Ocean Park

After our trip to Shenzhen, we decided this weekend not to venture too far out of the city for something to do. However, with yet more good weather forecast, we didn't want to do anything that would keep us indoors for too long. After much discussion we decided to visit one of Hong Kong's two theme parks. The fact that Ocean Park is a lot closer than Disneyland was a big factor in the decision and we decided that Disneyland was best saved for a day later in out trip.

Front Entrance of 'Ocean Park'

Ocean Park, is part-them park/part zoo located in Aberdeen, just over the other side of Victoria Peak and reached easily from Causeway Bay (we took one of the about 12 different buses that could get us there). Once we'd brought our ticket from the 7Eleven store right next to our flat we jumped on the bus, and headed straight into the park on our arrival.

Having studied the map closely, we decided that we would start off by heading for the theme park rides at the top of the park. This separate part of the park is located at the top of the cliff overlooking the South-China Sea and is reached via a huge cable-car system which ferries visitors from the lower zoo part of the park to the theme park area on the top of the hill.Once we got off the cable car we realised what a good idea it had been to head up here straight away. The place was dead and we quickly strolled straight onto the first roller-coaster of the day. This was the newest addition to the parks armoury of rides, and 'HAIR RAISER' was definitely one of the most intense roller coaster experiences I have ever had, I would say even the G's felt during the ride compare with Stealth at Thorpe Park. The ride takes you on a breakneck journey right over the cliff-face and delivers all the thrills and spills you'd expect from a modern coaster with the added thrill of being able to see for miles around as your pelted at 60mph around the track. Having been a little dubious at first about the safety of our ride (after our death-defying cable car trip earlier in our stay in HK), D was soon asking when we would have another ride on Hair Raiser. Even though we could have walked straight on again, we decided best to head to some of the other big coasters that the park had to offer.

Hair Raiser

The first being 'The Dragon', which was a little more aged that Hair Raiser and although it again was a good enjoyable ride, with age, came a certain 'ricketyness' that you  get with old rides, and we soon dismounted, both feeling like we had been in a minor car crash. But as they say, 'no pain, no gain'. We swiftly moved on to Runaway Train, with who's rusting tracks we could not tell if they were painted to look in an awful condition or if they were ACTUALLY in a state of disrepair. This ride was absolutely atrocious and apart from thinking that it would be the last thing I ever did in my life also left us both battered and bruised.

View from Ocean Tower (Revolving Viewing Platform Type Thing)

We then headed to the show-piece of Ocean Park, which is the dolphin and sea-lion show in the massive Ocean Theatre. We were treated to clapping Sea-Lions, one of which seemed to love the attention, leaving the other looking like he would rather be anywhere else that debasing himself in front of 4000 cheering, camera wielding Chinamen and women. The stars of the show were the four trained dolphins, who unlike the sea-lion seemed to love the attention and were soon flipping, splashing and zooming all around the huge outdoor pool area.

Dolphins at Ocean Theatre Show

Dolphins at Ocean Theatre Show

A Couple of very talented sea-lions

After another ride on Hair Raiser (which we still only had to wait 15 minutes for AT THE BUSIEST TIME OF THE DAY, THORPE PARK TAKE NOT!!!!) and a light soaking on the white water rapids giant-donut ride, we headed back down on the cable car to the zoo area of the park. Once we grabbed yet more noodles for our lunch we headed to the Asia animals enclosure for what was the best part or the day and one of the most incredible things I have/will ever see.

In the huge indoor pavilion are two of the cutest Pandas you will ever see, who look extremely happy and well looked after and just sat there eating bamboo whilst we were with them. These amazing creatures have been bred in the park and looked like giant teddy bears in their individual areas of the pavilion. Also in the enclosure were two Red Pandas which resemble a mixture between a panda and a fox. I know that the pandas were not in their natural habitat but that certainly did not take away from the majesty of the creatures and the sight of them for the first time will certainly be something that we will both never forget. I just pray that during my lifetime people do all that they can to save this hugely endangered species and also that I may also have the privilege to see one in its natural habitat.

