Three Weeks With My Brother(s): The Final Chapter

 January 24 - 25, 2016

Today was the first and only day of our trip when we would be completely on our own.  Without any appointments, we were relaxed waking up, and met for breakfast where we enjoyed real western food, including pancakes and strawberries!

Our friends, Steve and Carol, lived in Hong Kong for some time, and offered some great suggestions for our day here.  B and P also had suggestions from friends, so we felt confident in our selection of the day's activities.

From our hotel, we were able to walk to the Star Ferry, which carried us across to Hong Kong Island.  After a few wrong turns, we found the Number Six bus to Stanley Market.  Our destination was an open market on the other side of the island, but we had no idea how enchanting the bus ride would be.  The scenery was beautiful as the bus traveled up winding roads and along the coastline.  The elevation changes afforded us some glorious views of the bay, passing expensive homes, golf courses and an amusement park.  The British influence is apparent everywhere here, in the architecture and the place names.  I noticed more than one school with the word "Saint" in it - non-existent in the mainland parts of China we saw.  Of course, we couldn't read many of the place names in China...

Crossing Victoria Bay...

We weren't sure which stop was for Stanley Market, as we approached a stop for Stanley Prison.  Is this where the market is located?  Thankfully, it was not, and we remained on the bus for one more stop, where most of the bus emptied.  It was cold and blustery when we arrived; many of the shops were closed for the season, but several remained open.  Stanley Market is a traditional, open-air market with many of the same tourist-friendly items one would find elsewhere.  A popular item here was a "chop," a stone stamp of sorts that artists would engrave with your name in Chinese.  I found a shop selling hand-painted Chinese characters, and bought a "double happiness" print for our driver.  Exiting the market along the waterfront, we walked along a row of restaurants where proprietors were all hawking their set-menu lunches.  The chill of the bay breezes was brisk.  After checking a few menus, we headed back to the guy who was the best salesman, promising the warmth of his space heaters along with a good deal.

The bus to Stanley Market

In search of a warm place for lunch...

Chilly winds coming off the bay

After lunch, a light rain started to fall.  We retraced our steps through the market area, made some final purchases, and headed back uphill to the bus stop for the return ride.  We arrived back at the central station, and took greater notice of something we'd seen earlier:  hundreds of women were huddled in groups; in chairs, on blankets, some with cardboard boxes around them, some with plates of food or playing cards laying between them.  At first glance, one would think they must be homeless people trying to get away from the cold.  But they were clearly all women, and seemed to be enjoying each others' company.  We learned later that they were all housekeepers!  They live in the homes they keep, but Sunday is their day off, so they have find somewhere else to go for the day.  And today was, indeed, Sunday.  Quite an interesting phenomenon.

Following Bob's lead, we boarded the 15C bus (another tricky one to find), and headed for the Victoria Peak tram.  A long line of people were already ahead of us when we arrived, and we queued up to buy our tickets.  An old-fashioned funicular carries about seventy people at a time up the steep incline to the Peak, an area with the highest 360° views of the city and the bay.  Tickets were 78 HKD ( about $10), which included the ride to the top and entry to the observation deck, the Sky Terrace 428, at the top of the Peak Tower.

Before the construction of the funicular in the late 1800's, wealthy Brits built residences up on the Peak to take advantage of the cooler temperatures, and made the journey up and down in sedan chairs carried by servants.  Only expats could reside in the Peak area until 1947.  The tram was featured in the 1950s Clark Gable movie, Soldier of Fortune.

Such entitlement - a long uphill climb for these poor men

Hordes of tourists jockeyed for position as we awaited our turn, with a funicular departing every ten or fifteen minutes.  With only seventy people departing at a time, progress was slow.  Fussy babies and whiny children voiced their displeasure.

Finally, we entered the funicular and found seats on the long benches.  Bob and a few others had to stand in the aisle with a strange, wavy floor.  As we headed up the very steep incline, it became clear why the floor was wavy - those standing needed to brace themselves against the ridges in the floor to maintain their balance.  The ride was slow and pleasant, with a stop in the middle to let the descending tram pass.  It seemed as if we might be heading right up into the clouds.

