DAY 4


A CUTE BREAKFAST
August 4, 2007 10 AM
CENTRAL, HONG KONG

Nikki and I started off the day by having breakfast at McDonald’s. I had pancakes with burger steak while she had Twisty Noodles which was a weird sopas. The pancakes had a lot of holes/ air pockets at the back which seems to me a culinary boo-boo. Aren’t pancakes supposed to be thick and fluffy? Milk tea was good though. There were also generous servings of syrup and butter. I wonder why they were made in the US though. I don’t remember that this is the case in the Philippines.



As always, the cutest things caught Nikki’s eye. McDonald’s was selling stuffed heads of beloved Sanrio characters like Hello Kitty, Bad Badz Maru, My Melody, and Keroppi. The heads came with a box one can twist the knob to make a head come out. Nikki couldn’t decide if she wanted to buy or not since she needed to handcarry it if she wanted to maintain the box. She eventually couldn’t resist and bought the whole set complete with McDo gift certificates valid until December. At this time, my tummy was acting up, and I had to leave her alone to rush to the hotel and do my business.



Day Four marks the last day we have for whole day shopping and it was imperative we take advantage. We decided to meet up in H&M’s entrance by 3pm done with shopping inside of course while we separated the whole morning. I tagged along again with Franz since I wasn’t interested in exploring Sogo which the others planned to do. At this point, Franz was on skimp-on-transportation mode. He wanted us to take the tram all the way to TST (where he was to exchange his pants in Giordano) since it only costs 2HKD wherever. I don’t know the starting and end points of the tram but for sure, it stays firmly on HK Island. We really had to take the taxi, ferry or MTR to cross over to Kowloon. In the end, he decided to just exchange the jeans in Central so we wouldn’t have to spend on transportation much.

We first explored the shops on Landmark’s basement (Exit G) where relatively affordable brands like G2000 and CK Jeans are located. We then ventured upward to the luxurious and stylishly-done four-storey Louis Vuitton Maison, inaugurated in 2006 with no less than Marc Jacobs gracing the opening. Starstruck by fashion as I am, I couldn’t help but be excited and a bit reverent that I was exploring the interiors of the place I had read about in magazines. I managed to sneak in an interior shot using my camera phone, cheesy and bourgeois tourist that I am. I only wish it could’ve been of the bar where most if not all bags are on display and stools are set up, with sales people assisting behind counters all for the customer’s buying leisure. I particularly coveted the elegant and understated Epi Leather bags. Sigh.

After a deliberately inordinate time browsing and not buying in LV, we proceeded to Gucci right around the block by the Mandarin. The newly-opened Gucci flagship is not as beautifully set-up as Louis Vuitton which had soft and illuminating lights but has more trendy elements like color blocks and clean walls especially in the first floor. In Hong Kong, even the shops are an experience. We ogled around a bit but soon went inside the Landmark where Harvey Nichols, Kiehls, Fendi, Christian Dior, Marc Jacobs, even Valextra and Roger Vivier are, among others. Franz also tried out watches in Tag Heuer. We were really just walking around aimlessly. We got to Chater House across the street where Armani was king. All Armani brand extensions are represented from Armani Exchange to Armani Casa to Emporio Armani. I think that I even spotted 2 outlets of Emporio Armani in this building although I don’t get the logic. We didn’t stop by anymore but continued on.

With all our walking around via the bridge extensions, we got to an area where Pinoys abounded. There they were-- speaking in Tagalog, clutching YES! magazines, and exchanging E-Load. There were also a number of Philippine service providers like BPI and Western Union here. It’s safe to assume that this area is a major transaction point for Pinoys in HK. I read in Time that Pinoys are the second biggest foreign population in HK behind the mainland Chinese. We’ve truly carved a Hong Kong niche.

Franz and I crossed so many footbridges already on our just-walking-around mode that my feet were getting tired. We even followed a group of tourists thinking they were going to some shopping area or mall but ended up following them to a bus station instead. Good for laughs, that one.

Finally, out of breath from the walking and heat, we just had to stop and figure out where we were. Lo and behold, we were already in front of the IFC, Hong Kong’s tallest building. Franz claimed he knew where we were headed all along. I like to believe that we were blessed by a fortuitous coincidence. All the same, the haphazard walking got us there so I’m not going to complain.

