First of all, who could imagine that 24 hours of travel could be so painless? We flew to Dallas and then went to Hong Kong via Canada, Siberia and China. The final 16-hour leg got us to our hotel about 7PM last evening – which was 7AM in New York. Guess it’s all about flying West – I get off planes in Heathrow and feel like things are crawling all over me as I stumble to passport control (Of course, the carpeting in Heathrow contributes to that feeling, I believe!) But here, we could have kept going with no pain. Guess that means the trip home will be a killer. Oh, well.
We have a great view from our room of the harbour, though the building next door has a huge Hello Kitty light display on it, and I hope they don’t light it up too often. Can anyone explain Hello Kitty’s charms to me? It seems like a well-established religious movement, which is now celebrating its fortieth anniversary and seems to have infiltrated every consumer product possible.
So the city is amazing. and makes New York look rather dowdy in comparison. So much is brand-new and sparkly – and it’s even more dramatic juxtaposed with the old. Seeing the famous bamboo scaffolding being used to erect the next glittering skyscraper is just too much. The subway is spectacular and all the technology is completely current. (The comparison to New York is really painful in that regard.) We took the Star Ferry from our base on Kowloon to Hong Kong Island, which is a very short but charming trip. Overcast, but good day for pictures.
The people-watching is great fun. Such style here and lots of fashionistas in evidence. We strolled the “Avenue of the Stars” (ah, Bruce Lee…) and saw the gamut. And is this ever a retail world! You want it? Hong Kong has it and will sell it to you at a ‘very good price.’ Even the vegetables seemed hyper-attractive! And we did succumb to one HK bargain. We have already ordered our new prescription glasses at about a quarter of US costs.
And for those curious about food, here’s a view of our lunch…corn and crab soup, captured just before it was devoured, beef and chicken delights. Yum! All in all, a great first day in this amazing city.
Your wonderful pictures have transported me right back to Hong Kong! I am so excited that you are there–I only wish I were, too!!!
Please do say more about the Hello, Kitty, thing. It seems such an odd aesthetic. What would be the American equivalent? Front lawn flamingos? Smoky the Bear? Barbie Doll?
It’s a Japanese phenomenon. Think Mickey Mouse….