And all of a sudden we landed in Hong Kong, which after the previous countries seemed very sophisticated and opulent. More importantly we got to spend a week with one of my best friends, Alan,  who I have known since high school, and who kindly gave up his bed for the week.

One of the first things we enjoyed was being able to walk along pavements without having to navigate parked scooters or cars, or fall down drainholes. It is the little things in life that you miss.

Sundays in Hong Kong

I have visited Hong Kong twice before and Sundays are the days that stand out the most, primarily because Sunday is the only day that “maids”, the house helpers that many people still employ, don’t work. A whole industry has beeen created of people who collect cardboard during the week and then rent it to maids on a Sunday so they can build seating areas on the pavements or bridges. There they sit, chat and eat together, celebrate birthdays, and in some cases do karaoke. But some of them want to cut loose more than that.

Alan kindly treated us to a “bottomless brunch” but in Hong Kong that meant champagne, sushi and sashimi rather than prosecco and burgers or pizza as it might be in the UK.

After 2.5 hours of that I got to watch Pip’s jaw drop as we walked through a curtain into Taboo bar at 5pm and she found herself surrounded by excited women singing and letting loose on the dance floor before going back to their employment that evening. A lot of the maids that work in Hong Kong are from the Philippines which meant Pip also experienced being one of the tallest people in a bar for the first time in her life.

If you ever go to Hong Kong try and be there for a Sunday.

Happy Valley Wednesday

Going to Happy Valley racecourse on a Wednesday night is a Hong Kong rite of passage and, despite it being known as an extremely expensive place to live, you can get the “ding ding” tram there and back for 64 pence and entry to the racecourse for £1 or get in free as a visitor if you show your passport. Obviously you are likely to spend money on food and drinks when there, even if you don’t try your luck with the horses, but imagine having a night out in England for £1.64. You would still need another 36p just to get on a bus.

It is always packed with lots of people going straight from work plus tourists and other visitors. The age profile was fairly young and it was a real cosmopolitan crowd, with a lot of networking going on, so it seems like a really important venue for business on the island.

The grandstand is huge and the views are surreal, surrounded by some of the most expensive real estate in the world. We had a great night and backing the winners of the first 2 racws meant we could keep the beer and wine flowing without damaging the travel budget.

Restaurants and food

Hong Kong island has an abundance of restaurants but although there are loads at pavement level many of them are hidden on higher floots. It always seems strange to get out of a lift on the 8th floor of an office block and find yourself confronted with a massive open plan restaurant.

Roast goose is a highly regarded dish in Hong Kong and, having had it once before but not being impressed, this time I tried it at Kam’s Roast Goose, a small restaurant that had held 1 Michelin star for 12 years (still only c£19 per person). Geese are large birds which is why it is always surprising to see how small they are after roasting. Apparently they have a lot of subcutaneous fat and a heavy bone structure. Sounds suspiciously like me! I had better avoid very hot saunas or I could come out the size of a toddler.

I remain unconvinced by roast goose.

While waiting for Pip in one of the shopping malls I went into Citysuper, a food supermarket I had been warned was expensive, just to see how it compared to the high end places in London like Harrods. The biggest shock was not the cost of steak or seafood but grapes of all things.

Imagine how much the wine from these would be??

The harbour is a great place to wander round and take a ferry to Kowloon, maybe walk along the Avenue of Stars (obviously the names were not as well known to us as those on Hollywood Boulevard bar Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan).

Repulse Bay is a lovely beach area on the other side of Hong Kong island reachable by bus for about £1.

And of course there are a number of night markets with the obligatory fake clothes, bags and suitcases but, having posted stuff home the day before, Pip managed to resist any new purchases (how long will that last?).

Having walked around Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam we are accustomed to seeing people with an array of “designer” gear, whether it be handbags, clothes or shoes, but you then see them check into a hostel. In Hong Kong the people carrying designer gear really are carrying designer gear.

A great week in Hong Kong, thanks Al.

Now it is off to China where we know the language barrier is more likely to kick in until we get to the big cities. We spent an hour or so downloading and learning about new apps for taxis, payment and maps as we know that Google and Maps, YouTube, Tiktok (Pip only) could be restricted once on the mainland.