creature that we encountered was the giant salamander. I’d only read about it from my college textbooks ( I took up BSBiology ), I had no idea what it looked like. Unlike the adorable pandas, the salamander is the creepiest looking animal I’ve seen in my life. It resembles lizards only uglier and it is aquatic. From the Amazing Asian Animals section , we took the cable car to get to the other side of the park. The park covers a vast area that walking to get to the other side is impossible unless your itinerary is just hiking the whole day. It was a shaky ride but the view was so gorgeous I managed to ignore the occasional shaking. The view was pretty much like in Tagaytay but instead of a lake you’ll see the ocean below. An observatory tower stood on the other side of the park , it’s called -what else?- The Ocean Park tower. It rotates upwards and gives visitors a panoramic view of the park. Not so far from the tower was the Pacific Pier where you can see the playful sealions . At this point my companion Anna could no longer wait to try the rides. I initially protested since we hadn’t taken our lunch yet but later I gave in since I also felt the excitement mounting within me. We tried the roller coaster first. I enjoyed it so much, at some point during the ride I couldn’t tell whether I was facing up or down, everything happened so fast. Afterwards, the nausea I was feeling proved that trying the rides with an empty stomach was utterly stupid. I just wanted to puke at Anna for convincing me to do it.
In case you're wondering, it's a sea horse
We agreed to take lunch after the ride but I thought I wouldn’t make it to the nearest foodstall without passing out. When I could already manage to walk we bought a bowl of rice with toppings of assorted meat. It cost HK$35. I didn’t like it but I just had to stuff myself to get by. We still couldn’t get enough of the park so we watched the Dolphin Show , another first for me. The tricks they performed were no different though from what I’d seen on tv but still it’s fun to watch them live. At the show we met a Filipina , a nanny to cute Aussie kids. Anna chatted with her since she was recommending a friend’s place that had an extra room they’re renting out to tourists from the Philippines. Anna got her number then we parted ways. My daredevil of an officemate persuaded me again to try another ride , this time the “Abyss”. It looked kinda’ “interesting”. I wanted to do it last since I hadn’t fully recovered yet from the roller coaster and still felt a bit dizzy but more than that I hadn’t gotten back at Anna yet by puking at her…..Aaaargh! In the end Anna won. Abyss is a ride which lifts you on an open seat several stories- high then drops you so fast without warning. There was something weird about that ride that I was screaming the whole time while the aforementioned daredevil-female-officemate was laughing at me. I wasn’t scared that we’re being dropped from a several stories -high tower , it was the feeling of not feeling anything at all that freaked me out. At that time we were probably weightless due to freefall hence the feeling of not feeling anything at all.
We also went to the other sections until the park closed.We had a blast although one day wasn't enough.
Since the cheapest tickets to Hongkong on our travel dates were the ones via Clark, being budget travelers we had no choice but to book the tickets and travel from Manila to Dau by bus just to catch our flight.The flight was at 7:15 AM. We were not sure though of the availability of buses in that route early in the morning ,so we thought the safest thing to do was to travel the night before our flight to ensure that we’d get to the airport on time. I was with my officemate Anna on this trip. We left Manila around 10pm. I only had three hours of sleep that day after a night shit at work…wait , that one should have an “f” , night shift at work .Despite being sleep-deprived, I was still energetic and was really excited about my first trip abroad.From a terminal in Cubao we boarded a bus bound for Dau. I had never been to Pampanga so that bus ride alone was already something to look forward to. On the bus they played the movie “Taken” starring Liam Neeson. I asked the driver how long it would take to get to our destination and I didnt believe him when he said “just 45 minutes”, yeah right.
