Post #46 - November 26, 2012 - Hong Kong

What we did: Star Ferry to Kowloon, walk-in clinic, Dim Sum at Tim Ho Wan, Shopping at Ladies Market, Argyle Center, and Langham Place
Budget: $200; Spent: $213

Patty here.

It was an exhausting but productive day today. We stayed up kinda late last night trying to get a hold of our health insurance company. It seems I've developed a bladder infection and last night my lower back started bothering me. After doing some research it turns out that this is a symptom of a bladder infection that has progressed into a kidney infection. But the thing was that we had also been walking all day so I wasn't totally sure if that may have been the cause of the back pain. None the less, I didn't want to have to worry about it the next day, and a kidney infection is nothing to mess around with so we decided to head to a walk-in clinic first thing in the morning.

The beauty of having access to a kitchen  at our hostel is that you get a very cheap homemade breakfast. We got to eat some boiled eggs, toast, yogurt, and fruit (all store bought) this morning. Afterwards we dropped off a big bag of laundry at a nearby shop and got it all washed and dried. Turned out to be a bargain compared to mainland china where our laundry often came back still damp and was more expensive. We then went in search of the health clinic the hostel staff had given us some vague directions to. Unfortunately, the only info we were provided with was the name of the street the clinic was on. We had no name of the building and no address. As you can imagine, in Hong Kong this is an issue. So we clearly didn't find the clinic and decided to head back to the hostel for more info. A different staff member sent us to another street nearby saying it was somewhere there but at least this time, he provided us with a spot on the map...Didn't find that one either. We stopped a lady on the street and asked if she knew where it might be and she thought a clinic was down another side street. Discouraged but hopeful we attempted to find it where she directed us. No luck. We gave up and used Google's advice instead. Google's suggestion was to head to Kowloon which is across Victoria Harbour from Hong Kong Island where we're staying. We mapped out our journey there and the shopping areas we wanted to see and off we went. It took only a quick metro ride away to get to the Star Ferry terminal from our hostel so that was good. We hopped on for only 5HK$ total which is less than $1CDN! A great price especially for the spectacular view of both sides of Hong Kong.

Interestingly, our book mentions that back in the 60's there were huge riots in Hong Kong over a price increase in the ticket prices for the ferry crossing between Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. Maybe it was those people that paved the way for us to enjoy the wonderfully affordable prices we see today. It was only short 5 minute trip, but with the number of boats and bridges we saw between the islands, there's no doubt the harbour has played and still plays a vital role in connecting the city together. Though I am sure now a days the metro is a much more popular option for getting to and from the islands.

We arrived in Kowloon and took another metro to the location of the clinic. With a little bit of help from our map we found the building where the clinic was located. We're still not sure if we found the exact clinic Google recommended because this building was 12 stories high and filled with various clinics. But we did find a clinic and the staff there were super helpful and very accommodating. Initially we were told they were booked solid with appointments all day but interestingly, 5 minutes later a nurse told us to have a seat and that a doctor would see me shortly...The doctor was nice enough, he didn't seemed too concerned when I told him about my symptoms and my history and he said that the nurse would check my temperature to hopefully rule out a kidney infection. We were relieved when a couple minutes later we paid our bill and walked out with my antibiotics! I had no fever.

Shopping time began. We first headed to the Ladies Street Market. The workers there were much less friendly than in Beijing and really didn't engage you the way they did at Silk Street which was kind of disappointing and made the experience of bartering much less fun. So after a quick walk through the market I bought some much needed sandals and that was it. The flip flops I brought on the trip were left behind in Yuan Yang because one of our roommates decided to help themselves to them and used them for a shower. Call me picky, but it's not cool wearing sandals again when some strangers feet has been in them. 

Then it was dinner time. There's a place called Tim Ho Wan in Hong Kong that is said to have the cheapest, most delicious Dim Sum that China has to offer. Plus, it's one of the most affordable Michelin starred restaurants ever. The chef, a former Four Seasons chef opened the restaurant several years ago and has created an entire menu with his own take on the delicious cuisine of Dim Sum. This was one of the main destinations we had been looking forward to during all our time in China. And today, Tim Ho Wan restaurant engaged all our senses in a cosmic dining experience.  Naturally, there was a lineup out the door. We took a number and waited patiently. We were number 63 and when we arrived they were at 55. We were prepared to wait several hours if we needed too. Looking back on it I would have camped out there all night to eat there again. But, the coolest thing about a restaurant concept like Tim Ho Wan is that the turnover is insanely quick. We had a table in 15 minutes! Even though the menu is super cheap, they make all their money on the simple concept of having high turnover. And trust me it's a high turnover. In a matter of an hour they must have turned over 30 tables in space the size of our kitchen at home. They use every inch of space in that place for seating so customers often get seated next to complete strangers. This for me, adds to the experience because it's very conducive for meeting people and it's a fun fast paced environment to watch. But the downside is it also gives you this sense of urgency to eat and then leave ASAP. Oh my god, and the food!! It was the most delicate, subtle, but incredibly fresh and tasty pieces of food I have ever eaten. I know we keep talking about all the great things we're eating, but it's for real. Everyday, we're trying new things, and for us, it has been one of the most fun and memorable parts of our travels. To top it off, we met a really sweet local couple who were graduating from high school next year. Their names were William and Jeanette. We chatted about Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, and mainland China. William told us that 2 years ago, you would have had to wait hours to ever get a table at the restaurant and that the very reason the restaurant received a Michelin star was thanks to their BBQ pork buns. They were so cute that they even shared a whole pork bun of theirs with us after we had pretty much finished all our dinner without having ordered them. They then offered us some of their egg cake!  But we were full from our 11 dish smorgasbord of Dim Sum.

