Life As We Know It: Hong Kong & Vegas of the East

Destination: Hong Kong & Macau, Special Administrative Republic, China

Date: February 3-7, 2012 – Prophet Muhammed’s Birthday (6^th) and Thaipusam(7^th); both public holidays

Getting there: Air Asia – 3 hours 45 minute fight from Kuala Lumpur to Hong Kong; 1 hour ferry ride from Hong Kong to Macau

Where we stayed: Cosmo Hotel Mongkok, Kowloon – small, but clean, affordable and in close proximity to MTR (Olympic) station

Time spent: 4 nights, 4 full days (1 day in Macau)

Currency: $1 HKD = ~$7.75 USD

Things to know before you go: The Octopus card is a great card to purchase ($50 HKD refundable deposit) if you are going to spend more than a few days in Hong Kong and is used on all MTR (train) stations, buses, and can be used at many convenient stores and fast food restaurants. Very handy to have and use to travel in between the islands and throughout the city.

Our first trip to Hong Kong was a nice change to cooler weather (55 - 60˚F) away from the “winter” months of KL where we have been seeing 85-90˚F. We decided to go for a 4-day weekend and left after work on Friday evening and stayed through the two public holidays on Monday and Tuesday. Friday night was a late night by the time we arrived and checked into our hotel, so we were ready to crash for the night and start our site seeing the next day.

Saturday morning I planned for us to tour around the sites closer to our hotel, so we went to New Territories area of Hong Kong to the Po Fook Hill Cemetery and hiked straight up a hill to the Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery. It is said that there are actually closer to thirteen thousand buddhas, all with different faces and expressions!!!

After the Ten Thousand Buddhas monastery, we decided to head north to the (very local) Tai Po market for lunch. We ended up finding something to eat, but it was so local that we were only able to convey what we wanted by pointing, smiling, and hoping for the best ;) It hit the spot and turned out okay. After lunch, we took the MTR back down to Kowloon area to walk down Tsim Sha Tsui where there are cheap restaurants, local shopping and markets.

Victoria Peak, or The Peak, is the highest peak in Hong Kong with a beautiful view of the city skyline on the edge of Victoria Harbour. I had planned for us to try and arrive in time to take the 120 - year old railway, the Peak Tram, up in time to watch the sundown and the city lights as they come on lighting up the sky. It was very windy and chilly, but a romantic way to end our wonderful first day.

Our second day in Hong Kong, we started the day off watching part of the Standard Charter Hong Kong marathon. The next site we were anxious to see was the Tian Tan Buddha, or most commonly known as Big Buddha and the Po Lin (Precious Lotus) Monastery. We were not able to ride the Ngong Ping 360 cable car up to the Big Buddha but were able to reach it up in the mountain via a bus. For a small entry fee of $3.50 USD, we were able to walk up to Big Buddha and were given an ice cream and bottled water at the end of our tour. Big Buddha is on Lantau island and shows such a beautiful and more serene side of Hong Kong.

Big Buddha was definitely an incredible site, being the largest sitting bronzed Buddha in the world. After we got back to town, we watched a laser light show over Victoria Harbour, then got a little taste of home with a delicious dinner at Outback Steakhouse to end the night.

The next day was our last full day in Hong Kong, so we decided to take a 1-hour ferry ride (via First Ferry - $20 USD each per way) over to explore Macau. Macau is known as the Las Vegas of Asia for its glamorous hotels, casinos (a favorite pastime of the Chinese) and plenty of shopping.

Macau was a former Portuguese colony, both the first and last European colony in China. Like Hong Kong, Macau is a SAR (Special Administrative Republic) of China and Portuguese traders first settled in Macau in the 16th century and subsequently administered the region until the handover in December 1999. The Basic Law of Macau stipulates that Macau operates with a high degree of autonomy until at least 2049, fifty years after the transfer.

The SAR means that China is responsible for the territory's defense and foreign affairs, while Macau maintains its own legal system, police force, monetary system, customs policy, and immigration policy. According to The World Factbook, Macau has the second highest life expectancy in the world with an average of 84.36 years.

MGM Macau - Fortune Dragon of Spring

Portuguese inspired cobblestone Senado (Senate) Square in Macau

Kaes and I in front of the Ruins of St. Paul's Cathedral

Our last day half day, we decided to take the MTR over to the financial district and walk through Hong Kong Park. They day was clear and crisp and we picked up some lunch and headed over for a picnic in the park. Kaes just got a new 100mm macro lens and tried it out for a close up on these little guys warming themselves in the sun.