Hong Kong

Hong Kong is another city I could see living in for a while. Of course the pollution is horrible, but I think that's par for the course if you're going to live in a city in Asia. Hong Kong reminds me a bit of Manhattan...if Manhattan was in Asia. It's very cultured, everyone wears black, the buildings are really tall, and it's expensive as all get out. Hong Kong is the place where we spent the most money on a hotel...and it definately wasn't the nicest. However, the people who owned the place were wonderful and that more than made up for it.

The highs in Hong Kong were eating dim sum - the pork buns were super yummy, scoring an awesome grey wool jacket that must have fallen off a truck somewhere, and seeing the skyline in person that I'd seen many times on CNN - their Asian headquarters are in Hong Kong. But in general, everything we did in Hong Kong was fun. The only thing I regret about Hong Kong was the fact that we didn't take the tram up to Victoria Peak. The weather was kind of yucky - it rained quite a bit. It did give us the chance to check out some nice pubs though. ;)

Bruce Lee is the king of Hong Kong.

View of the skyline and Victoria Harbor with storm clouds covering the mountain.

Much prettier once the sun goes down.

We wandered around the markets but never found the mahjong set I had my heart on.

Strange fruit.

Nan Lian Garden was a beautiful spot for a tranquil afternoon stroll.

The garden is filled with pagodas, ornate bridges, and gorgeous landscaping.

Not quite templed out...we stopped by Tin Hua temple in Yau Ma Tei.

Devotees bowed with incense sticks held in their hands as they said prayers. It was as smokey as a bar on New Year's Eve there.

Jason and I were both excited to see the Bank of China building. It's a I.M. Pei building for all you architecture enthusiasts out there.

Cool picture of a double decker bus flying by.

Jason in front of some funky buildings.

We decided to walk into the Bank of China building to see if they had an observation floor/deck. They didn't have anything like the Empire State building, but we were allowed to visit a small observation area on one of the upper floors.

View from the 43rd floor.

Yay! It was wild to feel the building swaying - enough to make my feet itch.

I think this is an artistic performance piece. They're trying to say something about homelessness. What do you think?

I loved the double decker buses.

This is for you, T.J.

They were everywhere in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong Marina

The rich weekend boating side.

And the everyday side.

Street scene.