Hong Kong - Day 4

Day 4 in Hong Kong started early for us as we heard about queues forming at the Australian Dairy Company that we wanted to have our breakfast at.  True enough, when we reached, there was a queue, although it wasn't as long as expected.  I think we were the 5th group.  The wait wasn't that long, less than 20mins and we managed to get it.  It was really crowded and noisy.  Everyone was chatting and the place was rather cramped but quite well organized.

 

 

Staff seems pretty friendly, even joined in with us to take pictures.

We actually didn't know what to order so we picked the daily breakfast set, their warm sweet milk & egg sandwich.  I must say, the milk was just nice.. not too sweet and it is super smooth.  Only their macaroni tasted 'normal'.  The scrambled eggs were generously plied on top of the warm and moist bread.  The egg custard milk was also smooth but a tad too sweet for my liking, however, the sweet milk was just nice.  We even takeaway one bottle of cold sweet milk.

After our hearty breakfast, off to Sham Shui Po for some sight-seeing.  We took the MTR down to Sham Shui Po station and this structure greeted us when we emerged from the station exit.  The day spent at Sham Shui Po was lots of walking and looking around us.  Not sure why we didn't take as many pictures as expected.

For our lunch, we wanted to try another recommendation from OpenRice.  This time, we had to work hard to find the place.  We got all confused with the street numbering system and couldn't seem to find the address.  Luckily, in the end, as the rains started to fall again, we managed to find the shop.  The noodles were springy and the vegetables fresh.  The dumplings were big too.  It was a hearty lunch.  I definitely enjoyed it.

 

After Sham Shui Po, we went back to In's Point again to buy my X-Wing and Baby G's City set.  Again not much pictures since we already took In's Point yesterday.  The rains started to fall again and we decided to stop and snack on some fried sotongs.  Really oily but crispy and shiok.

This day is mostly about eating.  I seriously have no idea why there are no other pictures for this day except all the food that we ate.  Here is our dinner at the Da Pai Dong store that we happen to chance upon along our way back to the hotel.

 

San

Hong Kong - Day 3

Day 3 in Hong Kong was quiet.  Peaceful even.  There was a light drizzle outside.  We woke up earlier to have our breakfast.  Alex told me that the Typhoon Level went up to 10, the highest level and we actually slept through it.  I do recall that I could hear the rains beating against the windows the night before but never expected it to be that major.  We turned on the news and watched the reports on the typhoon.  People actually still went out just to experience a Level 10.  But they also showed smaller trees being uprouted, especially at the coastal areas.

Before we headed out, the Typhoon Level was still at 8 but it looked so calm, we decided to venture out.  As we exited our hotel, it was really quiet as no one was going to work due to the typhoon.  Most of the stores remained closed.  We continued to walk ahead towards the direction of Fa Yuen Street.  Along the way, luckily we found a quaint looking place that served breakfast.  We ordered Chee Cheong Fun, Fish Porridge, You Tiao and Soya Bean Milk.  I tell you it was really the most simplest yet yummiest breakfast in the longest time.  The porridge was so smooth and it just glided down the throat so easily.  The fish was fresh too.  Ahhh... the simple pleasures in life.

After our breakfast, we decided to continue on.  The streets were so quiet and almost deserted.  Lying around were lots of broken umbrellas and their metal sticks, remnants of Typhoon Vincente.

As we reached Fa Yuen Street, the city seems to be more alive; with the shop and push-cart owners slowly unpacking their wares and setting up their stalls.  The most interesting sight for Baby G was the Goldfish Street.  Quite a number of shops were already opened and the various varieties of fishes were put up on display.  Baby G was very enthralled by the sights and sounds... and not to mention, the many questions he had for us.

Along the way, we stopped by for some snacks.  In Hong Kong, must eat 鱼蛋, so we tried the non-spicy one foor Baby G.  We also ordered carrot cake.  I must say, it was quite refreshing fishball and carrot cake, not that oily, in fact.  And Baby G was really happy with his OEM Lego purchase of the Army Tank.



