HONG KONG
“ I am not satisfied that you intend a genuine visit to
Australia,” blasted a letter from Australian High Commission in
Pakistan. That was a bombshell; all my plans to visit Gold Coast went down the
drain. I chopped off Australia from my tour and added Philippines. So it would
now be Hong Kong – Brunei - Philippines.
I have a small
family, me & my wife plus a cat.
I bundled off my wife to London to live with our son. A friend agreed to
take care of my cat. When I pushed the cat in the car and started driving, she
jumped and landed right onto my lap.
All the way, she was looking directly into my eyes and muttering protests
and indecencies.
Landing at Hong Kong airport was a thrill. A harbor ringed by
skyscrapers, Hong Kong looked like New York. The new airport known as Chep Lap
Kok was located on a small island.
Building it involved flattening the once hilly island and virtually
doubling its area in a biggest ever dredging and reclamation
operations.
“Hong Kong is pretty
expensive. You cannot make it even
with $200 a day,” remarked Zahid Khawaja when I showed him my itinerary. I didn’t value his opinion. We are of two different worlds: he is a
business executive with fat expense account. Unknown to him, I had already
explored the Internet and landed on a site for a cheap accommodation:
http://rentaroomhk.com/
After clearing
immigration and customs, I fumbled my pockets for a printout. It had stepwise directions. I went by
the book. First, I approached a Money Changer and managed to get HK$ 33. Second, I looked for a Bus Terminal and
spotted Bus A21. Third, I boarded
it by feeding the exact fare. Fourth, I requested the bus driver to drop me off
at Tsim Sha Tsui. Finally, I sat
near to him not to lose his attention.
It worked; he stopped the bus at one place and
signaled me to get down. I did but
felt as if I was duped. I was amid a dazzling array of brightly lit,
neon-decorated shops. The road was clogged with vehicles. The footpaths were
packed with pedestrians. I wanted
to ask someone for further directions but no way. Many were grossed in love-talks. Some had mobile phones tacked to their
ears. At long last, I spotted my prey – a smartly suited youngman with a
banker’s mien.
I stopped him and
showed him the printout. In a moment, he understood that I was looking for a
cheapest of the cheap accommodation. Stretching his hand eastward, he advised me
to continue a little further. Soon I was at the gate of Chung King Mansion. It looked like a combination of a
covered bazaar and a bomb shelter.
I wanted to runaway but somebody had already grabbed my carryon. I was led to the third floor through a
screeching elevator. “Best place for US$ 18.99 with air-condition, TV and bath,”
said the hostel agent dumping me in a small bed-room. It was barely enough to
straighten my back or stretch my arms. But I was too tired to
bargain.
I
got up in the evening, had a bath and donned my safari outfit. Stashing passport & tickets in my
inner pockets, cash and camera in my knee-pockets, Kleenex in my hip pockets, I
was ready for a taste of Hong Kong.
Coming on the main road, I realized that I was
on the Nathan Road of Kowloon District.
It was the busiest road, nicknamed as the Golden Mile because of a long
line of neon-decorated shops and nightspots. I saw a sign saying “STAR FERRY”
and followed the direction. A
little later, I found myself at the terminal. Paying just HK$ 2.2 at the automatic
turnstiles, I ended up in an upper-deck of a ferry. Soon it moved and passed by
sleek cruise liners, massive containerships, Chinese junks, sampans and
speedboats.
It was dusk; the skyline was lit up. It was
like an extravagant firework. Many tall buildings were displaying messages like
a billboard. Perhaps, more
fiber-optic was used than the brick and mortar. At HK$ 2.2, it must be one of
the cheapest and most scenic ferry ride in the world. The Ferry stopped after 8 minutes at
Admiralty, Hong Kong Island. This
place was full of modern architecture, a nightmare to design on small
foundations. The Bank of Chine Building was the tallest. It looked like a cock of the walk. I
went right into it. Though, the
bank was closed, its elevators were functional. I entered one and kept going up till it
stopped at 50th floor. A
guard asked me to go back. No
problem, the down-ride was equally mesmerizing.
