Hong Kong day one
The day has dawned cloudy and rainy and we had a very broken sleep due to the jet lag and difference in time frames.
Breakfast was a full buffet style in the hotel as part of the room rate and there was plenty of it. After this we found that our new room with the full harbor view was available so we quickly changed rooms. The view was great and the room was identical to the previous one other than that.
Because of the weather we were restricted to what we could do. The concierge advised us that there was heavy rain in the areas that many of the sight seeing tours went and the high viewing points would have very restricted visibility. There was a space museum across the road in the Cultural Centre so we went there for a look. Once inside it did not look that great so we did not pay to look any further. There was however a great shop attached that sold may 3 and 4D human anatomy models. Sheree found a great example of a molar (tooth) so got one of these for work.
Now at a bit of a lose end as to what to do next, we wandered along the harbor front and came across a large Chinese Junk that was just about to leave for an afternoon trip to an outlying area near Chung Hom Wan. There was also an authentic market known as the Stanley Market. We took up the offer of the round trip and within minutes we were aboard, being offered drinks and a very comfortable lounger seat (see movie and pics). It was a bit windy and the sea was rough so this made for an exciting trip that took about and hour and a half. The views along the way reinforced just how many skyscrapers there are here in Hong Kong. From the water they look like soldiers standing to attention all along the islands edges.
Disembarking was a real treat as it was so rough we had to stand at the side of the boat and at the right moment that the swell leveled the boat with the jetty and with the crews help, you took a leap of faith off (see movie). This was really exciting but when you think about it, also quite dangerous.
We had just over an hour and a half to explore the Stanley Market before the return trip so started the five minute walk to the stalls. Along the way we saw a reasonably new boat submerged (see pic) and unfortunately quite a bit of pollution in the water. There was a lot to see here and many stalls with bargains to be had and we bargained for several items.
With our hands and packs full of goodies we returned to the waiting boat at the jetty and repeated the same precarious exercise back on board. Once under way the drinks came out for the trip home. Along the way you get a better view of a fun park known as Ocean Park (see pics) that has hair raising rides on roller coasters etc high in the hills with a large cable car winding it’s way around the mountain side.
It was just after 5pm by the time we returned and we took a stroll along the Avenue of Stars on the water front that has all the Chinese movie stars. The only one we really recognized was Bruce Lee (see pics).
After a coffee at Starbucks (see movie) we went back to the Hotel to off load our purchases. Once back we went for a swim at the very nice hotel pools. Back at our room we took the time to again view the harbor light show that we could now cleary see from our fantastic vantage point in our new room.
We had heard of a night market called Temple Market which is about a half hour walk up Nathan Road. This road is one of Hong Kongs renowned shopping places with all the top brands and is inundated with hawkers trying to sell imitation watches, handbags and tailored suits. This place comes alive at this time of night and there is so much to see and take in so it took longer to finally arrive at the Temple Market. Again we indulged and filled our bags with many nick naks and before we knew it the time was midnight and we still had not had tea. By this time we were past wanting much so settled for Macdonalds before the wonder back down a now very different Nathan Road with all the shops closed.
