Hong Kong

Hong Kong is a busy metropolis with many layers, not only metaphorically but also physically. The central City consists of Malls, and it could be possible to walk from one side of Hong Kong Island to the other by not setting a foot on the street. What is highly confusing at times is that the streets are sometimes not accompanied by pavements and the walkways will literally be elevated above you, but theres no clear way of how to get there. The streets are full yet organised and pedestrian crossings are marked. Finding your way around is easy once you’ve figured out how Hong Kong works.

The public transport system is amazing, the efficiency is incredible. Trains come every 2 minutes, ensuring no stuffy overly crowded trips. Eating and Drinking in the carts is forbidden, and the entire system is very clean. We used an Octopus Card, the equivalent to the London Oyster Card. Riding around the city is rather cheap, a trip wont cost you more than 20 HKD (~2 Euros) (Unless you’re coming from or going to the airport, that costs 110 HKD (~11 Euros).

In addition to that, what impressed us was the unmistakable merge of cultures, different influences and eras that took part in the making and shaping of Hong Kong. The city is built for consumers and shops are the main attraction, in the centre little is left of ancient Chinese culture. Everything is international, most of the service staff speak fluent English. European food is easier to find than Chinese food.

The main tourist attractions are surrounded by tourist trap restaurants and stores of any kind. We took the Peak Tram up to the Peak and decided to buy a round trip plus entry onto the 360 viewing terrace; stupid us - it was a very foggy day. The terrace costs an additional 45 HKD when purchased with the tram ticket, and 50 HKD if you only buy it in the tower. If the day is clear and the tops of buildings aren’t immersed by fog, go check it out. If not you can take a picture outside and they will edit the view into the background for 150 HKD there. (So many people were actually buying those photoshopped photos, it was hilarious). The Peak Tram was the one thing I found impressing about this sight. An about 30 Year old train is pulling up a mountain, you can feel the breaks creek and the train groan under you, and even at that slow speed the entire thing induced adrenaline in me (but maybe that was only because Im a scared-y cat).

Hong Kong is surprisingly green, besides lovely parks (Must visit to escape the hustle and the bustle of the city) there are trees growing in every nook and cranny there is. It looks rather like they chopped down all the trees they needed, to make space for roads and building, and just left the ones in-between standing. This adds to the incredible look of Infrastructure merging with Nature. Especially on the outskirts and in the North of Hong Kong the mountainous background becomes prominent between the towering skyscrapers, and together they create an impressive landscape.

This merge of nature and city was extremely noticeable in Tai Po. A northern district quite void of tourists. There one can experience the Hong Kong that locals know, not the Hong Kong built up for Chinese and foreigners alike to come into on saturdays and shop. There is a food market, food court and a floor to buy knickknacks and clothes. The view from the Terrace of Tai Po market gives form to the phenomenon I described. Tai Po itself is a lovely place to visit aswell.

To find traditional Chinese architecture in HongKong, it is best to travel to the centre of Lantau Island, to visit the Tian Tan Buddha and the Po Lin Monastery. Easily reached by taking the Gong Ping 360 cablecar from Tung Chung (410 HKD return ticket for 2 people pre booked on KLOOK), It feels like you’re miles away from any big city once you get to Ngong Ping Village. There is an option to book a Crystal Cabin or a Standard Cabin, the difference being that the Crystal has a glass floor. We took a Crystal Cabin on the way there and a Standard Cabin back.

The most beautiful thing about Hong Kong was the city at night. The bright neon signs come on and the skyscrapers are illuminated. The view of Hong Kong Island and Victoria Harbour across the river is one of the most breathtaking views I’ve ever seen. One of my favourite things are the differently hued lights in the various windows of the Skyscrapers. Some are blue-ish, some white, some yellow making each skyscraper a multicoloured spectacle.

Hong Kong is a great place to slide into the ways of asian culture, without having a culture shock. Since it has western roots, Hong Kong offers a perfect balance, to let you get used to new cultures progressively as you move deeper into Southeast Asia.

To me Hong Kong feels like China’s enormous Shopping Centre.

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Em

09/01/2018

Hanoi

#Travel #Budgettravel #HongKong #China #Southeastasia