This trip to Hong Kong wasn't all about shopping as we were there to meet up with friends, and also to visit attractions such as Lantau Island and Macau which we've not been.
Stretches of busy streets like this is a common sight in Hong Kong.
The classic Ding Ding Tram, just HKD2 (SGD0.50!) regardless of the number of stops you take.
Stops include Central, Causeway Bay, Wanchai and more.
Lan Kwai FongA place filled with pubs, just like our Clarke Quay / Boat Quay in Singapore.
It looked packed for a Wednesday night, but I was told that the road will be entirely filled on weekends, that IS then considered Crowded!
CigarroPacific House, Central, HK
http://www.cigarrohk.com/A friend of mine brought us to this place, which I find interesting.
Housing a wide selection of finest and limited edition of cigars, Cigarro provides a luxurious lounge and coffee corner for members to unwind and relax.
Avenue of StarsHere you can find palm prints of popular HK celebrities as you walk down the avenue.
Everybody knows Jackie Chan!
The only exhibit that stopped Westerners to take a few snaps of.
Look how huge his palm is as compared to mine!
Known as "Symphony of Lights", enjoy a 10mins of "Lights" performance every night at 8pm and enjoy the beautiful night scenes of Hong Kong.
Lantau IslandWe decided to spend a day at Lantau Island to visit the Big Buddha and Ngong Ping Village.
A long and exhausted trip, but the beautiful scenery and great experience made everything worthwhile.
Crossing the Tsing Ma bridge - the 7th longest-span suspension bridge in the world.
Link between Tsing Yi and Ma Wan island
We finally arrived at the Ngong Ping cable car station (closest MTR: Tung Chung)
As opposed to longer bus rides to Big Buddha, we decided to go on the 25mins (gulp!) Ngong Ping cable car ride
(2-way ride at HKD107 on normal cabin)
The crystal cabin which costs HKD157 has a glass bottom that you can directly see what's below your feet - not for me... (gulp!)
Just watch how long and high the line goes...
See how packed their 'HDBs' are! Most of their housing estates look just like this.
Small and expensive, I was told.
Finally after 25mins, we arrived at Ngong Ping Village.
Here you can find eateries, tea houses, gift shops.
Beautiful mountainous landscape!
An interesting Bodhi tree (I believe it's a replica) where Buddha was believed to have once sat under.
From afar, we could see Big Buddha perched on the top of the mountain, and it did took us a while (a long while rather!) to reach to it.
268 steps to be exact!
And finally, we did!
View from the top.
Next, we visited Po Lin Monastery
MACAU (2D/1N)We set off for Macau from the HK-Macau Ferry Terminal at Sheung Wan.
The 2 ferries you can choose from are Turbojet / Cotaijet - journey is approx. 45mins
Both are relatively similar, but Turbojet has a higher frequency of 15mins every ride and we opted for that.
Comfortable seatings (way much better than the ferry to Batam/Bintan!)
Getting onto the complimentary Venetian Shuttle, we arrive at Venetian about 10mins later.
A huge place with beautiful interior deco, find food, shopping, casinos, rooms, pool, kids playroom, all that you need at the Venetian
A fake sky ceiling, gamblers would be tricked to play til the wee hours if they're not watching their time! (which obviously most wouldn't)
We went for the Cirque du Soleil performance, Zaia, in The Venetian.
Pricey ticket at approx. S$150, the show was simply fantastic and magically entertaining.
Remarkable acrobatic stunts, beautiful backdrop and music.
I didn't know I would enjoy the show that much!
Macau during the DayJust like the busy streets in HK, Macau has an equally buzzling street in the city area.
Senado Square
St. Dominic's Church built in 1587
Below is the famous landmark of Macau
The Ruins of St. Paul's (Portuguese:
Ruínas de São Paulo)
A 17th century Portuguese cathedral in Macau dedicated to Saint Paul, the Apostle.
Macau at NightDivided into 2 islands, Macau has the Macau island (city area) and Taipa (where Venetian is)
Taking the shuttle buses around Macau, you can easily reach the city area where you'll find many famous casinos as well.
Besides Venetian, Wynn Hotel is just as posh and popular as well.
You can enjoy a relaxing musical fountain or a beautiful performance called the "Tree of Life" at the entrance of Wynn hotel where you find a carved ceiling of the Zodiac signs.
This is the "old" Hotel Lisboa, the first casino on Macau
I was told that the architecture of this Casino is inspired by a Bird Cage, hoping to "trap" gamblers/ money in the Casino.
With better hotels and new Grand Lisboa Casino beside it, this hotel has lost their crowd, but it's worth visiting inside as they housed many beautiful jade exhibits and of course, the place where I found the yummy Coffee danish pastry in my earlier post.
I made a new friend during this short trip and it was none other than Tabby, the very much Garfield look-alike!
Friends who have known me for ages know this: I freak out when I see a cat, regardless of how cute and innocent it looks!
People might not know this, I think I am afraid of heights and Singapore's cable car ride is nothing like Ngong Ping's...!
Battling with my fears was not what I had expected from this trip but it was surprisingly pleasant!
This 5-day trip was filled with great company, great fun and great adventure!
Trip ended with a very tiring us who had to get back to work the very next day!
