1. Hong Kong Escapade 2005
We arrived Friday at Chek Lap Kok airport in
Lantau past 8:00pm and went straight to
the customer desk to get a note in Chinese
indicating the direction to TaiKooShing. It
was a 40-minute drive passing by Tsing Ma
bridge (the world’s longest suspension
bridge) to Kowloon, then to Hkside, passing
by Central, Wan Chai, Fortress Hill,
Northpoint, and getting off at Edward’s Nam
Tien Mansion. After checking out his
apartment, Edward took us to the nearest
supermarket to buy some stuff for
breakfast. Since it was still early and the
evening was slightly chilly but not real cold,
we decided to take a stroll around the area
all the way to the Quarry Bay park and
promenade, a scenic sight of the Victoria
harbour at night from the Hkside looking at
Kowloon.
The following morning, after breakfast in his
apt, Edward took us to the MTR station
below the building mall just across his
mansion, and for the first time, Dodie
bought his train tickets from the kiosk. It
was around 7 stops to Central, where we
got off to walk to Edward’s office at Cheong Kong Center, just across the Central station from the Statue square. We decided to
drop our luggage in his office while we take the morning sight-seeing since we
couldn’t check into our hotel until 2pm. I suggested a walking tour to the Man Mo
Temple and see some antique shops along the old streets of HK. So from his office,
we walked to Hollywood Road passing by the Government House, St. John’s
Cathedral, the Court of Final Appeal, and then took the mid-level escalator (the
world’s longest about 800 mtrs) to Soho. While they sat at a children’s park in
front of the temple, Rio and I took pictures inside this sacred bldg dedicated to the
God of Literature and to the God of War. Then on to Possession Street, the spot
where the British first landed in 1841. A short walk from here to Morrison St and
we reached the Western Market, an Edwardian-style bldg built in 1906 as the
Harbour Office, another historic
landmark, and now converted into an
elegant shopping place for Chinese arts
and crafts. Then we walked along Des
Voeux Rd to get back to Central for
the train to Kowloon. Tired of the long morning walk tour, we had to take another 20
min. walk from Mongkok station to look for our hotel. Tatami Hampton is just at the
corner of Changsa and Portland St, a stone’s throw from Nathan Rd, the shopping
district in Kowloon. After checking into our rooms, we took Majid, who met us at the
lobby, to a Japanese restaurant for a late lunch.
A short nap later, we took to the streets of Mongkok again and Yau Ma Tei, on the way
to the Tin Hau temple, dedicated to the Goddess of seafarers, and the famous night
market at Temple St. At the Public square, while waiting for me to complete my temple
visit, Rio played basketball with street kids and the rest watched. Passing by one of the oldest streets in HK, Shanghai St, we looked
for Jade Market and bought some items at bargain prices. The evening was
highlighted with a sumptuous Chinese dinner at a fancy restaurant inside the campus
of Polytechnic University (HungHom District, Kowloonside) with Majid again as our
gracious host. The temperature has now dropped to 10 degree Celsius, and we
braced ourselves for a severely cold night.
Day 3 Sunday began with a chilly shower and a warm breakfast at McDo along Nathan
Rd. Edward met us at the lobby around 10am and we decided to walk to the nearest
Catholic church for a Chinese mass near Yau Ma Tei. But the rain poured, so I
suggested an adventure trip to the New Territories close to the Szenchen border of
China. We took the Kowloon-Canton Railway (see photo of Edward and Rio) at Yau
Ma Tei and bought single journey tickets to Taipo, passing by TST, HungHom,
Mongkok, Kowloon Tong, TaiWai (where Majid now resides), ShaTin, the Chinese

2. University of HK where Majid taught for 10 years, before reaching Taipo market station.
The Tai Po district is one of the oldest settlements in HK, and gained fame as a market
town and the home of the Tangs, one of the territory’s original clans. Here we took a
taxi to go to Lam Tsuen to visit the Tin Hau temple (see left photo of Ate) dedicated to
the Goddess of Heaven and the
wishing tree, a huge but slowly
dying banyan tree. We took a bus
on our way back to Taipo, and had
lunch at a Chinese eatery. Looking
for the Hong Kong Railway
Museum, we strolled past a bridge
(see photo of the foursome) and
the famous market (see photo of
Dodie and Rio below), where I
bought Mara’s jogging pants and scarves for pasalubong. Admission to the
museum was free so we took time to take pictures inside and outside. Because
we were closer to Taiwo, we walked to Taiwo station to get to the holy
mountain of HK, Fan Ling, our next train stop.
“Fanling” literally means ridge
of powder, and the place was
named after a holy rock found here, which according to legend brings rains. Just
outside the station is a cluster of beautiful structures, the Fung Yin Seen Koon Taoist
temple built in 1929 (photo on right shows the guys at one of the spirit houses).
From here, we took the next train stop to
Sheung Shui, close to the Chinese border at
Shenzhen, to visit the cultural gem of HK,
Tai Fu Tai, an opulent residence built in
mid-1800s by a scholar of the gentry class.
Lavish plaster mouldings and Chinese
woodcarvings decorate the roof and
interiors (see photo of roof). Then back to
HungHom to meet Majid for another
memorable dinner. Then a chilly evening
stroll around the campus, the univ library, and the signpost that says ”Taxi waiting stand
(No waiting)” Back to Tsim Sha Tsui where we
parted with Edward and on to Mongkok for another
chilly sleep at the hotel.
Feb 28, Monday, was our last day for sightseeing, so we took advantage of the city tour,
which was part of our trip package. The tour began at the Avenue of the Stars, where
we found the handprints of Jackie Chan and the square reserved for Bruce Lee. We
took pictures along the promenade along Victoria Harbour facing the HK side despite
the rain. Next stop was Jewelry City, and Aberdeen fishing village, but we did not take
the boat ride. Then on to Ocean Park to drop off some members of the tour group, and
finally at Victoria Peak, but we did not take the tram. We had lunch at Wan Chai
district, before we walked to Queen Road East to look for Bus 6A for our own tour of
the southernmost tip of HK, Repulse Bay (where the rich stay in summer villas, see left
photo) and Stanley Market (which caters to foreign tourists). Just in time we
met Edward at past 6pm at his office for dinner at a WanChai restaurant along
Hennesy Rd (where the tram passes). After our seafood (spicy saucy crab and
grouper fish) dinner, Edward
took us to the Star ferry
terminal, and for only $2.20 and
less than 10 min, we were back
at Tsim Sha Tsui, near the clock
tower, another famous landmark
in Kowloon. Before going back
to the hotel, we strolled along
Nathan Road for some last
minute shopping. The next
morning we took the airport
transfer while Rio, who was left
behind, took the MTR to Central
to be with Edward, who by this
time was still in his apt. So we bid adieu to Hong Kong. We’ll be back.