Hong Kong, 25 Nov 2010

(Wrote this when I was in Shanghai...)

While I'm typing this, a question by LiYin the other day came across my mind. She was asking whether my parents is okay with me to travel alone nowadays. Back then in high school almost everyone knew that I was the one that hardly get permission to go out. But now! I'm traveling alone, from Penang to Sydney, to Hong Kong, to Shanghai.

Okay back to the point, the second day in Hong Kong, I traveled alone to the Ngong Ping for the Giant Buddha. Hopped on the ding ding tram to Central, got the Tung Chung Line and then the Ngong Ping 360˚ cable car. Yes I made it there by myself.

I was in the same cable car with a Malaysian family and yes.. Hokkien! :)

First stop was the Ngong Ping Village with all the small little shops selling souvenirs. Blablablablabla it's hard to earn my $ for souvenirs! And when I spotted the words 山水豆腐花 I went straight in because SK was telling me that there's a must eat tau fu fa! So soft and so smoooooth!

Next stop the 宝莲寺. I thought it'd be good idea to visit the Po Lin Temple first before heading to the Giant Buddha because I'd love to save the best for the last. I was completely wrong after that. Despite the scorching hot sun, my legs were complaining.

So next up is the Giant Buddha! My main purpose of the trip there. The lady at the counter asked if I wanna have some vegetarian food, I politely rejected. But when she asked if I wanna get a view of the statute inside since I've taken such a long way up there, why not?! Yes, I'm always that easy to be persuaded! It came with a complimentary vegetarian meal, so in fact I actually said yes to the vege meal in another way. The lady has got a way to psycho people like me! Hmmmph.

Walked all the way up the staircases... I hope I did apply sufficient amount of sun lotion on my face! Scorching hot sun!! I thought it's winter in Hong Kong!!

I felt myself so stupid for easily get convinced hahahaha because people who knows me know that I'm definitely not a museum/ zoo/ aquarium person. So i walked in the display center and walked through the staircases up to the top and walked out from it, like.. in 5 minutes?! So what's next? I'm looking for the vege meal then.

I said I was completely wrong for visiting the Po Lin temple first before the Giant Buddha because the vege meal canteen is at the Po Lin place instead of the Giant Buddha place. So I got to walk down again and back to the Po Lin place. It was so hot and I was sweating like hell. Arghhh.

And........ the second bowl of tau fu fah! Okay no regrets for the vege meal! When I was back in the city to meet up with my friends, all of them asked if I had the vege meal there. So, I supposed it's a good idea to have the vege meal there because everyone seems to like it. :)

I took the crystal cable car back and had a quick glance at the Citigate outlets. I wasn't in a mood for shopping though, too tired and I've nothing to grab either.

Got a call from Liz asking whether I wanna go for high tea because back in Sydney we wanted to go for one at QVB but that would cost us a lot which was not really worth having it there in the Tea Room. So I rushed back to the IFC mall to meet up with Liz and Albert.

Glam. High tea at the Four Seasons Hotel. I had a luxurious HK trip. Hahahaha. :D

There, we met Ho Hong Sang. Well I had no idea who is him until they told me he's someone really really rich and blablabla some gossips and the family and 四太 was there with him. And things like.. he got stroke years ago and admitted in the hospital for n months blablabla. This is really like what we see from movie for the super rich family with personal nurses. Woah.

And then we met 温碧霞 which I've no idea who is she either! But my mom knows! And they updated me with some gossips too. Hahaha :D I guess this is the life in HK!

After the high tea I went straight to Wanchai to meet up with Jessica and Eva, friends that I knew when I was in Newcastle. They brought me for 大排档 but I was so so so superb full from the high tea. It was yummy but I just couldn't have more...

But... we made it to 五代同糖 for dessert at Causeway Bay even I was soooo full because we wanna try the durian snow ice. Yes, the durian flavoured one. It was really soooooo.. durian!! Interesting!

Back to hotel after bidding goodbye. Tired tired and tired. Walked a lot, ate a lot, walked a lot, ate a lot.. Yea, HK!

Hong Kong, 24 Nov 2010

(Wrote this when I was in Shanghai...)

Arrived in HK at 3pm, a warm welcome from Liz. Awww it's like finally! After 5 months, yea, I do miss her indeed! She got her dad's company's driver to pick me up at the airport and sent me to my hotel at Sheungwan.

After checking in, we strolled down Sheungwan and to Central. Sheungwan is a place with all those dried seafood like dried shark fins, dried scallops, abalones etc etc, they call it 海味街. While strolling down the streets they all look so familiar to me and I was trying to recall when and where did I come across all these. And yes, Sydney's Chinatown/ Sussex St! I know it's.. a little bit 'out' but that's what came across! LOL.

