I have to begin this blog by saying WE LOVE HONG KONG. We love it, love, I am using the word love here. We would honestly consider living here for a year or so if the opportunity arose. It is a spectacularly beautiful city with interesting architecture, lush mountains, an incredible night-life and western-friendly people. It really is the definition of East meets West.
We had no idea coming in that we would like Hong Kong so much. We had each heard great things from friends and family but landing in the airport we were really just expecting to see just another city.

Once Ofer and I left the airport we boarded a double decker bus bound for Hong Kong Island. We sat on the second level and watched the city get closer and closer over the next hour. The closer we got the more excited we were. It was so beautiful: a city towering over it’s harbor surrounded by lush mountains and hills. The architecture was incredible. We drove over a bridge that looked just like the Bay Bridge in San Francisco and for a moment Ofer and I could almost imagine that we were home. Our faces were glued to the window, pointing at the intricately designed office buildings, hotels, at the massive amounts of cargo in the shipyard, at the bridge off in the distance. We knew we were in for a treat.

The bus dropped us off at the stop closest to our hotel. Once off the bus we realized that we had no idea where to go from there to find the hotel. Even though we have been traveling for some time now we are seeing that we need to get our act together and look at this stuff BEFORE we leave a place with internet. Ofer asked a few store clerks and one checked his Iphone and sent us in the direction of the right street (it was a start) but he had never heard of the hotel.

With backpacks weighing us down and luggage trailing behind we panted our way down the street. 20 minutes later the terrain changed and we didn’t seem to be in the best area of town. My expectations plummeted from there and I started having visions of moldy carpets and bugs in the bathroom. Then as if out of a mirage we saw our hotel. And it was great. Our room was beautiful, the hotel had a restaurant and bar and there was even a gym and outside pool, we were in heaven!

My cousin’s wife Vicky had grown up in Hong Kong and she and Evan had their wedding there so they were kind enough to forward us a list of things to do while we were in the area.

I have to start off by saying that I love Dim Sum. I could eat it every day, I really could. Meats and sweets stuffed inside doughy or flaky pastries...um ok, yes please. Hong Kong was the beginning of the Dim Sum month on our trip (you will see this theme continue through Aisa I promise). We went to a yummy Dim Sum Restaurant that was recommended to us and even there, on the first day in Hong Kong we talked about how much we were impressed by the city and how we could see that our friends and family who were/had lived here felt the same.

Ofer and I took a car up to The Peak; a lookout spot to see incredible views of the city. There we really got a better sense of how the city was laid out and how diverse the terrain is.

That night we went to a restaurant that Vicky’s Uncle owns called the Yellow Door. Once we sat down and started to order a man came over to us and asked us if we were the ones related to Vicky, it ended up being Vicky’s cousin. He is an amazing chef and photographer, both of which we can attest to. We sat and had a bottle of wine with him as we started our 6 course meal. He was so incredibly kind and asked us if we wanted to join he and his family the next day as they went to an area outside of the city for lunch by the water. We very excitedly agreed. We were eager to see non-touristy areas and to get some good tips from Hong Kong natives. By the way, the meal was sooo tasty. After being in Japan and having two very large pre-fixe meals we were starting to be concerned that our palates were too underdeveloped to enjoy exotic cuisine. But the food at the Yellow Door was delicious. Most of it was very different from anything we had tried before but it was so good that we were eager to see what each course would offer.

The next day we took a car out with him, his family and his parents (Vicky’s uncle). We went to a fishing town about 30 minutes outside the city of Hong Kong. We walked down the pier and saw numerous boats filled to the brim with fresh fish, clams, lobsters, oysters and squid.

They explained to us that the way it works is we look at what is fresh that day in the fishermen’s boats. You buy the seafood directly from them and then bring your sometimes still alive seafood to the restaurants that line the pier. You tell then how you want it cooked, and they cook your food as you wait. What a concept!!! We can easily say that was the freshest seafood we had ever had, and it was delicious. I guess one of the perks of having a chef in the family is that they know what to cook you and they know where to send you for great food.