What’s there to see in the IFC mall? The wide walkways are impressive, but the stores are basically the same with a Lane Crawford thrown in. There was also a pretty huge Valentino. Franz lingered for a time in Burberry where I rested on their couches. I spotted some restaurants which came highly-recommended in some online sites but were quite expensive. Needless to say, we didn’t stop for lunch. I looked for Teuscher Chocolates, supposedly the most expensive Swiss chocolates, perfect for my chocolate-loving family. Now when a brand makes claims they are expensive, they are not kidding. As small as Hershey’s Kisses and with fancy names like Milk Champagne and Triple Truffles, Teuscher costs around 20-21 HKD per piece. Choke!!! I had to take a moment to think whether or not I was going to buy them home. I needed to know if they tasted good, but a request for free taste was met with a negation. In the end, I went ahead and bought 4 pieces. When we finally ate them back home, only 2 people could share a piece. Truly they were delicious with powdery or creamy centers depending on the variant that did not harden even when refrigerated for a while already. Thankfully, the chocolates were worth it.

Franz and I realized that all our walking around still had not yielded any Giordano sighting. I finally approached a group of Pinoys who set us on the right path—right to the Giordano branch in Des Voeux Road where Bayani Agbayani, Willie Revillame, Mahal, and the Sexbomb Dancers blared out the speakers. Truly, it was a jarring note amidst the general music playing in most HK stores where Akon, Nelly Furtado, Justin Timberlake, and Gwen Stefani ruled. It was a Giordano shop like any other except 90% of the buyers (including us!) were Pinoys and the items were cheaper than other shops. Men’s shirts for 25HKD only! Women’s polo shirts for 50HKD only! Buy one? Take one! According to the salespeople, who were all Cantonese, this branch has a slash rate every Saturday and Sunday. How lucky that we managed to stumble upon this slice of Pinoy life in Hong Kong!

I went a little crazy here and bought some clothes for the family. Franz was also able to exchange his pants. I noticed that in HK and Taiwan, mass-market retailers Bossini and Giordano allow one to exchange clothing at a different branch from where one bought it. Is this the same for all? This is a great concept since the chains are all the same anyway, having items exchanged can be a hassle if one bought it at a faraway place. Next door is a Bossini where we found a shirt Mel wanted for her little brother with the word Big on it and a picture of a Hamburger. Bossini really does the best statement tees--simple and unpretentious.

Eating seemed a far-off concept but Franz needed sustenance already, According to the Pinoys we talked to, yum cha places were not prevalent in Central and pointed us to the direction of the market to look for something to eat. The directions were quite vague and having found our way, we were reluctant to be set off the path now that we had plenty of bags to carry. We crossed the street, cut through a small street, and found ourselves face to face with H&M which perked me up instantly. We walked for a while looking for something to eat but coming up empty. I was soon frustrated and told F to go ahead as I was skipping lunch and going shopping in H&M. Indeed, I will starve for shopping.

It was almost tortuous shopping since it was extremely crowded and I was carrying purchases from Giordano. H&M never seems to run out of customers day or night while the supposed-to-be-helping salespersons interestingly can only be seen near the cash registers and in the fitting rooms.

No one save Gene was on the doorstep by 3pm. That delay cost me a celebrity sighting of Joyce Jimenez. Darn. I also managed to munch on Garlic Skyflakes to tide me over until dinner.

HEY, BIG SPENDER!
August 4, 2007 3 PM
CENTRAL, HONG KONG

After we rounded everyone up (including Monmon!), we trooped to the LV Maison (again!) with a little stopover in Nine West. This time we had intentions to buy. Melissa was planning to get the Neverfull while Camie’s aunt asked her to buy a bag as well. As fate would have it, the Neverfull was out of stock. Melissa deliberated on whether or not to get the Speedy, her second choice. In the end, she didn’t get it since it didn’t fit her much. IT’s just too bad that Mel wasn’t able to buy anything since she was really looking forward to it. Her mom had even given her the go signal to buy as she deserved it.

The others proceeded to Marks and Spencer across the street after while Gene and I went to Gucci. Coming to HK, I had no plans of buying a designer bag. The past few days have been tempting indeed. I had seen some attractive bags that I wouldn’t have minded paying hard-earned money for. But I I was holding myself back for some inexplicable reason. Earlier in the day though, I had called my mother up and she told me to go ahead and buy a Gucci bag if I found one I liked. With that, I got to action and set off with Gene to look for a young and fun bag much like the one she has within reasonable budgets of course. Apparently the only casual bag they have within reasonable price range was that like Gene’s. The staff showed me different textures and fabric of the bag. In the end, I settled with the salesperson’s recommendation which was exactly similar to Gene’s. The bag is big and roomy with the classic logo print and red and green handle. I decided pretty quick and that was it. I was the owner of a designer bag.