I tried "but chai kou"!! And.. wife's cake, "red bean soft cake"! She bought me these, afraid that I'd get hungry when she went to classes! And Tai Cheong's egg tart, which I was told that lots of 港督 love to visit that. YUM!

Can you imagine the first thing that I actually did in HK was praying at a temple? Weird huh? Haha it was 文武庙! And I get a full set of praying incense!

When she went to classes, I took the star ferry to Tsim Sha Tsui for Star Avenue and  Harbour City. Nothing much about the Star Avenue I'd say, but... I walked all the way just to look for Andy Lau's print on the floor. Yes no joke, LOL, but I'm not a hard core fans.

The Symphony of Lights.. was okay, okay, okay. Nothing amazed me. Teehee.

But I spotted something super duper cute and interesting! The 101 Marathon event they have a display of the very very cute shoes! SO SO SO CUTE I wish I can take photos of every and each of them! Creative aye?

Harbour City Christmas decorations and lighting :) Pretty huh! And 1881 Heritage too!

Blahhhhh Ronald just finished off his work at 9pm (that's HK working lifestyle eih?) and Liz finished her class at 9pm too! Met up with Ronald at TST and we went to Jordan to meet up with Liz and Albert for supper! S U P P E R - the word that has almost disappeared from my dictionary but apparently it remains there as a 'backup'! Yessss this is where I had the most delicious scrambled egg and toast ever!! Simple yet yummiliious, sorry no photos. I was too SHY to take photos. Hahahaha. YUMMM!

And continue with half piece of smelly tofu! It smells.. smelly, but it tastes.. like a normal tofu! Not
that bad anyway, at least it's acceptable for me :)

Walk all the way from Jordan to Mongkok, passing by Templet Street and Women Street. Experienced the local-traditional-aunty-uncle night life by the street, singing and dancing. Hehehehe. And they kept telling me why and why I shouldn't stay at Kowloon area by myself, lol! And the places where many 黑社会 gather! Imagine if I'm staying there and I wander alone, I'd probably have 'intruded' those areas! :D

I'm super duper extremely happy meeting up with them! Life in Sydney without them has definitely become less interesting, I'm missing the good old times!

Two Thousand and Eleven

It's 2011 already, just came back from the fireworks. Went to two - 9pm at Darling Harbour and 12am at Circular Quay for the Harbour Bridge fireworks.

And I'm coughing my lungs out now.

Happy New Year p e o p l e  . . . . . .  It's 2011!

你的普通话说得真好

I've lost count of how many times I came across this sentence whenever I say I'm from Malaysia. And it follows with explanation that we started learning Mandarin, English and Bahasa since primary school. People will think you're awesome because you speak few languages including different dialects. I thought I'll be in Nanjing traveling by myself, ended up we came here in a group of 10! The mates have already left to Chengdu 3 hours ago and I started to miss them as soon as they hopped on the cab. Without their companion, my Nanjing trip wouldn't be that meaningful. I mean it! :) It's already 22 December, today. Oooopsss.

 

I'm... Amazed.

Me, Mel and Christine were at the China Pavilion and unsurprisingly there were people surrounding us asking whether we want to get the ticket from them with 5 yuan extra to avoid the long queue at the ticket booth. And this guy came over and said, "how much does the foreigner pay you to bring her around? She must have paid you for being her tour guide and translator."

I said no, we are friends!

He said no way! Insisting his "belief", I must have been paid!

I said no, he said yes. I said no, he said yes. WTF. I should have said YES.

This morning I went to the bank for currency exchange. Yes, my pocket is draining. I sat down at the counter and passed the teller the money. Suddenly one woman approached me with a bag, asked if I'm doing the exchange.

She said, "what about you do the exchange with me? Let's see what's the rate they offer you, I'll offer you a higher rate. Ok? Ok? Ok?"

I was stoned.

And the teller greatly told me the rate in Shanghainese dialect. I was like "huh? I don't understand."

Then the woman said, "she gives you 6.34. I'll give you 6.40. You can get few tens more. Deal?" I shook my head. She continued, "I just withdraw the money out from the bank. Don't worry." Apparently she knew the main concern is whether it's real or fake notes.

To my surprise, the teller remained silence and she was just looking at me while waiting for my decision.

I looked at the teller, "I'm dealing with you."

The woman walked away back to the waiting seat, waiting for the next target I supposed, throwing the last sentence, "you don't want? 算了."

The bank is empty, I was the only customer inside. Hellooooo where the hell is the security? Or they don't need one eventually.

Oh China. 我真是大开眼界，谢谢你！

Sent from my iPhone

这雪下得不是假的！

It takes forever to attach one photo. I thought of uploading three, apparently I'm losing my patience. Anyways, it was snowing... for real! It feels like Christmas! So.. it's snow, not rain.  It will get warmer starting from the day after tomorrow :) xoxo