Hong Kong, My Hometown

I plan to make this an ongoing project, adding reviews as I discover or rediscover the sights, sounds, and smells that make Hong Kong one of the most interesting cities in the world.

I've been living here 14 years and made my first trip to Hong Kong in 1979. I can get just as excited today about some aspects of this city as I did 26 years ago. For example, yesterday, January 29, 2006, was Lunar New Year’s Eve, and Pam and I decided to visit some of the tourist sites in the New Territories, Sik Sik Yeung Temple, Li Chin Nunnery, and the Hong Kong Heritage Museum. I’ll be writing about each of these and the restaurant where we had dinner, The Peak Café.

Last summer we were visited by three nieces from the US, none of whom had ever been out of the US and one of whom had never been out of Montana. So we became tourist guides, but in the spirit of the Zen concept of a "Beginner’s Mind," we also acted as if we were seeing some of these things for the first time.

I will be reviewing many of the places we visited: Victoria Peak, Café Deco, The Hong Kong Art Museum, the Hong Kong History Museum, the Science Museum, Stanley Market, Lantau Island, Po Lin Monastery, Man Mo Temple, the Coastal Defense Museum, the Fringe Club, and Tai O Village. We also walked extensively in Central, Sheung Wan, Western Addition, the Mid-Levels, Aberdeen, Causeway Bay, Happy Valley, Kowloon, and Wanchai. I’ll write about what we saw. As a recent visitor from France reminded me, wandering aimlessly is one of the best ways to get to know Hong Kong.

My wife, Pam, and I eat out a lot, so you can expect some restaurant reviews from someone who appreciates value over reputation and taste over presentation. I’ll cover Chinese cuisines, European restaurants, other Asian foods, and pubs, bars, and grills.

I will also review shopping as well as tourist traps and restaurants I recommend avoiding. If I can figure out how to do it honestly, I’ll review some hotels, particularly the ones I stayed in before I became a resident.

I see this as a continuing project and will write reviews in between the journals of my travels away from Hong Kong. Stay tuned.

Quick Tips:

Hong Kong isn’t a cheap place to visit, though no worse than London, Tokyo, or New York. It pays to do some research. A fellow IgoUgo member wrote me in advance to determine the best neighborhood to stay in (I recommended Causeway Bay), whether guesthouses were clean and comfortable (most are), and whether he should rent a car to explore the New Territories (definitely not). He stayed in a small but convenient guesthouse for HK (US.50), a long way from the HK,400 and up it costs to stay in a five-star property.

Avoid shopping in Tsim Sha Tsui. This is where the bargains are supposed to be, but many of the shops are Triad-related and not trustworthy. Better to shop on Hong Kong Island, especially in Causeway Bay and the side streets of Central, west of the escalator. Shopping isn’t so great here anymore--think Bangkok. Don’t be afraid to bargain. Most independently owned shops will entertain a fair offer, especially if you are the first customer of the day or buying more than one item. Always ask for a discount. "Caveat Emptor" (let the buyer beware) is the key attitude.

The pickpockets of Hong Kong are skilled and numerous, and can be found in the major tourist and shopping areas. Take the usual precautions and double your "urban consciousness" when in a crowd. I’ve had my front pocket picked. My wife, Pam, had her purse opened while walking down the street. These people are very, very good.

Do not be afraid to go into small local restaurants. The food is good and cheap. Actually the best inexpensive eating can be found in the food courts associated with the wet markets. Yes, most of the help will not speak English, but by pointing, you can usually get what you want. There’s usually one employee who can speak some English and often a hand-written, fractured English menu somewhere on the premises. Besides, it’s fun and will give you a sense of accomplishment.

You do not have to bring a lot of cash or traveler's checks with you. Hong Kong is totally wired and there are ATMs everywhere, most of which are in both the Plus and Cirrus networks. Get Hong Kong dollars as you need them. If you do bring cash, avoid hotels and moneychangers. Use the banks to convert your cash to Hong Kong dollars. You’ll get a much better rate.

