Hong Kong, pt 2

Sadly the second half of my time in Hong Kong wasn’t quite as jam-packed and exciting as the first half.  There was lots that I wanted to do but two things got in the way; I got quite sick and the weather was terrible. I wanted to explore the smaller outlying islands, and make a trip to Macau but there was never a day when I fancied hopping on a boat, given the rain, the fog, the wind and general cold temperatures.

It seems to be a bit better at night, so most of my activities were night activities. One night I went on a harbour boat tour to see the lights show. I think HK is quite famous for its light show, but I thought it was a bit lame. The buildings are already mostly lit up, and it’s stunning, but then they only add a few laser-type-lights, and it just doesn’t make that much difference. If none of them were lit up and then they suddenly all came on, it would be much more impressive. Regardless, the boat tour is a great way to see the harbour at night. 

Chicken feet...

Another night I met up with Marc, a friend from Suara who moved to Hong Kong about a year ago. We went to Tim Ho Wan, a Michelin Star restaurant- the world’s cheapest Michelin Star restaurant!! It’s a yum-cha restaurant and we only ended up paying about $20(Aus) for the two of us. Marc made me try chicken feet. Ew. But hey, I tried! We also had the most delicious pork buns in the world. SO GOOD.

 

Afterwards we did a bit of market shopping. We went to the Ladies Market and Temple Street Market, two of Hong Kong’s most famous. Ladies Market is mostly bags, wallets, iPhone covers, similar things at each shop. Temple Street Market is more varied; glasses, magnets, sex toys, palm reading.. All sorts! Marc’s Cantonese came in handy for bartering :) We also had some herbal tea, which Marc tells me is popular in Hong Kong. It was deliciously sweet, but I’m told there’s no added sugar, just herbs!

The stunning view

I also went to the Peak. I was told to go at night, because it’s too foggy during the day. I got the tram all the way up (up the steepest hill ever) which was kind of cool. But it wasn’t until I was up at the peak that I was told that at the lookout it was too foggy to see anything. Annoyed that I had already come all this way I paid the extra $4.50(Aus) to go have a look for myself. Nope. They were right. Nothing. Bit disappointing.

  

World's longest escalator

On my last day in HK I finally felt well enough to actually venture out for a bit longer. I had lunch with Kath (from the hostel) and explored the shops near our hostel. We said goodbye and I headed for the Central area. Hong Kong is home to the world’s longest escalator. It’s not really that exciting but I went and had a ride on it. The streets around it are quite cool. There’s shops with everything varying from the expensive (Louis Vuitton) to the standard (Esprit) to the markets- super cheap. 

Busy streets of HK!

I went back up to the Mong Kok area (where the ladies market is) because Marc mentioned that there are two other notable streets there. One is shoe street (not it’s actual name, but how it is commonly known) and it’s pretty much covered in shoe shops; Adidas, Nike, Clarks, anything else you could imagine. Though, I spotted a lot of camera shops too! Camera shops are everywhere. The other street was meant to be flower street. However.. Either Marc made this one up, I’m too dumb to find it, or it’s a night thing. In any case, I couldn’t find it.

I’m now about to head off to the airport where I am going via Bangkok to Phuket..Where I will meet up with Jo! Weeeeeeeee!

Hong Kong, pt 1

When I booked to stay in Hong Kong, I had no idea that it would be Chinese New Year! But I am soo glad about this little happy coincidence because it has been amazing. I also had no idea that it would be freezing cold, not such a happy coincidence.

Huge crowds at the New Year Fair

When I arrived at my hostel I met Matt (Aus) & Kath (Wales), who’d only met a few days before in Vietnam. We headed out for lunch, then to Victoria Park where there was a New Year Fair. It was absolute madness. So so so many people, but it was organised chaos- you could only go round one way, so at least everyone was walking in the same direction. Most of the stuff looked pretty tacky- probably what you’d expect from a Chinese fair, actually. Lots of toys and food. Afterwards we roamed the shops in Causeway Bay, and discovered that things aren’t actually all that much cheaper than at home! Mac’s are the only things that are a lot cheaper (almost half price!) but I resisted the temptation.

We're famous!!!

The following day I went to the Well-Wishing Festival with Kath, Matt, and two others from the hostel- Sjoerd (Netherlands) and Isabel (Italy). The Well-Wishing Festival is a part of the New Year traditions. There is a wishing tree! At this wishing tree you purchase a piece of paper attached to a fake mandarin, write your wish on the paper, and throw it up onto the tree! I wished for safe, healthy and enjoyable travels (ironically, I’ve been quite sick since then!) While there we were randomly interviewed by a journalist, which then turned into a huge photoshoot in front of the tree.. And before you know it we’ve made it into the local paper! It’s in Cantonese, but I will get it translated.. 

