A DAY in HK (HK Diary Part 4)

Sept.17, 2009

129 Old Pun Chung St.

Tai Po, New Territories

Hongkong

I woke up early despite the fatigue got from the "pasyal-marathon"with ate Debbie last night. For a moment I couldn't really figure out where I was. The unfamiliar clock on the wall says it's already 8:45, I felt a sudden surge of panic! Darn.. I am late for work! Why didn't anyone bothered to wake me up?? Then the I remembered! I'm on a vacation, alright! The activity the other night flashed back! haaayyy.. I am so happy.

When I get up, the all the ladies in Ate Debbie's house (including her) had left for work. Ria was the only one I saw because her work in the shop starts later than the normal working hours in Hongkong. She offered me to have a coffee first, to which I was so happy to oblige.

The whole apartment was clean.. no single trash lying anywhere. The sink was empty of ucleaned dishes. Seems Ate Debbie is really a neat freak! hahahah.. Few minutes more and I was totally alone. I asked my self..Now what?? You want challenge.. then challenge I would have. I need to remember what ate Debbie told me about the MTR.. "get ticket going to Kowloon Tong, then take the Interchange train going to Mongkok and from there take the Argyle St." With that in mind, I took a shower and went out. I took a picture of Ate Debbie's gate, just in case I got lost there is something I could be able to with in finding my way back.

It's a good thing that HK MTR is so effective. I reached my destination without hassle at all. I had breakfast at KFC, chose not to be too adventurous in food at that moment coz first Im alone, If something doesnt agree well with my stomach, Im pretty sure that finding a rest room would took me ages, just like ordering a dimsum that took 30 min. due to LANGUAGE barrier! An upset stomach and a confused Chinese are the last things I want to deal with this time.

Mongkok was such a lovely and lively place. Buildings are almost covered with billboards and signage and although you couldn't understand most of it, the way they play with colors and stylehave given an ordinary market a sense of character and chic.

And the Adventure Begins..HK at Night (HK Diary Part 3)

Based on my research.. Hongkong can be subdivided into 4 major attractions : The HONGKONG Islands, Kowloon, New Territories, and the Outlying Islands. I decided to skip the first and the last and focused my "mini-tour" in Kowloon and New Territories.

( Remember: I need to stick to my 30-Dollar Budget. I am pressed for time as well because I need to take the Flight to Bangkok the next evening to meet a friend for a small business venture.)

I arrived in Hongkong at 17:21 local time. I exchanged my dollars to HK money and a got a total of more or less 220HK dollars. I called BELL (a friend's niece) to ask instruction on how to go to my arranged accommodation. Yes.. I didn't arranged for a Hotel. I opted for a "SHARED Accommodation" in the apartment owned by a kabayan, Ate Debbie, where I paid for only 35HK dollar for a 1-day,1 night stay.

From the airport, I took the E41 bus going to Tai Po RD. At the 2nd Station from the Tai Po boundary, Ate Debbie picked me up.

I stayed at #129 Old Pun Chung, Tai Po.(New Territories) The moment I saw Ate Debbie and her "angels" I know right away that I have made the right decision. They were so accommodating and more than happy to tell me the best place where I can buy good pasalubongs for my family and friends in Dubai. After some rest and few chats with the ladies at the boarding house, Ate Debbie decided to show me around the area. It's still weekdays and so all of them will still be working during my stay there. So nobody could be able to accompany me to where I want to go.

What supposed to be a "show-around"had become a pasyal na bonggang-bonga.. she probably thought that I'm kawawa =( ... because I will be left to fend for myself on a country I know nothing about. So she decided to bring me that night to Kowloon.

We took the MTR going to Tsim Tsa Chui. We passed along Nathan Road, the designer Shops, The Peninsula Hotel with its fabulous facade. We are going to the Harbour, it is where the famous Symphony of Lights is being played unfortunately when arrived the show is already over. But just the same, the myriad of lights is so fascinating. The camera couldn't give justice to it. I saw the famous "CLOCK TOWER"of Hongkong. We went to the Avenue of Stars where I had a chance to be hand-in-hand with Jackie Chan.. =).

Here are some pics I managed to take.. I am not very good with camera, coz when I travel I always chose to capture each moments more by heart.. less in lenses.

haaaayyyy... tomorrow will be another day..=).. laaavvettttt!

