HK

So the alarm went off at 10am on our first full day of our trip and to be honest, I felt deathly. I was so jet lagged it was unreal. Anyway we decided to make the most of the time we had and went off to explore the city. Within about 5 minutes we realised how hot and sticky HK actually is and anywhere with a/c was very welcome indeed. We got ourselves on the metro - a MUCH more efficient network than anything back home and got off in something resembling LA mixed with Bangkok. Loads of designer shops e.g. Louis Vuitton and Tiffany & Co amongst some massive neon lights and some run down buildings. Very bizarre.

We got the Star Ferry over to Hong Kong island. A whole $2 or 20p! That was for the top deck too!

By this point it was lunchtime and we were fading fast! We took ourselves into a mall and had the most divine lunch, which set us up for a trip up to the peak and an afternoon stroll. The stroll did eventually end up being a hike after taking a wrong turn on the 'circle trail' around the peak and descending for 1km only to realise we had to climb all the way back up and continue on the circle. Please bare in mind that it was also 30 degrees at this point and VERY humid. The bottle of water at the end was heavenly!

So we took ourselves back home and with a quick turn around, went to watch the light show on the harbour. Apparently it's the biggest light show in the world and runs every night at 8pm and lasts roughly 20-30mins. It was quite pretty to see, but I did miss the cheese of Blackpool illuminations.

After another stroll around and a quick bite to eat, we returned to the hostel for what turned out to be another sleepless night.

Day 2 in Hong Kong and I awoke feeling like a zombie. We almost had to crawl to the flower market we were so tired. This turned out to be lots of shops selling lots of flowers from all over the world. Very pretty but there are only so many flower shops you can take in a morning. If I lived there, I would definitely demand lots of flowers from my other half! We then decided that we needed liquid and a seat so headed to Starbucks for a treat. Yes, my treats are really rock n roll...

We rounded up our short stay in HK with some last minute purchases and some excellent bartering. We both got ourselves iPhone coveres and screen protectors for the iPhones we both don't own yet (but plan on in September) and I also got a purse and the handbag. The handbag incidentally started off at $450, I knocked her down to $250 but then didn't have enough $ so gave her a £10 and made up an exchange rate of $12 to the £. This technically is about spot on, if you're working in world trade, but a bank it's a lot closer to $11 and you also have that bit of commission. More fool her I say!

We also witnessed a protest HK style. i.e. the protestors walk along the pavements accompanied by police every 10th person along and cordoned off to the side of the pavement so everyone else can still walk past on their merry way alongside the protestors. No smashing cars/windows etc!

xxxx