Eid break in Hong Kong was a brief tryst with exotic food, therapeutic spa moments and lots of street walking, jostling through a sea of brand conscious Chinese flaunting Louis Vuitton and Dior bags – suddenly these brands looked affordable.
After a brief “Q&A” interruption at the immigration that ended in flashing my credit cards, cash and business card proving that I may not end up an illegal immigrant, I left behind a happy Chinese official and boarded the metro to the hotel.
The City is very modern with huge imposing glass buildings … a bit oversized for the average Chinese frame. But inside most of these buildings… everything comes in size ‘Zero’. Small beds ..still smaller chairs and claustrophobic-aesthetically designed bathrooms. Red taxies ply round the clock and while considering to use them remember that other than cash you need to have the street names and building names translated in Chinese. Music from FM channel seems to be unheard of. Almost all of the taxis we used were blaring Chinese news or could it be the communist manifesto? – who knows.
Public transport is efficient and heavily used – elegant double-decker buses, metro and trams. Trams looked like 3 dimensional hoardings on the move - dangerously delicate. The streets constantly smelled of Szechuan and other thousand sauces that left not a single Chinese with sparkling teeth – they looked as if pickled in oyster sauce!
We didn’t really go sightseeing…rather walked a lot in the city. But the ride up to the ‘Peak’ (that includes a mall perched on the mountain top) and the breakfast at Cafe Deco was an unforgettable experience…not just for the view of Hong Kong city from the peak…but for the first time I saw clouds losing their shapes and rapidly falling down in a trance…and then rained down on the city. It rained all the five days…in a way it was a relief from the humid weather. One night while waiting at a hotel reception for the rain to calm down, a lady who rushed in from the rain offered us her umberalla. Incidently it was offered to her by another stranger. For us … that was the soul of the city.
I found shopping cheaper than in Dubai. The iPhone was cheaper by AED 1,300. Spa is big business. We went in for a fish pedicure at the ‘Peak’ – hundreds of small fishes ate away our dead skin….a ticklish weird experience.
Hollywood road (‘load ‘thats how they pronounce) is lined with a lot of café’s, restaurants and pubs. We spend a few late nights in a few of them.
My friend a foodie and with a nose to smell the best kitchen that may not feature in recommended travel guides or in your hotel concierge listings found 3 fabulous places.
Press Room: Located on Hollywood road next to ‘Classifieds’ – a cheese and wine joint. Nothing journalistic about it….yes the collective vocal chord orchestration of the packed place sounded like a press room. Entry is strictly by reservation. Tastefully done interiors and dimly lit. We ordered Marion blanc 1988 craffe of wine; grilled sardines and Salmon ceviche in avocado, chili and coriander sauce for starters. Sardine was no longer a cheap fishe- it belonged to fine dining.
Rabbit rolled in ham bacon with ravioli in white cream sauce and Slow roasted sea bass in lemon and white wine sauce served with spinach and baby potatoes arrived under the main dish category. Not a morsel was left. We ended that day’s late night edition with a fruit gratin (stay away from this one) and Cho Marquise – chocolate fudge with ice cream. May be wrong choice of desserts – we felt like reading ’Page 3′ that’s cluttered with political analysis.
Gourmet Burger Union: You can either make your own burger – choosing the bread, spreads, filling etc or order from the menu painted on the wall. We went for the wall. The best burgers I ever had – unforgettable and didn’t feel guilty eating fast food for the first time. We came back again the next day.
Yung Kee Restaurant: on Wellington road was listed in the top 15 restaurants in the world by Fortune magazine and awarded a star by Michelin guide. It was our last day in Hong Kong and we relished on spicy crabs, minced pork rolled in omlets, steamed vegetables and Vietnamese style fried rice. My credit card company loved the transaction.
But no regrets…we ended Hong Kong on a high note with a heavy tummy and packed bags to the airport.
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