[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]I loved Hong Kong. It reminded me a bit of a cross between New York City and San Francisco, in Asia. My \u201cweekend\u201d in Hong Kong was actually parts of two weekends but it makes up a Friday night through Monday morning, on both Hong Kong Island and Kowloon, in the humid sunshine and cooler rain, so I feel like I got a wide range of experiences in.<\/p>\n
I arrived midday on a Sunday and was staying in Kowloon. My hotel was close to the harbor and Nathan Rd., so it was easy to wander around for awhile snapping photos and taking it all in.<\/p>\n
Shop<\/strong> \u2013 I didn\u2019t fly halfway around the world to go to the mall, but if that\u2019s what you want to do you don\u2019t have to travel too far to find one! I ended up eating lunch in a mall one day and that was enough for me.<\/p>\n Nan Lian Garden<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 a bit farther away, but completely free and while a little crowded, it was peaceful. It appeared that you could have tea there, but I just wandered around and took in the pretty sights.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”605″ img_size=”medium” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_rounded”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Temple Street Night Market<\/strong> \u2013 I didn\u2019t end up making it here and I\u2019m not sure if I\u2019m disappointed about that or not. If you haven\u2019t been to a lot of markets and bazaars I\u2019m sure it\u2019s worth going to \u2013 but I didn\u2019t really feel the need to haggle over DVDs and things I just didn\u2019t need.<\/p>\n Lan Kwai Fong<\/strong> \u2013 if you find yourself on Hong Kong Island (or hop on the ferry or train and head over) this area is full of bars and people drinking on the streets. We had fun wandering around and people-watching until 3am (when we got tired, but it didn\u2019t seem like anything was dying down yet).[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Victoria Peak<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 unfortunately, the day we planned to do this started out a bit foggy with drizzle. We waited until things appeared to be clearing up and halfway up to the peak it started raining. And raining. And raining. How we even managed to get a picture this good is beyond me. If I go back to Hong Kong (which I hope I do one day!) I\u2019d like to go up at night, and maybe again during the day if it\u2019s sunny! Tip: if the line for the tram is long, take a taxi \u2013 it\u2019ll be a similar price and you won\u2019t be waiting in line. However, the lines to leave were tremendously long. I\u2019m not sure if this was due to the weather, but we ended paying surcharges to get an Uber back to our hotel \u2013 well worth it since we were tired and it was cold and dreary out.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”606″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_rounded”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The Light Show<\/strong> \u2013 at 8pm every night you\u2019ll see a light show from Kowloon. I was up on a rooftop bar so I had a great view, but apparently, there is also music you can hear if you are closer to the harbor.<\/p>\n Star Ferry<\/strong> \u2013 ridiculously cheap and why not? We took the ferry from Hong Kong to Kowloon one morning, but I\u2019m sure taking it at night during the light show would be great.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”615″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_rounded”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n Tim Wan Ho<\/a> – Three words. BBQ Pork Buns. Yes, this is the cheapest Michelin star restaurant in the world. Yes, it is a chain. Yes, it is as good as people say. The two of us spent less than $20 on lunch, ordered more than we meant to, and enjoyed every single bite. Get the BBQ Pork Buns, perhaps two orders (and when the menu says “bun” understand that means three will come in your order.<\/p>\n Din Tai Fung<\/a> – another chain that you can even find in the United States, but we don’t have one in San Diego and I had never been. There was one around the corner from my hotel in Kowloon so I grabbed a quick lunch there (across from a Ruby Tuesday in a mall).<\/p>\n Kin’s Kitchen<\/a> – described as upscale Cantonese, we found ourselves\u00a0feeling like some of the only tourists in the restaurant on a Saturday night (making us feel that we had made the right choice). We had one of their signature dishes, the smoked half chicken, which was delicious (and appears that the chicken has been cut right down the middle – head and all), some BBQ pork (no bun here) and some fried rice. Everything was delicious.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Budaoweng Hot Pot Cuisine<\/a>\u00a0– this was my first hot pot experience and my waitress was really helpful with showing me what to do and helped me make a sauce. I’d definitely recommend checking this place out and the more people the merrier! It’s also on a high floor in the Tsim Sha Tsui neighborhood so if you sit near a window you’ll have great views of Hong Kong Island. Afterward head even higher up to Eye Bar<\/a> which has indoor and outdoor seating.[\/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid grid_id=”vc_gid:1480482818496-6d77115a-30b1-10″ include=”608,609,610″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n Due to the fact that our “weekend” in Hong Kong was spread over two weekends, we opted to spend the first part on the Kowloon side of the harbor and the second part on the Hong Kong side.<\/p>\nEat<\/h3>\n
Stay<\/h3>\n