After our short snack break, we continued on along the streets.  As the majority of the Hong Kong residents were still at home due to the typhoon, not many stalls were opened.  We simply strolled along the streets, taking in the sights and sounds that Hong Kong has to offer.  Along the way, we found a stall selling egg tarts, amongst other pastries.  The smell was so tempting that we just had to stop and buy some egg tarts to munch, even though we just had our snacks.  Baby G loved the egg tarts and gobbled them down.

Our next stop was CTMA, another centre that sold various toys & figurines.  As we walked in, it reminded me of the old styled buildings like Queensway where the shops were small and quite cramped up.  We found a shop selling Lego again, but the prices were much more expensive than what was advised to us by our friends so we just skipped that.  However, I did see a Lego Star Wars series of the Death Star retailing at HKD4499.  Tempting but the words 'budget.. budget.... budget' came to my mind.  Perhaps next time round.



Lunch was at Fek Kee Congee recommended by OpenRice website.  We ordered porridge, Char Siew rice and Cripsy Noodles with Lean Pork.  The Char Siew and the porridge arrived together and both Baby G and Alex enjoyed their food.  My noodles came much later and when it came, I almost fell off the chair.  The entire noodles was covered with bean sprouts! I was trying to find the lean pork and lo and behold, there were a few pieces under the mountain of bean sprouts.  I looked at Alex, hoping to appeal to him to eat but he shook his head and told me he's pretty full from the rice.  Baby G was teasing me about the bean sprouts.  In the end, in order to set a good example to Baby G not to waste food, I actually ate the bean sprouts.  I must say, this is one lunch that I truly did not enjoy but to be fair, the noodles was nice.  In the end, Alex took pity on me and helped me to eat a portion of the bean sprouts; Baby G also helping out a little.  In the end, we managed to finish quite a fair bit but only leaving a portion when I really couldn't swallow any more.

Finally, the moment that Baby G has waited for.  In's Point where his Lego awaits.  The shop recommended to us by Dan was #166 and #168 but the shops were closed.  Baby G was so disappointed.  We even found a public telephone to call the owner to ask if he was planning to open his shop for that day but no one answered.  In the end, we went back in and looked at other shops.  Luckily, we found another shop, #175, also selling some items at a reasonable price.  We bought one set from them but we decided that we will make a trip back again another day.  Baby G was happy with the purchase.

Another short break for us to rest our tired legs.  Mango and Sago desserts.  Baby G all in smiles due to his Lego.

Here are some of the random pictures we took of Hong Kong streets when the weather started to clear up.

As evening approached, the rains also started to fall.  We dropped by the Lung Shing Dispensary, famous for their reasonably-priced toiletries and cosmetics.  Too bad, my SK-II Essence was out of stock, in the end, just got an Olay range of cream for myself.  At least, I did not come out empty-handed.

As we walked on, the rains started to get heavier and heavier and we decided to make a pit-stop for dinner.  We found this stall along the way that had baked rice which Baby G said he wanted.  This time, I decided not to order my share, just in case Baby G couldn't finish his meal as baked rice in the pictures looked like it was a large portion.  Alex ordered the Pork Chop rice for himself.

When we finished our dinner, the rains came again.  It was wet and cold.  We walked in the rain, back to our hotel to dry up and have a rest.  Not much mood for any more shopping or sight-seeing so we decided to remain in our room to enjoy the free wi-fi and Baby G enjoying his 'Puppy in My Pocket' cartoon.

Another set of random pictures of Day 3 in Hong Kong, when the weather was much clearer.

San

Hong Kong - Day 2

Day 2 in Hong Kong started on a wet note.  Dark clouds around us.  We decided to have a quick breakfast and start early.  We were so early that we were the first few to reach the cafeteria and had the whole place almost all to ourselves.

Breakfast consisted of a simple meal for each of us.

As the Disney characters were nowhere to be seen, Baby G entertained us with his little antics and funny faces.

Since we had to check out that morning, we decided to take some photos of the hotel first since the night before, we were too busy shopping.

