Hong Kong, Days 1 and 2

It's a blogging frenzy tonight! I've got a lot of catching up to do. With Live From the 38th Parallel on hiatus for now, I've still got 4 days and 2 Special Administrative Regions to catch up on.

Once I sorted out the airport debacles and wiped off the wine, Hong Kong was straightforward. I walked over to the tourism desk and asked for their cheapest hotel, which was HKD 400 a night, or about USD 50. I'm not one of these people who is going to find the cheapest possible slum to save a few bucks. I'm not saying I spend every night in a Hilton, but for me it's worth a little cash to not worry about personal safety or parasites. The hotel was a train and a taxi away. It was easy, except for the fact that the cars drive on the left - i.e., "wrong" - side of the road, a fact that has been the cause of several ill-advised strides into the intersection. That's honestly pretty much it for Day 1 I'm ashamed to say. I was so tired that I just wanted to chill in my hotel and watch Burn Notice on my computer after discovering it in the Seoul love motel.

Day 2 was more active. First things first: I bought myself a cheap watch which proceeded to never work properly. I then resolved to follow the walking tour of Kowloon recommended to me in a guide book given to me at the airport. As I usually do, I headed straight for the museums. The Hong Kong Art Gallery was really rather impressive, with four stories of everything ranging from ancient gold and pottery to really fascinating modern interpretations of classic Chinese themes. I highly recommend it, especially as it was only HKD 10.

Next I wanted to hit up the Space Museum, but that didn't open until 1 PM so I headed to the Avenue of Stars. This is basically Hong Kong's answer to the Hollywood Walk of Fame. I got to see plaques for some of my all-time favorite stars, including John Woo and that God among men, Chow Yun-Fat. He's the coolest guy in film since Steve McQueen (proof). I think stopped by a joint to get a take-out rice bowl, then I sat in the park and had my encounter with Yogi Baba. After fleeing the scene I wandered by a pub that served Kilkenny, which I have only seen in my dorm bar in Copenhagen and Santa Clause in Daejeon. I treated myself to a pint while finishing up Dubliners - yes that really happened, it was a very Irish moment.

The Space Museum had opened up at this point, and I checked it out. If you've been to a space museum or science museum before, skip it. It was a fairly standard overview of astronomy and space exploration. One thing that I found interesting was the battle that was going on over the "planet" Pluto. Their big model of the solar system included it, but the description had been replaced since it was de-planetized.

Next I wandered back up Nathan Street to Kowloon Park, which was quite lovely. There were a number of beautiful and exotic birds, and a few swimming pools that were teasing me as I stood there sweating bullets. After dinner I headed back to the waterfront to watch the "Symphony of Lights," which is basically a giant light and music show that encompasses the whole waterfront. I got there around 7PM and chatted with a very nice elderly gentleman from Delhi while we waited for an hour. With a wait like that I was a bit disappointed. It's not bad for something that happens every night, bit it was only 15 minutes long and it was no Fourth of Jul-Ivar's.

At this point I decided to call it an evening so I could upload my photos!