To kick off our 2nd day in Hong Kong, we head on to a zen called Nan Lian Garden in Diamond Hill. We left at the hotel around 7:00 AM so we will arrived at Ocean Park early to avoid the long queues. If you have read my previous blog posts, I have mentioned that I brought cooked luncheon meat from Cebu Philippines. We just ate our breakfast at the hotel. Bringing food from your home country saves you a lot of time so we just ate the bread we brought last night in International grocery store and the cooked luncheon meat I brought from the Philippines.

This will be my first time commuting in a massive subway transportation system. I have 4 tips for you first timers like myself.

1. Always take note on which EXIT you go. This is to prevent you from going around in circles in Hong Kong.
2. INTERCHANGE means you have to board the train on the opposite side of the subway or it means you have switch trains.
3. When I say "LINE", that is the end route of each subway line. These are color coordinated so you won't be confused navigating.
4. READ, READ, READ signs.

For a picture of the MTR Transport system where you can see the color coordinated "Lines", view it here Discover Hong Kong! How To Get To Tsim Sha Tsui?

Please excuse my ignorance since here in the Philippines we don't have this kind of massive subway transportation so basically I'm new to this. Our mode of transportation here in the Philippines is a Jeepney which can be a new thing too for foreigners visiting here.

How to get to DIAMOND HILL from TSIM SHA TSUI
- Board the train in Tsim Sha Tsui station (you are boarding the Tsuen Wan Line) going to MONGKOK station.
- To get to DIAMOND HILL (Tseung Kwan O Line), alight in MONGKOK station for the subway interchange 
- Once you get to DIAMOND HILL, go to EXIT C. There is also a public toilet just outside the station if you need to answer to nature calls.
- Train Fare TST - MONGKOK: HKD 3
- Train Fare MONGKOK - DIAMOND HILL: HKD 8.2
YOU WILL SEE THIS SIGNAGE JUST OUTSIDE DIAMOND HILL STATION EXIT C.

 And so we arrived in this zen within a bustling city...

OLD GENERATION AND NEW GENERATION.


















Designed in a Tang Dynasty style architecture, this garden was opened to the public in 2006. This is a great place to have your morning walk or jog that is if you have a lot of time to spare in Hong Kong.



BLOGGERS IN NAN LIAN


Entrance Fee: FREE!!!! (just register your name at the entrance)
Prohibitions: NO SELFIE STICKS allowed. Just enjoy the place and have your photos taken by someone or yourself not with selfie sticks.

For our visit at The Peak and Madame Tussauds, you can read it here > DISCOVER HONG KONG! THE PEAK AND MADAME TUSSAUDS WAX MUSEUM

Next Stop Ocean Park! Thank you for reading!



Lovelots,
Jen






11/30/2016 04:00:00 PM
Foggy afternoon.
After leaving our luggages in the hotel, we proceeded to eat out lunch at Cafe de Coral inside a mall near Chungking Mansions. For more information on how to get to Tsim Sha Tsui from Hong Kong International Airport, you might want to browse Discover Hong Kong Part 1.

Going back to Cafe de Coral, I ordered this rice pot topped with steamed pork with a very bland taste and Chinese cabbages. I really don't fancy Chinese food (well except instant noodles and those food served in Harbour City restaurant in Cebu City, Philippines). I was eating my meal just because it would be a waste to not finish it because it cost me 36 HKD!




Our next destination was to visit The Peak. We booked out tickets thru Klook.com and we had to go to the meet up place outside Central Station Exit K before our scheduled time of 4:00 PM. Luckily for us, one of my friends has an aunt living in Hong Kong. She guided us thru our meet up with Klook.
Instead of taking the train, we board the Star Ferry going to Central from Tsim Sha Tsui.
TRAVEL TIME: 15 Min.
FERRY FARE: HKD 2.80
TIP: Take the ferry and be greeted with the beautiful view of the Victoria Harbour. Taking the ferry is much cheaper than taking the train (HKD 9.7).

Picture NOT MINE. CREDITS TO DISCOVER HONGKONG.COM
Before we proceeded to our Klook meet up, we went to that famous graffiti in Graham Street, Central HK. My friend's aunt guided us thru so we really didn't have the difficulty of locating the place but it was the first day of a 3 day walkathon around Hong Kong.
TIP: Bring vitamin C. It can help you thru your travel because the walking and the stress is going to take a toll on your body and you don't want to end up getting sick after your trip.



We were ahead of schedule when we arrived at the Klook meet up. After going to the comfort room, we came across this Mercedes Benz car show and of course since we were tourists in this foreign land we took the opportunity to take pictures with these luxurious cars.

