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Trip Start Feb 13, 2008 Previous
Entry Trip End Apr 05, 2008

  Gravesend, United Kingdom
Tuesday, April 15, 2008

What a great time we had in Hong Kong.  A week later and I am still dreaming about being there - some form of jet lag perhaps?     We had four days of mist and low cloud but this didn't hold us back in the slightest - in fact, with the sun coming out on our last day, maybe it assisted us as it was extremely hot and humid as we tried to find the walled city of Kowloon (even the locals didn't know what we meant) and we nearly gave up.   However, after much studying of the map and excessive walking, we did find it and were glad we had made the hot and sweaty effort.    Even though it was sunny, the mist didn't really clear so that a visit to The Peak will have to wait until next time.

Our day trip by train to the real China at Shenzhen was quite an experience.  It's about 40 minutes to the border where we had to apply for a visa.  For UK citizens it is £30, whereas other nationalities only paid £10!  However, it was worth it.    We left the station and came out into a large plaza with hotels on two sides and a huge shopping emporium on the third.  This was built on seven floors with escalators and lifts.   On each floor must have been a hundred or more small outlets selling bags, shoes, belts, childrens clothes, hats, jade, ivory, nail manicures and pedicures, massages, food, toys, ladies and gents clothing, curtains, cushions, scarves, etc. etc. each attended by two or more assistants who assaulted our ears on both sides trying to enveigle us into their shop if we showed any interest at all in their wares.   It was obvious that you had to haggle and, being British, we were not used to it but in the end, I felt we did rather well.   As Andrew has just written from China, you have to walk away if you can, because they grab your arm and say "why you go?" and then they say, "how much you pay?" and thrust a calculator in your hand.  We really were quite exhausted after a few hours and had to rest in the B B C Western Restaurant where we found similarly tired "westerners" having a cup of coffee to revive them.   As you all know, Chris is not a "market" person but in the end he really got into the spirit of the game and it was me who had to drag him away!

Our ride on the tram was quite exciting, as was our quest to find the Mid Levels escalator.   It runs for over a mile and in the early morning it goes down from the top carrying the office workers etc. and then mid morning it goes up, taking tourists like us.   There are stairs alongside, so the further you go up, the more stairs you have to come down, unless you wait until late evening, when the escalator switches direction and goes down again.   We found a very pretty tea house - very French - in the Soho area and had tea and French pastries!   Not very Chinese, but delicious.  Not so the authentic Chinese meal we tried - I could have had Fried Pigs Blood but settled for Roasted Duck and Chris had a selection of Duck and Chicken.  The restaurant was packed with Chinese people which we took to be a good sign but on the whole, we think we prefer the western version of Chinese food.

Our flight home was uneventful - our luggage appeared on the carousel without any hiccup (it was really an awful feeling when my case went AWOL at Hong Kong airport from Auckland, via Brisbane.  I thought I might never see it again and have to spend five days in the clothes I stood up in, not to mention the loss of my new Ugg boots, Crocs and my cherished holiday book.)    We were delighted to see Maureen and Gary at Heathrow and they were very patient whilst we chewed their ears off with our experiences. 

When we arrived home the garden was looking lovely.  We had missed some of the daffodils but the apple tree is in bloom. as are the tulips and thank you Paddy for cutting the lawns and taking in the post which stood at least two feet high and is still being "processed."

We've had a really wonderful trip - one that we will remember all our lives.     We liked everywhere we visited without exception.  Bangkok was so different from anything we have experienced, Australia was great, expecially seeing Andrew and Sarah in Sydney - I won't mention the Bridge Climb if you don't - New Zealand has the most stunning and magnificent scenery, all day every day, even in the rain.   I have almost forgotten the damp and muddy shower blocks endured in the South Island and recall only the sunny days in Una United in the North Island.   Our only regret is that we didn't have longer in the North Island.   Hong Kong was fantastic - we would love to visit again.  

It is great to be home - to see Christopher, Louise, Ollie and Amelie and all our friends.   We will see how this friendship endures once you have been subjected to the thousands of photos, video film and our repetition of the highlights of our holiday. 

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