Next day, I had a
causal walk. It was about 9:30,
only a few shops were opened. Timberland Outlet was in full form. Its showcase
had an impressive display of a life-size hiker in sturdy shoes. Suddenly, I felt that my ankles were
twisted, toes bruised and gait clumsy.
I went in the store and described my predicament to a salesman. He
ascribed it to my old shoes and stressed on the pronation factor. Finding me completely absorbed,
he shut his trap and asked me to try their new “3-Eyelet Classic Lug” Shoes. I
wore them and tiptoed a little. I felt like a space walker and nodded my
approval. As if in a trance, I handed him over my credit 
card only to realize afterward that I had kissed good-bye to
US$89.99.
With those new
rugged shoes, I strolled towards the Clock Tower. There was a long line of Palm
trees welcoming the visitors. Next
was the Culture Centre, sleek and cylinder. It was windowless though it could
afford a magnificent view of the sea. A little ahead was the famous waterfront
Promenade. The image of Hong Kong skyline, on other side, was flickering in the
water. The Hong Kong Museum of Arts stood directly on the waterfront, adjacent
to egg-shaped Space Museum. The
latter fascinated me and I bought tickets worth US $ 10 to see replicas of
spacecrafts, spacesuits and the planetarium.
After a while, I
turned back to the Nathan Road and continued downward. Soon 
minarets of a modern Mosque were visible. It was a spiritual abode to over 50,000
Muslims. Next was the entrance to the Kowloon Park and the Museum of History.
Walking down to Canton Road, I ran into the shopping Centres: Harbour City,
Ocean Centre and Ocean Terminal.
All were linked to the port terminal to facilitate the cruise ship
passengers to step directly into a shopping paradise. I had no intention of
buying anything and just hanged around looking at big names like Louis, Vuitton,
Cartier, Gucci, Prada, Nike, Tiffany, Hermes and Loewe. I dismissed them all
till Marks & Spencer caught my eyes. Just to check new designs, I went in
and ended up with a load of 2 trousers and 1 shirt for US$ 120. I was now
feeling hungry and looked for a food stall. Dim sum (dough filled with
vegetables or meat) was available everywhere anytime.
On the last day, I
went to Ocean Park. It had many attractions: Pacific Pier housing Californian
sea lions, Goldfish Pagoda resembling Beijing Imperial Palace, a cable car
offering a breath-taking journey along the South China Sea. I had a memorable
ride on a 
roller coaster with its hurricane speed in addition to twisting,
climbing and dipping in a Mine Train. It was a lifetime experience to browse
Atoll Reef with its four-level glass paneled galleries.
Hong
Kong means “Fragrant Harbour". It
lies on
the same latitude as Calcutta and Havana. It is stretched over 230 islands. More
than 97 % of Hong Kong’s citizens are Chinese. The official language is English
as well as Cantonese. In restaurants and hotels, English is spoken and all
official signs are bilingual.
Hong Kong is a mix
of rich and poor, old and new, East and West. Daimler & Rolls Royce vie with
old trams for right of the way.
Smartly suited executives rub shoulders with elderly men walking with
their songbirds. Pushcarts survive
under the shadow of marbled malls and boutiques. Slapping of mahjong tiles on
floors outsmarts rattle of Russian roulette. The size of gambling
is enormous making Las Vegas look like a chicken
feed.
I wish I could stay longer to see Victoria Peak, Funicular Railway, Jade Market, Bird Market and Temple Street. I had fallen in love with the land of little people, typhoons, dim sum and mahjong. But my time was awfully short. Brunei was calling me. On the way to airport, the bus passed over Tsing Ma Bridge. At 2.2 km long, it was the world’s longest road-and-rail suspension bridge, imposing by day and twinkling by night.
HRM