Day 104: Hong Kong

With little time to spare in the morning, I got my bags packed and headed to the Chiang Mai airport to catch a flight to Bangkok for my connector to Hong Kong. As I waited in the airport, I ran into the Australian guy from our trek. It was good to catch up and have someone to talk with while I waited.

When we got to Bangkok, he had the whole afternoon to spend in Bangkok before his night flight back to Melbourne, while I had about an hour to wait before my flight. We gave our goodbyes, maybe one day our paths will cross again. 

I got into Hong Kong during the night time (my flight also moved me forward an hour). I took the bus to the Causeway Bay Area of Hong Kong, which is a big bustling area that also has a lot of shopping. I actually got off in the wrong area and had to walk for about thirty minutes to find my hostel; finding a small hostel in a big part of town is not easy. Once I checked in, I went right back out to see the town at night. While it is late, it doesn't look like night time at all because of all the light pollution. You can easily lose track of time if you are used to it being dark outside when it's night time. Hong Kong reminds me of New York, packed sidewalks, public transportation everywhere, and tall buildings that block out the sky; the sides of the buildings are also littered with neon signs and advertisements above the sidewalks. It is also a little hard to get around because I can't read anything. In Hong Kong they speak Cantonese, which is different from Mandarine but is written in characters like Mandarine... I sure cant tell a difference. Since Hong Kong used to be a British province there are some sign that have English written below them, which makes it a little easier. Hong Kongers are nice and are always willing to help; if I ask someone for directions and they speak very poor English, usually a person who can speak English will come up and help. 

While I was out, I looked for a good place to eat that was cheap. The word cheap and Hong Kong don't go hand in hand, this place is expensive! Luckily, I stumbled across a place that was cheap, about $3 for a dish. I got a bowl of barbecue pork with noodles, it was so good I had to order another bowl. The employees were surprised at how much I was eating, the delivery guy even came in laughing and rubbing his belly, "ooh haha." 

Seeing the city at night was quite a change from the jungles of Chiang Mai, but traveling on a budget doesn't really allow me to do much in Hong Kong. I am just here to get my Chinese visa and move on, a small pit stop that is costing me more than a week or so in Thailand.