Later that day we went to the Wong Tai Sin Temple for pilgrimage. Judging by the humongous queue it is a very important part of Chinese New Year. People bought incense which they burned at the temple, with a prayer. The whole place was stunning, especially with the New Year decorations but absolutely crammed full of people. 

With an hour or so to spare before the New Year Parade we dropped by the Women’s Market. There were all sorts of things; from jewellery to phone covers to toys to kinky underwear...everything. I bought a little ring (which I bartered down, quite proud!) but then soon realised that all of these things would be much cheaper in Thailand! So I restrained myself from any further shopping. 

The New Year Parade was given a lot of hype. We were told that we absolutely could not miss it. With all that build up it was actually a disappointment in the end. Each float or group of people was quite cool but there were huge gaps between each. I thought it would have been hugely improved if it were just a constant flow. Not really worth the effort. 

Giant buddha hidden in fog!

The following day we made a trek out to the giant Buddha; about 40 mins on the metro, then 40 mins on a bus. As we got closer and closer it got foggier and foggier. By the time we could see (or were meant to see) the Buddha it was just complete white. At the bottom of the statue we could vaguely see his feet and his hand (because it’s in the air, away from the body) but we really couldn’t see much. He is huge, though. That much I could tell. 

In the evening we went to the New Year Fireworks. Again, everyone kept saying that it was something we definitely shouldn’t miss. This time they were right. It was spectacular. So loud, so colourful, so many fireworks! I’ve never seen so many in my life. And to add to it, the Hong Kong skyline is covered in lights. Beautiful.

It’s a vibrant and exciting city- I’ve still got another three days here, and plenty more to do!

India: Delhi (again)

Henna!

What was meant to be a five and a half hour train from Ranthambore to Delhi turned into an eight hour train because it was so foggy. This meant that we didn’t get to Delhi until late in the afternoon. Most of our afternoon was spent using internet and hot water (both things we had not had for a few days) and once we were all sorted we went out for one final group dinner. I love Indian food, but I am a little bit over having spicy food at every meal!

Before drying..

Three out of the six tour members departed from Delhi before I made it out of bed the next day. I spent most of the day with Jess and Michael (the remaining two from the tour), not keen to do too much, but definitely keen to leave the hotel. We ventured out on a mission: Jess and I wanted henna, and Michael wanted a haircut. All missions were accomplished. The henna was quite cool, just watching they guy do it. It’s like a thick ink that you have to leave on til the next day, but it gradually chips off. And gets rather annoying. Right now it is a very bright orange colour. I thought it would be a bit more brown-y but hopefully it fades in the next day or too. Looks cool, I reckon!

After we left our hands to dry for a little while, we ordered a taxi to take us to the red fort. At this point, I was a little over forts, we’d seen quite a few. We’d also been told that we’d seen better ones than this one. So we walked around the edge, admired it without going in. Instead we decided to roam the area.. By foot! Oh my! There was a lovely temple, but we couldn’t go in because of their strange opening hours for visitors. Walking further down the street we discovered we were in one of Delhi’s biggest markets. It was crazy hectic. Makes all the other markets seem calm! In the 15-20 minutes that we were walking around I was (very intentionally) elbowed in the boob twice. One of the men even followed us for a while after, staring at me the whole time. Shortly after this I felt a hand near my bum and was fed up, ready to have a go at the offender. I turned and realised it was a little girl, no older than about seven, trying to get into my bag. 

Dirty, hectic Delhi markets

This short walk just reaffirmed my notion that Delhi is chaotic and dirty. I really don’t like it, and don’t recommend it. Overall I’m a little glad to be leaving India today. Whilst it has been fun, I’m looking forward to foods that aren’t spicy, men who don’t touch me inappropriately and people who don’t think I’m made of money. 

I do recommend going to India but I don’t recommend going to Delhi!

India: Ranthambore National Park

For two nights were stayed in Ranthambore, a small town where there is a national park, home to the Bengal Tigers. We arrived by train in the early afternoon and after lunch I went to a handicraft store. There were loads of amazing handmade crafts, most of which I fell in love with but couldn’t possibly fit in my bag. I could’ve decorated the whole house with this stuff! I ended up buying one small cushion cover with an elephant on it. It’s gorgrous! It’s also nice to go shopping without being hassled or pressured into buying things, like in most of the markets in India. In the evening we had drinks around a bonfire. I’ve been extremely surprised by the weather here. It’s “winter” but it’s a perfect 20-25 degrees during the day, then freeeezing cold at night and in the morning. 

Wild bored, hidden in the fog

Bit too close for comfort, personally..

Early the next morning (in the most freezing of freezing cold) we set off for a jungle safari. The main aim was to spot a tiger, but we had no luck. They use the other animals to try and figure out where the tigers are. The monkeys have a warning call & the deers will all hide if they know a tiger is nearby. The closest we got was a few footprints. We did see a lot of deer, monkeys and peacocks, a wild bore, a tiny owl, some alligators, turtles, water snakes. Even without seeing too many exciting animals the park was stunning. The animals are very much left to live on their own; they’re not fed or kept in enclosures so you’re really seeing them in their own environment. 

