Everytime I am anywhere but here I write about there. This is my travel life. I am everywhere.
Catching up in Hong Kong
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I had visited Hong Kong before on a stopover from Europe on the way home. That time was a quick stay in part to see friends, and to then also get a taste of the city without committing to a long stop. This trip with the goal of getting up into China it made sense to revisit Hong Kong, and then also get a chance to see friends I had short changed last time. I enjoyed Hong Kong the first time as it's a great mix of East meets West culture and food. Unfortunately for me it wasn't all fine blue sky. This was hot and humid end of typhoon season Hong Kong. Not that I minded to much. It had been so long since I had seen rain in Brisbane. And my lagging winter cough needed the humidity to help it disappear.
So my time here in Hong Kong was partly exploring the tourist zones I had missed, and then exploring the taste buds. I managed to fit in some Michelin rated noodles restaurant, and visit some great Dim Sum catching up with friends during the stay. Initial plans to go into the far reaches of Hong Kong in search of tourist spots had been curtailed by the weather and concern of protests. Heck I even considered going to see the Basketball World Cup in Shenzhen across the Chinese border. After all it was just there. A train ride away. But instead I just walked the neighbourhoods to take in the visual picture of skyscrapers and people everywhere. And yet in this wall of people I still found it sometimes difficult to find a central shopping district. As I learnt Causeway Bay was one area I didn't realise the importance of in this regard. I couldn't find any shopping of significance in the Central area. I had been looking in the wrong place and direction. Not a difficult problem to solve when the subway comes every 3 minutes and then you start to think like Hong Kong and start to look up and not just out.
The final morning in Hong Kong marked the start of the main event. I had booked a tour up into China with "The Dragon Trip". A budget backpacker based tour company that would get me up to Chengdu and the Pandas via the Yangshuo countryside. I was only doing their short trip. But that didn't worry me. It was getting me to where I wanted to be. I was paying just that little extra to get my own private room. That was a good call. The Dragon Trip use a slightly different format to most tours in their design. Instead of staying with one guide throughout you are assigned city guides. With each transfer you are left alone on the trains until the next stop. Sure some may like the one point of contact but heck this must of been a huge saving to the cost, and then also allows for guides to be local experts and not just generalists. Our first day with the tour was more about getting the correct documentation sorted for a China border crossing rather than actually seeing much. It was lucky I've seen the Peak before in Hong Kong as this time there was total cloud cover for what was supposed to be the highlight of seeing Hong Kong before heading over the Chinese border by train.
In December 2023 I had the opportunity to add to my exploration of the Philippines. A week away tacked onto a work trip. Within this week I planned out a one side destination trip. Just one island, one day trip. So that I wasn't overwhelmed. And well acknowledging there may be other opportunities for more trips later. Yes the prior trip had physically broken me. I'm no longer 25. I chose Coron Island over El Nido. Not because I knew it'd be better. I had seen enough videos comparing the 2 destinations to figure out you'd be okay whichever you choose. Both are a part of the Palawan region. I chose Coron Island because I could fly out of there easier on the time frames I had. A week away meant I needed to be more direct, in, out, no dilly-dally. There was no time for rain delays, nor contingencies if I had to ferry elsewhere. Accommodation I had read up about had indicated that you need to be in the Town Centre if you want to walk about. And it often was overpriced and u...
In visiting London I stayed with my friend Darren. Heck Daz and I have a tradition of meeting up every time I make it to Europe. This time it was somewhat a home game for Daz. Not staying elsewhere. But it doesn't mean we didn't go elsewhere. We went to Brighton. He had friends there, and had never been to Brighton. So a short train journey for lunch and visit to Brighton Beach was put into motion. As Australians we all know that technically they don't have beaches in Britain. Either by "white sand" rule, or "it's not warm enough to be considered going to a beach" rule. Look those rules up if you want. Yes maybe I made them up. But it does explain why UK has so many residents in Bondi Beach. But I have proof. See these photos. This is their beach. Pebbles. And I'm not talking fine pebbles. And this is what they put on their beaches. Giant size Piers with traditional fairgrounds. Nice for tourists actually. Very nostalgic. Hence the pho...
These are the easy instructions on how to get free chocolate in Brussels. Step 1 Carry a camera. Step 2 Walk into Chocolate shop. Then a sales assistant will likely be dashing for the free sample tray. At which point you need only say thank you as you browse and consider a purchase. Then there is a 3rd step. Repeat Step 2. I did it a lot. In fact I became a chocolate snob. If I didn't get a reaction from the sales assistant I'd walk. Brussels was great. I went for Beer and Chocolate. Found both of them. On top of this I found Belgium Waffles. Although I could hardly see my waffle under all the chocolate. Don't be concerned. It's okay. I also had fruit on the waffle which made it a healthy option. To help with digestion I topped it off at night with some sort of traditional Belgium Beer Stew for dinner. Between the chocolate stops I also found the time to explore what is a very historical and beautiful city. In addition to the historically and cu...
So my time here in Hong Kong was partly exploring the tourist zones I had missed, and then exploring the taste buds. I managed to fit in some Michelin rated noodles restaurant, and visit some great Dim Sum catching up with friends during the stay. Initial plans to go into the far reaches of Hong Kong in search of tourist spots had been curtailed by the weather and concern of protests. Heck I even considered going to see the Basketball World Cup in Shenzhen across the Chinese border. After all it was just there. A train ride away. But instead I just walked the neighbourhoods to take in the visual picture of skyscrapers and people everywhere. And yet in this wall of people I still found it sometimes difficult to find a central shopping district. As I learnt Causeway Bay was one area I didn't realise the importance of in this regard. I couldn't find any shopping of significance in the Central area. I had been looking in the wrong place and direction. Not a difficult problem to solve when the subway comes every 3 minutes and then you start to think like Hong Kong and start to look up and not just out. 
The final morning in Hong Kong marked the start of the main event. I had booked a tour up into China with "The Dragon Trip". A budget backpacker based tour company that would get me up to Chengdu and the Pandas via the Yangshuo countryside. I was only doing their short trip. But that didn't worry me. It was getting me to where I wanted to be. I was paying just that little extra to get my own private room. That was a good call. The Dragon Trip use a slightly different format to most tours in their design. Instead of staying with one guide throughout you are assigned city guides. With each transfer you are left alone on the trains until the next stop. Sure some may like the one point of contact but heck this must of been a huge saving to the cost, and then also allows for guides to be local experts and not just generalists. Our first day with the tour was more about getting the correct documentation sorted for a China border crossing rather than actually seeing much. It was lucky I've seen the Peak before in Hong Kong as this time there was total cloud cover for what was supposed to be the highlight of seeing Hong Kong before heading over the Chinese border by train.
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