In HK, carrying LV and Gucci bags is so common. It seemed every woman had a designer bag. Is it still luxury when it’s mundane? No wonder all these people are so into consumption. They are always on a quest to find that luxurious special item that sets them apart from others.

Gene and I went to look for the washroom next. The doorman didn’t understand what the washroom was so Gene asked for the lavatory as it was the more common albeit fancy term. In the end, we got a direction when we asked for the plain old toilet. For such an exclusive mall, the toilets are quite ordinary. They were even located in the basement and were the standard toilets one sees in department stores locally. A big improvement over local ones is that these washrooms are clean with running water.

After the big purchase, the others were not yet done with Marks and Spencer so we went over there. Franz was persuaded to help me with my shopping bags when I gave him the Gucci one to carry, At this point, I have no idea where the others went since Franz, Gene and I proceeded to Yung Kee Restaurant in Wellington Road (straight up Marks and Spencer and turn right on the 1st corner) To buy century eggs for F’s dad. After buying them, we rested our aching selves in Pacific Coffee where free Internet allowed me to catch up on Philippine news. Online is also where we got directions to Victoria’s Peak, our chosen tourist destination for the trip. If I recall correctly, the others went to Crocs to take a look. They met up with us in the coffee place where we all sat down and whiled away the time.

For dinner, we had decided on Yung Kee. It was pretty full when we got there but we were offered a table in the private areas provided we left by 8 PM. No problem, we said. Yung Kee is quite the multi-awarded restaurant. The first few pages of its menu listed all the accolades and distinctions they have received in their long years in the business. We had to have their bestseller, whole roast goose in plum sauce which was sinful but delectable. Definitely there were no regrets from anyone as we indulged ourselves in a delightful meal. We all considered the 200HKD dinner well worth the price.

SUCKERED INTO A TOURIST TRAP
August 4, 2007 8 PM
CENTRAL, HONG KONG

We were planning to cram as many activities as possible on this night. We planned to go to Victoria Peak for the requisite sight-seeing and Lan Kwai Fong to check out the nighlife then who knows?

We should’ve known that we were in for something when we got lost on the way to the Victoria Peak Tram terminal, the most authentic way of going up. We walked all the way from our location to MTR Exit J, the farthest exit, onward across Chater Garden, and up Garden Road where the terminal was located. We managed to get lost a couple times and even ended up on the wrong side of the road. We had to line up for a really long time and squeeze ourselves amongst throngs of people to get into the Tram. It was hot and sweaty and horrible. There is only one tram to and from the Peak. Fighting one’s way to get seated or even just to get into the tram once in front of the line is an urgent matter. The century eggs managed to hold up to the pressure though.

Here I was really looking forward to this experience since I had not been there since I was ten or younger, Monmon sure had the right idea when he took a rain check and decided to return to his hotel. Riding the Peak was fun since one gets to gradually see the magnificent and world-famous HK skyline as though rising from below.

We breathed a sigh of relief when we finally arrived. We skipped Madame Tussaud’s and went straight to the viewing deck. One has to take the escalators up and up to get to the top. There were so many people there—locals and visitors alike. Locals were with their tripods and tourists mostly with their tour groups. The budding photographers amongst us tried their hand in taking pictures of the Hong Kong skyline. I daresay the results were good.

After that, there really was no more to do so we decided to take the tram down only to be met with a very loooooooooooooong line. All the extra o’s are for emphasis on how very long and slow-moving the line truly was. We came up with the brilliant idea of taking a cab and so gave up our place on the line. After waiting a bit and even having one cab stolen from under our noses, Melissa, Gene and I reluctantly back to the line. Franz, Nikki, and Camie decided to go to Mongkok so they stuck it out with waiting for a cab. Later on, they would tell us that there was a taxi stop farther down, and they got into a cab which took them to the nearest MTR station at roughly the same price we paid for our trip on the Tram.

Gene, Melissa, and I stuck it out on the line. Our feet hurt so much from the prolonged standing. Kudos to us all for not losing our tempers and for holding up despite the tremendously long and boring wait which made me very thirsty. Again we had to squeeze and push our way into the Tram. I felt myself unceremoniously pushed by the mass of people behind me wanting to get into the train. I wonder how come the Tram administrators never made the process more organized. Maybe they wanted all the strenuous effort to be part and parcel of the experience. I was really worried about the century eggs the others left with us to take home, but they were not affected. Lucky them.

