Here we go again! Back on the road, in Asia again because it seems we cannot live without it for too long. Something draws us to it instantly, tempts us, fuels our addiction and makes us look for the tickets. And suddenly we find ourselves thinking how to get to some remote bar somewhere at the world’s end where we can eat noodles, Asian dumplings or different types of rice with chopsticks spicing it all up with some chilli..
This was the case this time. Autumn was different and tiring. Lots of work, lots of duties and deadlines. Not that much time for ourselves die to DESEO, a challenge that completely took over our lives lately and made us focus on chocolate, cakes, packaging, shipments and orders most of all. We decided to go only recently. We looked for tickets that won’t kill our wallets which isn’t an easy thing in the Christmas-New Year’s Eve period. Hong Kong wasn’t the only place we considered, but there was a lot about it that seemed tempting with the main thing -THE FOOD on top of it 🙂 . We wanted to go after Christmas Eve but the price difference between flights on 23-24th December and 25-26th was devastating and made it clear that there’s only one way to do it if you wanna go now.
It started a bit rough. Feeling happy that first we’re flying to Dubai and then to Hong Kong the next day, we thought to ourselves how cool and comfortable will it be to feel rested and that Maks won’t make us go crazy during a long flight. Because what’s 6 or 7 hours onboard compared with 10 or 12? Nothing! The flight to Dubai went well and problemless. Our hotel was located right by the airport. We had dinner, went to sleep and woke up for the flight to Hong Kong. We didn’t have much time, but we already had our boarding passes so there was no danger of not getting there on time. The only thing I forgot (numb or tired, I don’t know???) was the fact that we need to check in our baggage.. and this you can’t do 40 minutes before the flight, and certainly not in Dubai. Flight is closed, next plane leaves in 10 hours, extra PLN 2500 for 3 tickets (couldn’t wish for a better Christmas present), we’re mad, nervous, tired, with too much clothes on and we’re hanging around Deira, the old town of Dubai on Christmas Eve. That’s not how it was supposed to be. A lesson learned.
We got to Hong Kong on 25th December at 6 am, but you know what??? There’s only been 2 days but we already know that Hong Kong will make it up for all the problems we had. That it’s worth it and YES it will surely be another Asian city we will love greatly! More than Bangkok? We’ll see… second place 100% guaranteed! 🙂 Here’s a quick one for today – first flavours, first views, first impressions. More and more o come! 🙂
1) SKYSCRAPERS, SKYSCRAPERS, SKYSCRAPERS EVERYWHERE!!!
Skyscrapers are everywhere!!! Bangkok and Singapore are nothing compared with that. Warsaw seems like a tiny city compared to what we see in Hong Kong. As you look at these buildings, you get the feeling that you’re in a game of some sort, some kind of an artificial world because it seems unlikely that there’s so many of them and that there are people actually leaving there! It’s a bit less surprising when you consider the fact that Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated places in the world with more than 40 thousand people leaving on 1 km2. You can see it both by looking at the huge high-rise buildings and by walking the streets where a walk often turns into a struggle with the crowd.
Hong Kong’s panorama is absolutely spectacular, different than anything we’ve seen before, beautiful and amazing. The landscape adds to its charm, especially the hills which make you wonder how the hell did they put such buildings there. The most impressive views are surely those from Victoria Peak (seen in the pictures) and the view while you sail on the ferry through Victoria Harbour between Central District and Kowloon peninsula (coming soon – today the camera gave up on us in the end of the day!).
2) PARADISE FOR FOODIES AND CULINARY FREAKS!
I knew it and counted on it. I hoped it will be at least as good as in Singapore where you could eat anywhere and it was always great. In Hong Kong it’s similar – restaurants, big and small bars and a whole lot of possibilities in shopping centres which seem to be everywhere here! For now we’ve mainly been dining on soups with plenty of noodles and dumplings/won tons or other balls (i.e. fishballs!) and obviously on our beloved dim sums. After a visit here there’s no doubt about what dim sums are – it’s not only Chinese dumplings but also a whole lot of different Chinese snacks you order and eat one after another from shared plates and bamboo baskets. As we sit and dip all the wonders in delicious sauces I know that this is what I dreamed about!
We also started testing local desserts obsessively! Looking at the streets of Hong Kong I can say that they love sweets here – there’s plenty of bakeries and confectioneries with cakes similar to the ones in Poland or France such as Paul Lafayet confectioneries which look exactly like the ones we know from Paris! But we’re not here for that.. I want mango, coconut, pandan, tapioca, taro and other Asian sweets! There’s plenty of them here – there’s a whole lot confectioneries specialising in Cantonese sweets only! Today the award for the best dessert goes to tofu pudding with mango and tapioca pearls!
3) CROWDS!
If you like large, empty spaces and plenty of free space around you, then Hong Kong surely isn’t a place for you. The density of the population can be seen almost constantly. When you try walking Nathan Road, especially near Tsim Sha Tsui, when you get off the ferry, or get on the subway, when you walk around the shopping centre, even one far from the city centre. Entering restaurants often requires standing in a queue, same goes for the famed tram of buses to Victoia Peak.
Fortunately there’s quite a few parks where you can relax far from the crowd among this dense urban planning and high-rise buildings.
4) INTRIGUING ARCHITECTURE IDEAS
Footbridges over busy roads are nothing! In Hong Kong there are whole systems of routes floating in the air which provide convenient foot transportation over the streets of the city! Fascinating for adults and obviously yet another treat for a child! The best highlight for Maks was a drive on the longest escalator we have ever seen – Mid-Levels Escalators which go for almost 1000 metres and consist of moving escalators and footbridges combined. The beginning of the escalator can be found near the Central subway station on Queen’s Road. There’s plenty of stops near the key locations of the neighbourhood such as Wellington Street (a lot of great food there!) or Hollywood Road. Obviously, we went to the top – Mid-Levels district.
5) DIVERSITY
Diversity is something we love the most. On one hand there are glass houses, modernity, impressive panorama and incredible ideas while on the other tiny Chinese bars, traditional markets such as flower, birds or fish fair which makes you feel like you’re in another Hong Kong…
So that’s it for the start 🙂 More Hong Kong is coming soon! And now, let’s go and see Lantau!:)
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