The Noodle Tour: Lan Kwai Fong Beer Fest, Victoria Peak, and the slums of Kowloon. Welcome to Hong Kong.

Hong Kong Island as viewed from Kowloon.

Chantra planning out our next destination.

The Hong Kong skyline viewed from Victoria Peak.

Today me and the wife arrived in Hong Kong. This is officially the last destination of the noodle tour. In a few day's we'll be home and our little adventure will be over. But first, there's still the glittering lights of Hong Kong. Now I never really had any desire to go to Hong Kong and I didn't really know what to expect. But I gotta say, after spending a few days in this city, Hong Kong ranks right up there as one of my all time favorite places. It's so different from mainland China. It's like night and day. Hong Kong is a clean, cosmopolitan, extremely well planned modern metropolis. But what I liked the most about Hong Kong is it's diversity. It's literally one of the most diverse places I've ever come across. There are Indians, Chinese, Nepali, British, Russian, Nigerian, and all manner of South East Asians. There are beautiful fashionable Chinese girls walking the streets next to hipsters and business men. Hawkers sell gaudy knock offs next to some of the most expensive luxury goods shops in the world. I can get Indian curry, Peking duck, Dim Sum, Pizza, and some of the most amazing sea food all on the same street. There are old Chinese men playing chess and Mah Jong on well worn and weathered game boards all in the shade of some of the world's tallest and most modern sky scrapers. I LOVE Hong Kong!

Taiwanese style stirfried minced pork over rice with hard boiled egg.

Peking Duck.

Desert.

Rice baked with fried grouper and pineapples in a semi sweet tomato sauce.

Braised pork belly with steamed Chinese broccoli over rice.

Now, let me tell you about where me and missus stayed. Predictably, hotels in Hong Kong are very expensive. As expensive as the hotels in Japan. However, we did manage to book a hostel in a place called Chungking Mansion in the heart of Kowloon. Some people describe this place as the slums of Hong Kong but I prefer to say that it has character. It's an old building with 17 floors and over 300 hostels. The bottom floor is crammed full of little shops and restaurants. The best description of the ground floor would be a modern day bazaar. There are money changers, food stalls, porn shops, book stores, jewelry stores, and of course you've got your "pharmacies". =) I could see how some people wouldn't like this place but I personally loved it. Rooms were small but clean and cheap.

Lan Kwai Fong street during the Beer Festival.

An arm wrestling competition during the beer festival.

We didn't have a whole lot of time in Hong Kong but we tried to make the most of it. We visited the Avenue of Stars along the famous Hong Kong water front, saw the skyline from Victoria Peak, and got a bit sloshed during the beer fest on Lan Kwai Fong. And of course, we had some great food. I'm convinced that Hong Kong has a better food scene than anywhere in China. So little time for such a great city. I'm definitely coming back to this place. Well enjoy the pictures everyone. I'll see you next time.