Watches, handbags and hash

How do you sum up Hong Kong? Fast pace, in your face,crowded, hot, humid, bright, noisy,multicultural, high end, low end and everything in between.   And you know what? We loved it. The contrast between Mongolia and Hong Kong could not have been more extreme and the realisation of that really hit us when we walked down to the waterfront at Kowloon on our first evening.   The ‘full on’  experience of all the towering buildings, lights everywhere, the brazenness of it all  took our breath away. It's like London on something and I would love to have the chance to work/live here even for couple months to fully embrace the madness of it all.

Even though we used many forms of transport (taxi, bus metro, ferry) we still managed to clock up nearly 45miles walking around over  3 ½ days  and we crammed as many sights in as we could but didn't really scratch the surface.

The first experience was the hostel. Looking at the reviews again I wondered why I had picked it. Budget was obviously a key factor – at less than £40 per night anyone who has ever been to HK will know that's very cheap. The entrance was through an indoor market which was very busy, loud, a lot of hassle and bustle  and could feel a little intimidating. Every time you entered the building there were offers of “watches, copy handbags (at least they were honest) and hash”. To be fair they only offered hash in  the evening – obviously not considered  a daytime pursuit.We were on the 16th floor in a room that I can only describe as compact in the extreme and bizarrely fully tiled.  But it was clean, safe and probably the most comfortable bed we had slept in so far. Little challenges like sitting on the loo side saddle were tolerable.

HK however is not a place to come if you hate queuing.  with the Chinese visiting en masse, every hot spot we went to had what felt like 20,000 people ahead of us.  Worth persevering though as the views from the peak and the cable car to Lantau Island were stunning.
We found some peaceful spots too- the bonsai gardens and Kowloon Park offered respite care and a chance to recharge.

The street markets were great. Friday  we headed to the night market and bagged a table on the street and had some fabulous food, plenty of beer and lots of people watching. Some nervous Americans on the table next to us said they couldn't believe they were eating on the street, but it's the best place to be.

On Sunday we stumbled upon a food and wine festival – how fortunate! It cost us about £13 each to get in including drink tokens but as it was the last day, people were just giving drink away. I always advocate to others that you shouldn't mix your drinks. Sadly I broke my own rules with wine (various including fizz and kosher ) vodka, sake, beer and of course baileys. We had FaceTime later that eve with H&M and GR- hopefully they didn't notice!

Our last night in HK was hallowe'en and it seems the good people of HK love to dress up. As we walked down to the waterfront,with  a couple of beers to hand the whole area was alive with street dancing zombies,  bands, including a Ukelele band – all in costume & with lots of audience appreciation. A great atmosphere & a great way to say goodbye to HK.

Next stop Vietnam. This was actually where we originally planned to start our journey. We have for a long time wanted to visit Vietnam and knew that 2weeks would not do it the justice it deserved. It was only once we started to make plans that we decided to add other things on to our wish list like the tran-Siberian railway. So, technically this is really where our adventures begin.