Hong Kong: Overview

I joined Di Yin and her parents for a trip to Hong Kong and Bangkok. Di Yin's parents and I arrived in Hong Kong on Friday, March 12, 2010, and we left early Monday morning, March 15th, for Bangkok. We returned the evening of Thursday the 18th. Di Yin and her parents then flew to Shanghai on Friday. I thought it was silly to fly back on Friday to a city I've already seen when I could stay the weekend in a city that's new and exciting to me. Hence, I returned to Shanghai on Sunday, March 21, 2010.

After these four-ish additional days in the country, my impressions are still the same as on my last visit, with a few additions. I'm still amused by the signs sticking out into the street. I still appreciate the numerous, sizable, pleasant green spaces.

And now that I've taken trams, buses, and metro trains, I'm impressed with the transportation system. (On my last visit, I basically walked everywhere.) There are many efficient ways to get anywhere (or at least as efficient as you want: the trams are slow but good for sightseeing). However, I found the bus pricing confusing. Whereas tram prices are fixed (and very low) regardless of distance and the metro is priced in a way that makes sense proportional to distance, bus prices vary depending on the route but are independent of the distance you're traveling. For instance, if multiple routes connect points A and B, depending on which bus you board, you'll get charged a different amount. (Each bus's price depends on how long its route is in general, not based on how far you're traveling, and these prices can differ dramatically.)

On the negative side, sometimes when I went hiking on this trip, I noticed haze, which reduced visibility. In retrospect, this was probably pollution, but at least it didn't feel like pollution when I was in the middle of nature. (i.e., it didn't feel like the pollution one feels walking along a major road.)

The largest change in my impression of Hong Kong from this trip is that I now respect its food. On my last visit, I didn't have great food luck. This time I followed Di Yin's family friends to a series of great Chinese banquets. That said, when I had to pick restaurants on my own, even with ample research beforehand, the result remained hit-or-miss. Nonetheless, I now know Hong Kong's cuisine can reach great heights.

On this trip, I largely finished seeing the major tourist sites in Hong Kong. Recall that Hong Kong basically consists of Hong Kong island, the peninsula facing the island, and a series of other, small, mostly-uninhabited islands (many national parks). (It turns out 40% of the country is "country parks.") The peninsula comprises Kowloon, the part closest to Hong Kong island, and the vast expanse of the upper part of the peninsula, called the New Territories. Well, I've seen the north side of the island (which is by far the densest) and Kowloon. I still need to see the south side of Hong Kong island, the north end of Kowloon, the New Territories, and nearly all the outlying islands. There are also a few places/activities within the areas I visited that I missed:

• although I saw the amazing lights/light show on the buildings along Victoria Harbour, I didn't get to hear the sound that accompanies the lights. I should.
• the Hong Kong Police Museum. Given Hong Kong's history with the triads, I figure this museum will be cool. However, it's currently closed for renovations.
• more nature hikes, including the Bowen Road nature hike (which has an obelisk some people worship).
• the Hong Kong Housing Authority Exhibition Centre, though I'm skeptical of its quality given my reaction to the Planning and Infrastructure Exhibition Gallery.
• the University of Hong Kong and its museums.

Neat Facts:

• Hong Kong is a 100% reserve ratio currency. The exchange rate between the Hong Kong dollar and the United States dollar is fixed, and for every HKD a bank issues, it must have the equivalent amount of USD in reserve.
• You may have skipped over it in my last bullet but, yes, I did say banks print the money: three banks print monetary notes under arrangement with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority.