Friday, my third day in Hong Kong. Ahhh...the smell of early morning coffee - really early, like 5:30am early. I was still groggy and my brain wanted more sleep but it was time to get ready. We had a full day ahead (KC and I slept late planning the day's activities the night before) and I, personally, wanted to make the most of my stay in Hong Kong. I can sleep back home. =)
Anyway, looking out the window at the thick morning fog told us that we need to jumble our itinerary. ☁ Victoria Peak was supposed to be our first activity of the day, but the view would've been wasted with the fog. So we decided to bump up our second activity - the Mid-levels Escalator. The longest outdoor escalator in the world, the Mid-levels escalator runs 800 meters long and takes you up to 135 meters from the bottom, and crosses about 14 streets in all! Whew! Talk about loooooong.
So, after riding the escalator (about 3 or 4 sections of it), we got off at Hollywood Road (one of the nicest neighborhoods we've seen in HK) to visit the famous Man Mo Temple, one of the oldest temples in Hong Kong with its hanging coiled incense. There was a lot of people inside burning incense and praying. No picture taking was allowed inside the temple so we just stood there watching people praying and being smoked like hams. I wasn't able to appreciate the uniqueness and beauty of this temple since I can hardly open my eyes and breathe inside. After a minute of so, we went out to get some fresh air. Haaaaah!
Anyway, looking out the window at the thick morning fog told us that we need to jumble our itinerary. ☁ Victoria Peak was supposed to be our first activity of the day, but the view would've been wasted with the fog. So we decided to bump up our second activity - the Mid-levels Escalator. The longest outdoor escalator in the world, the Mid-levels escalator runs 800 meters long and takes you up to 135 meters from the bottom, and crosses about 14 streets in all! Whew! Talk about loooooong.
So, after riding the escalator (about 3 or 4 sections of it), we got off at Hollywood Road (one of the nicest neighborhoods we've seen in HK) to visit the famous Man Mo Temple, one of the oldest temples in Hong Kong with its hanging coiled incense. There was a lot of people inside burning incense and praying. No picture taking was allowed inside the temple so we just stood there watching people praying and being smoked like hams. I wasn't able to appreciate the uniqueness and beauty of this temple since I can hardly open my eyes and breathe inside. After a minute of so, we went out to get some fresh air. Haaaaah!
Inside Man Mo Temple (photo courtesy of Wikipedia)
After, we walked back to Soho to get some lunch. Along the way we stopped at Duddell Street where the last working gas lamps in HK are located. It was in my itinerary so finding it like we did, walking towards Soho, was great and a time saver. ✔
Finding the perfect place to have our lunch was kinda hard in Soho with so many choices and budget constraints on our part. It seemed like we would end up in one of our fail-safe American fast-food chain choices. Luckily, our determination to savor new fares was strong enough to keep us looking. We ended on Old Bailey Street where we found Tequila, a Mexican bar and restaurant. We chose 3 orders of their set lunches each with a different appetizer and main course. It was yummy! Well worth the money spent on it.
With stomachs filled and wallets a little lighter, we headed out to our main destination for the day - Victoria Peak Tram/ Victoria Peak. Of course, staying true to our "turista" label, we stopped to take pictures of every famous landmark we pass by. One such monument is St. John's Cathedral. It was beautiful and so solemnly grand inside you can't help but fall silent. The catholic in me found some sense of solace in this place. ✝
After a few more minutes of walking we finally got to the Victoria Peak Tram Station. We bought our tickets ($56 return with Sky Terrace) and patiently waited in line for our turn to ride the tram. It was still a bit foggy and bitingly cold when we started our tram ride up to Victoria Peak. When we got there one of the very first things we did (aside from taking more pictures) was buy souvenirs. I bought this Jordan street sign magnet for HKD10 and some other HK magnets and keychains to give away at home. After, we proceeded to the Sky Terrace at the very top of the tower where you can have a bird's eye view of the city.
Since I'm scared shit of heights and structures with glass railings/ walls, I stayed a couple of feet away from the edge of the terrace and was content on not having any pictures there. But everywhere else is fine with me. It was so cold and so windy that we didn't have too many decent-looking pictures there. Especially me! ☃
After all that cold air seeping into our clothes, we needed to defrost with something hot, creamy, and delicious - COFFEE! The only coffee shop there that didn't have any branch in the Philippines was Pacific Coffee, so we naturally went there. Ah...heaven in a cup! c[_]
From Victoria Peak our next destination was back to the TST harbor where we were scheduled to watch the Symphony of Lights show. For that we opted to ride the Star Ferry, which was cheaper and offered a more scenic route to TST than the MTR. Plus, it was Mimi and Joyce's first time in HK so we decided that they had to experience the ferry ride.
The walk to the pier was long and tiring. But we had a chance to explore more of HK and of course took lots of pictures to chronicle this adventure. The cold weather spurred us because it lessened our tiredness.
The Symphony of Lights show was unexpectedly unspectacular. Yes, it was a feat to coordinate around 10 buildings to light up in sync with the music. However, to a viewer looking for the "wow" factor in a much hyped event, it was a letdown. I enjoyed the skyline of the Hong Kong side more and relished the fact that it was so cold I was beginning to have chapped lips - something that doesn't happen to me in Manila.
I was tired and ready to drop dead at the hotel, but of course we didn't do just that. We wandered about the area and took more pictures at the 1881 Heritage and in front of The Peninsula. Afterwhich, thankfully, everyone agreed to go back to the hotel.
Haaah! So tired, sleepy, and quite hungry - again - I had a little snack before turning in for the night. Tomorrow's another fun-filled adventure day!
Haaah! So tired, sleepy, and quite hungry - again - I had a little snack before turning in for the night. Tomorrow's another fun-filled adventure day!
