Hong Kong Jun’08 - Day One
[Adri's first bite on Krispy Kreme!]
After about 4 hours on Jetstar, YB and I finally reached Hong Kong! 6 hours ago, I was giving the taxi driver an earful for taking us to the airport via AYE-CTE-PIE-TPE. Luckily we were in time to check in. *blow hot air out*
The moment I stepped foot on the arrival hall, I headed right to Krispy Kreme….Ohhhh I’m so excited because I’ve heard so much about their tasty donuts! 6 donuts for 58HKD and we chose (from top left) blueberry, cinnamon apple, chocolate iced custard, chocolate fudge cake, original and chocolate. Not sure how good they taste at that point because we didn’t want to stop to eat.
We headed towards the bus terminal to board Airport Express Bus A21. It cost 33HKD each for a 50mins journey to Tsim Sha Tsui 尖沙咀 where our accommodation is located. Note: It will cost more to take the Airport Express Train and you will need to walk quite a distance from the Airport Line to the main city MTR line. See MTR map.
My colleague recommended Sealand Guest House - Good location, cheap, safe and friendly service! The room is rather small and cramped but the basic facilities are of satisfactory conditions. Double bedroom with TV, aircon and bathroom cost 380HKD. Our room was booked 3 months in advance. Amy the owner will issue a confirmation number after advance payment of 1 day deposit + paypal service fee 16HKD through paypal. Oh one interesting fact, we were given a set of keys - 1 each for building door (after 11pm), guesthouse’s gate, door and room door. Hahaha definitely feels right at home!
We finally sinked our teeth into the donuts…..Wooooow I simply adore chocolate Iced custard!!! Donuts over local delicacies for lunch, we must be really mad! (I just asked my Dad to buy some back during his flight transit….Yipppy!)
[MTR traveling direction]
After a short rest, YB and I headed towards Mong Kok 旺角 for …Shopping!!!
We are impressed by the directions board shown on each train door. It shows the current and next location of the train, and which side of the door will be opened. If you are on the earphone most of the time, this is the best way to identify your current location.
[Smelly Tofu]
At Mong Kok 旺角, YB bought smelly tofu (2 for 14HKD) and seemed to enjoy it -.-” Not my kinda of food :X
We located Ladies’ Market on Tung Choi St but found nothing spectacular. It is just a baazar to rip off tourists. Instead we found our way into a small cafe 炳記牛牛 Milk & Milk for afternoon tea break.
[炳記牛牛 House Set]
We had the house set 24HKD that includes coffee/tea, macaroni with cheese and ham, 2 sunny side-up and toast. It’s really cheap and surprisingly its the best macaroni among all the macaroni I had over 5 days.
[Naughty Adri caught in action :P]
The next 2 hours we spent walking from Mong Kok 旺角 to Tsim Sha Tsui 尖沙咀 along Nathan Road. The city is so full of live and very fast-paced compare to SG. YB’s eyes became very tired from all the movement. Despite all the buzz, you will find commuters queuing up neatly while waiting for the bus. A rare or impossible sight in SG.
[What happen to 油条?]
Came across this shop selling 油条 as 油器. Hmmmmm ?!?!?! Later we found out that they mean fried stuffs.
[Mister Softee]
Soft Ice cream for 7HKD.
We dropped our stuffs and freshen up back at the guesthouse. Next place of interest to visit: The Peak!
The Peak Tram Station is quite a walking distance from either MTR Station Central 中環 or Admiralty 金鐘.
From Admiralty 金鐘, we walked through Pacific Place and then Hong Kong Park. It took us about 20mins to reach the station on Cotton Tree Drive.
Each adult return trip is 33HKD. Additional fee to enter the viewing terrace.
[Peak Tram]
[Jackie Chan the waxed at station entrance]
The tram interval is about 8 mins, pretty fast for an antique system! YB and I experienced neck aches when the tram was moving 45 degrees up the slope. Although we didn’t pay to enter viewing terrace, we managed to find an outdoor spot and captured the following images with my Sony W5 night mode and a pair of steady hands.
[Hong Kong City Night View]
The environment was very windy, it was really hard to take a picture of us and the landscape without any steady support. The importance of tripod!!!
Back on lower land, we took an cab (16HKD) to Gough Street near Central 中環 area in search for Beef Brisket Noodle. I meant to look for Kau Kee Restaurant 九記牛腩 but accidentally entered Ngau Kee Food Cafe 牛记茶室 which is on the same street.
[Kau Kee Restaurant 九記牛腩]
[Ngau Kee Food Cafe 牛记茶室]
[Black bean chicken with crispy noodle]
YB and I ordered Black bean chicken with crispy noodle and Beef Horfun without knowing the gigantic portion. We were eating about 4 portions! OMG. Luckily the food was not too bad. Total cost 78HKD.
Back to the guesthouse via MTR. End of Day One.