Song: The Scientist by Coldplay
Oops.. I think it's been more than a more month since the trip started. Somehow this post got delayed. When you came back from a long trip, you need time to adapt back to normal life, then you start to flashback.
Day 1: Sunny Day. Nice Weather
Beep Beep Beep! Brazil won Croatia 1-0, I won my money. Hello Moto~~~ Came Linda and Kian Feng. After that, Jeremy came over to pick us up and KF heads home. Nobody was at the airport to send us off. Who the hell will come and send us off when our flight is 640am.
Went to check in our luggage and head to McCafe for breakfast. Linda and I ain't hungry, so we ordered only a cup of coffee, while Jeremy ordered Hotcakes. After awhile, we realised we do not have much time for breakfast, so Jeremy has to eat everything the fast and furious way. Had a toast for this trip before we SPRINT to the gate. We are like one of the last few passengers to board the plane.
All of us were too tired as we did not sleep the previous night so we fall asleep as soon as the plane took off. Then half way the flight, all of us woke up. A short while later, we had to fill up the arrival form for visitors of HK. Nobody brought any pen other then me. What type of students are they? Ok. Jeremy isn't a student anymore and I think Linda had 1 in her bag but lazy to take out. Then Linda complain about the pen I lent her as she wrote wrongly on the paper and needed a new piece.
As we touched down at the Chek Lap Kok airport, we went to the DFS. Jeremy was wondering which cigarette to buy. In the end, he bought YSL which is quite "branded". I asked both of them if we will be drinking in the hotel and they said no. In the end...
Then we leave the customs and arrived at the arrival hall. Linda and I took lots of brochures, guides and maps so as to not miss out anything exciting in HK. Both of us were quite hungry but the queue for the food were quite long too. So we decide to eat near the hotel. We went to board the airport express train. Which is something like the Changi Airport line but much wiser, faster and arrived at better location. The train only have 4 stops which includes the airport stop, Tsing Yi, Kowloon and Hong Kong. It cost 190HKD for 3 person. The train has those cushioned seats and they have an indicator to show how far are you away from your destination. As we ain't familiar with the place, we alighted at the Kowloon station which I feel was the closest to our hotel.
When we came out, we were still hungry and asked someone if there's any food stall around. She somehow doesn't understand us and just direct us to go up. So we were still hungry and kinda lost. Then we saw a bus interchange which provide free bus services to hotels, but we need to show kinda of pass to get the free ride. Upon seeing me searching for that "proof", the staff told us we can just go ahead and board the coach.
When we alight from the coach, we do not know where we were at. So we had to ask some passer-by and lucky enough, they understand Chinese. So they gave us the direction to our hotel location. When we somehow arrived at the Prudential centre, where our hotel is also located, we do not seems to see the hotel. So we walked in to the building and asked the security guard. Actually we must enter from the side door to see the hotel lobby. Haha. No wonder my colleague told me the hotel lobby is on the 2nd storey.
Actually the check-in was supposed to be 1400 but we arrived at about 1250. But since the room is ready, we brought our luggages up to the room and decide (snatch) who sleeps on which bed. Then we head down to the place where we alight from the bus for food. Was actually deciding between 2 eateries as both seems quite expensive. Then we settle down at a Shanghai food eatery. I have forgotten what Jeremy and I ordered but remember Linda ordered some cai fan (Vegetable rice). In Singapore, when we mention cai fan, it means white rice with 2 or 3 different dish of rice. But for hers, it literally means Vegetable rice, where the rice is mixed with some vegetables.
After lunch, we head back to the hotel to rest awhile. Then we head to the famous Tin Hau temple at Temple street. We bought our octupus link card, which is something like ez-link but you can use it as more places, and board their MTR for the 1st time. When we arrived at the place, we somehow couldn't find the entrance. But they have signboards all over, so in the end we managed to find it. Then we went into the temple and the person at the temple immediately asked us to buy joss sticks from her. So we bought it at quite a high price if I didn't remember wrongly. The person speaks a bit of Chinese so she guide us on how to go around praying. Then as the very curious me, I asked Linda to go qiu qian, which means to ask for directions from God. Then somehow, my sticks didn't come out until after awhile when my hand became tired of shaking. But when we want to find someone to interpret the words for us, no one over there speaks Chinese or English, so we can only leave without and interpretation.
Then when we left the place, Linda then told me her mum say we cannot anyhow do such things. But you see, Guoliang doesn't believe in such things. He only did it out of curious. On our way back to the MTR station, I saw the Dorsett Seaview hotel, which Ben introduce to me, but somehow they do not have cable channel so I didn't choose that. As we were perspiring like mad in the temple and under the hot sun, we went to a dessert stall to get something cooling. The stall is called Xu Liu Shan. Although I don't really know the meaning behind it, they serve very nice mango.
Then we board the train to Tsim Sha Tsui for the Teddy Bear Kingdom. But somehow we could not locate it or maybe it has closed down. So I suggest we head to the Hong Kong Space Museum in which both of them were quite against as they don't like to visit museums. But in the end, of course the one who knows the route best wins. We went inside for awhile as there is really nothing much to see other then to play with some theories of light and space experiments.
Next, we moved on the avenue of stars where we stayed awhile and both of them nag me to bring them to go for some shopping. So we proceed to Harbour city (Sounds like Harbourfront). Heard it is the largest shopping centre around. The shopping center is really gigantic and as we were looking at the directory, a kind staff came over and us if we need any help. I wonder when we SG has such good service. We then wandered about. Jeremy and I discovered something quite shocking! All their 3/4 shorts cost more than SGD80. Wow!
Then as we walked past a supermarket, one of them suggest we stock up some snacks at the hotel. We bought cup noodles, tidbits and vitasoy. Then we were somehow hungry and decides to find a place to eat. There ain't any food courts in the shopping mall and those that we walked past are only high-class restaurants. Then I saw a stall by the name of Cha Lou (tea house) which i think that it is some eatery outlet. But end up, it is really a place that sells tea leaf.
So we had no choice but to leave the building and go back to the hotel to eat our cup noodle or somewhere around. We had actually decide to walk back. But somehow we lost our way and end up at the Kowloon Park. Not wanting to walk through the park at night, we walked through the main street to head to the MTR station. On the way, we saw a busy street with a eatery outlet. Then we head straight in for the food. Both of them ordered wanton mee while I ordered a bowl of beef noodle. I tried the lengendary Lemon Coke, which I don't find it special at all. Then somehow the beef noodle was a wrong one. But because I was very hungry I just ate it assuming there's some communication in between. But later on, the correct order came, and i was about to finish the noodle so they were like "whatever". The wanton mee they ordered were incredible. They have about 3 Prawns in a wanton. I think in SG, the most I can find is 3/4 of a prawn in one wanton. That's so amazing!
After eating, we head to the MTR station to go back to our hotel. On the way back, they had this street call Haiphong Street which seems to attract Linda's attention and she request to come back here and shop. Ya. No problem. That's what I promised her. Haha.
Then when we arrived at the hotel, all of us were damn smelly. So we took turn to bath and head to bed as of us are very tired after not sleeping the previous night and moving around the whole day.