Ofer’s friend Craig and his girlfriend Jane live in Hong Kong. Craig has been there for 6 years despite his initial plan of being there for a much shorter period of time (and we now understand why). We could definitely see getting addicted to life in Hong Kong.

Craig and Jane were incredibly hospitable. They took us to the most delicious Nepalese restaurant, to a Karaoke establishment, to his amazing apartment on something like the 20th floor, and they recommended bars, restaurants and day trips for us. It was so nice to be with a couple that really loved their lives; they both enjoy their work and really make the best of their time away from the office. They were both so fun easy to talk to that it all the more supported our idea of maybe someday taking 6 months to a year in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong has a great nightlife. There is an area called SOHO that is covered in tasty little restaurants with almost every kind of international cuisine (except Mexican I think). When walking one night Ofer and I discovered one area that looked like it had a rave going in the street. There must have been at least 10 bars/clubs on this one street. Music blasted from each place and people didn’t even try to fit inside, instead they just stood in the streets with their friends and enjoyed a drink there.

As I mentioned before Hong Kong Island is covered with some pretty good sized hills. In order to make the area more user friendly someone brilliant came up with the idea of putting in an escalator scaling the hill and letting you off on each street with different restaurants, coffee shops, clubs and galleries. Whomever this guy was is what I call a ‘Neverlander’. Only a kid, or someone who is still a kid at heart and believes anything is possible would have presented to a board the idea of putting an escalator on the streets like that. Brilliant I tell you. Now if only someone will create a house with a spring boarded floor and padded walls with a slide leading down to the pool, then we will be on our way to thinking outside the box (my girlfriends know what I’m talking about).

One of the last things we did in Hong Kong was to take the gondola to Lantau to see the Giant Buddha. The gondola ride was about 30 minutes long and was so beautiful. I am working on my whole fear of heights thing so Ofer and I decided to get the glass bottomed gondola just to push me to the brink. I did pretty well with the glass bottom but there was no way for Ofer to get me to stand for a picture. This was even before we were told by Craig that at one time before the gondola had opened that a few had fallen. Information I am always happy to get after I have done it!

Once in Lantau we walked the 268 steps to see the Buddha. They were not kidding around, he is huge (112 feet tall to be exact). I really loved the statues surrounding the Buddha, they appeared so serene and loving. After chilling with the Buddha we visited the Monastery. There were locals and visitors lighting incense and saying prayers outside the doors. It really was quite a site.

Earlier that day when we had arrived at Lantau we went to see a video that they had about Buddha’s life. It really was beautifully done. I think both Ofer and I knew most of the things that the video was teaching but it was a good way to get us into the peaceful mood of the area. The most striking thing about the video was the exit. Sounds weird, but as you are leaving the walls are inscribed with quotes from Buddhist texts.

We spent about 30 minutes in that area reading each inscription. It is such a pure way to see the world. It is all about me, how I react, how I behave, how I choose to be in this world. Whenever Ofer and I spend some time reading some of these famous texts we always comment that we want to learn more. Hopefully when we are in Australia and have some down time we can take some Buddhist or Vedantic courses. This is another reason why I am so impressed with Ofer. He is so eager to keep learning, to expose himself to different cultures, traditions, teachings and to see what fits for him and how to incorporate different ways of thought and action into his daily experience. Growing up with parents who were very liberal in terms of learning and thought this has always been something that has intrigued and driven me. I am a lucky girl to have found a man who loves to do the same.

We ate in their restaurants, we drank in their bars (even broke a bottle in one), we swam in their pools, played squash on their courts, flew in gondolas in their skies and visited their ‘must see’ spots. But Ofer and I both felt like it wasn’t enough. This was the first place we had traveled to that when we left we wished we could have been there for at least another week. That is one of the greatest things about this trip. We are getting a sense of what areas we love, where we want to visit again and other places that we can just check off our list. As we were taking off in the airplane bound for Shanghai, China we looked to each other and fantasized for a minute wondering when we will be back to Hong Kong and where in our lives together will we be. We are excited to see!