Best Way To Get Around:

In my opinion, Hong Kong has the best public transportation system in the world. There are differing levels of service depending on where you are going, how quickly you want to get there, and how comfortable you are with public transportation.

You can always find a taxi in Hong Kong. The longest I’ve ever waited is 15 minutes. The flag drop is HK for 2km and HK.40 for every fifth kilometer after that. Taxis are metered, and I’ve never encountered dishonesty. Tip only the small coins you get in change. Carry your destination written in Chinese. Not all drivers speak English.

Both the MTR (subway) and the KCR (railway) are superbly run, reasonably priced, and user-friendly. Signs are in English and Kanji. Announcements are in Cantonese, Putonghua, and English. Cars are clean. Eating is not allowed. There are no toilets in the MTR stations, but there are in the KCR stations. You can ride these two systems to within a half-hour walk of 90% of the places you are likely to want to visit. You can buy stored value cards (Octopus), which saves money and aggravation.

The bus system is incredible. There are three bus companies, all of which have websites with routes and maps. City Bus, First Bus, and Kowloon Motor Bus will take you to within a 10-minute walk of almost anywhere you want to go. Most bus signs are in English and Kanji. The busses accept Octopus Cards.

There is an extensive minibus system. Green busses run on government-approved routes and Red busses run on routes that are less popular. All are safe. They stop anywhere you yell out, "Stop here, please," or, "Yau luk, mm goy," if you want to risk Cantonese. Many take the Octopus card. These minibusses are for the more adventurous and will get you within 5 minutes of your ultimate destination.

In addition, there is the Famous Star Ferry running between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. There are also ferries to all the outlying islands. Don't miss riding the Tram, either.

From the airport, try the Airport Express, 23 minutes to Central. If you are on a tight budget, try the Airport Busses, which go to all major locations. Traveling first-class, take a hotel limo or hire a private one.

Lastly, be prepared to walk. Hong Kong is a great place to explore on foot.

In our younger days, after last call at whatever watering hole we were ending the evening... er, morning, my friends and I would head to the nearest open coffee shop for an early breakfast or in some cases a late supper. Unfortunately, all too often, we'd end up at Denny's, which many of you know is not noted for its delicious food so much as for its willingness to serve anything on the menu 24-hours a day, 7 days a week and cheaply at that.

Hong Kong is doing much better with the establishment of the Flying Pan restaurants in Central, near the escalator and in Wanchai on the corner of Lockhart and Luard. I recently had breakfast at the Wanchai location with a refugee friend from the old days, who opined as he dug into his denver omelet with extra jalapenos, "I would have given anything to have been able to go to a place like this when I lived here."

I totally agree with him and even though, my late nights out usually end before midnight nowadays, I like being able to cap the evening off with a full breakfast, obviating the need to get up the next morning and cook one.

The Flying Pan offers every kind of breakfast meal you could possibly want—10 variations on Eggs Benedict, 16 different kinds of omelet’s, 10 varieties of egg dishes, pancakes, waffles, french toast, five different side dishes, cereal, fruit, bagels, biscuits, english muffins, toast, their four "Fabulous Flying Combos," which humble the traditional American or British breakfast and what they call "Sunrise Sandwiches," something even Denny's never thought of.

To drink, in addition to the bottomless coffee cup and tea, they have smoothies, milk shakes, ice cream floats, soft drinks, beer, wine, alcoholic beverages, and mocktails. Oh, and if you are still unsatisfied they offer ice-cream sundaes for dessert.

But the kicker is that their prices are astoundingly reasonable. Without printing the price list, let me say that I have never spent more than HK$120.00 including the service charge and that was the morning I had one of the Combos. If you are a long way from your last paycheck, you can have a full breakfast with coffee and side dishes for about HK$85.00. If that's too much, the Sunrise Sandwiches start at HK$20.00—such a deal!!!!!!!! This, compared with what a full breakfast, costs in one of the hotels or at Delaney's or Dan Ryan's or what it tastes like at one of the all night pubs.

Enough; I know it sounds like I am a part owner but the truth is, as in my other food and drink entries, I have no connection with this establishment. In fact, I haven't the slightest idea who even owns or runs the place. I just want to make sure that I do my part to insure they stay in business, so I can have a great breakfast whenever I want one.