Ying Ying the Panda (so cute they named him twice.....)

Lee Lee the panda

Red Pandas

After this treat we had a look around the huge, modern indoor aquarium which is home to a collection of the most amazing underwater creatures that I have ever seen, from some of the most eye-catching -glowing fish' to some of the most deadly Stone Fish and Sting Rays (killers of the legend that was Steve 'Crocodile Hunter' Irwin).

Cool Illuminous Fish

Deadly Lion Fish

Hammer-Head Shark and assortment of other fish in main (HUGE) tank

Outside of Aquariam

Scary-Looking Giant See Spiders (Look like something from Harry Potter)

That's enough from me for today I think. Tune in again soon for another edition to The Rayner Travel Chronicle.

We love you all!!!!

J x

Shenzhen, China (Twinned with Rotheram)

Last weekend, on recommendation by a few guys in D's office, we decided to head into China for the first time since our arrival. Our destination was Shenzhen, which is a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) which sits on the Northern border of Hong Kong mainland and China.

First a bit of background on Shenzhen. About 30 years ago was a small village with a population of around 6,000 people, however, in 1979 the Chinese government, in their plan of self-titled 'openness and opportunity' decided to create a number of SEZs around the country, with Shenzhen strategically chosen for it's locality near a sea-port as well as conveniently located for its proximity to British-run Hong Kong.

Shenzhen Urban Metropolis

Well from a population of just over 6,000, Shenzhen, in 30 years has now grown to an urban metropolis of over 10,000,000 people, with money coming in from all parts of the world, largely through factories and raw material production, but more recently through technology and financial institutions as well.

Once, we had made our way from to the border with China on the HK MTR, we just had to buy a visa from the Chinese, which thanks to its special denomination as a SEZ we were able to get without all of the normal hassle involved in getting a Chinese visa. From the Chinese side we headed straight to the Shangri-La hotel (just next to the station) to grab some lunch in what had been recommended as one of the best Dim-Sum restaurants in Shenzhen. Add to this the fact that they had an all-you-can-eat lunch offer on and it didn't take us long to decide this was the place to eat.Well, we made sure we tried as much as possible off of the menu and we found most things absolutely delicious, with a couple of exceptions I might add, which I will definitely be giving a wide berth next time we decide to have dim-sum.

Dim-Sum Lunch at Shangri-La Hotel

After our huge lunch, we decided to drop our bags off at the hotel before hitting the shops. And after a short ride on one of the most confusing underground systems I have ever seen, we arrived at our hotel, the 33 story Huaqiuan Plaza Hotel. This hotel was again recommended to us and on our arrival we realised straight away that the guys in D's office had pulled another rabbit out of the bag. With the lobby of the hotel located on the 23rd floor, it was a stomach-churning lift ride up to check-in. I am normally fine with lifts, but the designers of this building had decided to put their lift system on the outside of the building, so it was with my fists clenched tightly around anything I could find in the lift that we ascended to the reception.

Our HUGE, extremely vertiginous hotel room

Once checked in we headed to our room on the 25th floor, and the scene that struck us as we entered our room was utterly breath-taking. The outside wall of our room was a floor-t-ceiling glass window which gave us a absolutely stunning panorama of Shenzhen city centre and the urbanised areas all around it. Also, our hotel room was about 8-10 times bigger than our flat in HK, so both of us couldn't hold back the urge to just run around the room enjoying the space. The room was also very nicely decorated and had everything we would need for our stay. But we didn't wait around in the room for too long as their were other things we had come to do and see.

Street-view from our room

As you can probably guess from what I have already said, our trip to Shenzhen was not to see wonderful cultural sights or explore its meandering city streets. No. Our trip to Shenzhen was based around our wish to explore the HUGE bootlegging and knock-off malls which are located all around the city.These vast indoor shopping centres are home to the biggest collection of small vendors and market stools that I have ever seen and they were selling every piece of fake merchandise from handbags to watches to DVDs to headphones.

