Hong Kong Trip - Updated (3 Jan)

this could be the day i've always been waiting for. the day tt i set foot in hong kong to experience for myself the very famous tagline - mai dong xi, chi dong xi! and im glad i wasnt disappointed, the shopping was crazy! although the same couldnt be said for the makan, it was only passable in my opinion. then again, we werent very well-informed of the nice dining places in hong kong. but i could say the trip definitely tested my mental ability to withstand the demands and whims of an old woman and a pregnant auntie, and not to mention the responsibility! it also helped put my mind off certain things (that still bite after so long) and opened my eyes to the ppl around me. yah, sometimes even ur family cun be trusted. hmm, did i just sounded despondent there? no worries, nothing home-wrecking happened, though probably stitch-bursting.

so i've heard from my colleagues that it wasnt the best time to go to hong kong becos of the nasty weather, which could just possibly burn ur skin and dehydrate u. hah, i tot, it cun be tt bad. and true enough, no fire bushes reported, just Typhoon Prapiroon, a day before we were scheduled to depart. major, major distress for me cos i was on a separate flight via very uncomfy airline (no more flying budget for me! NEVER!!) and my sis and mum were on cathay pacific. and at diff timings too! theirs was at a later time, so if their flight got cancelled, i'll be stranded in hong kong with just my camera, a packet of peanut butter biscuits, a bottle of water and my brolly (such useful things huh?) and did i also mention i'll be stranded with no lodging cos i've intended to snoop into their twin-bed room booked under sis' name, no clothes cos all my stuff were in mum's luggage and no cash.

tt last bit on being cash-less, it wasnt meant literally. in fact, i had thousands of dollars in my wallet. i had everything planned the day before i depart. i was gg to buy my octopus card, travel by their mtr to tsim sha tsui, locate the hotel im gg to stay at before finding myself a nice and cheap cha chan teng for lunch. was secretly grinning to myself on the endless possiblities for tt few hours alone in hong kong. oh-oh!! maybe even bumping into a friendly hunk who could show me around? now now, wouldnt tt be nice? hunk encounter aside, i was really bent on doing a few outrageous things during my stay. and they are, in no particular order :

- buy a cookie monster tissue box cover to complement my cookie monster plush cushion (okayy, not quite outrageous)
- ta siu yan! (heard tt there are even professional beaters at Ngo Keng Kiu)
- sit by the hotel tv all day and watch hong kong dramas spoken in bona fide cantonese
- try the local chau tau fu, i heard its tasty sewage
- grab a police officer patrolling on the streets for a photo and only those in green uniform. im not settling for anything else! (and i did, not even that hunkalicious police officer in blue i saw at lan kwai fong)
- lure any unsuspecting kid with goldfishes to an alley for a "homemade" video. *mad laugh* doesnt matter if its boy/girl, tall/short, skinny/plump, so long as its between ages 5-7, alone, speak coherently in cantonese and yes, unsuspecting. (y, dun u think kids speaking in cantonese are so so soooo adorable?? capturing it down on video would be such fun!)

so there, with my passport ready, maps and addresses on hand, and of cos, all the cash i would need. mum was saying if i was sure the money i brought was enough and i reassured her tt it will be. i noe i love shopping and there's loads to buy, but im not tt crazy to spend a few thousand dollars in a couple of hrs! but wat i didnt count on was this.

yes. these were the thousands of dollars i brought.

imagine my horror when i realised tt wat i haf with me were all TAIWAN dollars!! it took me 10 seconds to register tt piece of info and i practically had to lift my jaw up from the floor when the truth hit. boy, my little plan sure started out on the wrong foot! and stepping on poo too! grrrr... how could anyone get the wrong currency for their holiday? and its not even to any exotic countries like peru, bulgaria or... or even timbuktu! and the most UNbelievable thing was tt both my bro (who went down to the money changer) and sis have been to hong kong before! i mean, how could they have not noticed?? even i had tot sth was amiss, seeing the pic of the guo fu on hong kong currency though immediately dismissing it simply bcos of the fact tt i trusted my siblings.

huge mistake.

and which is y i said even ur family cun be trusted sometimes. anyhow, i got my mtr card eventually. the cutie behind the counter (it seems tt even the most traumatic experience had failed to obscure my acute sense for anything attractive) was quick to suggest an alternative mode of payment when he saw my wallet full of taiwan dollars. thank god i was kiasi enuff to bring along my visa - really, dun leave home without it.

