A Single Step: Hong Kong and Japan - Part 2
We left on a Wednesday afternoon and watched out the airplane window as we raced toward the oncoming sunset and were soon overtaken. As always, despite my best efforts (read not sleeping the night before to try to exhaust myself), there was no sleeping on the plane for me and I was dead tired. Ethan seemed unaffected, but we were both hungry. Luckily for us, Hong Kong is considered the world’s best airport for dining (and the only one with a Michelin star restaurant) and we had plenty of options to choose from. Crystal Jade came most highly recommended by my friends and fellow travelers who had tried more than one, and we found it and were quickly seated. Since most of my airport food experiences are cheap express chains in a rush or a sandwich I packed from home, this was a nice change. The menu was overwhelming, for its size as much as it’s foreign foods. We ordered more food than we could eat because everything sounded delicious and new. While we waited for it to arrive I cried. Ethan said something funny and my laughter turned to tears and then I couldn’t stop. I chalk it up to exhaustion. I am sure Ethan, friend of two months and not many more encounters, chalked it up to my being a mentally unstable person and immediately wishing he hadn’t agreed to this trip. I remember feeling terrible when I noticed my cloth napkin was stained with mascara.
I had then and still have Google Fi and this is the only time it has ever let me down (Ironically, as you’ll see, in Japan, where connectivity and wifi are notoriously shotty, Fi worked excellently without any issue).. After the customary You’re In Luck, Google Fi Covers Hong Kong text when we landed, it hadn’t worked since. Luckily I had a screenshot of Morgan’s address and brief directions downloaded and of course, a must-have travel app Maps.me which offers GPS directions much like Google Maps but doesn’t require wifi or any internet connection. We navigated the metro easily and marveled at all the new and ridiculously-named stores within them. The convenience store 7-11 abounding in Hong Kong and each location offers free wi-fi. We hopped from store to store along our route to confirm our progress and see if Morgan had responded to our message that we had landed safely and were on our way. Morgan was very specific about how to exit the metro at her stop which I didn't pay particular attention to until we got there. The station was like an octopus - huge central station with far-reaching (and well-branched) tentacles. Our exit was Elevator Only and we arrived above ground to pouring rain. The lights of 7-11 called to us from afar and we made a mad dash. We hopped 7-11s until we were in front of the building we were sure was Morgans. It was nearing midnight and there was no one at the front desk. We rang the doorbell repeatedly, to the office and her apartment, to no avail. We made trips back to the nearest 7-11 to try texting again. Eventually a woman entered with a cart of newspapers but did not let us follow her in. Once she sat at the front desk we rang until she opened the door. Meanwhile one of our messages had gotten to Morgan and she was arriving in the lobby as we were entering and took us to her floor.
We exited the elevator to what was essentially a mudroom, with shoes and umbrellas and coats in a confined space, with a locked door leading to the apartment. Apparently this is a common set up in Hong Kong and no one steals the shoes (Ethan asked). Inside we met Morgan’s boyfriend and Gizmo the dog (who was immensely terrified by Ethan), and made up the pull out couch to go to sleep. The next day we went to the main island for a bit of exploring. We walked the Avenue of Stars and Signal Hill Gardens. Turns out Ethan’s hands were a pretty good match for Jackie Chan. But the main event was still to come: The YONEX-SUNRISE Hong Kong Open Badminton Championship! This was a highly entertaining experience, as much for the vast difference in spectator style between Ethan and everyone else. The stands were not crowded but those who were supposed to sit around us all found other open seats. YONEX made the mistake of giving cheerstix to someone who knew how to use them. I learned a lot about Ethan this day.
The tournament took place at the Hong Kong Colosseum which were also used during the Olympics with a lot of plaques and memorials scattered about. The Badminton was phenomenal. The players were lithe and quick. And then there were the Russians. Standing heads and shoulders over every opponent they were impossible not to watch, even at the furthest court from us. We picked teams to root for at random and enjoyed the adrenaline of the event (and the air conditioning).
After badminton we went next door to the Hong Kong Museum of History which I would put high on the must-do list of anyone visiting Hong Kong. It reached far back in time and explored the progression of the four “tribes” of Hong Kong, with their different ways of life and how those benefited or struggled with the progress made in the rest of the world. It followed those groups, as well as an ever adulterated Hong Kong culture to the present day and explored what was left of authentic Hong Kong life and how much was lost. They had invested a lot of money in the project, even buying out and preserving entire stores and houses from different points in the cities history, including this tea shop, with the tea still inside each jar.
We took the subway back to Morgan’s (to prepare for our Thanksgiving dinner at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club) and rode next to one of the badminton players we had rooted for earlier that day! I wanted to express my excitement, that we had just watched him play and had rooted for him, and our condolences for his loss. But I’m me, so I just stood there awkwardly, took his photo when his face was hidden behind a pole, and said nothing.
How about you? Have you eaten in the Hong Kong airport? Which restaurant did you think was best? How do you handle celebrities? Are you type to go right up and get a selfie, or are you reserved and give them their space like me? Have you been to the Hong Kong Museum of History or do you know somewhere better?
I’d love to hear in the comments below!
-Ff