We were able to pick up a few absolute bargains here and there and the English spoken by the people running the shops was good enough to also allow a lot of good humoured bartering to take place, which I thoroughly enjoyed, mainly because in the end it saved us quite a bit of money.

Well, after heading back to the room for a good nights sleep, we finished off our stay in Shenzhen with one of the best hotel breakfasts I have ever seen. With everything you could ever want, including a delicious selection of small cakes which wouldn't have been out of place on a top London Afternoon Tea menu.

Well, we are off to Ocean Park next weekend, so I am sure I will have plenty more to say then.

Tarah for now!

J x

Art, Antiques, A Night-Out & an Enormous Escalator

Over the last couple of weekends, having not had any trips organised, we have been able to stay on Hong Kong Kong explore more of what this amazing city has to offer.

On Sunday a couple of weeks ago, we had tickets to the Hong Kong Art Fair 2012 which is the city's biggest art fair and brings together pieces from different art galleries all around the world. This trip was definitely an example of quantity over quality, and despite there being a few interesting pieces of art, the majority was a bit too niche for my taste. I have tried to take a few pictures of the most interesting pieces, but to be honest, my photos make most of the pieces look more artistic than they were in the flesh.

HK Art 2012 Fair Entrance Hall at The Hong Kong Exhibition & Convention Centre (HKECC)

Is this really art?

Jurassic Park meets Full Metal Jacket

More people tripped over this piece than actually looked at it with any interest.

Not sure if this is a piece of art, or just some interesting dividers

Interesting piece, but not hard to put together really???

One way to use your old Super-Soakers!

The weekend after our trip to the art gallery, we decided again to stay on Hong Kong Island and this time, explore the area around the Mid-Levels and Soho.

On Friday night we were invited to the birthday celebrations of one of D's colleagues, and on leaving the flat at 22:00 headed to Fly Bar in Lan Kwai Fun or LFK as it is known to the Chuppies (Chinese Yuppies). LKF is the equivalent of the West End, but is probably one of the few places in the world that makes a night out in London look good value. 

Fly Bar (Lan Kwai Fung)

It was definitely not this quiet when we left.

However, Fly was a great place to start the evening and we were soon into the swing of things getting our groove on, on the quickly filling dance floor. All, was good until I spotted a few of the kids that I had spent the previous day teaching. As well as making me rather uncomfortable, it also made me feel VERY VERY old. However, we were enjoying ourself too much to let this ruin are night, and we swiftly headed to grab something to eat before making our way to Dragon-I nightclub. A good time was had by all and we were soon once again getting our groove on in somewhat more rowdy conditions than Fly.

The following day, having had a bit of a lie-in we headed back to the Soho and Central area to have a look around the winding streets of the mid-levels. The main tourist spot in this part of town is the Mid-Levels escalator which winds it way up the hill from the hustle and bustle of the business district into the more secluded and relaxed Mid-Levels. We decided to ride the escalator to the top and then make our way down via the winding streets ad alleys that style this part of HK.

The Central to Mid-Levels Escalator

What we discovered was one of the most beautiful and interesting areas of Hong Kong, filled with antique filled market streets and hidden temples that defy the growing metropolis all around. An example of this, was the Man Mo Temple, which is a small, incense filled monastery dedicated to two very different Chinese gods, Man Cheong the God of Literature and  Kwan Yu, the god of war or martial valour. It was a beautiful and serene place, and for a while we felt like we had left the city only to be brought back to earth upon looking through the open roof of the temple, through which you could see the vast sky-scraper tower blocks which make up the residential estates of the Mid-Levels.

Inside the incense filled Man Mo Temple

More incense....

Our restaurant of choice for a VERY tasty lunch!

