Posts tagged hong kong
An American in Hong Kong
So now I am in the fantastic urban jungle known as Hong Kong. Walking down the streets you are bombarded with neon lights, gorgeous super models from all corners of Asia, and the most delicious street food on this planet! Seriously, watch out New York hot dog vendors. Roasting ducks and making yellow curry on the corner might just make us throw franks on the street.
Upon arriving, I was very lucky to catch up with Kristen Delmonte, STA Travel’s World Traveler Intern runner-up stationed at the University of Dreams in Hong Kong! One of the coolest girls on the face of this planet (a triple threat – very attractive, very intelligent, and very much into travel), was able to take me on a tour of the HK.
Now the coolest thing about Hong Kong is its blend of eastern and western culture. On one street, you’ll find a ’7 Eleven’ right next to a traditional tea shop. Jasmine tea Slurpee anyone? It just goes to show how global the world has become. (And if you’re really into the whole ‘small world’ thing, stop by Disneyland Hong Kong. A bunch of my friends from Intrepid took the Mickey plunge and noted how fantastic it was.)
But Kristen’s experience with University of Dreams has been really fabulous. She’s really gotten into the high profile Hong Kong circuit (ask her about her crazy Madagascan jewel encounter) through her internship.
Well, I’m off to do just what the doctor ordered – hop on a plane to Sydney and slip into some Ugg Boots, because this is where we flip into winter. Can’t wait! Catch y’all later.
Visiting Hong Kong
So, I have a stopover of a few days in Hong Kong, and I must say: I’m rocking out right now. Really and truly rocking out.
Never have I seen such an awe-inspiring mix of steel and neon, water and hillsides, man and earth. You look up to the sky and the scraping of buildings only stops at the sun, and you look out to the sea and the cargo ships skim across the water in late afternoon’s haze. And yet, I’m not overwhelmed as I feel when I’m in New York; I actually think I could live here for a little while. For, somehow the concrete doesn’t seem so hardened. The people walk a bit slower and still take time to have tea or play cards along the street. Groups shift in and out, interact, blend, and go about their lives without yelling about who they are. I like that in a city.
And then there’s my hotel. It’s a 4-star, and I have a suite. I don’t need two TVs or phones, and I haven’t had time to read the daily newspaper on my desk, but it’s nice (no, it’s wild) to feel spoiled every now and again. I can make my own coffee, and the shower is a massive structure of steel and smooth gray stone. Sure, I can turn down my own bedsheets (I always have), but I adore that they put chocolates by the pillow after making the bed and providing me with fresh fruit. And the view: I have two sets of massive windows (one in the bedroom, one in the living room) onto Victoria Harbor. That is to say that I can see the buildings touching mountains touching clouds touching sky, and I can watch the boats pass by flashing their neon and touting internationalism. Incredible.
I’ve been wandering the streets of the old neighborhoods, exploring night markets, trying frightening but tasty foods, and absorbing everything surrounding. Photographing red lanterns and crawfish waiting to be made into dinner and old coins and jade Buddhas. Not exactly passing as a local (something about blonde hair and more curves than the average Asian), but immersing myself and getting by without a hitch. Marveling at skinny and colorful trams, the permeating smell of seafood, humidity, high fashion, and how welcome I feel in a city so far from home.
Tomorrow I head to mainland China, and I’m psyched. I didn’t get to see as much of the islands of Hong Kong as I’d like, but that just gives me the excuse to return.
On, then, to the mainland!