Visiting this temple after 14 years in Hong Kong reminds me of the lifelong New Yorker who never visited the Statue of Liberty. I‘m glad I finally managed to see this shrine.

This is one of the most famous temples in Hong Kong, dedicated to Wong Tai Sin, or the Great Immortal Wong. According to legend, as a shepherd boy of 15, he was taught by an immortal to refine cinnabar into a medicine capable of curing all illnesses. He spent the next 40 years in seclusion perfecting this technique before emerging as a healer. His brother found him after spending years searching for him and the sheep in his care. Wong Tai Sin allegedly changed white boulders into sheep to replace those he had lost. There’s a beautiful white jade statue here commemorating that feat. Today, he is revered by Taoists concerned about their physical health and the health of their relationships and businesses.

Liang Ren-an, a Taoist priest, brought the sacred portrait of Wong Tai Sin from Guangdong to Hong Kong in 1915. Following several relocations, the Wong Tai Sin Temple was formally established by at its present site in 1921. It was originally private but has been open to the public since 1956. In somewhat typical Chinese fashion, it combines three religions or practices, Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism, but is considered basically to be a Taoist Temple.

The complex is actually managed by an organization called Sik Sik Yuen, from the original name for the village that stood here 100 years ago. It can be confusing, as some guidebooks refer to it by that name. Locally, it is known as Wong Tai Sin Temple.

We were here 1 day before the Lunar New Year celebration. It was crowded but not as overwhelming as it would be the next day. The incense smoke was so heavy in spots, it kind of got to us. We first visited the Main Altar, where the portrait of Wong Tai Sin presides. Other than the praying and incense burning, it was most interesting seeing all the food that was carried there to be blessed, including dozens of roasted baby pigs.

There is much to see here. We spent over an hour just wandering. The beautiful gardens are outstanding and not crowded. I was impressed by the existence of this oasis of calm and beauty in the middle of a densely populated urban area.

On the grounds, there are over 100 fortune tellers specializing in every kind of soothsaying: fortune sticks, I Ching, palm and face reading, astrology, Feng Shui, etc. Some offer their services in English. The place was so busy, we didn’t have our fortunes told—next time.

We were also impressed with the Nine-Dragon Wall, modeled after one in Beijing; the Good Wish Garden; the Bronze Pavilion; the Memorial Archways; and the traditional architecture of all the buildings.

Access the Sik Sik Yuen website for information on hours, etc.

I've done my share of Disney bashing, but after visiting Hong Kong Disneyland yesterday I must admit the Disney organization does some things better than anyone else.

I went to the park on a cold, blustery day with my family, including my 4-year-old granddaughter. We had a wonderful experience in spite of my initial "Bah, humbug" attitude. I've been to Disneyland in Anaheim, and Disney World in Orlando, and I had forgotten the incredible attention to detail that Disney puts into every little thing at the park, so that the guest experience is complete—metal railings made to look like bamboo or wood, public music appropriate to each area of the park, little touches like an abandoned old rusty Range Rover near the Jungle Ride, the Disney characters wandering around, etc.

Is everything perfect? Of course it isn’t. The park is very small, the smallest of all Disney's parks, with only 13 attractions, plus the parade and fireworks. We were able to do the entire park, and all the rides and shows, in 8 hours—10:00am to 6:00pm. Granted it was a Wednesday, and even slower because of the weather, but if anyone is planning on 2 days at the park, forget about it. There isn't enough to fill 2 days. If you've visited other Disney parks, you won't find much new or exciting here. Disney admits they chose popular attractions from other parks to create the Hong Kong version.

It seems obvious, that Disney has targeted Mainland, Taiwanese and other Southeast Asian tourists who are unlikely to go to the U.S., Japan, or Europe. For instance, almost all the restaurants serve Asian food at fairly reasonable prices, and in Asian quantities. I found the basic weekday entry fee of HK$295 (US$38.00) with concessions for children (HK$210) and seniors (HK$170) to be an excellent value. I don't know where in the world one can get a full day's worth of professional entertainment for anywhere near that price. We spent more on dinner that evening, in a casual Central District restaurant, than the total entry cost for the five of us.