A 20-day incense burner, this has got about 2 days left

After our visit to the temple, we spent the rest of our afternoon wondering and perusing the antique stalls around Ladder Street and Cat Street. I use antiques loosely, however, as a number OF stalls were also selling broken Casio watches and pre-Nokia 5110 mobile phones (Proper Gordon Gekko-style bricks). Having earmarked a few items for purchase before we head back to the UK, we headed back to Causeway Bay for a good nights sleep and another couple of episodes of The West Wing.

We also discovered Elgin Street in the mid-levels,a tiny street packed with a great selection of restaurants. We decided to give the lunch menu in Bouchon a try and we were not disappointed, with both of us having a starter, drinks and a prime piece of fillet steak each, for under 25GBP.

That's all for now folks!  Catch up again soon. J

Lantau Island and the Statue of Buddha

This weekend we decided to head to the biggest island in Hong Kong, Lantau Island. This large island, home to Hong Kong International Airport is also home to the Tian Tian Buddhist statue of the Buddha which sits atop a hill in a mountainous region of the island. The solid bronze statue of Buddha is one of the most impressive sights that I have seen since arriving in Hong Kong and the personable looking Deity dominates the skyline from a number of viewpoints in the region, as can be seen from the pictures from the cable car on our way up to the to top of the mountain.

A close-up of the Big Buddha

The statue is a famous sight of pilgrimage for many Buddhists all around the world, and you could tell that many of the people at the statue were deeply affected by being so close to the huge colossus. The features on the statute are supposed to represent the deity's personable nature and this is definitely obvious when you stand and take a close look at the bronze sculpture.

The Solid Bronze Statue of Buddha

 After heading back down from the statue were headed to the Po Lin Monestary which has grown massively since the building of the statue in 1993. This small buddhist enclave has swiftly become a major sight of pilgrimage, but I am pleased to say that it has still managed to withhold its bhuddist beliefs and core teachings. With our ticket to see the Buddha we we also given the chance to sample some authentic Buddhist vegetarian dim sum, and after trying to decide what to have, we both decided that the food alone was worth the price of the ticket let alone the chance to see the massive deity up close.

The 200 stairs to Buddha 

Inside Po Lin Monestary

Decorations around the Monestary

Buddha sitting atop the mountain

One of the 12 warrior kings that guard the Monestary with statue of Buddha in background

Buddha from the Cable Car

Cable Car Ride

Rather haunting image of our cable car trip up to see the statue

 Unfortunately, as with the growth of tourism around the monestary and statue, the people in power in HK have decided that it is necessary build a 'Disney Style' authentic Chinese village full of tourist and souvenir shops. This slightly patronising view of life in China was unfortunately the busiest spot of the day, so we headed straight through and back to the cable car to take us back down the mountain to the MTR station. (It was not until we researched our trip when we got home that we found out about the cable cars chequered past! See the article http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=11&art_id=46616&sid=14019242&con_type=3 I think we may have taken the bus up to the statue if we had read this before we left, as we were both nervous enough in the cable car without this prior knowledge.

There is also a pogo display team at the top of the hill doing stunts, and this seemed the perfect excuse to post a picture I got of one of the guys doing a 'backflip' on a pogo stick, needless to say pogo sticks have got a bit more technicl since I was a kid.

Crazy pogo-ing man!

 We have started to plan our future trips outside of HK and I will keep you posted as to other trips and tours we take. We are looking to get go Vietnam, Japan and Beijing when we get the chance.

 Will catch up again soon! J

The Thai'm of our lives

On Saturday we packed our suitcase and headed to the airport for our first holiday since we arrived in Hong Kong. Having missed out on our Easter holidays we were both looking forward to getting away and relaxing for a bit. D had managed to find a great hotel for us in Phuket and booking the flights through Air Asia ensured that the cost wasn't too high. The airport train from HK was swift as usual and we soon arrived in on of the most impressive airport terminals/ shopping malls I have ever visited. Both terminals are full of yet more watch and jewellery shops, and even right at the departure gates there is a huge selection of shopping choices.

