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Roaminallover-Here, There and Everywhere
Including Hong Kong in our itinerary gave us a chance to visit Kay, one of our Host UK students, as well as getting hold of our visa for China. Flying in from Japan we were surprised to find a country which was predominantly green and mountainous, albeit for a few skyscrapers here and there! Well okay, there were more than a few, but we're pleased to report the mountains are still ahead in the great land snatch game of property development. Kay's mum had been very diligent on our behalf and secured some free accommodation with Nina, one of her friends from the Church. Nina lives in Fo Tan, a short distance from Kay and her parents in the New Territories, so we had the opportunity to see some of the day to day local life, as we went to and from the station. Fo Tan being a largely industrial area we were often going against the flow in the morning as the workers flooded out of the metro to work in the local high rise factory units. The first task in Hong Kong was to initiate the visa applications for China. I had found two agencies which had been mentioned by previous travellers - China travel service, and Forever Bright. As the former had a base at the airport we had consulted them when we arrived but were told then could only get us a 30 day visa. As we were looking for a 90 day we decided to hold off. Nina knew of a branch of the China Travel service in Shatin so the following day we headed there, with Saranya Kay's mum in tow, to help with the Cantonese. What followed was a whirlwind two hours of conflicting information. First we could have 90 days, then 30. We needed an itinerary and then we didn't. They didn't seem too bothered when I produced a photo nine months old with different hair glasses and teeth, so I suppose that was one bit that was straight forward. Feeling tired after the trip to Japan the whole charade took me close to melt down, but noticing my stress John took the helm and steered the passports and visa applications to a safe haven- the filing tray at Shatin China Travel. With a receipt requesting we return 5 days later to collect the elusive visa we left, free to explore Hong Kong. The next few days turned into a whirlwind of activity as Sayanya took us under her wing for the first couple of days. We managed to fit in our own trips to Hong Kong island on the star ferry, and made it to both Lantau to see the Big Buddah, and visited the Peak on the Peak tram to see the glorious view. On our final day we even managed a bus trip to the sea side at Stanley. Hong Kong island is awash with financial institutions towering above the streets, as well as acres of high end brands. As an international hub for air travel it also has its share of travellers from a wide variety of countries. The metro helps to move many underground, reducing the pressure on the overground options which are frequently trapped in traffic jams. One way to miss the jams and still see everything around you is to use the authentic trams which ply the island for a nominal flat rate journey fare. They are well worth travelling on if you have the time and much cheaper than the tour buses. The only issue with underground malls and subways is that it makes it difficult to gain on overview of the locality. After trawling through the warren of passageways we often emerged like little moles looking around for anything we recognised. Arguing the toss as to whether this was indeed the exit we needed. Until we had an idea of how the various landmarks linked together we were wandering miles of unnecessary tunnels. Eventually we figured out the strategic points, and decided that for us the island had more to offer by way of attractions than the mainland so headed there most of the time. The bus system is pretty easy if you know where you want to go as each route is detailed on the bus stop pole. You just have to find the bus stop first. Each bus operates flat fares depending on where you get on rather than where you are going, although we found the rates generally higher than the subway for similar journeys. We'd been advised to get an Octopus card when we arrived - similar to London's Oyster card it allowed us to preload the money and then we could swipe through train turnstiles and onto buses like locals! We eventually used about 360HKD between us, about £32 over the nine days but we did use it to travel backwards and forwards to the New Territories as well. One of the highlights of our time in Hong Kong was sampling Saranyas great cooking. As a Thai married to a Hong Kong man her cooking often combines the best of both cuisines, and we can vouch for the tastiness. We also had the opportunity to sample a Hong Kong Restaurant as the family included us in their weekly Saturday night meal with friends. Each weekend a large group of friends, around about twenty I think on our visit, meet together at the local floating restaurant, alongside other families doing similar. A selection of foods are ordered and placed on the Lazy Susan in the middle of the table (Sorry Sue Smith/Collins but I didn't name it! ) and the dishes are moved between the guests using the turntable. It was a veritable feast of offerings, some of which we liked, others less so. The abalone was definitely a new sensation. Uncuttable with chopsticks you had to put the whole slice of slippy gelatinous "meat" into your mouth at once. The taste seemed bland but not unduly unpleasant. I didn't however feel inclined to take more. The other item which proved something of a challenge for us both were the Squabs (baby pigeon). They arrived on the platter as a selection of body parts including head and beak. Assured and coerced by the cohorts around the table to try the said birds we tentatively selected a piece each. Neither of us were impressed by the tough dark meat , and left the rest of the partial carcass on the edge of the plate . The jellyfish was an interesting experience, an opaque ribbon with virtually no taste but an interesting light texture. I could eat that again if required provided it came with a nice tomato and garlic sauce to add some interest. The interesting part of the evening came when John tried to elicit some information from the people around the table about their working lives. It transpired that although friends for some time some people had any idea about the professions of others around the table which included a high end watch seller, realty agent, Japanese toilet sales, amongst others. When John expressed surprise that they didn't know this information about each other one of the party explained that it didn't matter to them as they were all friends who got together to relax and enjoy each other's company so how they earned money wasn't of any consequence. A very healthy attitude it seemed to us who are used to a culture where profession often defines social standing and worthiness. All in all it was a great evening, with people who accepted us into their weekly group as though we had always been there.
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