My granddaughter was often thrilled, even frightened a couple times, and totally worn out at the end of the day. When asked what her favorite thing was, she quickly answered, "The parade." Her second choice was the Lion Kong Festival. Her least favorite was Space Mountain, just too much for a 4-year-old. I was also impressed with how my 43- year-old son got into it. He has been to many theme parks, having been brought up in California, but he thoroughly enjoyed the day and at times reminded me of the little boy I took to Anaheim Disneyland 38 years ago.

You can get there easily and cheaply on the MTR, via the Tung Chung line.

You can access the Hong Kong Disneyland Website for much more information on tickets, prices, hours, special events, etc.

Elsewhere in this journal I wrote a review of my favorite pub/bar, Carnegies. So here’s a review of my favorite cocktail lounge, Half Past Ten. Located above Lan Kwai Fong and below Caine Rd. at 10 Glenealy St. in Central, it can be hard to find but that’s part of its charm. If you get lost looking for it, grab your cell phone and dial 2869-9089 for directions.

In fact, if we hadn’t moved to a flat around the corner from it, we would have never discovered it ourselves. We wandered in one evening after telling ourselves, many times, that “We should check this place out.” We finally did and met Flora, the hostess and server, and Paddy, the bartender, and found out that Happy Hour is two-for-one on drinks, and were hooked from then on.

The problem for me with Hong Kong cocktail lounges (as opposed to pubs or bars) has always been that they were either in hotels and mostly patronized by tourists and business people (besides being very pricey), or they were places where I didn’t feel welcome because I didn’t speak Cantonese. Half Past Ten has neither of those drawbacks. It’s not cheap, but with a half-price Happy Hour, Pam and I could drink and gossip for an hour or so for about the same cost as regular time in a pub. Flora and Paddy went out of their way to make us feel welcome. They left us alone when we want that, too.

The ambiance is intimate and comfortable, with couches along the walls and a small bar. The place is divided into a number of small rooms and alcoves so that even when it’s crowded, privacy is possible. The sound system is excellent and the music is usually made up of old standard jazz, soft rock, and blues later in the evening.

It has an excellent selection of whiskeys and other liquors, and the usual selection of mixed drinks with some “Signature” drinks you can only get here. They also feature Champagne Cocktails, Margaritas, and Martinis. I particularly like the Flirtini; champagne, cointreau, vodka, and pineapple juice, and the Crantini; Triple Sec, Dry Vermouth, Vodka, and Cranberry Juice. My wife Pam usually drinks wine, and they have some really good stuff at reasonable prices. They also have some very good stuff at much higher prices. They have Stella Artois, my favorite, and Hoegaarden, a wheat beer, on tap. They also serve “Mocktails” and juices for those who abstain from alcohol.

We usually drop in early so I can’t speak for its late-night ambiance, but they stay open as late as they need to depending on customer demand. They open at 5pm, but it’s best to show up closer to 5:30 or 6 so they can get their act together. They’re open every day.

After 14 years of avoiding so-called cocktail lounges, it’s nice to find one we really like.

If you want to enjoy a relaxing respite from the hustle and noise of Hong Kong, this Buddhist Nunnery is an ideal place to visit. It is evidently never very crowded because of its location, two stops beyond the Wong Tai Sin Temple exit off the MTR. It was almost totally empty the Saturday afternoon Pam and I visited the place.

It is a gem of Chinese religious architecture. Originally built in 1934, the nunnery was reopened in 2000 after a multimillion-dollar renovation done in traditional Tang-era (AD 618-907) style. Only wooden dowels and brackets were used in the reconstruction. It may be the largest building in the world that had no nails used in its construction. It’s difficult to imagine such a feat, but that fact might explain why it took 11 years to complete the work, a marvelous achievement.

We wandered around the 8-acre site for almost an hour. There are 16 Buddhist halls to see, as well as a Zen-style lotus-pond rock garden and a Ten Thousand Buddhas pagoda. Outside the walls of the monastery, there is a beautiful garden with paths for strolling and benches for sitting. This garden is open even when the Nunnery is closed.