After breakfast and a quick tour around the hotel, we went back to our room to get our bags to check-out.  It was then that we realised that the Typhoon Warning Signal went up to Level 3.  The bad news is that all the outdoor rides would not be opened.  After some consideration, we decided to take a risk with the weather and hopefully, the indoor rides would be worth it.

 We quickly checked out of our comfortable and spacious room and left our luggages with the porter.

We took a shuttle bus from our hotel to the Disneyland park.  It started to drizzle during our bus ride, so out came the raincoats and umbrellas.  Due to the rain and typhoon warning, there was really not much to see or play so most of the time, we walked around the park only.  Not much to describe so enjoy the pictures instead.

 
 
 
 

There were not many indoor rides available which was quite a disappointment.  The 1st one we queued for was the Winnie The Pooh ride.  It was very much similar to the Madagascar ride at USS, although I think Madagascar wins hands down.

The next indoor activity was the Mickey Fantasia show.  Again, this one was pretty much like the Shrek at USS.  I would say it's a tie between Disney and USS.  Disney scores on the simple fact that the cartoons they showed were the cartoons that I watched during my childhood days.  It definitely brings back memories.  For USS, it's the electronic wizardry that makes you be part of the show.

 After the 2 indoor shows, the rain started to get heavier and heavier.  We walked around the Toy Story area and a stroke of good luck came our way.  We saw Woody and Jessie under a shelter.  We quickly queued up to take a shot with them.  I think this was the highlight of the entire day.  The rest of the time, we simply walked in the rain and tried to take as many pictures as possible.

 
 
 
 
 
 

Soon we found a little snack bar near the park representing the Wild Wild West.  Just in time too as the rain started to really pour.

Soon the skies cleared a little for us to start our walk again.  This time it was really nothing except structures to take photos.  The structures were not as nice as the Toy Story ones but, better than nothing, I guess.

It started to rain again, so we decided to take a break and have our lunch.  Food was so-so and the only interesting part were these little pork buns.  Taste was quite lacking, only presentation score full marks.

The next indoor ride we decided to queue up (although it was a super long queue) was the Buzz Lightyear ride.  Basically, you get to sit in a spaceship and shoot at aliens and monsters and get points.  I was actually quite good at shooting and garnered almost 200,000points while Baby G got 10,000 points.

 

As we walked out to the gift shop, Baby G eyed some Lego sets and thought we brought him to the toy store to buy Lego.

From here on, there are no more pictures of Disney because our friend from Hong Kong, TianYen, called us and told us that the Typhoon Warning would be raised to a Level 8.  As this was the 1st time we were facing a typhoon, we decided to play it safe and cut short our Disney trip and go back to our hotel in Kowloon.  We quickly called our tour guide to pick us up earlier than the scheduled time of 9:45pm.  Luckily he just dropped off someone at the airport and could come earlier to give us a ride to our hotel.

By the time we reached our hotel, Eaton Smart, along Nathan Road, the rain started to really get heavier and heavier.  Our shoes were all wet and we decided to dry them under the light.  As expected, the room was really small.  Basically what you see in the picture is the entire room.  Since there was no place we could go, we decided to relax in our room while I took some pics of the place.

 
 

On the advice of Tianyen, we decided to venture out to the Tsui Wah Restaurant opposite our hotel to have our dinner.  As it was cold and wet, the wonton noodles were a welcome treat and to top it off, my milk tea was nice and warm.

In fact, after our dinner, we managed to catch up with Tianyen for coffee at Starbucks (also opposite our hotel).  We were busy chatting that I forgot to take photos... haha..  Tianyen happened to be at TST (Tsim Sha Tsui) for a haircut.  Can tell he's a seasoned person when it comes to typhoons.  Haircut during a Level 8.... hahaha. 

During the chit chat, one could see the smaller trees outside swaying against the winds and the rains blowing almost perpendicular to the streets.  Actually, Baby G was pretty subdued during the typhoon, probably cause I warned him that the winds can get so strong that it may just carry him away.  Hahaha.... what a terrible mummy I am.  He quietly sucked on his lollipop, courtesy from Uncle Tianyen.

And there ends Day 2.  A very disappointing day at Disney but what an experience with the typhoon.

San