RadioRoryThe final stop in our organized tour was Hong Kong, technically considered the Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People’s Republic of China. Whether or not I’ve actually left China could be a topic of some debate.
It’s one of the world’s most modern cities, but street markets thrive in this former fishing town.
It probably says a lot about me that the highlight of the trip came when we passed Hong Kong’s sprawling container port. I love logistics. I could spend hours trying to understand the process of getting a product from a factory to a ship across the ocean and then to a store shelf. My nose was so pressed to the bus window’s glass that I never got a good photo, but I don’t think you can appreciate it from the ground.
This is a screen grab of a Google Maps satellite photo of the container port and it doesn’t do it justice. Our HK trip came in August, and I thought maybe those ships were being loaded with the must-have Christmas toys and electronics. It’s more likely that they’re filled with Easter bunnies and patio furniture.
At this point in our tour, we’re all pretty “templed out,” but we did make one more stop. Man Mo Temple is a tribute to the gods of Literature and War. The cone-shaped coils are made of incense and it takes about two-weeks for one to completely burn.
The temple is next to a hospital and Hong Kong’s financial center and is another interesting contrast.
Hong Kong also has a low-tech, but very efficient way of moving people. For more than 25-years, a system of escalators has carried people up and down the steep mountains of the city’s Central and Mid-Levels. Guinness calls it the longest covered outdoor escalator system in the world, and it’s more than just handy. Over 85-thousand people use it every day, taking that many more cars off the streets. The escalators go down in the mornings to take people into the city and reverse direction for the afternoon rush home. There are about 20 stops along the way and each stop has bars, restaurants, and stores that are popular with commuters.
Of course, Hong Kong is better known for its harbor. We took a cruise around the fishing villages that have become home to high-rise apartment buildings. And we saw that Jumbo restaurant that’s always featured in movies. Trust me, you don’t want to see what it looks like from behind.
We also used the popular ferry to cut across the city. Hong Kong is a city that must be appreciated from sea level and from the mountains.
The Hong Kong skyline really puts on a show at night. There is a laser and music display that can be seen from the waterfront. Take the tram or a bus to the mountains and you get a different experience from The Peak. It’s very touristy (I mean there’s a Bubba Gump Shrimp for crying out loud), but there’s plenty of room for everyone to get their selfie.
This is where I part ways with my tour group. They went back to the States and I set out on my own without a net.