Two of the four main halls contain statues of the Medicine Master and the Goddess of Mercy. The Patriarch Hall features many tablets containing the writings of Buddhist sages. As you might guess, the Main Hall contains a statue of Shakyamuni Buddha, the founder of Buddhism 2,500 years ago.

There are other outstanding sights, such as the symmetrical Bell Tower and the Drum Tower, at the entrance, meant to greet and guide people as well as guard the Nunnery. Just beyond the entrance is the Lotus Rock Garden. Truly peaceful and beautiful, it features blooming lotuses. Unfortunately, they weren’t blooming the day we were there. Northwest of the Main Hall, Pu Tong Tower is used to store the ashes of deceased nuns.

We found out later that on Sundays from 11am to 4pm, you can partake of a vegetarian lunch at the self-service restaurant. You may have to ask how to get there.

You can take photos of everything except the interior of the Buddhist Halls. Forbidden lest you interrupt people’s prayers, I was told.

To get there, take the MTR to Diamond Hill Station, Exit C2, and then walk uphill along Sheung Yuen Street and eastbound along Fung Tak Road for about 5 minutes. The Nunnery is located at the northern end of Chi Lin Drive. It’s impossible to miss. Entrance is free, and it’s open from 9am to 4:30pm every day except Wednesday. The garden’s hours are 6:30am to 7pm.

The Hong Kong Heritage Museum has been open for 5 years, and I had never visited it. I pictured some small second-rate place with amateurish exhibits. I could not have been more mistaken. If there is one museum in Hong Kong you should make a special effort to visit, it’s this one. I love the History Museum and kids love the Science Museum, but for really getting a sense of what created and maintains Hong Kong’s culture, this is the place to see.

It is a professional, impressive complete museum with 12 exhibit halls, including a Cantonese Opera Theater, a Children's Discovery Area, three or four outstanding permanent exhibits (including two collections of Chinese Art), and an exhibition covering the rise and fall in popularity of Cantonese opera. In addition, the museum usually features at least one unique special exhibit, like the current one on the Silk Road, plus other smaller temporary exhibits, such as the one we saw of four artists’ perceptions of Hong Kong.

The setting is bucolic and easy to access by train. The exterior of building, rendered in a somewhat traditional Chinese style, is not that attractive, though many architects might disagree with me. The 28, 500 square meter interior is impressive, though, with a huge open center five stories high, with the galleries and exhibition halls around the periphery.

We spent most of our time in the Special Exhibit on the Silk Road and in the Cantonese Opera Exhibit, which is a piece of Hong Kong I have totally missed. The two Chinese Art galleries, one contemporary and one traditional, are interesting but not compelling, unless you are more knowledgeable than I am. One of the more interesting exhibits covers the history of the New Territories, and while it duplicates some of the information in the History Museum, it certainly illustrates how vital the area was for thousands of years before the British arrived. For someone unfamiliar with the history of Hong Kong, I think it would be quite an eye-opener.

We also stopped at the very attractive tea house for a break. It serves many different types of Chinese tea. I wish I knew enough to order something other than my usual Jasmine tea. There is also a café and a gift shop on the premises.

To get to the museum, take the KCRC East Rail train to either Tai Wai or Sha Tin and plan on a 15- to 20-minute walk. The walk from Sha Tin Station takes you through a very nice park along the river. Alternatively, you can change on to the Ma On Shan Rail train and alight at the Che Kung Temple Station, which is a mere 5-minute walk from the museum. There is also bus service. It’s open Wednesday through Monday.

Ticket prices vary. There are the usual concessions. You can check for the latest information at the museum website. Photography is allowed, with some exceptions.

Up front, I must admit that this is my favorite place to drink in Hong Kong. I don’t remember exactly how I first found out about it, but once my friends and I started coming here we’ve been regulars ever since.