Car Girls
At quarter to 4:00 PM, Klook personnel started to gather us up. They guided us thru to The Peak Tram terminus and that express pass we bought from Klook was really an advantage since there were a lot of people falling in line to buy tram tickets going to the peak.


The Peak is the highest point in Hong Kong Island. To get to the peak, we need to board a tram, A tram is a vehicle that runs on a track or on rails and that is usually used to carry groups of people for a short distance. The interesting thing about riding the tram towards your ascent to The Peak is that you get to see skyscrapers sliding past your window in an impossible angle. You'll know when you get there. =D
TIP: If you get to The Peak at 4:00 PM, stay until most of the skyscrapers lit up to get a night view of Hong Kong's skyline other than the view at the TST promenade.

HONG KONG'S SKYSCRAPERS

It was a little bit foggy and blustery when we got to  the observation roof top at The Peak.



After enjoying the view of Hong Kong's skyscrapers, it is now time to meet famous celebrities in their wax form at Madame Tussauds Wax Museum.
VISITED THE STREETS OF SEOUL FOR AWHILE....

THEN I SAW SIWON FROM SUPER JUNIOR!!! I WISH HE IS THE REALLLL THANGGGGG!!

LET'S GO TO HOLLYWOOD AND MEET JOHNNY DEPP!

THE MOST FAMOUS PERSON FROM HONG KONG, JACKIE CHAN.
PRINCESS DIANA

Around 6:00 PM, the line was already queuing up at the tram terminus during our return journey. We waited around 30 minutes just to board the tram going back down to the city. Going back to Tsim Sha Tsui, we still boarded the Star Ferry and had our dinner at McDo near the Star Ferry pier.
TRAVEL TIME: 15 min (Central to TST)
FERRY FARE: HKD 2.80
DINNER AT MCDO: HKD 35

One of the most important thing when we travel is drinking water. Before we head to our hotel, we dropped by a grocery store named International. They are located beside a Bossini and Giordano store in Tsim Sha Tsui area just a few blocks away from Chungking Mansions. Their signage is a bit small so you just have to look out for the Bossini signage for you to locate the place.
GROCERY for Bottled Water and Bread (for 2 persons): HKD 28
TIP: Buy your groceries here since they sell it cheaper here especially their bottled water.


Hope this blog post will help you in your future travel to Hong Kong. Day 2 itinerary will be coming right up in a few days. So stay tuned if you don't want to get lost in Hong Kong. =)


Lovelots,
Jen








11/27/2016 01:22:00 AM
I just got back from my very first international travel in Hongkong. Definitely the highlight of my trip was my visit to the happiest place on earth, Disneyland. It poured rain over us but that didn’t stop me from enjoying the attractions in Disneyland. As of this writing, I’m listening to Hakuna Matata just to feed my Disneyland hangover!

My adventure started last November 20, 2016 together with three of my friends and my mom. We board a promo flight with Cebu Pacific which I booked March of this year. Flight from Cebu-Hongkong takes 3 hours. Don’t worry about jet lag because Philippines and Hongkong have the same timezones.



According to Wikipedia, Hongkong is an autonomous territory. Officially named Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. HK was in British control since 1945 until the early 1980's when negotiations between the UK and China paved the way for the transfer of sovereignty of Hongkong in 1997 as a special administrative region. Under the principle "one country, two systems", HK maintains a separate political and economic system from China except in military defense and foreign affairs.


Upon arriving in Hongkong International Airport, the first thing you would do is to purchase an OCTOPUS CARD at the MTR Customer Service. This will be your life when roaming around Hongkong. With just a tap of your octopus card, you can use this to purchase food in restaurants, in 7/11 stores, and as bus and train tickets.  The prevailing exchange rate is 1 HKD = 6.45 PH Peso


Featured artworks in the airport.
OCTOPUS CARD = HKD 150
* You will be using only the HKD 100 load since the HKD 50 load will be your refundable deposit. Once you used up your HKD 100 load, you can reload in any 7/11 stores. Upon going back to Cebu or any country you’re from, you can get your refund for the HKD 50 (with a HKD 9 as refund fee so you will only get HKD 41) at the MTR Customer Service located in Hongkong International Airport.

