My last day in Hong Kong

Can you believe it, but my time in Hong Kong is nearly finished and tomorrow I'm flying to Cambodia.  Now I could be very wrong, but I'm thinking that likely my access to the internet is going to be quite a bit more limited for the next few weeks (while I'm travelling in Cambodia and then Vietnam) so if the frequency of blog posts drops off for a while that's likely why.

Today I decided to go back and just spend some more time on Hong Kong Island and I'm awfully glad I did.  There's a little brochure you can get here that outlines a few walking tours you can do around Hong Kong, and so I set off today thinking I might get a couple on Hong Kong Island done.  Instead I got a bit lost following the first tour, so I never did get a second one done, but I saw some great things today!

Today was more about getting out of the "flashy" Hong Kong and getting into some of the side streets and really residential areas and trying to get a feel for how Hong Kong ticks for most of the people who live here.   So going on the advice of someone at the tourist bureau I headed into what is referred to as the Western District - and here's where I got sort of "lost".  Ok, maybe not lost exactly, but it was just so much fun wandering around the streets and alleys that it did take me a little while to find my way back to a main street again.

The stores here were great - selling everything from ginseng to bird's nest, to dried seafood, to all sorts of herbal medicines.  And this was clearly a part of the city where local people come to shop - just watching life unfold was fascinating.

And things are just left to dry - anywhere and everywhere.

I'm not at all sure what these are, but I do know I wouldn't be game enough to put them in my mouth.

From this very local area I went to one that dealt more with Chinese antiques and curios - with what looked to be some very upscale shops but also many street vendors with an incredibly interesting array of things for sale.

And then you turn a corner and you're in front of a temple.  This one is Man Mo Temple.  It is one of the first traditional-style temples built during the colonial era and it pays homage to the Taoist gods of literature ('Man') and war ('Mo').

Leaving the more traditional I then came to the world's longest covered escalator.  It is 800 metres long and links the area near the water in Hong Kong to a part of the city called the Mid-Levels... mid-way up the mountain the city is built on.  To travel the whole length takes about 20 minutes - I only went a few sections.  You can see a part of it in this photo - it's the covered green thing on the left hand side.

I got off after a few sections in a neighbourhood called SoHo - a neighbourhood south of Hollywood Road.  It's a swanky little area filled with coffee shops, funky bars and chic restaurants.

Continuing my walk I went past the former Police Station which definitely stands as a testimony to Hong Kong's colonial heritage.  It was built in 1864.

But really today - it was watching the people, and watching life happening that I was the most interested in.

And for those of you who were wondering, I want you to know that it's not just at out-of-the-way Buddhist monasteries that they use bamboo scaffolding - it's used throughout the city!

I know I've shared quite a few photos of Hong Kong's skyline, and that certainly is quite spectacular, but the skyline of Kowloon is pretty nice too ... especially when the Sun Princess is in port!  I think this is probably the biggest cruise ship I've ever seen, anywhere.

And now it's time to leave Hong Kong.  As I said, please be patient if there aren't any posts for awhile and I will definitely be back on-line again as soon as I can be.  And I'm sure Cambodia and Vietnam are going to have some wonderful things for me to tell you and about, and photos to share.