Hong Kong, take 2
Trip Start
Aug 03, 2010
1
72
173
Trip End
Ongoing
Where I stayed
Kowloon, China
Sunday, December 12, 2010
I arrive in Hong Kong, head to Chung King Mansion which is kind of famous in Kowloon for its budget accommodation, dodgy looking immigrants hanging around outside selling watches, suits, hotel rooms and weed and without a booking, walk up 13 floors, stopping at each level asking if there is any beds available. I end up in the Ashoka Hostel on the 16th floor which turned out to be quite a find in the building which is full of African and Indian immigrants. The Indian owners were very polite and friendly and seemed overly proud of the cleanliness of their hostel. I was sharing a room with a German guy, Benny and French-Canadian girl, Pascale and we shared similar plans to get Chinese visa during the week.
Having already been here a couple of months ago, my plans were slightly different this time and after putting my visa application in on Monday (13/12/10) with Benny and Pascale, I generally spent the week looking at laptops, new cameras and shopping around for the best deals, though didn’t end up getting anything anyway – cheaper in America.
I saw the famous HK light show again on Tuesday (14/12/10) evening with Benny and Pascale, although this time from the Kowloon side which was cool, especially with the music being played and buildings lit up all festive like and then again, for a second time, I walked the Avenue of Stars with them. Although this time, I got my handstand in without fear of not wearing any underwear haha.
On Wednesday (15/12/10) I joined Benny on a hike in the pissing rain to Victoria Peak and down again and then caught the tram from Sheung Wan to Wan Chai to try and collect our visas – Benny collected his, but mine was not ready yet, I had to return the next morning with Pascale.
Benny and Pascale where both good fun, we ate a few times together, but they had only met each other the day, a day before I met them, and I think that there may have been an awkward rejection from Pascale towards Benny at some point as there definitely tension between them. He was a nice guy, she was extremely scatty and emotional (about her ex), and they just did not click. At one point I felt like bit of a mediator between the two, they were at each other’s throats bitching.
On Thursday (16/12/10), they both left for Shanghai together, long story but in different carriages on the same train and I met my next two dorm mates, another two Germans, travelling separately from Shanghai.
By this point, after collecting my visa, I was just ready to leave and not interested in joining one of them, Kaan, to Hong Kong’s most expensive nightclub. It’s not like I could suit up for occasion anyway only having zip-offs that were far too big for me now and hiking trainers.
I like HK, but my last few days were slow and in the end I was just looking forward to getting out of there and catching my flight to America.
Comments
Chun king mansions were brilliant.
I will never forget - we got in the lift in the mansions and who was in there already - a bloke called Richard that we had been travelling with in South America the year beforehand. Small world.