Waiting For The Dawn
Trip Start
Nov 16, 2007
1
29
40
Trip End
Aug 2008
Osaka,
Kinki,
Japan
Sunday, May 18, 2008
The recently renovated tram is a smooth way to the top. At times so steep you are lying in the back of your seat, the glass sides give great views as you rise 386 metres up to the lookout. As you pass the wealthy hillside pads, you get to snoop into the rooftop gardens with pools
Hong Kong Peak1
. At the top sits a large mall and restaurants, but you only have to walk round the corner to get away from the development. Then the view of Hong Kong stretches into the mist. From the south side, you look out on the South China Sea.Heading back to Kowloon in the afternoon I decide to make for the cinema and catch a film. Then back to the hotel and an evening spent chatting with my new dormmate. Frank is a Chinese student studying in Singapore. It is fun getting his attitudes and ideas on China's future and its relationship with the world. The other new member of the dorm arrives later. Zarin is Canadian and traveling through South East Asia. When she goes to brush her teeth, Frank nervously reveals it is the first time he has slept in the same room as a member of the opposite sex.
Frank's mixed slumbering cherry popped, I head north again exploring the market area north of Kowloon. Lots of little streets full of stalls selling everything genuine and otherwise. It makes for good haggling and I pick up a few more gifts for those back home. In the afternoon I head back to pick up my passport. A nice fresh Russian visa all ready for August. After some more wandering in the area, I head back to the hotel and chat to Zarin about her trip.
Hong Kong Peak2
With my passport back, I get up early and make for the China Ferry Terminal to board a ferry for the hour ride to Macau. After another hour queuing to get through customs, I find myself in the former Portuguese colony and the only legal gambling site in China. This was the first European trading port in China and acted as a diversion from the traditional land routes of the Silk Road. For half a century, Portugal controlled the monopoly on much of east Asian trade and the old buildings reflect this peak, grand churches and forts. British growth in Hong Kong signaled the demise of Macau. Struggling to compete, gambling was introduced to boost revenues. However the associated social problems meant that when Portugal tried to hand the struggling colony back in the 60's and 70's, China refused. Finally control passed back to China in 1999. Established as a Special Administrative Region (SAR) like Hong Kong, China brought control to the triad gangs and then removed the monopoly on gambling that existed. With that, casinos shot up, now totaling 14.
Out of the ferry terminal, I head up Avenida Do Dr. Rodrigo Rodrigues and turn up the hill towards the Fortaleza do Monte. This giant hulk of stone bricks has views over all the sea approaches to Macau and was the main defensive position for the port. Canon still point out to sea, although their lines of fire are now blocked by the towering casinos
Hong Kong Skyline1
. Down the side of the hill lies the facade of Sao Paulo church, the rest of which burnt down in 1835. You still get an impression of the "greatest Christian monument in east Asia".Walking down the grand steps of Rua de Sao Paulo you reach the central square of Largo do Senado, a really pretty cobbled square surrounded by brightly painted 17th century buildings. Shoppers wander round in the bright sunshine as I walk past the fountain and up to the cathedral. Then down a side alley to a restaurant for lunch. Called Alphonso III, it is run by a friendly Macan and serves great traditional Macanese food. Well worth a look.
With BBQ chicken sticking to my ribs, I walk down Avenida do Infante D. Henrique to a large waterfront square surrounded by giant glass covered casinos. The place oozes money, and high and not so high rollers bustle around the marble lined lobbies. I continue along the waterfront, past shopping arcades, an amusement park and a mock Chinese fortress to the ferry port. No bad queues this time and soon we are crashing through the sea back to Hong Kong.
The last few days in Kowloon are more of the same. Another visit to the cinema, a purchase of a new camcorder mainly for kendo filming in Japan and Korea and the like
Hong Kong Skyline2
. I pay a visit to the Space Museum which is a pretty good introduction to all things extra-terrestrial and holds a lot of information about the fledgling Chinese space program. Just along the bay lies the Hong Kong Museum of Art with a mixed collection of colonial art and an outstanding collection covering all of China. My final evening in Kowloon, I record the sunset in the bay, the buildings on Hong Kong Island glowing in the warm May sunshine.Riding the bus out to the airport takes you west and over the bridge to Lantau Island. I am checked into the airport hotel for one night to avoid the rush in the morning. The ultra modern airport is built on reclaimed land jutting out into the sea, and my room overlooks the gleaming water. The hotel is really great, my bathroom being bigger than the room in Kowloon, and the whole room probably being as big as the whole hotel in Kowloon. After dinner in the terminal, I settle down in a bed big enough for four. Up bright and early for the flight to Osaka.
