Day 5 Hong Kong

Had a leisurely start to the day. Got breakfast at Starbucks again and Cam got to have breakfast in bed.

No rush to get going as we didn't have to check out of our room until 12 and many things don't seem to open before 10. Re packed our bags to get ready for cold climates ahead.

I popped across the road to look at a shop called WingOn... We had walked past it everyday but had no idea what it was from the outside.

Turned out to be a department store over 6 floors... So I did a power walk through all the floors for a quick look....pausing just a bit on the fashion and bag floors. Saw some gloves I liked but not cheap enough to purchase as I expect a better selection in Europe.

Did buy a bag that I think will be useful on this trip... Nothing flash... Just waterproof type bag that matches my jacket (which is important of course).

When I got back Cam was all showered ready to go and had made notes on how to get to the few places still on our List.

Only 2 stations away in the Mong Kok area was the ladies market that we'd come upon a couple of nights earlier.  The name "ladies market" gives the impression it is mainly stuff for ladies but it is really just another market.  Lots more of the same with a few different items on offer.

Cam was tempted by the fake football shirts but decided against it as he wouldn't probably ever wear it.  By walking away after showing interest the price got really cheap but we didn't buy.

We then kept walking a few blocks to a local food market...all sorts of seafood, meats and strange ingredients over a couple of floors and then cooked food further up.

 We had a quick look where the locals were eating but weren't hungry and stood out in the crowd. 

Next Cam led the way a few more blocks to the area we were told had lots of fish and pet shops.  This was really cool...have never seen so many fish (popular as they apparently give good luck).

There were ginormous fish in tanks but what I loved was the colourful smaller fish...especially the neon colours...all hanging outside the shops in plastic bags. Don't know how long they stay in the bags before someone buys them but they all looked healthy... And as happy as a fish can look!

An incredible selection of aquarium and supplies for sale too.

There were also lots of turtles of varying sizes....from teeny tiny to huge. We liked the tiny ones...so cute we felt like bringing some home.  Also saw the tiniest frogs I have ever seen.

Amongst the plethora of fish shops there were dotted the odd shop selling cats, puppies, guinea pigs etc as well as the cutest rabbit shop.

From here Cam had directions to a place for us to eat that he had read was recommended by Michelin and often hard to get a table...some sort of rice  paper wraps that sounded good. We would never have found it without his notes and were hesitant at first as looked a bit grotty and only Asians in there. Only a few English words on the menu but decided we should give it a go.

There was a free table in the middle of the restaurant (it was after 2pm by then).

They didn't seem to speak English but the menu had pictures so we pointed to what we wanted..

Diced pork with vegetables rice paper rolls, shredded duck rice paper rolls, and a plate of Bok choy.  It all came really fast and looked delicious... But then came the challenge of the chopsticks (made more difficult as the rolls were slippery)....struggled at first but there were no forks on offer and I was ravenous so somehow I mastered it ...hence Cams photo of me.

We cleaned it all up and thoroughly enjoyed it all....and felt even better when the bill was only $HK60 which is just over NZ$10.  Very pleased with Cam for finding this.

Now we had done all we wanted to do and just had time to fill in. We have noticed that there are hardly any seats anywhere... Not at the stations, shopping malls or on the streets. This makes it really hard when we are tired or wanting to stop and work out directions. They don't seem to want people loitering anywhere. There are also an incredible number of stairs so it's not surprising we have seen very few fat people and not many elderly or frail. Guess they just have to stay home. Have barely seen anybody in Hong Kong in high heels-they all wear sensible flats and sneakers. 

We decided to head to Causeway Bay where we were told the locals shop. There were a ridiculous number of shops and malls here, obviously for the wealthier locals. Wandered the streets not wanting to buy and when looking for an MTR station we came upon Hong Kong Times Square and a very imposing upmarket shopping mall.

If only we were rich and had a decent luggage allowance!

From here we headed back to our hotel to get our bags. We were early but keen to get to the airport and find a seat.  Very efficient quick trip to the airport...able to check our bags in at the railway station so was great not having to worry about them. 

Airport was enormous and a bit confusing. We had dinner, uploaded our blog and thought the gates were close by as the signs indicated but when we decided to head to our gate we had to get on another train and got off at another enormous terminal area. 

On the Lufhansa plane now heading to Munich. The passengers on the plane are noticeable taller than we have been used to the last few days. Funny hearing everything in 3 languages and the hostess keeps speaking to me in German...she said I look German (is that a good thing?). The leg room is really good and had a nice meal. Toilets are downstairs and more spacious...

Great not having people standing in the corridors to use the loo. 

Tomorrow is going to be another long day with not much sleep on the plane and another time adjustment.

Can't wait to see Nick!