Hong Kong!

We got back to the ship at around 1:30 PM on Sunday, February 21 and getting back and seeing “home” was such a good feeling.  It was really nice to be back in my little cabin and just back on the ship.  We didn’t spend too much time on the ship though.  The ship was berthed at mall, which also was the pier…it was a very different harbor then any of the previous ones.   The mall was very, very Americanized.  We went to lunch at California Pizza Kitchen.  It was nice to have American food again, especially pizza.  (I’m very excited to have a cheese steak again on May 6.) 

That night we saw the Hong Kong light show right out on the pier.  It was awesome; all the skyscrapers light up…it’s really neat.  It made me feel like I was in Disney World for some reason.  It probably was the change in temperature; Shanghai was about 35 degrees and Hong Kong was 75.  Afterwards, we took a ferry (very Disney World-ish also) to the main island and walked around downtown Hong Kong.   We didn’t really have any aim or purpose so we decided to head to Victoria Peak, a mountain which overlooks the city. 

We took a tram up to the top of the mountain and found a great spot off the walkway to just sit and take in the view.  You could see all of Hong Kong Island from the top and just like the view from the financial center everything looked miniature.   After that we headed back to the ship and got so much needed rest. 

The next day we just went over to Hong Kong and took a double-decker tramcar across the entire city.  It was really cool because it was the first time I took a double-decker anything.  The city was neat, just different from Shanghai.  I can’t really explain it.   You could definitely see the British influence on the island.  They drive on the opposite of the roads and there are British flags everywhere.   We also went to a really neat computer store.  It was actually about fifty computer stores crammed into three stories.  It was total insanity and awesomeness.  We got a great lunch at a little, local restaurant and then headed back to the ship early because everyone wanted to got use the mall’s free Wifi.  I uploaded lots of pictures…check them out!!  The link’s below!

For dinner that evening, we went to a floating restaurant called Jumbos.  It was really neat- you had to take a ferry to get out to it after a pretty long bus ride from the city.  The island it was located off of was called Aberdeen.  It was a little pricey (by HK standards…what you’d pay for a meal at Olive Garden), but the atmosphere was definitely worth the extra money.  
My final day I spent in Hong Kong I went to Lantau Island.  It was about a thirty-minute drive from Hong Kong city and is the least populated island that is under Hong Kong control.   The drive was beautiful.  We went through a very mountainous region and the view was so picturesque.  We stopped at a beach and I put my feet in the South China Sea!  There also was a funny sign at the beach that read: “The sharp trap nets are temporarily out of order.  Sorry for the inconvenience.”   I guess sharks are a problem.  After the beach was a stop at the Tai O fishing village.  The village was really cool.  The way of life in this village is completely different from life back home or any kind of life I’ve ever seen.  It made me really excited to see what life’s going to be like in places like Vietnam and India.   We took a ferryboat ride through the village and saw pink dolphins! 

After the fishing village, we went to the Buddhist Monastery on the island and also at the top of a mountain.  The monastery, Po Lin, is the center of Buddhism in Hong Kong.  The world’s largest outdoor Buddha (85 feet tall) is on top of the monastery.  It was an awesome sight.   We walked around the monastery, and even got a chance to see some monks.  After the monastery, we took a five mile cable car right down from the monastery.  It was really neat to go over the mountains and see the view of the island, the bays, and even the HK airport.  Definitely a great trip!

So now I’m off to Vietnam, the first non-developed country on the trip.  I’m excited to see the history that’s there, and really just see what life’s like in a country that’s not as well off as China, Japan or the U.S.  Definitely going to be a little shocking.  I mean just to hear the words “cars are rare in the streets of Ho Chi Minh” is strange.  We get into Vietnam on Friday, February 26.   It’s going to be over 100 degrees…don’t know if I’m excited yet for that.  India’s going to be worse.

I also realized as I was crossing off days on my calendar that my trip is already 1/3 over!  Where did the time go???