The initial impetus was so-called "Crazy Hour," which runs from 6 to 7pm. During “Crazy Hour” all bar drinks, beers, and the house wines are HK$19 (US$2.45). This compared to regular prices of HK$45 and up. I’ve never found a place in Hong Kong that has a better price. Not only that, the server comes around and warns you before "Crazy Hour" morphs into a more traditional Happy Hour so you can order as many additional items as you want and drink at "Crazy Hour" prices for at least another 30 to 45 minutes.

Not that Happy Hour Prices are that bad at HK$28 (US$3.60) for most drinks. Happy Hour runs from 5 to 9pm. They serve complimentary hot snacks from 7 to 9pm. I shouldn’t admit this but I sometimes fill up on the snacks and skip dinner. They usually serve cut-up sausages, spring rolls, samosas, french fries, and chicken strips. No limit on how many you can appropriate.

My friends and I re-named Friday night's “Crazy Hour,” “Therapy Hour,” as we used the time to gripe about our jobs and anything else that was bugging us. No criticism was allowed. Another regular event we would attend was “Quiz Night” on Mondays. At one time it was very popular but interest has waned and Quiz night is history, though the management keeps promising to bring it back.

They have a surprisingly extensive food menu with snacks, pub grub, sandwiches, pasta, Asian food, day-long breakfast, and even a few main dishes for the truly hungry. My favorite is the Steak Baguette. I’m also very partial to the Chicken Wings and the Chicken Strips. They also feature about 100+ different types of shooters. Shooters are not my style but others seem to go for them, especially late at night.

Around 9:30 or 10pm the bar dancing begins. Anyone can get up on the bar and dance. There are brass rails to keep the more enthusiastic of the dancers from raining down on the bartenders. Bar Dancing seems to be quite popular with bachelorette parties. Carnegie's has special promotions every night ranging from All-Night Happy Hour on Sundays, to free Champagne for the ladies on Wednesday nights, to HK$10 (US$1.30) vodkas on Tuesday night. The promotions change but every night, after 9pm, you can get a price break on something.

The music, sometimes played by a DJ, is 100% Rock and Roll, much of it Classic. The owners also have local bands in from time to time and are noted for their support of local musicians, both here and at the near-by Wanch Bar, which they also own.

In case you were wondering, I have absolutely no connection with Carnegie’s except as a loyal customer.

I recently had the opportunity to show a couple of first time visitors around Hong Kong. They were connecting to a cruise and only had a day and a half. Additionally, the weather was hot and extremely muggy, a condition they were not used to. What to do? What to do?

Since they were staying in Hung Hom on the Kowloon side, the first leg was easy. Take the Star Ferry to Central where we could meet up easily (I live in Central). Since I had just arrived that morning after an all-night 14 hour flight from the U.S., I set up a 2:00pm meeting and they used the late morning and early afternoon to wander around and have a light lunch.

I first walked them through the IFC Mall. They aren't shoppers but malls, whether we, who live here, like it or not, are a significant part of the "Hong Kong experience." They were interested in what a Hong Kong Supermarket was like so we toured City Super, which with its Japanese flavor and ethnically diverse product offerings is surprisingly interesting to visitors.

Next we rode the escalator up to Hollywood Road, sometimes called "Antique Street." New visitors are fascinated and often awed by the escalator. I'm still slightly in awe of it after 14 years. From there, it's an easy stroll past the antique shops to the Man Mo Temple with its hundreds of burning incense offerings and praying visitors. It may not be fancy or famous but it is inherently intriguing. It’s the oldest continuously operating temple in Hong Kong. You can find a review of it elsewhere in this journal.

We continued down Hollywood Road, to Wing Lok Street, referred to as Bird's Nest Street or Ginseng Street. I tried and failed to explain why someone would pay $650 for a small container of swallows' nests. The only parallel I had was spending $100 and up for a bowl of Shark's Fin Soup. It is supposedly healthy and also gives the consumer status.

We next walked to Des Voeux Road West where many shops sell exotic dried seafood. We were on our way to the Sheung Wan Wet Market. My guests were leery of interacting with live chickens so we passed, but I still think for someone who is new to Hong Kong that visiting a wet market is worthwhile and relatively risk-free.

