Ok, so my last day here is drawing to a close. Before I grab some dinner, I want to put up some photos from last night! I met Kawin at Yau Ma Tei station, and we rode the MTR to Tsim Sha Tsui, and met Eunice in an area I remember from when Dad and I stayed there in 2007. It was sooooo great to catch up! We found a Japanese restaurant, and had quite the feast – onigiri, nigiri sushi (chutoro – YUM), tempura pumpkin, kimchi pork (yes, I know it’s Korean, but it was still awesome) and, because Eunice (with me in photo below) wanted them, california rolls.
Afterwards, the girls helped me to find an “Hong Kong umbrella” – for those who know my trust blue umbrella in Adelaide with the nifty slide-cover, this is my definition of an HK umbrella! The weather forecast for London is rain, so I thought it’d be good to have a nice umbrella for when I arrive. After much searching, we found one (a Burberry imitation, no less!), and went for a traditional Chinese dessert.
It’s called “soofabing”, and I had lychee flavour with watermelon and pineapple. The best way I can describe it is like icecream, but in little layers… Anyway, it was so, so good!
There’s no way I could have ever tried this dessert on my own, so I’m really glad I had the chance with the girls. We said goodbye around 10, and Eunice caught the bus with me.
Today has been tiring – the weather was much cooler, but my body still insisted on waking me up at 7:30am – sigh. I started off the day by catching the MTR to Mong Kok East to see the Bird Garden and Flower Market. It was an interesting experience. The Bird Garden was a long strip filled with LOTS of birds in little cages. I’m not sure how humane it is, but the constant chirping and the leafy green promenade was nice.
From there, I walked along Yuen Po Street to the Flower Market. For some reason, the smells of the market reminded me of my Grandparents’ old house on the Central Coast in NSW. I think their garden had a similar scent. Anyway, there were some beautiful flowers, and I had fun taking photos.
After that, I grabbed lunch at Ajisen Ramen (I’m loving how easy it is to get Japanese food here!) and headed back. I had a nap at the hotel and then walked over to the Jade Markets. Last time I was in HK, Kawin and her Mum took us there, and I got a beautiful blue necklace. This time I didn’t have Kawin’s Mum’s incredible magical bargaining powers, so I probably got ripped off, but I got 2 delicate jade necklaces, one in green and one in red. They’re engraved, and each bead has a different colour.
I love the Jade Markets because they remind me of Aladdin’s cave with golden treasures sprawling everywhere. Again, I had fun taking photos.
Once I’d bought my necklaces, I wandered down Temple Street for a bit, but it’s not a really nice area so I turned back less than halfway. Which brings it back to now! I booked my airport transfer for tomorrow morning – the concierge said I had to catch one at 5:15am to get there in time…. So that’s nuts. But I am getting ridiculously excited about going to Europe! I’m still getting my head around the idea of going to the other side of the world! Any tips on how to kill 14 hours on a plane? Luckily my book (The Secret History, by Donna Tartt) is fascinating, but hopefully there’s more choice of movies than the Melb-HK leg.
Before I finish and head out to dinner, here is a little list of things that I love about Hong Kong: the mix of old and new, dirty and clean, the bamboo scaffolding, the crazy neon signs, the ridiculously awesome food and the endless energy.
Next post will be from London! xox
