HK day two
Tuesday morning we took off for Kowloon on the otherside of the harbour. We had a great walk along the waterfront to get to the ferry terminal to Hung Hom. I had seen some junks (boats) on the harbour yesterday in front of the HK Convention and Exhibition Centre. Weirdly we hadn't found anywhere geared up for sitting and relaxing and taking in the harbour views, even though this reclaimed piece of land jutted into the harbour. This morning though we walked past a huge boat mooring area and could see all the different sized junks and how many people lived on this boats. They looked so old and cool!
My sisters had stayed at Kowloon when they went to HK about 2 weeks before we did. They had had a hard time getting some accomodation because the town was going off because the Rugby 7's were on. Thankfully for us they finished the night before we arrived, so HK was cheaper for us to stay there. The sisters had reported that Kowloon was dirty and yukky and that the Island was much nicer. We found the Island to be a little sterile, so the more we explored the streets of Hung Hom in Kowloon the better we felt. It was much more like mainland China with the apartments mixed in with everything, little shops, Chinese takeaways with meat hanging in the door, plus a bit of dirt & dust around. It felt good! :)
In a spot of bad luck for us the KH Museum of History was closed, so we aimed for the HK Museum of Art. Things got a bit swisher as we headed across to Nathan Rd and down it to the gallery but I still liked it. There were now lots of Indian touts on the streets, trying to entice us to their tailor shops! Indian touts in China - how queer!? The Museum of Art turned out to be a ripper place! It had the most awesome view out the three storey building across to HK island, and some very cool art. I saw a Mark Rothko exposition (eyeopening for me, boring as batshit to RB), a HK Biennial exhibition that had some interesting modern art, and loads of antiquities that showcased different art forms and revealed all the symbols in Chinese cultures (children, animals, food etc). The waterfront outside the building was alive with people walking, sitting to take in the view and enjoying it all.
From there we headed back to the Island and in search of a drink. If there was one thing HK had, it was bars! We found them all along one alleyway in Lan Kwai Fong, and luckily it was happy hour! This street was rather cool in a touristy way. On the narrow steep street there were bars galore, all narrow, all offering something unique, most with some tables out the front, attracting expats, Chinese in suits and professional types. We tried one first that served us a deserved glass of Hoegarden, then crossed the road to a beautifully decorated one full of more arty and interesting types where we drank a Carlsberg.
So far in HK we had dined on Japanese, Shanghaiese and that night we chose Vietnamese. Poor form from us. The food we get on Victoria St in Melbourne is closer to authentic Vietnamese than the stuff served up in HK. Lesson learnt!
One weird thing about HK was seeing people with their maids. The day we arrived I'd seen a lady carrying a big Prada shopping bag (that didnt contain Prada things) berate her maid loudly and nastily for not coming through the other side of immigration control to greet her and carry her stuff. The poor maid had been waiting at the closest point right under the "No Entry" immigration control signs. :( Dodgy. The next day we watched a HK lady sitting with her maid while her two gorgeous twin sons played in a local square. Weird to observe the difference in their manner and dress.
My sisters had stayed at Kowloon when they went to HK about 2 weeks before we did. They had had a hard time getting some accomodation because the town was going off because the Rugby 7's were on. Thankfully for us they finished the night before we arrived, so HK was cheaper for us to stay there. The sisters had reported that Kowloon was dirty and yukky and that the Island was much nicer. We found the Island to be a little sterile, so the more we explored the streets of Hung Hom in Kowloon the better we felt. It was much more like mainland China with the apartments mixed in with everything, little shops, Chinese takeaways with meat hanging in the door, plus a bit of dirt & dust around. It felt good! :)
In a spot of bad luck for us the KH Museum of History was closed, so we aimed for the HK Museum of Art. Things got a bit swisher as we headed across to Nathan Rd and down it to the gallery but I still liked it. There were now lots of Indian touts on the streets, trying to entice us to their tailor shops! Indian touts in China - how queer!? The Museum of Art turned out to be a ripper place! It had the most awesome view out the three storey building across to HK island, and some very cool art. I saw a Mark Rothko exposition (eyeopening for me, boring as batshit to RB), a HK Biennial exhibition that had some interesting modern art, and loads of antiquities that showcased different art forms and revealed all the symbols in Chinese cultures (children, animals, food etc). The waterfront outside the building was alive with people walking, sitting to take in the view and enjoying it all.
From there we headed back to the Island and in search of a drink. If there was one thing HK had, it was bars! We found them all along one alleyway in Lan Kwai Fong, and luckily it was happy hour! This street was rather cool in a touristy way. On the narrow steep street there were bars galore, all narrow, all offering something unique, most with some tables out the front, attracting expats, Chinese in suits and professional types. We tried one first that served us a deserved glass of Hoegarden, then crossed the road to a beautifully decorated one full of more arty and interesting types where we drank a Carlsberg.
So far in HK we had dined on Japanese, Shanghaiese and that night we chose Vietnamese. Poor form from us. The food we get on Victoria St in Melbourne is closer to authentic Vietnamese than the stuff served up in HK. Lesson learnt!
One weird thing about HK was seeing people with their maids. The day we arrived I'd seen a lady carrying a big Prada shopping bag (that didnt contain Prada things) berate her maid loudly and nastily for not coming through the other side of immigration control to greet her and carry her stuff. The poor maid had been waiting at the closest point right under the "No Entry" immigration control signs. :( Dodgy. The next day we watched a HK lady sitting with her maid while her two gorgeous twin sons played in a local square. Weird to observe the difference in their manner and dress.
posted by Polecat at 1:21 AM
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