Hong Kong Take One (Finally)

SO it's taken me awhile to post pictures from Hong Kong but here they are! Are you ready??

Welcome to Hong Kong! Fresh off the MTR and out into the chaotic streets of HK.

TIP: After doing some research all of us exchange stuents decided to buy what is called an Octopus Pass. This pass is good for all modes of transportation (except taxis) in Hong Kong to pay for fares, and you can also use it at most stores to pay for your purchases. We even used it in IKEA to pay for lunch! The cost of the pass is 100HKD plus a 50HKD deposit which is refundable if the card is returned within three months. I suggest anyone planning to spend more than a day in HK to purchase the pass. It saves so much time, and since you have the ability to use the card at stores you never have to worry about not being able to use up all the money on the pass. You can replenish the pass at any MTR station.

IKEA! Got some chocolate, cookies and candles. All the Swedish, Danish and Finnish students felt very much at home here.

Sanna looking oh so cool.

Just a couple of the giant building we passed. It really is a whole other world from Macau. By the end of the day most of us agreed that we loved visiting HK and want to go again and again, but we are really happy to be studying in Macau. In Macau you can walk most places, and Macau just has more of a small town comfortable feel.

Up at Victoria's Peak looking down to HK and Victoria Harbour.

Clowning Around.

The day we went was pretty clear, and the views were just awesome. We rode the trolley up to the top of the peak. It was a lot of fun and provided awesome views. Video coming soon!

This is the Peak Tower. You can pay extra and go to the very top, but really there is no need. The views from all the surrounding look out points were awesome, and none of us felt like we missed out by not going to the top.

What can I say? We clown around a lot.

I found this to be very odd. It is a small restaurant that is right across the street from Peak Tower. The whole area is surrounded by a very well to-do neighborhood. I'd love to go exploring more and maybe have dinner at this restaurant, but don't think I will any time soon.

The panorama came out small here, but this is from the other side of Peak Tower at a small Temple/lookout point.

The beautiful metropolis of Hong Kong.

I thought this guy was really cute. He is guarding the temple.

Woohoo!

One thing I want to say about visiting Victoria Peak. Make sure to either go at night or on a very clear day. Unless you want to walk up the mountain, you'll want to take the trolley up. The ride is about three minutes and is really cool, but the line for the trolley is about an 45min-1hr long. We asked and apparently it is like this most days. I would allow a minimum of 3hrs to see Victoria Peak, especially if you want to wander around the surrounding area. I definitely suggest doing that. There is a long trail (I think it was somewhere around 13km long) that winds all around the mountain.

This was down in the MTR Station. Only in China : )

Party on the MTR!!! Woooo! I know the other passengers must have thought we were crazy. : )

Sidsel unleashed!

Terry! This was right before he started practicing for his new profession...pole dancer. haha

Dinner down at Temple Street Market.

I had pork with rice and soy sauce and milk tea to drink. It was very good!

We had planned to go to the Ladies Market, but due to the fact that we ran behind about four hours, the Ladie's Market was closing up about the time we were ready to start shopping. Instead we went to Temple Street Market. This is the big night market in Macau, and is filled with about anything you could ever want from scarfs and purses to sex toys and booths to have your fortune told.

TIP: The group in total was about 10 ppl. This was very hard to keep up with, especially since most people's phones didn't work. My advice would be to travel in smaller groups or set meeting places, and just be cool with breaking off into smaller groups. We didn't set a meeting place, but did say that we would head back towards the ferry terminal around midnight so it worked out.
Storytime: There were five of us who planned to go back together around midnight. From what we had seen the MTR stopped running around midnight and we didn't want to risk getting stranded and not knowing how to get back to the ferry terminal. What happened was while shopping at the market we got seperated. Around 11:30pm Sanna, Jatana and I decided to head towards the ferry, hoping the other two girls would do the same. We went to the ferry terminal, got our tickets, boarded the ferry and were sitting waiting to leave when our two friends walked on board! We couldn't believe it!

Another strange thing was the something similar happened with four of our other friends and they somehow managed to get on the same ferry too! They took the 5am ferry though. lol

TIP: The ferry runs ALL DAY AND ALL NIGHT!

Hong Kong was amazing and we have already made plans to go back in two weeks. This time we will stay the night and plan to visit the Giant Sitting Buddah, some shopping and HONG KONG DISNEYLAND!!!!! Can you tell which one I'm most excited for? ;)