Hong Kong & Macau
Recently, Michael and I set off on a 2 1/2 week adventure through Southeast Asia for our honeymoon (wahoo!) and Hong Kong was our first stop. Our flight left Logan Airport at 1AM, which let me tell you, is not easy. However, with a bit of luck, we were able to get a free upgrade to Business Class since the TVs at our seats were broken (thanks Cathay Pacific)!! In all the flights we've taken together, I have never seen Michael so happy. Halfway through our 16 hour flight, I wake up from a nap and look over to his pod to see what he's up to. He's sitting there, tucked into his blanket, eating Doritos and drinking wine with the BIGGEST grin I have ever seen on his face. I guess when you're that tall, being comfortable on an airplane is like hitting the lotto.
When we landed in Hong Kong, we were taken by shuttle into downtown. The airport is on a small island off the coast of Hong Kong Island, so the ride is about an hour. eventually we made it to our hotel, the Marco Polo HongKong Hotel. We ended up upgrading our room to concierge level, since we got to the hotel around 6AM and wanted to check in right away. It was maybe $50 more per night and included drinks/hors d'ouevres every night with daily concierge service--well worth the money!
We opted for a hotel that was off of Hong Kong Island and on the part of Hong Kong that attaches to mainland China (Kowloon), mainly because we like to be amongst the locals when we travel. This hotel ended up being a great choice since it was located across the street from the Star Ferry Terminal, which brings you across Victoria Harbor to Hong Kong Island. Our hotel was located in the Kowloon neighborhood of Tsim Sha Tsui, which offered a great mix of tourist activities and local flare. After being on Hong Kong Island for a couple of afternoons, we were very happy we decided to stay where we did.
Another good reason to stay in Kowloon is the view. Every night at 8PM, Hong Kong has a light show that bounces off of all the buildings on Hong Kong Island. Obviously, if you're staying in Hong Kong Island, you won't be able to see it. Between the laser beams shooting out and the lights on the buildings, we were in awe.
As definite must while in Hong Kong is the tram ride to Victoria Peak. The tram is an old trolley car going up the side of a mountain at a very steep angle--it honestly makes you feel like you're going to fall right down. When you reach the top, the views are out of this world. You can see all of Hong Kong Island, Victoria Harbor, and Kowloon. It can get very crowded, so it's best to go at an off time if possible.
One night, Michael and I felt as though it would only be appropriate if we had a local dinner at a local restaurant. The concierge referred us to a place right around the corner, and it was good! Of course, the menu was in Cantonese and non of the waitresses spoke English. Thankfully, the menu had photos, so we could kind of figure out what we were ordering. The meal ended up being very good and it was definitely an experience worth having.
One other important thing to mention is the weather in Hong Kong: in the summertime, it is very hot and very humid. There were many days where we would have to pop into a store or a McDonald's just to get in the air conditioning for a few minutes. I would highly recommend a hotel with a pool. Hong Kong is also a very crowded city, so just be prepared. All of the street signs are in English (credit to the British occupation some years back) so it's very easy to get around.
All in all, Hong Kong is a really interesting city to visit. I would not recommend spending more than a few days there, simply becuase there really just isn't that much to occupy yourself with in the city itself. If you were to venture off some (as you'll see in the Macau post) then you can fill more days.
For our second day in Hong Kong, we decided to book a group tour that took us over to Macau. It is about an hour high-speed ferry ride from Hong Kong, but since it's a separate territory, you go through customs when exiting Hong Kong and re-entering. Macau is a "special administrative region" that belongs to the Republic of China. It was a territory of Portugal until 1999, when it was handed over the to the Chinese.
Many of the street signs are in Portuguese and the architecture is very colonial in style--it's really a very interesting combination when you're walking around. It's just a short bridge ride over from mainland China, but has its own currency (macanese dollar) and those who live in Macau have separate passports, like those who live in Hong Kong.
While we were there, we stopped by a few of the casinos, Buddhist temples, and looked through a lot of the Portuguese architecture that is still very prominent throughout the area. It's really quite interesting to see so many European looking buildings, right next to temples and other Asian influences.