Friday, January 20, 2012

Our Hong Kong Holiday (October 2011): Day 4 (Victoria Harbour, Nan Lian Garden, Ferry Terminal: Kowloon-Macau)

I did a lot of research prior to our trip and most of the info I got came from the Hong Kong Thread of PinoyExchange (PEx). Thanks to commoner who created the thread and to all the PExers who contributed. :) 

We were a party of 5 adults and 1 kid (a senior at 62yrs, then 29, 26, 25, and 18 yrs old, and a 2yr-old-kid).  The promo tickets were bought in February 2011 (tagal ng paghihintay, hehe).

OCTOBER 30, 2011, Sunday (Victoria Harbour & Nan Lian Garden / Kowloon-Macau)
We woke up early today (even the little boy) to attend the 8:45AM English mass at Rosary Church.  We checked-out early from Golden Crown Guesthouse and left our luggage at the front desk.  However, when we were about to leave for the mass, Ryken pooped (and it's the first time he did it since we arrived in HK.  Thank you, Lord!) so I looked for another chapel that had a later schedule.  I found St. Peter's Church at Mariner's Club which had an English mass at 10:00AM.  It was just near Golden Crown but when we arrived there, the doors were already closed because the chapel was full.  We chanced upon a Filipina named Ate Mel, who told us that chapels in HK are very small so they easily fill up.  We chatted for a while and we told her that we were going to Victoria Harbour and she offered to accompany us there.
with Ate Mel, Filipina in HK
the Clock Tower
newlyweds we met (simple lang daw ang kasal dito per Ate Mel)
fountain at 1881 Heritage Hotel

at Victoria Harbour
on a walkalator inside the MTR station
We saw the Hong Kong Museum of Art and Space Museum near the harbor.  We skipped Avenue of Stars because it was really hot (near noontime already).  Tambay muna kami sa Starbucks sa Museum of Art and had snacks.  I bought Starbucks City Mugs there, of course, for my collection (got Hong Kong, China, and Macau). :)

Next stop was Nan Lian Garden near Diamond Hill MTR Station.  I loved how the garden contrasted with the high-rise buildings.  It was like merging the ancient period with the modern times.  The place was so quiet and relaxing and admission is free! :) Ryken actually pooped again here and I was so thankful that there's a diaper-changing area in the restroom.  It was also well-maintained and clean. 
 
 

 
Run, Ryken, Run! :)

We went back to TST to eat a quick (late) lunch before going to the Hong Kong Ferry Terminal.  Mama and my sister-in-law ate at Mcdonald's while the rest of us ate at Summit Delicious (recommended again by fellow PExer, delisyus).  I've been looking for this resto since we arrived in Hong Kong and I found it on our last day, hehe.  Hubby ordered beef spareribs, my brother ordered wonton noodles, and I ordered a rice topping meal but the waiter mistook it for another order so I got fried rice (har!).  Our total bill was HKD121.00.  Ryken liked the rice, though, and was able to eat a lot. 
sign of Summit Delicious
wonton noodles
beef spareribs
my fried rice (which was supposed to be a rice topping meal)

hiyang si Ryken sa Chinese food :)
After lunch, we went back to Golden Crown to get our luggage and hailed a taxi for 5persons at the corner of the hostel building to go to the Hong Kong Ferry Terminal.  I requested Kenny (one of the managers of Golden Crown) to write on a piece of paper the Chinese translation of Hong Kong Ferry Terminal so I would just show it to the taxi driver.  The taxi fare was HKD43.00 from Golden Crown Guesthouse in TST (this already includes HKD20.00 surcharge for four luggage; there's surcharge of HKD5.00 for each baggage in the trunk).

Upon arriving the ferry terminal (which was around 5:00PM), I quickly went to the NWFF booth and bought tickets for the Kowloon-Macau 5:30PM trip (HKD166 each).  Ryken should have a ticket even if he's only two years old (but this wasn't checked when we boarded, sayang!).  The terminal is similar to the Batangas Port :)  Hubby and my brother went to 7-Eleven to use up the remaining credits of our octopus cards and they bought Yakult, water, and some biscuits.

After a few minutes, I heard boarding announcements in Chinese and it was a bit inaudible because of the noise of passengers in the terminal.  I was aware that we have to board at least 10 minutes before departure time.  It was around 5:25PM already and when I listened again to the announcement (now in English), it was already the last call for boarding!!  We ran from the pre-departure area all the way to the ferry as I saw some Chinese also running. Haha! Another Amazing Race episode in our holiday. :)

The fastcraft was huge and roomy and it was bigger than our local Supercat.  There were only a few passengers and the ferry left on the dot.  We sat at the middle part of the ferry.  The trip was smooth except for some portions where I almost felt like I would vomit (blame it on the Yakult I drank earlier, har!).  My sister-in-law who was a first-timer on a ferry got seasick and she forgot to bring Bonamine.  My mom hails from Victoria, Oriental Mindoro so we're used to riding fastcrafts and ro-ro ferries.  Even Ryken wasn't troubled by the waves but when we were near the Macau Ferry Terminal, he cried a bit and slept on my lap.  Baka nahilo na rin.  
Bye, HK! (view from the ferry)

ang likot :)


'Til next time, Hong Kong! We had a fabulous vacation and we will definitely go back. :)

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