We went back to the hotel to relax in the sun (when it finally came out) and headed back to the park in the afternoon. We spent about two hours roaming the park by Jeep, getting fairly bored by all the same animals we’d already seen.  Too many deers! We kept stopping in hope of finding a tiger, and eventually heard the monkey’s warning call. We were suddenly surrounded by about 10 other Jeeps and everyone was pointing and getting their cameras out very excitedly. The jeeps suddenly became in competition with each other, all trying to get the best position, each driver keen for their Jeep to have the best view. At first we were a few cars back, but could still see. Then the tiger moved and we managed to cut right across all the other Jeeps and put ourselves in prime position. We were incredibly close, only metres away. This was possibly the most exciting half hour of my whole trip. We were right up front as the tiger crossed the road in front of us, went over to the water for a little drink and continued to roam the park. It was amazing. Incredible. Unbelievable. There was one small moment when he started walking towards us, where I thought “hmm..he could eat us all” but it quickly passed and the excitement came back. Afterwards, we were all on a little high. All the way back to the hotel we were smiling and giggling and thanking our driver for doing such a good job at getting us in the right position.

 It was nice to be in a really small town, where we weren’t constantly surrounded by honking horns and people hassling us for money. Almost peaceful, you might say!

India: Jaipur

One of the villages..

Before boarding the “public bus” in Agra our tour guide informed us we might get sick of all the goats- but if so we could just head up on top of the bus for a bit. Luckily, he was kidding. However, there were loads of buses on the highways with people on top! Our bus however was really just a basic coach. The ride to Jaipur was 5-6 hours, but I was constantly intrigued by things happening outside. We passed a huge assortment of animals; a lot of cows on the road, and quite a few camel-drawn carts. There were villages covered in markets, huge green fields and women dressed in gorgeous sari’s. 

The rooftop

We arrived just before dark and were taken to our hotel. We were welcomed by some very polite Indian men who put flower chains around our necks, tikka’s on our foreheads, and gave us Lassi (a common Indian drink..which I don’t like, but the thought is nice). The hotel was stunning. We went up to the rooftop where we could see hundreds of kites in the sky. Apparently it is the kite season! I had a go, without much success. Our guide managed to keep one going for a while, before someone else cut the string. Kite-flying here is so different to at home. At home people have huge colourful kites in the shape of an animal or the like. In India all the kites are very basic; same shape but variation in the colours. A lot of them looked home-made. And it’s like a sport! They’re all trying to cut other peoples strings so that theirs is the last one standing. We stayed on the rooftop until after sunset, at which point we headed out for dinner. We had dinner at an outdoor restaurant where we were treated to an assortment of entertainment.. From dancing (while balancing many objects on their heads) to fire eating to a very amusing puppet show. The food was also phenomenally good. I think I may be addicted to garlic naan! After dinner we returned to the rooftop where we saw heaps of fireworks (for various weddings)

The following day was a jam-packed day exploring Jaipur. Jaipur is known as the ‘Pink City’ because a lot of the market areas and buildings are red/amber/orange/pink. Our first stop was the Amber Palace. This once housed the royal family! It was absolutely stunning and if it hadn’t been so foggy it would’ve given an amazing view. There were elephant rides going on around the palace, which we were all keen to do. However when we got closer we could see how badly they were being treated- being poked and prodded with sharp objects when they did something wrong. They just looked so sad.

Streets of Jaipur

After the Amber Palace we went to a vegetarian restaurant where I tried some strange food that almost burned my mouth off, it was sooo spicy. We then went to the city Palace. It seems there are a lot of palaces in India! This one seemed more well-kept, as if it had more recently been occupied. There is still a royal family in India but I actually have no idea where they live. Stunning. A few of us then braved the markets. Some of the shop owners pester you to no end. They’ll block your path to try to force you into their shop, and tell you to try everything.. If you say no to one thing, they’ll suggest more until you finally give in or manage to escape. Luckily I have developed a firm “no” closely followed by a “leave me alone” if need be. I got a few bangles, and proudly resisted all other temptations!

Jess in her sari, on the rooftop

Before dinner we headed out for a film.. A Bollywood film! We watched ‘Don 2’, a James Bond type movie mostly in Hindu, with random English words or phrases. No subtitles. Very action-packed, with a nice song & dance in the middle. Bollywood is great fun! We had a traditional southern Indian dinner, which was vegetarian, then headed to the rooftop to watch more fireworks and have a few drinks. Jaipur is a slightly more relaxed city than Dehli and Agra. I felt like I got less hassled, and was able to enjoy the atmosphere a bit more. It’s still impossible to walk anywhere- no one ever has a map and there’s no logic to the roads so we just got tuk tuk’s everywhere. Bit of a shame because I enjoy exploring new cities by foot.