If you are planning on traveling to Cambodia or Hong Kong then read these travel articles by Emily Kettle before you go.

Picture right - Hong Kongs Harbour Lights seen from Kowloon.

Hong Kong on a shoestring

This article is currently under construction and is unfinished.

Whilst traveling on a round the world ticket, my boyfriend Damion and I had a 3 nights and 4 days stopover in Hong Kong. We were a little concerned that with our backpacker budget we would struggle to survive in a notoriously expensive modern day city. Not only were we worried about how much we would spend but my preconceptions if I am honest were also it would be just another city having visited a fair few already on our travels. How wrong could I be?

Day 1 - Friday, late afternoon

Touchdown on Lantau. Immediately impressed with arrivals, swank, chic airport. Purchased an Octopus card, easy as pie and caught a bus onto Hong Kong Island. Even the hour-long ride from the airport to Causeway Bay where we were staying was a pleasant experience. We immediately noticed how clean and modern everything looked, roadside gardens were neatly manicured and despite the developed high rise buildings around the airport area there was a real green feel still about the place.

The bus pulled up in Causeway Bay and we had a 5 minutes walk to our pre-booked hostel (not a usual pre-booker when backpacking but felt it maybe wise for HK). The hostel was situated in a pleasant shopping area with lots of amenities around us and very close to the main tram, bus and subway lines. Well-equipped with internet facilities and a clean, modern room.
Helped us with our visas for main land China where we were going to after Hong Kong.

Evening

Since we were both hungry we asked our reception to recommend a good but budget eating area. They pointed us in the right direction and we headed off to the Jardine’s Bazaar area for our first experience of the local cuisine.
Because we were in a non-tourist dining area the menus were all in Chinese script so with a little help from the waiter and a case of pointing at other people’s dishes we ordered a set meal all including drink for about $HK 68
(4 quid). It was a real bargain and extremely edible.

Feeling jaded from our flight, we spent the rest of the evening just walking around the local Causeway Bay area taking in the colossal buildings and soaking up the Chinese culture ready for a big day of sight-seeing the next day.

Day 2 - Saturday Morning

For our first official day of sightseeing we wanted to do a walking tour of Central. We took the tram from Causeway Bay using our Octopus card and got off at Statue Square, opposite the HSBC building. Central as it would suggest is home to the impressive skyscrapers, the financial heart of the city and an architect’s delight. Even the most countryside loving person has to appreciate the beauty of these towering monoliths. Our walk took us all around the Central area passing the Cenotaph of War, Chater Gardens, the Bank of China building and through to the Hong Kong Park. Hong Kong Park is a haven for those who seek solitude in nature. The contrast of water features, a conservatory with arid and semi-arid plant species and planted borders is a welcome relief from the hustle and bustle of this modern metropolis. Not only is it a pleasant place it is free to enter. What more can you ask for?

We stopped off for a lunch break at a hip and trendy café called The Mix and finished off our tour at the HSBC building to view the bullet holes caused by the Japanese during their occupation in the lions that are resident outside the HSBC building.

The Bank of China




Afternoon

Cities are great for walking lovers because there are always walks to suit people’s tastes but not only that they are free.

Our afternoon walk took us to Sheun Wan, still on Hong Kong Island itself.
We walked down an alleyway where we saw lots of mad potions and concoctions for sale. No this is not Diagon Alley out of Harry Potter’s adventures but Chinese shops selling ingredients for alternative medicine. You can see the strangest things for sale here from deer antlers to dried starfish. It is a little shocking at the sheer volume of these poor creatures dead on sale for a recipe to maybe relieve an ailment but this is all very much part of the Chinese custom and a reminder that Hong Kong is very much still Chinese.

We also came across a street selling bird nests which are used to make birds nest soup, another healing property apparently! We also encountered our first Chinese shrine and finished up our tour in search of Seal Chops. I ignorantly thought these were the marine variety of Seal cut up in a butcher’s shop. You may sympathise with my misgivings when you see what is for sale in a lot of these medicine shops, let’s put nothing past them!
However, I soon learnt that Seal chops are a very ancient Chinese tradition of having your signature engraved in a stamp. The Chinese use these for formal circumstances still today and you too can have your name translated into Chinese script for a very memorable souvenir along one of these stalls.

Alternative medicines being prepared



Evening

We confess to having a catnap back at the hotel before going out. Walks have a great way of making you healthily tired! Without delay we put our glad rags on and tried out a Café de Coral chain of restaurants for dinner. Here you can choose a set menu again and order and pay on entry and then wait until your number is called out. Since this was all happening in Chinese and
we were the only Westerners in the restaurant a friendly and helpful member of staff took us under their wings and brought our dishes to us! It was another cheap option but I wouldn’t say the best cuisine I have ever had.