Unbelievably, even though the average height of most south-east Asian is about 4 inches shorter than Europeans, the seats on Air Asia still had more legroom than the likes of Whizz Air, Easyjet and Ryanair. We didn't arrive in Phuket until just before midnight so our journey to the hotel wasn't particularly thrilling, but it was when we woke up in our room on our first day that the true beauty and splendour of our resort became clear. After a hearty breakfast of a mixture of Asian, Continental, English and American breakfasts we headed down to the infinity pool for a spot of sunbathing and swimming. The pool lay right on the side of the Andaman Sea and we quickly found ourselves frying in the morning sun. (As we were to find out later on, frying a little bit too much).

Infinity Pool on Andaman Sea

Our room was a sea-view room which had wonderful views over the Andaman and when you looked out from the bed looked like the sort of view that you would find on the desktop of your computer. We made our way down to the restaurant to try out the hotel's Thai restaurant. The food throughout the week was brilliant and we made the most of breakfast each morning (especially me) in order to keep us going till dinner.

View from our room!!!!!

One of the best features of the hotel was its private island, Bon Island, which is situated a 15 minute boat ride away from the hotel's launch. We spent most of our time on the island and because we were there during the off-season, the beach was partially empty most of the day. The coral and fish were not as impressive as the Red Sea on our honeymoon, but the quiet, blue, tranquil waters were still a pleasure to swim in. There was also a bar and restaurant on the island so we were never to far away from a source of mojitos.

Bon Island

Bon Island again

Relaxing on Bon Island

During our week in Thailand we also booked ourselves onto a boat trip around Koh Phi Phi and some of the smaller islands. We boarded the boat in the Phuket Boat lagoon and we were soon bouncing across the waves of the Andaman at high speeds... well we were for about 15 minutes until one of the boats engines decided that it done enough work for the day. After a 10 minute wait on a small deserted island we were on our again and headed for 'Monkey Beach'. This was a small inlet on Phi Phi crammed with tourist boats, each queuing for their chance to feed the ravenous monkeys. I think its the monkeys who definitely have the upper hand in this battle of evolution. They just sit on the tree, waiting for the hoards of tourists to throw bananas at them, offering little in return. It is a very one sided relationship, but one we both enjoyed (just perhaps not as much as the monkeys).

Monkey from aforementioned beach

After a lunch break, at a busy, but pretty cove we headed for the headline attractions of our tour. Both film locations, for famous films, and both equally breathtaking. The first that we headed to was a lagoon on the coast of Phi Phi. The island and lagoon was used in the film Jurassic Park 2: The Lost World and is 10m and filled with the bluest water that I have ever seen. Unfortunately my photos don't really do it all justice. We were given the chance to swim in the lagoon, which was an experience we will never forget, to have such blue water in a lagoon so deep was both eerie and beautiful at the same time.

Jurassic Park 2: The Lost World Island

Nice location for a spot of lunch

Lagoon we swam in that was used in JP2

VERY VERY blue water from lagoon

After our swim we headed a bit further around the island to the beach used in the Leonardo Di Caprio film 'The Beach'. This again was full of tourists when we arrived, but having just finished reading Alex Garland's book on which the film is based I was really looking forward to exploring the beach and this side of the island. The bay and beach are both absolutely stunning and I am afraid again that my pictures really can't express what a truly beautiful place it really was. We were given the chance to have a wonder inland from the beach and they have even left some of the original set from the film just a bit back from the beach, where the film's protagonists camp was located. After an hour or so relaxing on the quietening beach, we headed back for the mainland on the boat and back to the peace of the hotel.

Approaching the beach from 'The Beach' in our boat

Camp left from the film set

Got to be one of the most beautiful places we had ever been

More of  'The Beach'

Relaxing on 'The Beach'

Below are a few pictures of in and around the hotel so you can see where we were staying, I hope they don't make you too jealous.... That is of course a lie, I hope that they make you very jealous.

Our room, with desktop screen-saver style view

Hotel Reception

Hotel Entrance Area

View from our breakfast table

That is plenty from me for now. Catch up again soon.