Just when the story of the movie was starting to unfold and I was getting interested already, I realized that we had arrived in Dau. We got off the bus while it was raining and I kept on wondering what would happen to Liam’s daughter in the movie who had been abducted ( I have to watch that movie again). In Dau we took a jeep to get to another terminal and from there it’s another jeep ride to Diosdado Macapagal International Airport. When we got to the terminal we found out that the jeep bound for Clark wasn’t a 24-hour thing.There were some drivers who were willing to take us to the airport but they’d charge us P200, which I thought was too much considering that from what I had read its only a 15-minute ride.We decided to wait for other passengers so we could share the fare with them. After three hours a couple arrived and they agreed to share the fare with us.The jeep left around 3 AM. It was so dark inside Clark, I could barely see the establishments and the former military facilities that we passed by.When we arrived at the airport I thought it was too small for an International Airport and to my surprise it was still closed. An airport employee told me that it would open at 5 am. We decided to just sleep on the seats at the waiting area outside. When we woke up the first plane had arrived , it came from Macau. It’s the day that I had been anxiously waiting for in the past months. At around 6am we were already lining up at the immigration. I was worried the whole time that the officer might deny me for some reason so I really tried to compose myself. After the officer went through my passport he gave me back the departure form that we had filled out, oh boy! I thought I was in trouble. It turned out that he just wanted me to correct something because for the "date of birth" I had written down September 19, 2009 instead of September 19?? ( I will never reveal my age to the readers), a mistake I always make whenever I fill out forms , hahahaha. To my relief I corrected it right then and there and the officer stamped it and let me in. Whenever I go home to the province I always fly Cebupacific so this time I was expecting at least a 30 -minute delay but surprisingly we were asked to board the plane before 7:15am. WOW! I put on my mask ( this trip was made at the height of the birdflu outbreak in the world , something that wasn’t enough to stop us) and had my picture taken. I was hoping to get some sleep on the plane during the two-hour flight but I guess I was too excited that I stayed awake and was looking out the window of the plane the whole time. I remember seeing islets as we were approaching the Hong Kong International Airport and all of a sudden all I could see was just the ocean and the plane was flying so low. I didn’t know what was happening….I slightly (just slightly) panicked. I thought we’d crash into the ocean. I felt relieved later when I realized that we’re actually hitting the runway which is by the sea. When we stepped out of the plane we were greeted by two Chinese airport employees and upon hearing their accent it hit me that I was already in a foreign territory for the first time. I had dreamed of this since I was a kid. Steps away from where the airport employees welcomed us was the toilet (not the CR as I’m used to calling it backhome) and when I went in I heard men speaking in different tongues. I didn’t understand a single word but I was thrilled. After clearing the immigration we had our US$ exchanged to HK$ (rate : US$1 = approx. HK$ 6 ). We also picked a free map of Hong Kong from one corner of the airport.I remember the airport was so huge that we had to take a train to get to the other side. We then bought an Octopus card which is a stored value card that can be used to pay for a train ride from the airport to the Central area and unlimited ride of the MTR for three days. On our way to Central via the Airport Express ( a really nice train) we caught our first impressive glimpse of Hong Kong. Its topography is not so different from the Philippines’ , you can see mountains on one side and the ocean on the other , with islets scattered around the bigger islands. However, it’s noticeable how the modern structures all over the place compliment its topography. The sight of the high-rise buildings at the foot, on the sides and on top of the mountains was just breathtaking. We hadn’t booked a hotel so from the airport we went straight to Central then to Ocean Park. From the Central MTR station we had to walk few meters to the bus terminal. It was such a welcome relief that their bus station was devoid of the noise, filth and chaos that are common in the ones backhome. After waiting for maybe fifteen minutes the bus arrived. It was a double-decker bus, yehey!. I wonder why we don’t have any of those in the Philippines. I relished the sights again this time as we were heading to the park. Hong Kong is a bustling city , its residents seemed to be always chasing someone, they walked really fast. There were huge billboards, modern glass buildings and a lot of skyscrapers way taller than the ones in Ayala and Ortigas. Few minutes later we passed by a residential area which was composed of high-rise apartments. This time it’s the not -so -glamorous part of Hong Kong. It’s cramped , we could see clothes hanging outside the windows of the buildings and even the plumbings were visible from the streets. It took around thirty minutes to reach Ocean Park from Central or maybe it took longer , I’m not sure because we’re having a blast already.