After dinner, I wanted to do more shopping (I can always shop til I drop) but Jeff was pretty bored and tired of it all, and I can understand why. Hong Kong is an enormous mass of space dedicated to retail. It's overwhelming and I felt like a chicken with my head caught off not knowing where to go and what was worth looking at. I was spending a lot of time going into stores that simply didn't have anything we needed or that we were looking for. But at the same time, when you're in a big city like Hong Kong, you want to give lots of shops a chance cause you never know what you'll come across. When you only have 3 days though, this is a bad approach. So after Jeff and I chatted for a bit, we regrouped, narrowed our focus to a list and became a lot more selective with the stores we entered. It paid off. Jeff bought 3 shirts for less than $40. One was at H&M, and another 2 were at a popular domestic brand store called Bossini. Bossini was great for men's stuff, but not so great for women's. Prices were awesome though. Jeff got the other 2 shirts here for less than $30. The store was a mix between Tommy Hilfiger, Aeropostale, and Mexx. Highly recommend it for anyone in Hong Kong. We felt really good about our buys. They were good deals, 2 shirts were from a store we would never find near Winnipeg, and now Jeff has some nice shirts to wear on our trip. Next on our list was city/walking shoes for me. I have been looking like an obsessive avid hiker everyday of the trip. The only pair of shoes I have been wearing are the Merrell's I brought. After 6 weeks of wearing the same brown, unfashionable, boyish shoes, I can't explain the motivation I had to find new shoes. The motivation really came through because we went into store after store after store, and found nothing. There was a pair of Lacoste ballerina flats that I liked, but of course 2 different stores selling them ran out of my size. I almost bought a red version of them, but I held out for something better. We had basically given up and were headed home when finally, it was the last shop I walked into while Jeff was trying to find the street to get home, I found them! A super cute pair of floral printed flats and they were more than 50% off, comfier than the Lacoste pair, and cuter. I paid about $25CDN for them. Goes to show that good things come to those who wait... and who are persistent ;)

After that, we were shopped. and walked. completely. out... yes even me. Thank god Hong Kong is really not that expansive a city. It's densely populated but not widespread so we literally got from Kowloon back to Causeway Bay on the metro in like 10 mins. I had always thought Hong Kong was comparable to Tokyo in size so the quickness of our trip came as a big shock to me. In Tokyo we could spend 30-40 mins on a metro getting from one area to another. I really liked that about Hong Kong and found it to be a very livable city.

We still had to drop by the supermarket on our way home but one was located just a couple blocks away from our hostel. We made a quick trip in for body wash, kettle cooked salt and vinegar chips, Schweppes Cream Soda, and our breakfast for the next day yogurt, and mandarins and walked out. But then we then realized we had walked out without having paid for the mandarins so Jeff went back in line to pay for those.

You would think that would be the end of a very long day, but no. We went into the lobby of our hostel to get things organized before our flight to Hanoi the next morning. I began trying to write the blog and Jeff was sifting through e-mails and calculating the day's expenses. Doing all this next to a funny brown guy from San Francisco who is urging people to join him on a trip to 7 Eleven for a 2-6 of Whisky is basically impossible. It was even more so when he came back with the alcohol and offered it to us. Jeff and I both declined but inevitably this led to chatting with fellow travelers til 3am. We met the first Canadians of our trip. A nice couple from BC in their early 20's. The girl was visibly intoxicated but super nice, and quite a world traveler. She ended up talking to me for an hour probably while I was tyring desperately to write my blog. Eventually, I gave up and just engaged in conversation. We then met a German guy named Mark (like little Marky but not nearly as cute!). He ended up talking to us about his travels for awhile. Even at 3am, another friendly English dude began trying to engage us in yet another conversation as we were trying to get to bed. As fun as it was to talk to these nice people, we paid for it the next morning...

Well we've arrived same and sound in Hanoi. Off to bed. Jeff will catch up with the blog and what we did today in the morning hopefully.

Goodnight,

Patty