Back on the ground, we had to walk all the way to the MTR station. The torture!!! The agonizing walk!!! The screaming muscles!!! The aching steps!!! We bore them all the way. We even had to pick up all the bags Monmon took with him earlier at Park Lane to take back to our hotel. We were truly pushed to the limits of our physical strength and endurance. The worst part was that we didn’t have water to replenish us unlike when I was in my college immersion in Tarlac. I climbed a steep mountain at the height of noon, but I wasn’t carrying anything save a bottle of water.

Through sheer will and extra stores of carbohydrates, we made it to Park Lane, and Monmon definitely had to accompany us back to our hotel with our bags where we collapsed in relief. If I were made of melodramatic stuff, I would’ve burst into tears at the sight of a bed. We were really so very frustrated and tired. What a waste of energy.

The Peak, as it more commonly known, is touted as a romantic place. Even Lonely Planet says so. People do use it as a setting for marriage proposals, and I’m sure the place has been the site of many romantic milestones. Unfortunately, I didn’t get the hype. Yes, the skyline was impressive and the views impeccable. There were just too many people, and the place was so commercialized. There’s a mall with a video game area. There’s also the ever-present Starbucks. Maybe things will be different at another time and with another companion. For now, I’m not recommending the Peak as a repeat destination. Yes, one needs to see it as it is such a part of Hong Kong but once is good enough, thank you very much.

Lesson learned. Next time we go searching for a tourist spot in Hong Kong, we’ll venture to the Avenue of the Stars and watch the Symphony of Lights in TST. We could’ve explored SOHO and Lan Kwai Fong in Central for all the time and effort we put in the Peak. Heck, I would’ve gladly gone to Mongkok even though I really didn’t want to as an alternative.

Now the challenge lies in packing as we were going home the next day.

A MIDNIGHT SNACK
August 5, 2007 12 AM
CAUSEWAY BAY, HONG KONG

The others returned from Mongkok armed with butingting and abubot like no other. The standout was a Mario Mushroom keychain. They were also rather smug of the fact that it took them the same amount of time to get to Mongkok as we took lining up for the Peak Tram. Not to forget that they were in an air-conditioned taxi the whole time we were thirsty and sweaty. The shops were closing when Camie, F, and Nikki got to Mongkok but they were still able to spot some goodies. Nikki, the butingting and abubot lover, decided to go back the next morning to hunt for more.

We then all trooped to a 24- hour McDonalds to have a midnight snack of fries, buffalo wings, milk tea, and coffee care of Nikki who wanted to use up the coupons she got with her purchase of the stuffed toys. The coupons were quite adorable as they were printed with Sanrio characters. Unfortunately, since they were forms of cash, Nikki really needed to use them.
I was pensive and quiet this night. I was sleepy and tired from our disastrous Peak experience, but I was also miserable and sad because our idyll was ending. After all, it was going to be our last dinner together in fabulous Hong Kong. The midnight snack was truly poignant. I just wish I was more animated. The Peak dragged me down!



After dinner (or breakfast?), we went to Wellcome for some to buy juices for pasalubong. Then it was time to go back. One of the best things about going abroad on safe countries, of course, is that one can walk around any time of the day and have no fear of getting mugged or killed or raped. The threat of violence is always there but one just needs to be aware of the surroundings. There’s no need to be on high paranoia. There’s a certain charm in walking in HK at night when all the stores are closed, and there is no frenzied activity. The best part is I was with friends. I’m so thankful I get to travel with them now that we’re still young and have virtually no responsibilities but ourselves. We started doing trips abroad late compared to some of our siblings and peers but perhaps the right timing just eluded us until now.

Packing was a chore. I hate it since I was overwhelmed by the quantity of my purchases and freebies. Lucky Gene was there to help me out. My compact foldable bag which unfolds to a humongous duffel bag eased things much since we only had to throw the things in the bag. My small stroller magically expanded horizontally to grow arms and turn into a weird robot ala Transformers but uglier-looking.



Poor Gene had work the next day but she couldn’t get home anymore as the Tram was no longer available. I think it only runs until 12AM, correct me if I’m wrong. She slept with us while Mel and F took chair positions. I regret that there was not a proper goodbye with Gene. She just shook me awake to say goodbye at around 6AM then left to go home and change. F took her place. Poor F truly suffered a lot in this trip sleep-wise.

posted by Travel Gang @ 11:43 PM Comments: 0