Ok, so my posts are long overdue, but I’m finally staying long enough actually in Hong Kong to get around to these. And by that I mean, I’ve been traveling almost every weekend to a new country— a blessing and a curse!
Now to the purpose of this post…
SINGAPORE:
Can I just say how much Singapore was a welcome change from Hong Kong? My first impressions of this beautiful country all centered around how clean, green and orderly everything was. The streets seem like they are power washed twice a day, if not more, and the grass was so plentiful that my group actually bent down and petted the grass at one point to see if it was real. In hindsight, we probably looked like complete idiots, but don’t tourists look that way anyway?
Marina Bay, with its awkward Sands hotel, was so breathtaking, and we luckily happened to be just in time for the water show. Apparently, it’s not as good as the Hong Kong light show that I haven’t seen yet myself, but this water show was pretty unique in itself. The bay was just beautiful with all the lights, the water, and the palm trees that yes, reminded me of home.
I think the best part of Singapore, though, was the food. This aspect always makes me love a place that much more.
The hawker stalls were always delicious, and I fell in love with Mee Goreng. It’s like a basic fried noodle dish, but not really basic in flavor. Complete with a fried egg—we’ve been desperately trying to find a place that serves this stuff in Hong Kong. Hopefully that day comes sooner than later.
But even aside from the hawker stalls and the Mee Goreng, there was the beloved prata and curry that I literally had for breakfast and …a midnight snack, if you will. If I had to compare it to something, it would be like Indian roti or some kind of doughy bread that you dip in Malaysian curry. Egg and onion prata, garlic prata, anything you wanted, they had it, and it was always delicious. Banana Leaf Iman was the place to be. And now writing about it, I would kill for some at this exact moment!
Ok enough about food and my inevitable weakness for it. Onto Shanghai.
This place was… interesting. Straight to the point, it was my least favorite place to visit of everywhere I’ve been so far. It seemed as though my group did everything we were supposed to do, and still couldn’t understand what Shanghai was. The city seemed confused and unsure of what it wanted to be, but I guess that’s what happens when a city becomes an international one in twenty years. There were so many things made just for tourists, but then just around the corner there were the rundown housing units and apartment complexes that seemed unsuited to live in. The local Chinese restaurants had curtains over the windows, while the more Westernized or foreign shops didn’t even bother putting Chinese on the menu. I guess what I want to say is that the city didn’t seem integrated, and I felt very foreign in a way that I have never felt since being in Asia. People were pushing me out of doors, standing too close for comfort on the subway, and blowing their noses right in the street where I walked. Maybe I’m just not used to this kind of lifestyle where 18 million people live in the city alone, but I think the city wasn’t used to me: a tourist, a foreigner. Oh well, can’t win them all.
The food was good though—I never seem to fail in this department. Good food always finds my stomach, fortunately.
It’s been about 5 days since I first arrived in Hong Kong, and so far so good! The people in my hall are super super friendly and we’ve managed to get into the city and actually do some “Hong Kong” stuff.
My top memories the last few days (in no particular order):
-OK first, HK is like the capitol of Vitasoy.. which if anyone knows me, is my all-time favorite drink. Check out their version of a boxed drink. It also comes in bigger containers for sharing. My mouth dropped to the floor when I saw this!!
-Lan Kwai Fong: This place is like a mile radius of pedestrian-only streets with bars and lounges lined up on either side. People mingle in the middle of the road and you meet someone new every couple of minutes. Not to mention, busy every night of the week. I posted a photo above. It’s like nothing I’ve seen before… very interesting!
-Mong Kok: Love the street bargaining and street food, both of which I remember to be the quintessential characteristics of my previous trips on this side of the world. Curry fish balls, eggettes, and milk tea all alongside rows and rows of knock-offs and random souvenirs make this place interesting and fun for a tourist like me!
-IFC shopping mall: Ok, as a shopaholic, this place has to make the list. It’s a super nice mall with regular to very expensive stores, unlike the markets in Mong Kok. There are brands and stores I’ve never heard of before, but definitely need to look into more now that I have 4 months left in this city. The sad thing is that it looks like an upscale version of Southcoast. Western influence at it’s best.
Which also brings me to the fact that, despite being halfway across the world from home, I sometimes feel like I’m in LA or SF. There are tons of tourists and ex-pats living abroad here and you see them haggling and using public transportation like it’s nothing to them. And then there’s of course, McDonalds, KFC, Pizza Hut and all those fast food places on every corner. Even at the grocery store, my bundle of bananas were Del Monte… exactly what I get at home. Globalization, globalization, globalization.
I’m off to Bangkok in a couple of days and I’m interested to see if it’s the same. But of course, I’ll be worried about beaches, massages (with no happy endings PLEASE!) and elephants instead. (Is that too touristy of me? Oh well, C’est la Vie!)
Hong Kong!
So I’m finally here in Hong Kong! I arrived on the 10th and have been spending the last few days trying to settle in to my very cramped and cozy dorm room! My body is so sore and I’m still trying to get over the horrible jet lag— AKA long days and around 5 hours of sleep at night.
The residence I’m at is all non-local, and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how many international students come here to study. My room is on the water’s edge, and I haven’t been out of the area too much. A group of us ventured out to what’s called the Central district or heart of HK today and also Kowloon to look at the “Lady’s Street” where all the cheap shopping is. It’s intimidating to say the least and I need to learn the art of haggling ASAP!
On my to do list: Check out all the good places to eat! I’ve only been eating places around campus and in the Central district. The Pizza Hut we had was like what we have at home x 10, and is more like a CPK with gourmet style eating with nice tablecloths and neatly designed menus. I’m going to get recommendations for local hot spots, and VERY SOON eat like there’s no tomorrow. Looking forward to that. Oh right, I also had a larger than life milk green tea boba for less than US $2. I’m lucky that the city is made up of hills and stairs.
So excited for the next couple of months! Hopefully I can document a lot of it!
i just want a pumpkin spice latte, tons of money to spend on items that will only temporarily satisfy me until i find the next item i want, and a good night’s sleep.
last semester at Cal is really giving me all it’s got.
also need to try this…
ohmygod…
died a little inside. need to try this!
Eucalyptus grove:) (Taken with instagram)
oh, berkeley
just arrived in berkeley yesterday.
within an hour, sat at the 51B bus stop and a homeless man started singing to us.
how i’ve so missed all the city’s eccentricity.
