Ben and Emily met us at the Shenzhen train station, and I felt a little giddy, adding familiar members to our little group. It was good to talk with Ben and see how his holiday had progressed thus far. But it was safe to say that Marlie and I had been having more fun (he was only going to be in Shenzhen with Emily’s family for the holiday), and we couldn’t convince him to join us in Hong Kong. We lunched at Subway (his favorite), and tried to find a hostel. There are none. Not in Shenzhen. The city is a SEZ, Special Economic Zone, and it’s only existed for about thirty years, so there’s no history, and thus, not much to see or reason to visit. It was just a huge economic BOOM and ta~da, there was Shenzhen.
We found the cheapest hotel we could, and our room was on the 22nd floor, probably the highest in a hotel I’ve ever been. It was a very nice room, but the price left a sour taste in my mouth.
We asked Ben and Emily what there was to DO in Shenzhen, since the only reason we were staying a night was really to recuperate from the overnight train and to visit them for the day. The only ideas they had for us was to try the Fairy Lake Botanical Gardens nearby. That sounded… decent enough, and so we took a few buses and trains to get near the location. We found four buildings with just the label of “INTERNET”, which I found ridiculously funny.
But… the gardens lied. There were no flowers. It should have been translated as just “park”, or even “garden”, since botanical suggests to ME that there will be flowers. There were not. It was just a lot of water and hills and trees donated by various political figures. So that was a bit upsetting. Wandering around the park wasn’t too bad, but it also wasn’t the most thrilling adventure ever. We took a bus to the Windows of the World amusement park, and it looked sort of neat from the outside—it had miniature figures of all sorts of famous structures, like the Eiffel Tower (which we could see from the gates) but it cost far too much to try out, and it was already later in the night. So we bid Ben and Emily good night and returned to our hotel, happy that we would be leaving Shenzhen (and its dullness) and heading into Hong Kong the next day. (At least I got to watch some Jackie Chan Adventures on tv….in Chinese?)
Day 16 – Reunited!
We met up with Ben and Emily again to escort us to the airport, where Josh would be arriving from Beijing after a week with his mother. Emily’s father made us a delicious lunch in their tiny tiny apartment.
Ben had made signs of “J”, “O”, “S”, and “H” so we could all hold one up to meet Josh with after our suggestion the night before. Unfortunately, we weren’t going to arrive before Josh because as we waited for the bus we needed, it zoomed past without stopping. It took twenty minutes or more before we noticed there was another bus stop, far before the intersection, and that was actually where the bus we needed was stopping.
We got to the airport late, and Josh had already disembarked, and was in a different section of the airport. It took some looping around and strange security before we were reunited. We did still get to use our letters, if briefly, so that was good at least.
Our next task was to find a bus that crossed into Hong Kong, and it cost 100 kuai, a bit more than I was expecting, but it would absolutely be worth it to get out of Shenzhen.
They slapped stickers on our shoulders for Wan Chai, our desired final destination via bus, where we could then hop on the metro to reach our hostel. The bus took about an hour to get out of Shenzhen, cross the water, and then through the New Territories of Hong Kong. We wanted to be on Hong Kong Island proper (further south).
Quick aside: Hong Kong uses Cantonese, not Mandarin Chinese, and so we were all out of our element re: language, but so so many more people knew English and there were a plethora of foreigners, that it didn’t matter. And for the first time, we weren’t getting stares. It was quite refreshing to feel like a normal person again in a big city (albeit one with more Chinese than we were used to).
We couldn’t find our hostel immediately, since the directions only said “a 30 second walk from the metro”, which was vague, and so we checked the address at a McDonalds (one that had wifi, huzzah). Our hostel ended up being exactly next to the “E” exit of Causeway Bay in the Paterson Building. There was just a metal gate/fence that we needed to go through to find the hostel. It was a really great location, and I was glad we didn’t stay at the Chungking Mansions (a popular cheap place to stay in Hong Kong). I read enough beforehand about them and I wasn’t keen on staying in a building that’s known as a severe fire-hazard.
We didn’t go far for dinner and drinks (only one stop back to Wan Chai), but it was immediately obvious that Hong Kong was going to put QUITE a dent in our wallets. I know exactly how much of a dent as well, since I kept a record of every single thing I bought while on the trip. I don’t know why I kept track of all my expenses, but it just felt like something that had to be done. (Along with the daily journals/notes so that I could write these blogs). The whole trip, excluding plane tickets (since they were purchased weeks before the trip started) cost around 10,000 kuai (approx $1500). That’s food, lodging, transportation, random purchases… everything. Our six days in Hong Kong accounted for about 4000 kuai. So definitely, a very expensive city.
