Christmas in Hong Kong
Hong Kong is always a great city to visit. Aside from being just 2 hours away from Manila, it gives an experience of a modern and busy city that's affordable. Paolo and I wanted a quick getaway where the weather is pleasant and the food is good, and since both of us love Hong Kong---and our families cautioned us against our first choice, Istanbul, while Japan didn't give us visas (?!)---we went ahead and planned our trip to Asia's World City.
Arriving in Hong Kong
We arrived in the morning, and wasted no time getting to the city. But first, the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA). The airport is consistently in the Top 5 of the best airports in the world. It used to occupy the top spot but it has since been overtaken by either Singapore's Changi and South Korea's Incheon airports. I find myself constantly admiring the tall ceilings and how light comes in through the big windows. It doesn't feel stuffy at all.
One of the things that makes Hong Kong great is it's ease in navigation, even for first time visitors. You can get to the Central business hub, about 35 kms away, in less than half an hour through the Airport Express train. It's an even shorter trip to get to Kowloon Island. Upon arrival, I suggest exchanging Php 3,000 (USD 65) to Hong Kong dollars and buying tickets to the Airport Express. One-way fare to Kowloon is HKD 90, and a round-trip ticket is HKD 180. So if there are two of you, you should spend about Php 2,160 on the tickets with money left over for snacks! For fares to other stops, see here.
Once you get to the Kowloon Station, there are Airport Express buses waiting for you that'll take you to your hotel. You have to check what bus (there's K1 to K4) drives to or near your hotel. Our hotel wasn't on list of stops, but it was right behind the Peninsula Hotel which was, so we just crossed the street. Easy peasy.
We ate here
I bugged Paolo so much to find Tsui Wah restaurant. It's one of my favorite stops in Hong Kong and I do not oversell when I say that EVERYTHING there is good. After crossing Salisbury Road because we couldn't find the one near Carnarvon, we walked into a Tsui Wah and just ordered something off the menu. The food arrived, and neither of us spoke a word for seven minutes. It was just the softest beef swimming in the most flavorful stew. We just had to laugh when we were done.
After dinner we walked along the Promenade and caught the Christmas light show. You can watch all the pretty dancing lights in this video.
Christmas away from family
The next morning, we took the ferry across the Harbor and made our way to Central. We were headed to Victoria Peak and somehow got lost in the maze that is IFC Mall and ended up at the atrium of HSBC where a lot of domestic workers were gathering to celebrate the holiday.
This really moved me because I know what it's like to live away from your family. I've seen people in Jeddah who have had to celebrate holidays alone. Sure, a community can ease some of the loneliness, but there really is nothing like having family around. Paolo and I have resolved to keep our family together no matter what. No one gets left behind.
And speaking of not getting left behind, we made it in time to get to The Peak Tram, albeit with a lot of self-encouraging as I stepped into the tram. It's just this tiny car that's crammed with more than 100 people going up a 45-degree slope SLOWLY.I had to think of nice things like strawberry cake and French Bulldog puppies to keep me from freaking out. I once had a panic attack in a cab on the way to the airport, but that's another story. Round-trip Peak Tram tickets can be bought on-site for HKD 40. That'll get you on the tram, but since you're making the trip anyway, might as well pay more for access (HKD 83 per person) to the outdoor Sky Terrace too.
I suppose the view would have been prettier at night, with the buildings lit up around the harbor, but we had other plans for that evening.
A quiet Christmas celebration
We decided to have drinks over at Lily & Bloom, a cozy bar in the party district just above the chaos that is Lan Kwai Fong.
The bar staff was very accommodating and mixed me some off-the-menu mocktails.
LKF was fun to visit, as long as you're not being crushed by the multitudes of people drinking and dancing up the sloped street. We decided to catch the last train out of the island. On the way to the station, a drunk guy lost his balance and spilled his beer on me before crashing onto the steel barriers the police had put up! He was closely followed by two sober friends who profusely apologized to us. I thought Paolo was going to punch him but we decided to just enjoy the night---and follow the guy stumble down the street with our GoPro.
Ending our super chill visit
It was a quiet ride back to the hotel in Kowloon. We promptly passed out on the bed and woke up the next day to Christmas! That afternoon, we ran into some friends and had coffee with them. That was nice.
We explored the city a little bit more, walking around Causeway Bay, eating Swedish meatballs at Ikea, and enjoying the ferry ride.
Hong Kong never fails to give us good memories. It's always nice to revisit a city both Paolo and I have been to before. We weren't rushing to see the sights and we got plenty of naps. Might be too early to tell, but I'm fairly certain there'll be one more of us when we return.Have you been to Hong Kong? What was your favorite part?