https://www.stevedrice.net/ 2026-05-04T13:06:28+00:00 https://www.stevedrice.net/ https://www.stevedrice.net/_media/wiki/dokuwiki.svg text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:29+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day1 Thursday, October 3rd - London One day to go. I have decided to take tomorrow off of work so that I can take care of any last minute things that we need to take care of. We have been living in London for a few years now and have set down some roots meaning that a trip like this does mean a bit of planning. text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:29+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day2 Friday, October 4th - London Despite my having the day off I could not sleep beyond 8 am as my mind was so much on everything that needed to be done before we left. First on the list was to do all of the computer stuff I had left to do including printing of the travel insurance documents text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:32+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day3 Saturday, October 5th - Somewhere Over Asia The most difficult part of a trip like this for me is the potential for not being able to sleep on the flight and given the length of this flight that is a bit of a problem as it could mean I am going for several days without sleep (assuming I want to adapt to the time difference in Hong Kong right away). In this case both Mel and I were able to sleep shortly after Monsters University then woke a few hours before landing. The plane was still in dark… text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:36+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day4 Sunday, October 6th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong 9:10 the next morning a banging on the door: “Housekeeping” (well, only after several “huhs?” did this become apparent) to whom I told “come back later!”. I did not really have a great night of sleep. Though we were in bed at 12:30 I don’t think I managed to get to sleep until about 6 am as I was tossing and turning with the caffeine in my system and my mind going at a million miles an hour thinking of what we can do here. text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:32+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day5 Monday, October 7th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong So the idea today was to enjoy a bit of the sun and ocean. I had always told Mel that one of the things I initially found surprising about Hong Kong was the fact that there are a number of quite nice public beaches here and from our hotel they are just on the other side of the mountain for us - Several buses go there from right outside our door. After the large amount of walking yesterday a bit of relaxation sounded good. text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:38+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day6 Tuesday, October 8th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong It would have been nice to have had congee this morning at Congee King but, unfortunately, this breakfast restaurant was closed for breakfast so we ended up at a busy place across the road (it did not have an English name so I can’t tell you what it was called…). A friendly waitress showed us to a table against the front window and gave us menus that had quite English items on offer for breakfast. We had egg, with chicken and toast along with lemon t… text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:37+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day7 Wednesday, October 9th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong We must have been here for a few days now as we needed to do some laundry in the bathtub this morning. A bit untidy but at least we will smell better. I seriously under-packed for this trip but I was very concerned about the amount of luggage we had with us considering our later trip to Singapore. In retrospect, a single pair of jeans and pajamas was probably not such a great idea. text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:32+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day8 Thursday, October 10th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong Ocean Park is a local theme park that has not only rides but also, as one might expect, a large number of displays of sea life. It is also in a beautiful setting beside Deep Water Bay on the south side of Hong Kong Island as well as on top of an adjacent mountain then down the other side towards Aberdeen. The hotel offers a shuttle on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays but we knew we wanted to avoid the weekend and having checked earlier in the week we… text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:27+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day9 Friday, October 11th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong I am sure we are slowing down. We have done so much already though, I feel, there is so much more to come. [Gloucester Road] We started the day with a bite to eat in the room (more bakery goods) then headed out to catch the Star Ferry from Wan Chai to Tsim Sha Tsui. text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:27+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day10 Saturday, October 12th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong A very good sleep last night. I think we are finally over the jet lag and Mel’s cold even sounds a bit better. I am using a night-mask (courtesy of Virgin Atlantic) at night because of the sun coming in the windows but that, and the “please do not disturb” sign on the door is working! text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:28+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day11 Sunday, October 13th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong A very special day for us. It is one thing to visit a country and see the sights it is quite another to visit with someone who actually lives there. In this case I know Raymond from when he attended my university and have visited him every time I have been in Hong Kong. On my first visit he opened up his apartment to us and we slept on his