The best part of the night for me personally, was finding that I could once again have hard cider. I even wrote in my expenses: “Strongbow. Happy” next to the price. The money is also very cool in Hong Kong, and my favorite was the 10 dollar bill. (It is Hong Kong dollars, so I can say dollars. Seeing the $ symbol was a nice return to normality as well, though everything else had a more British feel to it, obviously.)
Day 17 – The Hong Kong Pulse
Very quickly I was able to “feel” Hong Kong and its constant rhythm within. It was absolutely intoxicating and the entire time I was there I thought “I could REALLY live here.” Yes, there are a lot of people, but the entire place was just too interesting to discount for the wonders of the city.
We woke up for our first full day of Hong Kong, watched a little Count of Monte Cristo on our tiny television in our hostel room, and took geyser showers. We had to flip a switch to turn on the “geyser” (really, the hot water heater).
We found breakfast at a little place called “Viking” and walked to the Sheung Wan station to get our Octopus Cards. I recommend for anyone staying more than two days in Hong Kong to get an Octopus Card—you have to make a HK$50 deposit, but you get most of that back plus any balance left on your card when you leave. They’re crazy convenient since they’re used not just on the trains, buses, and trams, but at some restaurants (like McD) and grocery stores too.
There was (real) English EVERYWHERE, and the weather was wonderful. Marlie and I didn’t need our coats, and so we stuffed them inside Josh’s backpack. We walked along near the harbor on Discovery Bay pier and soaked in the harbor view. The IFC building and mall was nearby, (the building that Batman jumps off of in Dark Knight) and we followed the advice of wikitravel.com to buy some cheese, bread, and drinks at City Super and eat them atop the mall. So up we went!
We stayed atop the mall for a long time, and it was very refreshing. I was really really appreciating Hong Kong because of all the differences it has from China. People don’t spit. They don’t shove. There’s toilet paper and soap in bathrooms and they’re not flooded with water. They know how to move properly in crowds, and we don’t get STARED at like animals in a zoo. I was going to cherish the time I had in Hong Kong before I had to return to China proper.
The subway in Hong Kong is amazing, and it was our prime way to get around. We visited the Soho and Mid-Level Escalators in the late afternoon, and hit up some happy hours at Best of British (or Yorkshire Pudding—I couldn’t tell which was actually their name), a decent English bar, and the Spot, who had the friendliest female bartender ever.
Dinner was a gyro for me, pizza and tikka masala salad for Marlie and Josh at Ebeneezers, and afterward we walked a LOT without much purpose, but it led us through some cool areas and streets, and so it wasn’t wasted time. We took the Peak Tram to the top of Victoria Peak once it was dark, and got very cool views of the city, even though it was still hazy.
We wanted to do Soho again that night, and we attempted it, but we got a little turned around (since we came from a different direction). But it quickly became time to decide to grab a last train back to our hostel, or to wait it out and get a cab later. We went with the cheaper option (as usual), and headed back to Wan Chai, only one stop off from our hostel.
We tried a few bars in the area with limited success. I got a tasty Piña Colada and we witnessed a very drunk British woman going on and on about the “bars on the radio”, whatever that meant. Later she stumbled and completely shattered a glass. So at the least, it was entertaining for us to watch her stumble around.
It was bedtime, and I borrowed Marlie’s laptop to watch some vlogs on youtube. (Even using the proxy program we found, youtube doesn’t load less than half the time.) I had to take advantage of the normal internet sometime while we were in Hong Kong!
Day 18 – Manchester United and Norway
I really wanted to go to the Space Museum on this day, and there were a lot of interesting things in the same general area, so we planned the day around Kowloon Island and the Tsim Sha Tsui area. Unfortunately, the museum was closed since it was still part of the Chinese holiday (we didn’t think of that).
We wandered our way into the busier areas on Nathan Road. We stopped for a while at Swindon Books, a completely English bookstore, which was heaven for me. I bought Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger (it’s very good). We found a park nearby with an interesting art installation called GASP!, trying to increase eco-awareness. It had “talking trees” and turtles, and an aviary.
The Chungking Mansions were near, and we walked a little in the bottom floor to get an idea of where we COULD have stayed. There were hawkers and crowded shops selling watches, leather goods, and tobacco everywhere. And the people there were primarily Middle-Eastern or African, which I’d read was the largest population in the area. We were all very glad we didn’t choose to stay in the Chungking Mansions because of the pushy touts and huge crowds near the elevator entrance, and I’d been able to find the place we had in Causeway Bay.
