This week was very different from the last, well for one the majority of the time was spent in one place which was strange considering the fast pace that we are used to and secondly we were staying in a house which was a nice change.
Once separated from the tour we were left in Singapore and had to find some reasonably cheap accommodation which is a difficult task in that city, the hotels were out of the question, and even a hostel bed was ridiculous. In the end we settled for a capsule, a bed inside a coffin-like room, that you climbed up ladders to reach and was surrounded by others like it. At first I was a bit scared of the concept but when we arrived and scaled the ladders to our strange new hole it wasn’t so bad, although it took a while of moving our bags around to find a way to place them which meant we could stretch our legs. But all in all it was clean and a place to sleep after exploring. To round off the things we had seen in this fine city we went to the ‘Gardens by the Bay’ botanical gardens which had huge glass nature domes. They were so big they actually created their own weather systems, so you could find there was a raging thunderstorm in one of the domes but it was clear and sunny outside. They were really just another thing to show off Singapore’s wealth and technology but they were pretty cool nonetheless. One by one we said goodbye to each of the friends we had made, we felt like it was time for us to leave the city too and go off and explore new things also. We had to check out of the capsule at 11:00 am but our flight wasn’t until 2am the following morning so we had a lot of time to kill but luckily for us Singapore is voted the best airport in the world! We turned up to the airport and checked out what was on offer: the rooftop swimming pool – well we didn’t really want to get wet before the flight but the butterfly garden nature trail and the cinema sounded great. Hours flew by as we sat in the full sized cinema playing new movies for FREE and before we knew it we were boarding the flight.
We arrived in Hong Kong feeling questionable after little sleep on the plane and just wanted to get to Duncan’s house. We followed his careful instructions and even though it was well into rush hour we got there pretty smoothly. The house was beautiful, perched high on The Peak mountain with views down over the city and out to the sea. Groggily we sat down on the couch and fell asleep until around midday!! Duncan (my mums cousin) arrived back from work at around 5 and took us out to a seafood restaurant on a neighbouring island Lamma. The transition was crazy from towering skyscrapers to a small fishing village in 25 minutes, you felt miles from the city. The food was delicious and with our local guide we were able to avoid alcohol tax by purchasing local brands to compliment our dinner.
Since we arrived mid-week, for the first few days when me and Michael woke up everyone was out, giving us free reign of the house and most importantly the kitchen!! It was amazing to get up and make some toast without having to get dressed, go and order and wait for them to prepare your food!! We had a huge list of activities to tick off the list from Duncan, Leis (his wife) and Kirstin (his daughter) so we got started right away. The house was nestled half way up the famous Victoria Peak so we decided we would walk the rest, it took us an hour and a bit of Michael moaning but we got there and the views were amazing. You could see the whole of central Hong Kong but also out across the water to the new territories. The skyline never used to be so dramatic because all of the buildings had height limits due to the low flying planes at the famous airport, but after the airport was relocated the skyscrapers shot up in a number of years. Each bank building a higher and higher scraper to beat the others. We got to the top of the mountain expecting it to be like the top of Arthur seat but there was a massive mall with restaurants, designer shops and even an illusion museum – at the top of a mountain!!!! Asia is ridiculous. It was a welcome change to be able to come home and have dinner being made for you and to relax on the couch after a long day.
The next day in Hong Kong we had to do what me and Michael had been dreading for 2 months – get our hair cut. After walking around Soho, the trendy area in Hong Kong we finally walked into a shop and sat down. We got the strangest head massage and then they got to work cutting, they seem to be baffled by my curly hair and couldn’t really understand that I didn’t have a style I just leave it!! 40 minutes later my hair was shorter but I’m not sure if I was pleased or not. After our weird hair cut we headed to the Hong Kong zoo and botanical garden. The green houses were filled with tropical birds and plants. You would think you were in any view apart from the massive skyscrapers in the background which made a cool contrast.
The following day it was the weekend so we spent the day with Kirstin. She took us to her dragon boating practice on Lamma island. It is a form of strange canoeing with a traditional boat with a dragon head racing at the bow. It was really cool to see what people our age do living in a city like Hong Kong. After the dragon boat practice Kirstin took us a local restaurant that we would never step foot in but because she was a local we accepted. We let her order what she thought would be good and nervously waited for the food to arrive. First to come were local cuisine pork dumplings which were really delicious, however my chopsticks skills were not as good. The other platters arrived and everything was great apart from the bean curd, which was horrible!! I definitely feel when I come home nothing will make me turn my nose up anymore – don’t quote me on that!!!
The little bubble pancake things you can see in the picture is this delicious Chinese sweet dough called Egg Rolls! I could eat hundreds of them.
As the week came to a close we set off to the mainland away from Hong Kong and traveled to Mongkok. They are famous for their five street markets. The first market we visited was the main one, selling everything and anything. I got a jumper because Hong Kong is freezing!! We then went to the Ladies market which is pretty self explanatory and after a quick browse and Michael buying a Pokemon soft toy we were moving on. The next market was the goldfish market, which is exactly what it sounds like. Hundreds of bags of goldfish and sea creatures lined the streets which was fascinating but sad at the same time. I had to contain my animal rights activist and stay calm!! We moved on to the bird market which was different and interesting but sad all the same, parrots and huge majestic birds were on sale for anyone to buy. It was interesting to see how in some cultures this is just the norm. The fifth market was the Mongkok flower market – flowers and trees of all species lines the streets and you felt as if you had just stepped into the jungle, I saw so many cool plants that I wish I could take home with me!! It was a really nice day out exploring the mainland and markets and even though we were the only white people in the whole city it was amazing to experience an authentic non touristy part of China. 9 weeks down and another left in Hong Kong and then off to Austailia!!
My backpacking adventure across the globe 