floor. He has always been so welcoming to us it promised to be an extra special day today when he invited us t… text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:39+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day12 Monday, October 14th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong Our time here in Hong Kong is quickly coming to an end. Hard to believe we have been here a week already though we have done so much and it already feels so comfortable. It was going to be a bit of a long day today. It is really our last full day in Hong Kong so wanted to go to Cheung Chau for, perhaps, a bit of a relaxing visit. We have to be back in the evening to get to Sam’s to pick up our remaining items. text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:38+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day13 Tuesday, October 15th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong Well, this was our last day (ish) in Hong Kong. Singapore up next, albeit for only a few days. The day started early at 9 am. Simplest option today was to have breakfast in the bar at the hotel. Not a great idea. The bar is quite dark and not exactly the nicest. The breakfast buffet was set out on a couple of tables. I had some scrambled eggs that were cold, the “bacon” was actually sausages, the congee (rice soup) was watery with not a lot of … text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:28+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day14 Wednesday, October 16th - Singapore Singapore is an interesting place. Not sure if I like it but it does have some things that are quite interesting. By the time we were out of bed and downstairs in the lobby we had just missed the breakfast buffet in the main restaurant so we satisfied ourselves with a visit to the bakery - Pan o Raison and chicken pie for me, while Mel had mixed fruit and a nut loaf-bun thing. Better than nothing and it was nice to have a sit and soak up the modern inter… text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:37+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day15 Thursday, October 17th - Singapore Having missed the breakfast in the hotel yesterday today we were determined not to repeat that. With the amount of activity we do each day we need the energy! So, we headed down in time for the breakfast buffet which was quite good indeed with several tables having a good assortment of food. The pineapple was very nice - I am assuming it was grown locally and not picked from a tree weeks ago - The congee, fried noodles, seeded bread and hash browns (a la McD… text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:33+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day16 Friday, October 18th - Singapore The suggestion has been that we had to try Singapore Chili Crab. After a bit of research we figured that “Jumbo Seafood” served some of the best in town (my restaurant review here). Crossing the road from the hotel we walked down Hill Street along the side of Chijmes. An ornately decorated building on the other side turned out to be the “Singapore Chinese Chamber Of Commerce & Industry”. Along the way I spotted the “Singapore Philatelic Museum” along a side … text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:37+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day17 Saturday, October 19th - Singapore, but only temporarily...then Hong Kong It has been an incredibly long day but also a very rewarding day. We managed to make good use of our time in Hong Kong though there were a few hiccups along the way. Staggering out of bed at 1 we were down in the foyer only 30 minutes later. Since we had requested a taxi for 2 we checked to see if they could bring the taxi around earlier. While we waited we sat in the “internet café” in the middle of the lobby. A few … text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:33+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/day18 Sunday, October 20th - London We did manage to sleep on the flight, which was a good thing as we arrived at Heathrow at 5:30 in the morning. Of course, it is raining and quite cool. Sigh. We are home. [Acton Town Tube Station...in the rain] => Continue to Epilogue text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:28+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/epilogue Epilogue It is now three weeks after our vacation in Singapore and Hong Kong that I look back on these words and relive the experiences. We really did a lot and I am quite pleased with the whole experience. I have to say the day with Raymond and his family has to be the outstanding highlight of the trip both emotionally and culturally - I felt a lot closer to both him but also to his way of life that day. It really was quite an eye opener and so very much enjoyable. text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:38+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/introduction Hong Kong and Singapore Journal 2013 Introduction Every few years I get an itch. Nothing contagious, mind you, but an itch. It is an itch to return to Hong Kong and Singapore Journal 2013. Having visited several times in the past (see my journals here (1997), here (1999) and here (2007)) I am always driven to return and see it again, for the first time. Now with my wife, Mel, never having visited Asia was an additional motivation - Nothing like seeing things differently when you travel with… text/html 2015-10-02T20:09:36+00:00 Anonymous (anonymous@undisclosed.example.com) https://www.stevedrice.net/travel/asia/hongkong/journal4/sidebar * Hong Kong and Singapore Journal 2013 London * Thursday, October 3rd - London * Friday, October 4th - London En Route * Saturday, October 5th - Somewhere Over Asia Hong Kong * Sunday, October 6th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong * Monday, October 7th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong * Tuesday, October 8th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong * Wednesday, October 9th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong * Thursday, October 10th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong * Friday, October 11th - Wan Chai, Hong Kong * Saturday, October 12th -…