We then entered the Western Market which, for reasons I 'm not entirely clear about, since it has all the makings of a tourist trap, I like to visit. It’s an Edwardian-style building originally called the Harbour Office, was built in 1906 and later became a food market before closing in 1988. Two years later, it was declared a historical monument, renovated and then re-opened as the Western Market in 1991. We ordered Lemon Iced Teas at the German Bistro just inside the main entrance and I believe this helped revive my guests.

After the tea break we boarded the Hong Kong Tramways streetcar on our way to Exchange Square. The Tram is also one of those inexpensive (HK$2.00), historically interesting, and fun things to do. I sometimes take visitors all across Hong Kong Island on the Shaukeiwan Tram. We got off at Exchange Square to catch the #15 bus to Victoria Peak. Many tourists believe the Peak Tram is a must-do activity. I don't. It's expensive, crowded and offers very poor views of the Island. It's far better to take the #15 bus (HK$9.60), sit in the front row on the upper deck and enjoy the views and thrills of negotiating the narrow roads up to the Peak.

After arriving on the Peak, we strolled on Lugard Road which runs from a point Southwest of the Peak viewing platform to Harlech Road, which will take you back to the Peak viewing area. Don’t miss the Harlech Road turn-off though or you’ll end up walking all the way down Mount Kellet to Aberdeen. It's a level, one hour walk and most relaxing. If you have time and are a flora enthusiast, you can take a detour to the Peak Gardens. Along the way there are signs with detailed information on the abundant plant life here and the history of the area. There are also awesome views of both the western and southern sides of the Island.

Because of our schedule, we didn't walk all around the peak but strolled in relative solitude for 20 minutes and then walked briskly back to the Galleria Mall for an early dinner at the Two-tiered Cafe Deco Restaurant. Cafe Deco answers the question, "When is a tourist oriented restaurant not a tourist trap?" My wife, Pam, and I love it and invariably find excuses to eat there with friends, business associates and visitors.

Its menu is eclectic, offering Southeast Asian, Indian, Japanese, Continental, and American dishes at reasonable prices—given the location, the view and the quality of the food. They feature a huge fresh oyster bar with offerings from around the world. They have an extensive wine list with price points for any budget. One of my favorite attractions there is the band that plays swing-time music from 9:00 PM as well as on Sunday afternoons. They have also collected a number of Art Deco artifacts which are on display throughout the restaurant. You will find a detailed review of this fine restaurant elsewhere in the journal.

After dinner, we grabbed a taxi to drop us off at our flat and carry our visitors to the Star Ferry. I suggested they take the ferry to Tsim Sha Tsui and walk along the promenade to their hotel in order to catch the laser light show, called the "Symphony of Light" put on every night featuring Hong Kong Island's fabulous skyline architecture. I guess they were too jet-lagged, though, and instead boarded the Hung Hom ferry which deposited them less than a 5 minute walk from their hotel, the Harbour Plaza.

I'm a museum nut so I suggested we visit the Hong Kong Museum of History Saturday morning. They had only the morning available as they had to check out and board their cruise ship early in the afternoon. They had heard so much about Nathan Road that they wanted to see it but being too polite to gainsay my suggestion they agreed to visiting the museum. I love this museum and have visited it numerous times, always learning something new on each visit.

The special exhibit at this time featured the seven 15th century voyages of Admiral Zheng He to India, Africa and points in between. Most Westerners have not heard of Zheng He and his exploits which overshadowed anything Vasco Da Gama, Columbus or Magellan did 100-125 years later. It is a mind expanding exhibit but unfortunately closes May 21.

My guests absolutely loved the museum and the Zheng He exhibit, spending more time than budgeted in both exhibit areas. They said they'd walk over to Nathan Road after they boarded their cruise liner.

We said goodbye around 1:15pm. They were happy to have seen so much in such a short time. I was a little surprised myself that we were able to cover as much ground as we did in such a limited time. I think they really got a sense of the many faces of Hong Kong and an appreciation of its history, variety and ethnic diversity. Hong Kong's compactness makes it possible to cover a lot of ground in a short time.

I can hardly wait for my next opportunity to be a tour guide.