The passing tram

At the top station, we disembarked and walked into the lobby of the Peak Tower, where we rode escalator after escalator, past shops and restaurants, finally reaching the ultimate stop on the Sky Terrace.  It was crazy cold up there, and glass that, at first appeared to be glazed, was actually iced over.  Recorded guides were available to identify all the points of interest below.  A "Peak Says I Love You" display invited visitors to post heartfelt messages to their loved ones and hang them on the giant heart.  We marveled at the breathtaking views as we huddled together for warmth.

See the icy glaze on the glass behind us?

A group of friendly young people befriended M on the descending tram ride - he has this natural magnetic personality that enchants people in any language, as we witnessed over and over!  We spent some time enjoying a Chinese New Year exhibit, and each took our pictures with our "year of..." animals.  The approaching Chinese New Year would be the Year of the Monkey.

We slowly made our way from the exit back to the bus, where we bumped into the same friendly group again.  This time we chatted, and learned they were visiting from Taiwan, where they said they just had their first snow in twenty years!  We also discussed their new female president, about whom they were quite excited.  They were very sweet and outgoing, much like my Taiwanese niece-in-law!

The ferry ride back...

A bus ride and a ferry ride later, we walked back to our hotel.  We decided we wanted to eat somewhere nearby, and the concierge pointed us toward a Korean restaurant just around the block.  The options on the menu were limited and difficult to interpret.  Paul said he definitely didn't want "trotters," thinking that it must be pig's feet.  From the picture, it looked like nice slices of pork, so we tried it anyway.  Well, guess what - it was pig's feet.  Not very palatable.  Kind of a dud for our last dinner together.

We checked out early the next morning, breakfast boxes waiting for us in the lobby.  The hotel staff hailed us a taxi - a small sedan for four of us plus five big suitcases.  I seriously doubted everything would fit.  But they piled the luggage high in the trunk and used bungee cords to hold the trunk lid in place.  I thought for sure we'd lose a suitcase along the way, but we made it to the airport without incident.

More evidence of hot water's popularity here -
this time at the airport

We arrived at Terminal One, where the guys had to go to catch their flight; my check-in was Terminal Two.  It wasn't too difficult to say good-bye, as I knew we'd all be together again in Thailand shortly.  A long walk to Terminal Two brought me to the check-in counter, but it was too early to check in; my flight was a couple of hours later than theirs.  So I found a corner and ate my boxed breakfast, then waited for the window to open.  I thought I would probably be first in line, but as soon as the counter opened, suddenly lines of people appeared.  When I finally managed to make it up to the counter, the woman sent me back to Terminal One!  She said they didn't have a gate number yet, so I should check the display boards when I got there.

Back I trudged to Terminal One, albeit this time without my big suitcase in tow.  I planned to spend my last Hong Kong money at a duty-free shop, but wanted to wait to see where my gate was first.  I waited, and waited, and waited, and by 9:45 a.m., my 10:45 a.m. Air Asia flight was still not posted.  I had already wandered around the terminal for a while, and remembered seeing an Airport Services desk, so I decided to try to find out some more information.  The woman got on the phone, then told me I had to go down an elevator to Level 4, then take a bus!  Trying not to panic, I followed her instructions, and on level 4 I saw a sign posted that listed my flight at Gate 502.  This concourse was not attached to the main airport, and a shuttle bus carried passengers to the remote location.  I'd never experienced such a thing, and assumed this must be why Air Asia is a discount airline!  I wondered if that information ever got posted, or if I'd still be waiting...

I arrived at the remote terminal with enough time to use up my Hong Kong* money.  The plane didn't arrive at the gate until 10:20 a.m., and I thought for sure the flight would be delayed so they could clean the plane.  But it amazingly still departed at 10:45 a.m.  A couple on board asked if I would switch seats so they could be together.  I happily relinquished my middle seat for an aisle seat, and said goodbye to a culturally-enriching, immensely enjoyable adventure with my brothers.  So thankful to P, B and M for inviting me along, and to Tim for encouraging me to go.  Truly blessed.

Double Happiness

*Every single time I typed the name Hong Kong, I typed Honk, and had to go back and fix it!