Lee Tung Avenue – Wan Chai and The Peak – Hong Kong – PRC – April 2018

Tags

Chinese lanterns, Hong Kong, Hong Kong views, Lee Tung Avenue, PRC China, The Peak, Wanchai

 

 

The High and Low of Hong Kong

Whilst in Hong Kong, my Chinese friend had told me about Lee Tung Avenue to visit to look at the Chinese lanterns and have a cup of tea. On my last day I decided to walk from my hotel and try and find it without a map of any sorts ie paper or smart phone.  I knew the general area so I set off.

I walked for about forty-minutes and then felt I should turn off the main street in Wan Chai, which proved to be a good choice as after another turn into a smaller street,  I saw  many [many] Chinese lanterns.  

The shops along this tree-lined pedestrian avenue sell everything from cosmetics, cakes, toys, jewellery and fashions to ice-cream. The avenue was once called Lee Tung Street with a nickname of  ‘wedding card street‘ because almost all the shops were related to bridal services and products.  There are still many shops selling wedding paraphernalia.Walking along and looking up, I loved the juxtaposition of the old apartments on the next street and the brand new shops along the avenue.There are also some pretty cool people just sitting around enjoying the lanterns…The cafes are quaint with beautiful displays of gorgeous pastries, (over priced) jams and other beautifully wrapped and bottled items.  It didn’t take long to walk along this avenue but its so pretty that it is definitely worth a visit.And of course one of the the ‘must’ do’ things in Hong Kong is a visit to The Peak.  One very warm afternoon, my friend Naomi and I walked to the tram station but as it was 2pm there was a huge line for the tram so we decided we would return the next day when the tram first opened and miss the lengthy queues.

I love the little tram;  it’s a very steep ride both up and down the mountain.  Great views each way over Victoria Harbour; both to Kowloon, over Hong Kong Island and the very expensive homes and apartments.

We arrived at The Peak and did the circle walk which is so lovely as it’s shaded by overhanging trees.  

 

It’s not a long walk but along the way you get panoramic views of Victoria Harbour, those amazing apartment blocks and the waterfall near Mount Austin playground.  It started off a little cloudy but towards the end of our walk we were fortunate to have clear views of Hong Kong Island…but foggy views of Kowloon.If you are wealthy enough, then a home on The Peak is for you.  The more privileged residents of Hong Kong not only have the great views but also an escape from the scorching summer heat.  When I lived in Hong Kong I was lucky enough to get invited to the home of the Australian Consulate General which is on The Peak; beautiful home with stunning gardens…wow I would have loved to live there!

But for Naomi and me it was just a visit to see those spectacular views.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Revisiting Hong Kong (1) – PRC – April 2018

Tags

Causeway Bay, China PRC, Harbour Grand Hotel, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Park, Lik Cha Tea House, North Point, vegetarian dim sum, Victoria Harbour, Wanchai

Meeting a friend in Hong Kong

 

I haven’t been back to Hong Kong since I lived in Beijing [2011-2014) when I used to travel down regularly.  So when my friend Naomi told me she was going there for a little ‘getaway’ from her home in Cambodia, I asked if I could meet here there; she was kind enough to say yes!

I took a day flight from Sydney aboard Qantas and after a glass of champagne, I watched a movie [kidnapping of JP Getty’s grandson – sad really to think the grandfather has that much money and didn’t immediately pay the ransom hence the grandson had his ear cut off], ate some lunch and checked out the little bag containing goodies…following which I promptly fell asleep for most of the flight.Around 8pm I arrived into Hong Kong to lovely views.Another friend picked us up from the airport and within minutes we were on our way to our hotel in North Point on HK Island.  After checking in we went to the Executive Club for a nice glass of champagne…and with these views who can complain.And lovely views the next morning whilst having breakfast…I compiled our six day itinerary as in 2008 I lived in HK and every weekend I would go out and visit not only the main sightseeing spots but also those that the locals visit.   One of the things I used to do with my visitors was take them on the tram which runs from one end of HK Island to the other…it’s a great way to see the old and new of HK Island and excellent value for $2 HKD.

But before we caught the tram we walked for a couple of hours around North Point through Causeway Bay and up to Wanchai where we then caught the tram.  These really are my favourite areas especially the old streets and buildings which I love more than the new ones…

There is a great website I used to look at when living in Hong Kong (www.discoverhongkong.com) and I would select a place to visit or something to do every weekend and found a lovely little tea museum and vegetarian dim sum restaurant in Hong Kong Park (Lok Cha Tea House).  I definitely wanted to take Naomi there as the food is wonderful as is the ambience.The Chinese tea selection is lengthy and once chosen it is brought over in tiny little pots with instructions on how long to steep.  Each table is also supplied with an electric kettle to pour additional hot water when your first pot is finished.We then took a look at the menu and we decided all dishes looked good so we ordered one of everything…mmm I would like to say our eyes were bigger than our bellies but we managed to eat everything!!We tried two different types of dumplings, turnip cake, spring rolls, glutinous rice wrapped in leaves, cabbage rolls, mushroom buns with soy sauce and a wonderful noodle dish.

 

So much food as you can see, but we still had room for dessert [must have been too full to take pictures]!!!

Then back out onto the streets to bump into all 7.3 million Hong Kong Chinese and expats!!