Hong Kong

No slow down on building here.

Our three month single entry visas were up! We had saved some cash and needed a break plus Sandy needed to switch over to a work visa, what better excuses for heading to Hong Kong do you need. Oh and did I mention Isaac (o.g. Nipporn superstar) volunteered to be our tour guide and companion during our stay! Enough talk lets get on the plane already.

Our friend and guide Isaac! Soon to be Dr. Isaac if he can rock out that PhD!

We flew Sri Lankan air. We were not expecting a meal but were served a decent dinner of a nice chicken curry and the typical free booze so that was a plus. I took the two hour flight as a chance to learn how to play backgammon on the in seat entertainment so that was also a plus. And while Sandy waited to use the plane's bathroom she was chatted up by one of the male attendants whom proceeded to give her some free playing cards and pens on her way back to the seat. Decent decks of playing cards are actually a little expensive in Bangkok so we were excited at the freebies!

"I got shipping crates for days."

Really it seems like everything gets here by boat.

It is an island after all.

Hong Kong the free port of capitalism in the east where deals are brokered, money is made and urban legends are born about murder victims being served in bao to unsuspecting customers. Ah such a weird melting pot of Chinese culture mixed with the after effects of 156 years of British rule. Many consider Hong Kong to be a glimpse into the future (a la Bladrunner). Coming out of the hegemony of Thailand, Hong Kong was an exciting blast of different cultures and sights. In a way a very New York or London paced global city where people walk fast and don't say sorry if they bump into you on the way. They might even push you if you are lolly gagging!

With paper thin LCDs and bright digital displays, it's still nice to know Neon still holds it down!

Isaac helped us purchase our octopus cards at the airport, and we were off and running. We took a double decker bus from the airport, which is many times cheaper then the airport train and a lot more scenic. Atop a double decker bus rolling down the highway over long bridges over looking ports and skyscrapers, we made our way into the heart of downtown Hong Kong. The bus stopped right in front of our hotel, what convenience!

Around the corner from our hotel.

Hong Kong alley.

So after a quick stop to drop off our bags it was out to look around and grab a few drinks and a bite to eat. As they say "Have you eaten rice today?"

Isaac took us to a nice little Chinese restaurant where we feasted on some tasty dishes. When the bill came it was fine but still a bit of a shock after living in Thailand for three months where a meal like this for three would probably be about $10-15, Hong Kong it came in at around $50. Okay, so it is like New York!

Fried Tofu Skins.

Dumplings.

Steamed ground pork. Very tasty, don't let the brown tint fool you!

Frog legs.

Then we went to a nice bar that was very dark and kinda romantic. Isaac always liked the romance (Danny’s is still one of his favorite bars). Sitting on fancy couches and chairs we had nice cocktails. This bar was perfect though the pumping tribal house sound track seemed out of left field especially with a weeknight crowd of after work wheelers and dealers. Paging all Chicago rare groove DJs! You are needed on the other side of the globe. We'll talk more about bad bar music later.

Us with Hong Kong in the back ground. We are tourist, after all!

The next day we met up and took the ferry across to Kowloon Bay, a shopping mecca of malls and expensive designer shops. We popped into the Hong Kong Museum of Art and saw a show curated by Louis Vuitton. Nothing too crazy going on, about what you would expect, a random assortment of art from people like Jeff Koons, Richard Prince, Andreas Gursky, Gilbert and George, etc. It was kinda nice to see some mildly contemporary art, since that’s a bit harder to find in Thailand. (Sandy's note: Wait, there's contemporary art in Thailand?!) Then we ran around looking at malls and checking out shops. I really enjoyed Goods of Desire, aka G.O.D.

For one small island there are so many high end designer stores.

We saw at least three stand alone Coach stores in one day!

There is no tax in Hong Kong, so goods are much cheaper then back in Bangkok. That’s why most people in Thailand ask if your going shopping when you mention visiting Hong Kong. I wanted to look around and see if there was any DJ gear for sale and check prices, so we went to this open air market full of all types of technology. From phones to surveillance cameras to PCs and PAs, they had it all. Plus, stores selling all the stuff you need to fix and maintain your electronics. It was refreshing to see guys in stalls resodering cell phones and working on repairing burned out mother boards, no throw it in the trash mentality here...though for the up and comers having a designer hand bag from last season is not a good look, but hey its Hong Kong.

Open air electronics super store!

Isaac buying batteries for his shaver. :)

They had all kinds of electronics, even "High Quality Adult" ones.

To my left: no shirt, no shoes, no problem.

We then checked out the hipster area where there were malls and malls and malls filled with little shops selling everything from designer shoes to trucker hats, current ladies fashion and random gifts and nick knacks. Isaac told us for many kids it's a dream to save up enough money to open one of these little mall shops. We happened across some designer toy stores selling all the crazy expensive figures that are super detailed. These are the ones where you can actually pull the pins out on the mini grenades or change the heads and hands for different poses. For how much they cost, that place was packed. They even already had pre-orders going for a life like mini Michael Jackson from the thriller video. Across the way we bought a nice knock off of the LED clock that looks like a piece of wood, cheap! We took some cabs and checked out a few other night markets where you can buy all kinds of stuff: fake jade, old movie posters and Mao Zedong wrist watches. There were even carts of grimy looking sex toys for sale.

