Stanley, Repulse Bay and Victoria Peak - 27 November 2011

Kind of sad to leave this city tomorrow - I have found it so exciting, and now I am more confident with the transport system and sheer size of the city I think I will miss the fast pace when I get back to NZ! The morning was perfect - not a cloud in the sky and temperature mid to late 20 degrees so I decided to catch the MTR into town then take a bus out to Stanley Village. Arriving early afternoon, I browsed the Stanley Market - these markets are nicer than Mong Kok and full with western tourists. The Hong Kong food and wine festival was on at Stanley in the weekend so I sat down to a cooking demonstration with a top Chinese chef. Who was I kidding though, not the biggest fan of cooking (I'd rather eat) so after five minutes I got up and started walking around the beaches. Got a bit carried away and 5km later was at Repulse Bay. Diced with danger a bit on my way.. obviously no one else walks the main road from Stanley to Repulse Bay because the footpath would randomly disappear for 100m sections on the narrow busy road. So my walk was dispersed by short sprints to quickly get to the next stretch of footpath before a car/bus came - quite scary! Got to Repulse Bay in the late afternoon then got a call from the boys to meet them in central to go up to Victoria Peak.

We took the Peak Tram up to the peak. This is a must do in Hong Kong! It is such a steep trip up to the peak - seriously like a 145 degree gradient - so was freaking a little bit that the tram would break down and we would fall all the way down to the bottom. But we got there safe and excited to check the city lights from the Sky Deck. The lights were amazing! We spent about an hour taking snaps in front of the lights.. the boys couldn't get enough of posing.. then returned to Hong Kong station to catch the MTR back to Tung Chung.

Last full day in Hong Kong - 28 November 2011

Haven't done too much so far today - got Caleb to wake me up bright and early so I could catch an earlier MTR into the city. When I woke up my tummy had swollen to twice its size and was gurgling like crazy! "Aww no" I thought, only 4-5 days in and already sick - teaches me for not being extra careful about what I'm eating so far. Thought about what I had eaten the day before - 2x bagels, a chicken burger and fries (healthy eating is not a priority when it is cheaper to eat higher calorie stuff less often haha), none of it dodgy to cause travel sickness. I figured it was the fact that I ate Burger King (something I never do in NZ) rather than eating something dodgy, so have vowed no more fatty takeaways for the rest of my trip! After a while my tummy started to feel a bit better, so caught the MTR into town, dropped my luggage at the station and strolled the streets of Hong Kong central. Stumbled upon a Pottinger Street - the first governor of Hong Kong was a Pottinger - then grabbed a bagel at the Pacific Coffee Company because a purchase means you can use the internet there for free :)

Better go get my luggage now and make my way to the hotel to meet the tour group today. First overnight train tomorrow then will be in the beauty of Yangshuo - can't wait to bike the country side and raft down the Li River.