so after all tt drama, i found myself on the mtr heading towards the city. i was rather distracted by the announcements on the train cos the voiceover was actually speaking in cantonese! how amusing and weird to hear tt. and when i reached the city, it suddenly seemed like the whole world was family, cos home is where i ever use the language. and i noe its ridiculous, i mean cantonese shd be like second nature to me, but it actually took me quite awhile to get used to hearing cantonese being spoken everywhere i went and to speak the language with total strangers. (yes, i spoke to the mtr cutie in english. duh.)

gah. mental block now. im trying to recall the things i did for my trip. now tt's the problem with maintaining a travelogue, you try to be enthusiastic in recording each trip but nv could find the time and mood to sit down and write abt it while the memory's still fresh. and it doesnt help tt all ur photos are stored in someone else's laptop. nonetheless, i shall try.

so lets see, i got off the airport express train and found myself in a labyrinth aka hong kong station. u see signs everywhere in big black bolded chinese letterings, directing u to diff diff mtr lines and exits. and the line tt i had to take, tsuen wan, was like 1,093857361 kilometres from where i alighted! thank god they have travelators! no wonder the locals there are all so thin, they must have burn all their fats and calories while walking around in mtr stations.

apart from my fascination with the cantonese-speaking-and-unbelievable-thin-beings-with-great-hair-days-and-SKed2-complexion walking around me, i was as fascinated with the big black/white bolded chinese letterings on the mosaic walls in each station. like the ones here. incredibly attractive in a strange way tt makes u want to throw urself at it and give it a hug. (maybe i just like BIG, bolded, colorful things. heez.) sis was shaking her head as i stupidly took pics with these mosaic walls at almost every station i stepped foot on. wat? i tot it was pretty cute.
ya, as i was saying, i was to be alone for a few hours (and penniless while at it) even though there was a major change of plan, i managed to find the hotel and recce the surroundings. there was nothing much to shop for at mody road, though i did see a few shops selling really cheap clothes and shoes. yes, CHEAP clothes and shoes! but the thing at hand now was definitely not shopping. i had to find a money changer with good rates and a place to eat tt accepts visa! its ridiculous tt the first thing tt came out of my mouth was "do u take card?" and more ridiculous tt most of them dun! u haf to eat like past $100 and seriously, how much can a girl like me eat? (smack u if u say alot!) i tell u, tt few hours was the worst ever. with my stomach growling, legs tired from all the walking, nowhere to eat and my bottle of water running dry. wat could be worse? sobz. ya, i hear u. wat abt tt packet of biscuits rite?

THAT, to me, was the last resort. i mean isnt it like the most UNGLAM thing to do?! i was supposed to be sitting comfortably in a cozy char chan teng, sipping my yun yong and oogling at the resident stud! but nooo, i found myself under the sun, munching ravenously on a packet of PEANUT BUTTER biscuits and swallowing down tt last drop of singapore tapwater. and yes, cursing tt arse of a money changer who gave us the wrong currency too!! i say BURN HIS SHOP DOWN! grrr! the only comfort out of it was the view (cos i'll most probably be shopping if i had the money). pretty isnt it? i noe, i noe, the pics i took definitely dun do justice to the real deal. after a delirious 5-hr wait, i received a call from sis saying tt they haf reached the hotel. like FINALLY! i promptly left genki sushi (which serves ridiculously priced sushi, no wonder they take cards) and met up with them at the hotel.

it was dinner time when everything was settled ie getting the money changed. the itinerary for the rest of the day was a guided tour to Lei Yu Mun for the seafood, The Peak for the beautiful, BEAUTIFUL nite scenery and the Avenue of Stars for the lighting and laser show.

NB : pics from now on cos im jus tired from writing!

so, tts abt all for day 1. actually its a hell lot for a day.

day 2 was to Ocean Park. the weather was fine. too fine perhaps. the sun was horrible and i actually got myself a tan! and ever since the trip, my skin has been in a rather bad condition. =( now its like peeling and no amt of moisturizer is making it better. damn u, sun! so. we visited the Ocean Park, which really didnt have much to see or do. but tts probably bcos there were so many ppl (read : friggin' irritating chinese nationals!) tt i didnt even bothered to queue for any of the rides there, save the kiddy ferris wheel which had no queue. in my opinion, there really wasnt anything to wow abt and definitely not worth the money. definitely not.

but to be fair, i guess the company played a great part in defining the fun factor. i mean u cun exactly go on a roller coaster ride with a pregnant sister or a 50+ mom with high blood pressure rite? and to top tt off, my camera batt just had to die on me tt day. sis was seriously peeved and refused to tok to me for almost half of the trip. sighz, why am i being held responsible for the camera anyway? so there, the visit to ocean park was disastrous - all i did do was took a few miserable photos, got myself a tan and a dressing down. no more dolphins or seals for me, probably mickey or donald next time round?

to be continued..