Well, I made it to Hong Kong! The flight wasn’t too bad – there was no-one in the seat next to me, so I could stretch out a bit. The most interesting part of the flight (apart from watching Despicable Me, finally! Super cute), was with about 3 hours to go (it was night), I opened my window blind and saw a lightning storm outside in the distance. It was amazing – the clouds lit up in a dull burst of yellow, like a mini sun. Very, very cool.
I didn’t get to my hotel until about 3am Adelaide time (uugh), so am pretty tired, but loving being back in Asia proper. In my enthusiasm, I accidently started talking to the Customs official in Japanese… Oops. Apart from the surprisingly large amount of Japanese products (and TV stations) available, Hong Kong has a very different feel to Tokyo, but still has something familiar about it.
This morning I decided to go in search of an authentic Hong Kong breakfast, which can only mean one thing… Yum cha! I’m staying in a hotel just off Nathan Road (which I remember as a main drag from my last trip in 2007), so I went for a walk and eventually came across a place that was open (not too many shops open before 10-10:30 here) on a side-street. Basically I picked it because it was open, and the pictures looked good. I’m glad I did! It was like stepping into a local version of the Ding Hao. I was seated on the same table as a mother and daughter, who very kindly helped me get the waitress’s attention and figure out how to order. It’s little moments like these that restore my faith in human nature. They didn’t have to help me, but they did, and it made all the difference to me. Anyway, I ate 3 amazing dishes – steamed chicken buns, steamed prawn dumplings (a favourite!) and rice rolls with beef. YUM!
The rest of the afternoon (so far) has also been about food – I caught the MTR to Central and found the mall Dad and I had explored last time near the Harbour. I grabbed a Haagen-Dazs pomegranete, white peach and orange blossom sorbet (it was divine), and picked up a grapefruit and poppyseed macaroon to try later. I ducked into Zara (oh the joy of Zara! How I wish we had it at home), and bought a beanie, because I forgot to pack mine. I may or may not have also bought a couple of thin tops for work as well…
Anyway, I’m sitting at a cafe in the ifc mall with a sesame bagel sitting next to me, waiting to be eaten, so I’ll sign off. Tonight I’m meeting Kawin and Eunice for dinner (we’re having Japanese). It’s been nearly 2 years since we last caught up, so I’m pretty excited!
