Kersti & Billy Down Under: Stop #19 Hong Kong

See all 87 of our Hong Kong photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/kersti.miller/200905HongKong?authkey=Gv1sRgCO7V8ZfOh5fu9QE&feat=directlink

Sweet escape! We were really looking forward to Hong Kong, not only to get a break from some of the challenges of backpacking in Asia, but also because we had a gracious hostess, Geneva, Kersti’s old friend (and soccer & softball teammate) from high school. She was the best hostess ever! Her apartment was right in the middle of the city, just down the way from SoHo, the expat bar and restaurant scene.

Hong Kong has a really interesting expat community; everywhere we went it seemed Geneva knew someone and they all had exciting lives there. The city itself is very pretty, built around a harbour and with Victoria peak behind.

To get to the top of Victoria Peak, you first take the longest set of open air escalators in the world. It is a hilly city, so they come in handy, plus the rumour is they recently had a cameo in the Dark Knight. We then took the Peak Tram up to Victoria peak, which rans at a steep ~45 degree angle. The view from Victoria Peak back down over the city and harbour is really worthwhile, and there is a nice short loop at the top to walk around.

We also went to the Hong Kong Museum of History, and learned all about the Opium Wars and the handover of Honk Kong to the Chinese. It was interesting seeing the different perspectives of the handover, but so far everyone seems content. Afterwards, we went to the harbour front to see the skyline. At night they have a light and music show where they light up the skyscrapers to the music, it is a really pretty view if extremely corny.

Finally, our favourite part of our visit was when Geneva took us to the horse races with some of her friends. The horse track is right in the city, and is a very popular spot. We managed to break even, my best showing ever at a horse race!

Thanks Geneva for being such a fabulous hostess, and good luck with your return to the States!