We returned to the Avenue of Stars, which was near the museums, and we found the three Chinese actors we knew- Jet Li, Bruce Li, and Jackie Chan (成龙). Bruce Li even has his own statue on the walk.
There was a bar on the avenue called Deck n Beer, They didn’t have food, but we figured we could have one drink and then venture for nourishment. In a different direction off Nathan Road, we found the Irish pub Delaney’s. It was pricey to eat there, but I had a really tasty Shephard’s Pie, and Marlie and Josh got beer with capes on them (and dinner too of course).
It was time again to take advantage of happy hours, and so we popped into a bar called Imagine. It was a super super Chinese bar, and we felt like were intruding and wrecking their vibe of “non-foreigner”. But their interior was great; they had music videos playing on their swank televisions, and they definitely had the best cocktails. But we didn’t feel completely comfortable there, and so it was time for another try.
We didn’t have to go far. We went into the Manchester United Restaurant & Bar, officially sanctioned by the team. There were huge televisions everywhere, and Josh informed us that in the men's restroom there were televisions in the wall, so that even when peeing (on the televisions) you wouldn't miss a second of the game. Wow.
The bar was a fabulous choice, and we chatted up Ray, the maitre d’, for hours. He told us how to get to where we wanted for the next day, his thoughts on the politics of the Hong Kong/mainland China situation, and lots of cooking tips and methods that I’ve forgotten. He was in his early 30s and had lived in Vancouver after his family moved there in 1997 to avoid any possible mishaps after the handover of Hong Kong back to China.
The Manchester United Bar has over 30 microbrews from all over the UK, and Ray told us that some were only available in their bar. Josh of course, tried the highest alcohol volume beer they had, which were: Paradox (12%), and Sink the Bismarck! which was 41% and had to be drunk in a shot glass because of its insane volume. Later we split a fish and chips, and even later I got dessert of chocolate mousse (really freaking good).
Talking with Ray was amazing, but we’d been there for about three hours and thought maybe we could try somewhere else. We walked back to the Avenue of the Stars to get a look of the bay at night, and then hopped on the subway. As we made the long way to the trains, Josh pretended to be a soldier, running ahead and freezing in place with a salute.
We got to the gate, and Josh fell behind, since he had dropped his card. I hurried forward, yelling that I’d wait for them down the stairs. Marlie came soon after, but no Josh.
There was no sign of Josh for a long time.
We started to get worried, and retraced our steps out and along the station. No Josh.
And of course, our phones didn’t work in Hong Kong at all. Hong Kong is really NOT China. If you have to go through customs and your Chinese phone doesn’t work… it’s a different country.
Anyway, we couldn’t call him, and he wasn’t in the station. So we asked the information booth if they could make an announcement in the subways. They made the announcement for “lost person, Josh Davendonis, please contact the information desk” for the next 30 minutes or so, while Marlie and I became increasingly anxious. Our only ideas of where he might be were back at the hostel, and, more likely, at a bar SOMEWHERE, oblivious to how freaked out we were getting.
Eventually, we assumed he wasn’t waiting in the trains, and so we returned to the hostel, and told the head desk we couldn’t find him. He wasn’t in the room either. We sat on the beds, thinking. We made a note, in case he returned to the hostel (at least he had the other key to the room), and we tried our last idea, which was Wan Chai.
It was about two hours he’d been missing at this point. We neared the bars we’d visited the nights before, and there he was, gleefully drinking with another foreigner. I was more pissed than relieved. I yelled at him, slapped him, and had to retreat to the bathroom to cool down.
I didn’t think there was much hope of salvaging my night, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep just then (it was still kind of early for me), and I didn’t want to fume alone in the hostel. So Marlie and I sat and talked for a little bit. I decided I’d given it enough of a go, and just as I’d made the decision to leave, the bartender came over and gave us drinks, “courtesy of the man over there”. I’ve NEVER had drinks bought for me before, and I was a little befuddled of what to do. I thought the polite thing would be to thank whoever did it, and Marlie agreed.
They were courtesy of Christian and Johnny from Norway, in Hong Kong on a business trip. They were quite a bit older (forties at least?), and it was sweet of them to buy us drinks, but I was not interested. They were very interesting to talk to, though, and it was a sufficient distraction of my anger at Josh. We all talked for a long time (and I surprised Christian with my knowledge of Kaizers Orchestra) until I felt myself falling asleep and I got a cab home.
Next up... More Hong Kong!
No comments:
Post a Comment