After eating we went off to Central again on the tram but this time headed for the Central Escalator to the mid-levels. For the tired and less energetic like us on this particular evening, the escalator is a great way to avoid climbing HK’s steep hillsides. It is a real novel experience, as the large escalator takes you up high onto what is known as the mid-levels.
We descended at the Soho area, a buzzing dining and bar area for the chic and well heeled. We soon observed the cars were all very expensive and that maybe even in our best backpacking attire, we were a little out of our depth. However, as I have learnt from backpacking no matter how you may look

in comparison it is always a good experience to see how the other half live. And that is exactly what we did. We strolled around enjoying watching people dine in posh restaurants but went for a pint of beer in the local Irish pub, Dublin Jack for a cheaper option. 2 pints cost us $HK 108, equivalent of about 8 pounds so we made it just the one on our budget and swiftly left!

Another sociable and buzzing nightlife area we checked out before leaving was Lan Kwai Fong probably a more chilled out area than Soho. The crowds of people, mainly expats spilled out onto the streets enjoying the warm evenings chatting and chilling. We left feeling pleased we had made the effort to sample some of Hong Kong’s nightlife albeit as an observer rather than participator.

Day 3 - Sunday Morning

This morning we got up fresh and early for Stanley market. Stanley is situated on the southern side of Hong Kong Island. We managed to catch the bus there and got to see a different side of the island. It is a lot less commercial and more residential giving up to more spacious and open scenery.

The drive takes you along the coast so we also were able to see a couple of the bays, namely Repulse Bay. The market itself was very interesting with lots of stalls selling good souvenirs and there is a good café and restaurant culture. We stayed long enough to make a few purchases and buy a cheap lunch from the supermarket and eat our picnic in a small park area.
Before heading back to Central again we made a short stop at Repulse Bay to take some photos, walk on some HK sand and then returned to central to catch the Peak Tram up to the Peak.


Repulse Bay




Afternoon

For anyone planning a visit to HK or anyone already been that is reading this, the Peak is a must see. The Peak Tram takes you up to the summit of HK Island known as Victoria Peak where you will see the most amazing views of the harbour and skyline. The tram takes you to a scenic look out within the Peak Galleria, a hysteria of children and adults alike gathered around all the touristic other attractions such as the Ripleys Believe It Or Not museum and Madam Tusseauds. If you are like us and want to avoid the crowds of elbow budging hoards taking pictures from one spot then do the circular Peak walk. We were hesitant at first but we were so glad we did because the views are even more spectacular from here but you also get to enjoy them in peace. The walk takes about an hour and a half (3.5 km) but is a great way to break
up the time between day and sunset. We timed our visit up the Peak to coincide with sunset too, as we wanted to have photos of it in daylight but also with all the lights coming on too.

Evening

Feeling fresh and thirsty from the walk we sat and enjoyed a refreshing Tings Taos beer from a gallery that overlooks the harbour. We were lucky to spot a table so took profit from its splendid location and ordered dinner there too. It wasn’t actually that expensive considering its prime spot and that way we held onto our seat for perfect timing with dusk and the start of
the lights coming on. Around 6.30pm the lights began to come on across the harbour and the views took on a different meaning. Each building has its unique display of lighting with some of them more distinguished than others.

The view from Victoria Peak



Our favourite was the x building whose light display changed colour to apparently a million different colours (Tallest building on left above). Once we had seen what we wanted to we made our way back down on the tram and headed back home for yet another busy day ahead of us!

Day 4 - Monday, Morning


For our last day we chose to go over to Kowloon and see Hong Kong Island from across the harbour. In Central at the Star Ferry terminal we saw a couple of Rickshaws, so wanting to take a photo we asked permission and the man offered for me to sit in it and pose whilst Damion took a photo of us. No sooner had Damion taken the photo, the man whisked me off for a spin around the car park. Office workers looked on at me humorously, as I felt totally ridiculous and wondered to my dismay just how much this photo was going to cost us. When he delivered me back to the spot after literally a few minutes spin he asked for $HK200. Well, we nearly choked and refused such a steep fee bartering the man down to $HK60. That is the trouble with photography, it can end up costing you a fortune!

Expensive Rickshaw

So from Central we took a Star Ferry (you cannot say you have been and done HK without a Star Ferry trip) which again was included in the Octopus card and reached Kowloon in around 10 minutes.

Hong Kong Bay



Hong Kong has a lot of museums to offer but we had already chosen to go to the History Museum to learn more about the Hong Kong story. It is a very interesting musuem laid out in sections from the early days of its geology and formation to the 1997 handover of British power back to the Chinese.

Temple Street, Kowloon