Octopus Card


How to get to Tsim Sha Tsui?
When you are outside arrival hall B, look for this sign. The bus stops written on this signage are Mongkok, Yau Me Tei, Jordan and Tsim Sha Tsui.
Bus A21
We stayed in DELTA DELUXE HOTEL located within Chungking Mansions 36-44 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui (TST) which we booked from Agoda.com. To go to TST area from HK airport, proceed to ARRIVAL HALL B LEVEL 5 and search outside for bus route A21 (this will be your bus # when you travel back to the airport when you leave HK). Be mindful with the bus stops and street signs especially when you reach Nathan Road since this is a long stretch of road that if you miss your block you might be having a walkathon.
TRAVEL TIME: almost an hour
BUS FARE: HKD 33
TIP: you can also take the airport express train. It is more expensive than taking the bus though. It will cost you around HKD 50-60.

Chungking Mansion is a building with several budget friendly guesthouses. You will be greeted by several multinational touts at the ground floor. They are intimidating for us first timers. Just ignore and not make eye contact with them. I just knew that Chungking Mansions have a bad reputation. Just ask Google about it.  We hopped in the not so big elevator of the building and pressed #16 where Delta Deluxe Hotel is located. The owner of our guesthouse is an Indian national. Upon checking in, the owner asked for the booking voucher from Agoda.com, our passports and asked us for a HKD 100 key deposit which will be returned upon check out.
HOTEL COST: HKD 95/night
* We stayed for 3 nights.... unscathed.
This is a decent guesthouse. Despite Chungking Mansions having a bad reputation, in fairness to Delta Deluxe Hotel their rooms are clean and comfortable enough to sleep during the night and this room is air conditioned. The comfort room is also small but what is important is that it is clean.
After refreshing up in the hotel, we proceeded to our first destination, the street art in Graham Street. Our first day itinerary will be the street art in Graham street, The Peak and Madam Tussaud's Wax Museum. All of those will be in a different blog post so stay tuned! =)

Now I will be summarizing little tips when travelling to Hongkong.
* Prepare your travel tax in Mactan Cebu Airport - PHP 1,620
* Terminal Fee in Mactan Airport      - PHP 750
* Bring a pen - you have to fill up immigration forms.
Immigration forms.
* Come to the airport at least 3 hours before your flight. Immigration can take time especially if there are a lot of international flight passengers. When you are in the Hongkong International Airport for your return flight, come to the airport at least 3-4 hours before your flight. HK airport is so huge that you have to board the train to go to your boarding gate. I don't want to risk getting lost and missing my flight but in fairness to HK airport their instruction signs are tourist friendly. We arrived at our boarding gate ahead of time.

* It is a given that airport goods are expensive so don't buy there.

* When in an escalator or walkalator, always stay on the right side or else people will just bump right into you without apologizing because it is a rule in HK to always stay right if you are not in a hurry. 

* When in the train station, always follow the signs on which side you walk on. I love how people in Hongkong have so much discipline. I wish this is practiced in the Philippines.

* In Hongkong, people there take the PRIORITY for Senior Citizens, Pregnant Women, and PWD seriously. So always offer your seat to them. Don't do it only in HK, practice it here in the Philippines too.

* When you buy something in HK (in 7/11 and Bossini stores as experienced), they don't put it in a plastic or paper bag like here in the Philippines so don't be surprised if after paying they will just give it directly to you without a plastic bag. So bring your eco bag in HK.

* When boarding the train, always take note on which EXIT you go to prevent getting lost and walking around in circles in HK. It is fun getting lost when you travel but if it's too much it's not enjoyable anymore it's tiring. =D Be mindful of the interchange train stations too.
The MTR express map. You can get this once you purchase your Octopus Card. This can be very handy.
* When you dine in a restaurant in HK, instead of asking "Dine In or Take Out" they would ask "Stay Here or To Go". =D

* If you pay in cash in any transportation in HK, always pay the exact amount. They don't give change to save your travel time.

*Buy your groceries such as water and bread (for breakfast) in INTERNATIONAL grocery beside Bossini and Giordano in TST area. There bottled water is much cheaper.

* Buy your attraction tickets, in Klook. We bought our Ocean Park tickets for PHP 1491! It was a flash sale though. They still sell cheap tickets for other attractions such us Disneyland and The Peak.


* To those who don't like Chinese food that much, I advise to bring cooked luncheon meat and wrapped it in a foil. This can save you from starvation unless you don't mind eating burgers from McDo 24/7 during your stay in HK. McDo in HK have no rice servings. I also brought Oishi Bread Pan for snacks.



* Bring a hat, cap,raincoat or umbrella. It was raining on our third day in HK. It doesn't hurt to be prepared.

*READ, READ READ street signs, traffic signs or almost everything!


I'll update this post if I remember some tips during my travel inn Hong Kong. I'll be brewing my next blog post our first day in HK! See yah!






Lovelots,
Jen







11/24/2016 03:28:00 PM
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