This is actually a very uncrowded street.

The fifth element? Though urban dictionary now says there are nine elements to Hip Hop?

So this could actually be number ten.

Mister Softee, Jr.!

Mister Softee all grown up!

We randomly stepped out a cab right in front of a shop that only sold mahjong sets and seeing this as a little bit of travelers fate (I had mentioned maybe Hong Kong would be the place to buy a set earlier that day), we totally picked up a sweet sparkly gold set that came in a nice wooden case. Now if only we had two other friends that played Mahjong in BKK!

Green velvet lined, full set of tiles...so so pretty.

Notice that golden sparkle!

Hotel bars always have cheesy names.

Candid shot from inside the elevator.

For dinner, we stopped for some fancy ramen and enjoyed another nice meal. Then we ended the night at a posh hotel bar that had a nice drink selection and cozy atmosphere, but again the DJ was horrible! Upon walking in, we see a tall, kinda creepy and bored looking white dude manning the Pioneer CD-Js. He is in the middle of playing the Diplo remix of "Bust a Move" to a bar full of 30-50 year olds drinking drinks and having conversations.

Fidget house causing me much pain.

Isaac still exclusively drinks red wine notice his glass on the left.

There is no one dancing here. As his set proceeded, he kept the tempo up, and amidst some lame fader cuts and knob tweaks, proceeded to pound out a full set of bandana ravin' fidget house. So unnecessary. Wow! Despite the DJ, we still closed down the bar. Since it was late, we cabbed it home.

Have I mentioned how cute the cabs were?!

While they kind of look like Volvos, they are really Toyota Crown Comforts.

This bus was cute too! Very Totoro.

For the most part we took the subway around and found it to be cheap and easy to navigate, very similar to New York in that you can find yourself zigzagging through corridors a few stories under ground to make a transfer or to find your way out. But overall, it was a quick and pleasant experience.

Inside the subway.

The display on the top left will even tell you how long until the next train arrived.

By the last day, all the drinking and walking and the unpleasant smell from our hotel bathroom all contributed to giving Sandy a mild cold, so we ended up taking it easy. We did our best to make sure Sandy had no fever going to the airport, so we wouldn't risk being detained. Swine Flu is still a major source of news and paranoia this side of the world. In the end, it was all good and Suvarnabhumi airport doesn’t really thermal scan any more. From what we heard, they ran out of money. Our visa stuff didn't go as smoothly as we had hoped, but we are getting it all taken care of back in BKK.

While in Hong Kong, we frequented a few of the 7-11s down the street, and I took the chance to enjoy some of their snack offerings:

I picked up these pizza flavored chips that even had bubbled and burnt cheese on them.

They were alright.

These things were the real jam.

They had the crunch and texture of a Cheetos but where BBQ flavored.

And, if I can read my snack food pictures correctly, these chips where baked not fried!

Like Thailand, 7-11 is a life saver. You can get food, pick up a SIM card and charge up your octopus card... You can even pay for stuff with your octopus card if you don't want to carry cash. While we were visiting, 7-11 was running a promotion, so you got these little stickers for spending certain amounts of money. You could trade them in for blind box toys! Of course you know we had to hit that up. On our way out of town we cashed in our stickers and waited until we got home to see which of the bobble head office supply characters were ours.

Two stickers with a receipt.

What exciting office supply toy waits inside?

We got the note clip holder and mini scissors.

A few side notes of interest:

Compensated Dating: In Hong Kong, many young ladies use the internet to meet men who pay to go out with them. For the most part, they claim it's paid dining and conversation, maybe a movie, but it also seems to turn into prostitution. This seems to be a current hot social issue. Also, this new generation is kinda pushing out some of the older ways the country handles prostitution. When you walk through certain sections of town you will notice these little signs hanging in front of doorways. When they are lit that means there is a prostitute available and ready for business. Once evening sets you can watch them all pop on.

One of the few universal words "sexy."

LAN Cafes: Speaking of social ills, it seems LAN cafes are a big topic of concern in Hong Kong (older people in Bangkok speak ill of them too). Seems the youths basically go to these places not only to play online games but to do all types of illegal drugs and other bad things with friends. To me it kind of sounds like going to my best friends basement back in high school? So they are working on legislation that will regulate how old people can be to use them and if they can be open 24 hours a day.

Bamboo Scaffolding: Even mainland China for the most part no longer uses Bamboo when building tall buildings, but in Hong Kong the practice continues. It is an amazing sight.

Would you climb out nine stories up on scaffolding made of bamboo?

Lets end this post on a random pic:

For the ladies: Bus stop bad boy sans shirt halts hearts.