One Very Cool Island
Trip Start
Jul 03, 2009
1
9
10
Trip End
Jul 26, 2009
Hong Kong, China
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Going to McDonald’s sounds like such an innocent endeavor but it wasn’t for me that day. While standing in this really long line, this guy cut in front of me and then started motioning to his friends for them to come over and join him. (If you haven’t figured out already I get really annoyed and upset when people cut in line. I’m definitely not a fan of those who attempt to secretly merge into line and then act annoyed when you call them on it either.) Being that I can’t keep quiet about much, was upset that I had left Paul that morning and I wasn’t feeling very patient, I just couldn’t let it pass. (I tried, really I did.) I told the guy in front of me that the line started way behind me. He just looked at me and smiled. I figured he didn’t understand English so I then motioned towards the back of the line. At that point, he attempted to explain to me that it was okay that he and his friends were cutting because men are supposed to go before women. He further clarified this ignorant comment by saying, "This is how we do it in my country." I have no idea where this guy was from nor do I care but I was pissed when he said that. Here he is, in line at McDonald’s, one of the most iconic American establishments, and he’s going to attempt to convince me that he is somehow more superior in his quest to get a Big Mac value meal. No, I don’t think so. Poor guy, he never had a chance with this American girl as I pretty much laid into him. I realize he probably didn’t understand half of what I said but he got the point and he and his entourage went back to the end of the line. Mission Accomplished. That’s how we do it in my country.
My traveling experience in Hong Kong was very similar to Singapore. Both countries are extremely easy to travel in and are very accessible to tourists. Most everything is in English and their mass transit systems are inexpensive and easy to navigate. One of the neat things Hong Kong offers is what they call an Octopus card. The Octopus card allows you to load it with money and then use it as a debit card all around Hong Kong. You could use it everywhere – mass transit, drug store, tourist attractions, grocery stores, etc. I never had to worry about pulling out cash as I could just tap it and go. I truly was loving my Octopus card. Well, all good things have to come to an end, right? On my last day in Hong Kong I was running towards the subway trying to make the train before it left and I had my Octopus card (tightly) in my hand as I hadn’t had a chance to put it away in my backpack. I could hear the pre-recorded announcement, “Please mind the gap” and remember thinking how annoying it was to hear that over and over again. Yes, I’ll “mind the gap” and not drop anything into the space between the platform and train or so I thought. As I jumped into the subway, the closing door slammed against my arm and knocked the Octopus card out of my hand and down the gap it went. I know I was in slow motion as I said “Nooooo”. The card fell into that dark void and was gone. It wouldn’t have been a big deal but I had already loaded my card with money and my return trip to the airport as well as numerous subway rides. I was bummed that I had lost my money and the convenience of having the card. I groaned every time I heard the announcer say “Please mind the gap.” for the remainder of my trip.
One of the more obscure attractions in Hong Kong is a restaurant called Modern Toilet. It’s actually a chain in Asia. Their shtick is everything bathroom related. Gross, right? You sit on toilet bowls as seats and eat out of miniature size toilet bowls and urinals. I don’t get the appeal but many others did as there was a line to get in. Check out the pictures.
Hong Kong has quite an impressive skyline with all of its building and neon lights. At night they have the “Symphony of Lights” which is a light and music show. I opted to check out the show by taking an evening harbor cruise. This allowed me to see the lights on Hong Kong as well as Kowloon. Although I was quite impressed with the skyline I was underwhelmed with the whole show. This show has nothing on the houses in the US that have their Christmas lights synchronized to music but at least they try. More importantly, they didn’t play any Celine Dion during which was WONDERFUL!
Other activities included a visit to “The Peak” in Hong Kong that allows a great view of the city, a visit to Lantau Island on a cable car for the world’s largest Buddha, and shopping, of course. Hong Kong’s market was not as extensive as ones I saw in Beijing but I think that is mostly due to pressure placed upon vendors in regards to counterfeit items.
Overall, Hong Kong was a good trip and one I would recommend to you all. There is also a Disneyland for the kids. I’m all about Mickey and friends but didn’t make it there.
Now off to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia!
Live, love, laugh,
Alicia