The 32 Dollars 50 Cents HK TRIP... (HK Diary Part 2)

When I decided to avail this loooong (as said by Ate Jane) planned journey.. i was still half-hearted up to the last minute. Should I go or Should I not?.. It's now or never!

Although all the signs are there that I have to go (expiring ticket, my unused leave credit due for forfeiture), there are still so many reasons that are keeping me from leaving. First, there is the H1N1 scare. Secondly, there is an issue on the Travel Budget. And lastly, I feel guilty that I am leaving to see another country on my Vacation Leave and not visit my family in the Philippines. Well, for the latter, i have thousands of reasons for not going home and my family knows that and they supported me on it. After all, for the last 4 years that I have been working overseas, I never failed to go visit them twice each year. This time is my ME time and i had their blessings.

So, that sorted out the most important concerns, my family.

H1N1- I was thinking, I cannot stop what I WANT to do because the environment says so. If its my time to leave the EARTH, then it's my time, and I would leave whether I am ready or not, one way or another. be it H1N1 or otherwise! With this is mind..the score is 2-1, so far, so good!

Now here comes the most bloooody thing! My travel budget. Just the mention of the word B-U-D-G-E-T, is enough to give me NOSEBLEED! Everyone knows that every single penny we have in our pocket at this point in time has to be spent wisely. After making an accounting on my Wallet Statement... there were only 32 dollars and 5o sent left.

Now the question of the year is... how the heck would I be able to travel from Dubai to HongKong with nothing but 30 bucks to spare????

PAULO COELHO wrote in one his books "when you want something, all the universe conspire in helping you achieve it".

Well then.... HONGKONG... here I come..!!!

The Ticket... (the HKG TRIP diary Part 1)

It has been quite a while since I last posted a blog..

I was so lazy to write about anything..mainly because there was nothing interesting for me to write about at all.

The last few days have given me a lot of reasons to blog again.. the reason..? I went on a short adventurous trip to Hong Kong! My family and the people close to me knows that traveling is my "FUEL". If you want me to keep going.. you should allow me once in a while to change environment and "recharge".

And so, the adventure began as soon as my 15-day Vacation Leave had been approved. After one and a half years of not going on a vacation I finally got my chance. Its not that I was not given a leave. I just didn't apply for one. Well, blame it to the credit crunch.

I have 2 unused FREE tickets. I decided to use my 3-band SERVICE RELATED CONCESSION ticket, giving me a slot for a 2 country destination of my choice. I have opted for the DUBAI-HONGKONG/HONGKONG-BANGKOK/BANGKOK DUBAI routing to maximize its use. It is a staff ticket, which means I will be waitlisted to all the flights. But it's ok, I have all the time in the world!!!

And so I started packing.. making sure I have with me my travel essentials.

When my travel will last for 5 days, I make sure I have these things in my Carry On bag:

1. Emirates Amenity Kit- small bottle of perfume, facial lotion, unscented hand lotion, towelette, toothpaste and brush.

2. liquid packs- In compliance with the LAGs (liquid, aerosol and gel) airport regulation, I have packed my LAGs in a clear plastic container for easy checking at the airport. I always carry, deodorant, 2 in 1 shampoo and conditioner, alcogel.

3. The KIKAYs- I minimize my kikay items into 2 only when I travel. I seldom use make up when I go on a trip because my face is oily and prone to acne so I just carry a baby powder to freshen my face. I especially love the Chanel Lipstick (New York Red #60) and the red nail Polish that I bought in Bangkok (10 baht orP13 or 1 AED or 0.25usd!!!!) Wearing these two could give an instant boost to ones face... and personality as well.

4. Med Pills- my frequent travels have thought me to carry OTC pills like paracetamol, claritine, and Vitamin C. I usually get these 3 to beat fever i usually get when my body adjust to a new weather, claritine for first aid treatment on allergies.

When traveling I always makes sure also that I have my BOREDOM-BEATERS as well, like the MP3 which proves to be so helpful when the in-flight entertainment becomes boring. A pen and note book to record my thoughts during the entire trip. A pen is always a must in filling up the immigration forms being distributed on-board before disembarking.

With these stuff and a sense of adventure.. I am ready for my 30 Dollar-2 days-Travel to HKG..!!!