hong kong

Hong Kong is an international business hub. From all over the world people work and travel here. It is a beautiful city. It There are many buildings and we marveled at their heights and sophistication. The city is kept very clean and the people are lovely. Everyone is so kind and helpful. We leave feeling we experienced the modern and new aspects of the city as well as the heritage. We took every mode of transportation possible. The public transport is amazing and all is kept spotless and run efficiently. We began our day by taking a double decker bus around the island to the famous Stanley market. The terrain and landscape is lush and beautiful. There were beautiful beaches and street scenes. En route we passed Aberdeen an old fishing town. There are old floating houses and even a floating restaurant.   After touring the market we then took a taxi to The peak. The peak has a sky terrace that overlooks the city and surrounding islands. It is absolutely stunning. We then hopped on the peak tram which took us down the hill and into the heart of the central district. Central is the “wall street” of Hong Kong. We were surrounded by hundreds of business men and woman. All immaculately dressed, it was a sea of black suits and designer bags. There was a beautiful park in the middle of the area with neat water features and sitting areas. It was an oasis surrounded by all of the high rises.  There is a lot of shopping in Hong Kong. Any designer you can imagine. We walked through the IFC mall and then proceeded along the many sky walkways that connect the buildings in the district. We found our way to an outdoor escalator that soon transcended us to an area that was so vastly different from the business area but yet only a few blocks away.

 We found ourselves in the older streets and markets of the city. Wandering through we passed fresh fruit and vegetable stands, herbalists, fish markets and even a meat market. Yes, a meat market where you can literally watch people butcher and proportion meat products. We didn’t want to walk to close for who knows what may splatter on you! It was crazy to see the meat hanging in open air stalls. What I found most interesting was the fish market. There were bins of all kinds of fish and ocean creatures.  It was pretty amazing watching as people would walk through and collect items that they would use to prepare their dinners. Everything was so fresh. As we meandered through the streets we came across the antique stores and many stalls of crafts that people made.  We found many Chinese trinkets and crafts for sale. I made my first purchase of the trip and bought a jade bracelet. The design stood for safe travels. We came across an old Chinese temple and then found our way past the herbalist shops and down to the tram that would connect us back to the sky walkways and on to the ferry that we would ride to cross the harbor to the Kowloon area. The ferry ride provided spectacular views of the city and it costs just about 75 cents to take.  We then walked along the harbor and back to our hotel. What a day! We went back to our room and later that evening watched the symphony of lights show. Every night the buildings in Hong Kong light up and display this amazing light show with varying colors and lasers all coordinated to music. Many boats fill the harbor so people can enjoy the show. In just one day we were able to get a feel for the varying types of lifestyles from modern to traditional. We saw a Gucci commercial being filmed, businessmen commuting, and the Chinese woman buying a shark fin from the market stalls. The city is quite remarkable and the people are very hospitable.

The next morning we discovered more of the traditional areas on the Kowloon side. We took a subway ride deep into the town. We then enjoyed our morning stroll through the flower market, the goldfish market  ( yes can you believe it) and on to the beautiful jade market. We returned to our hotel, packed and headed for the airport. The drive was beautiful as we passed over bridges and was able to take in the views of the city for one last time. The airport in Hong Kong is huge! It houses many restaurants, a cinema and a luxury shopping mall as well. This was quite an experience.  We are acclimating to the new time but it is starting to catch up with me and I have a feeling I’ll sleep on the plane ride to Delhi. For weeks I have been preparing for landing in India and I’m ready! As I board our flight I already feel like we are transitioning to a new place.  There are many babies on the flight and I’m smiling from ear to ear because I know I will soon have ours. As I complete this typing I finish my mango juice and relish in the fact that in a matter of hours we will be in India. Thank you for all of your wonderful comments, it has been so fun sharing this journey with each of you.