Just over a month ago I wrote a post about Typhoon Utor transforming the normally bustling Hong Kong into a ghost town...Storm signal T 8 was hoisted sending the city that never sleeps into a temporary coma. You can read all about what happens when a T8 is hoisted here. Tonight the vibrant financial hub is once again in the firing line and the world is watching closely. While it's been downgraded from the 'Super Typhoon' which has lashed Taiwan and the Philippines killing at least two people, it's now barreling towards Asia's World City at 160 km per/hour - expected to pass within 100 kilometres of the city tonight. It's being touted the largest storm on the planet this year AND the biggest storm to hit Hong Kong in 34 years, since Typhoon Hope in 1979 which killed 12 and injured 260. The city is preparing for severe flooding due to gale force winds and exceptionally high tides. … [Read more...]
Shopping in Hong Kong: The Word on the Street
We'd just finished Sunday brunch in Hong Kong's oh-so-sassy SoHo when I announced (with just a hint of mischief) that it was time for us to get a family pet! "What and where from?" stammered my slightly alarmed husband. The Goldfish Street! Surely you've heard of the famous Goldfish Markets I pressed? He hadn't. But I had….and I'd decided after three years, it was time to go and get ourselves amongst them - even if it was just to look at the spectacle I'd heard so much about. (They say kids can learn a lot from having a pet right?) When it comes to shopping in Hong Kong, I've discovered there's pretty much a street for everything and anything. An entire street dedicated to your retail requirements! Bonus is, you don't have to stray too far from our neck of the woods for a lot of these 'specialty' streets. Mighty Mong Kok is your 'one stop shop' if you want something remotely weird and wonderful, like say a specific electronic gadget at a bargain basement price, a caged bird or maybe a bunch of Hong Kong's freshest flowers or yep even a kitchen sink! It goes without saying that Mong Kok is rarely, if ever, quiet…. unless it's morning, then things are a little on the sleepy side. Come afternoon it's literally heaving and on a weekend, well...you need to suit up ready to do battle with the teeming mass of humanity! Above ground, footbridges connecting tall buildings are overflowing with bodies - and it's not just Hong Kong's Sunday shoppers hastily making their way to and from their shopping destination - Filipino Maids clambering for a patch of land to relax on, on their one day off, take up residence on these walkways that are well and truly swarming with people. Sitting on cardboard boxes, they socialize, eat, drink and be merry. Some even sleep. Walking through their 'Sunday session' is a little like walking the gang plank…hundreds of pairs of eyes take a peek at the trio of unmistakeable Guailos, as we scurry past. On the ground, streets flanked by uneven footpaths are jammed with people ducking and diving in every direction; old buildings - some laced with wall-to-wall bamboo scaffolding - others laden with hanging washing - loom over a jigsaw of neon signs parading every variety of 'retail therapy' imaginable. As you muscle your way through the crowds, not only do you need to look in front of you, you need eyes on the ground, up above and quite possibly in the back of your head! Locals squeeze through tiny gaps pushing carts loaded sky-high with gear that threatens to topple off at any moment… Drops of water splash on your head from the myriad of air conditioners whirring above in overdrive to combat the steaming humidity. A plethora of cobbled-together stalls and shops exhibit a mish-mash of goods mostly selling variations of the same thing. This is the alternative to shopping in Hong Kong's giant shopping malls where designer stores rule the retail universe. So arriving in one piece (just) on Goldfish Street we found a whole street dedicated exclusively to pets - mostly of the small fish variety. Plastic bags containing brightly-colored fish hung like lolly bags in shop entry-ways beckoning passersby, while inside tanks lined the walls, filled with fish in every color and size. A few metres along we found a shop selling only fish tanks and bowls, a little further along the shops with the fish food and greenery. (Where's the fun in having everything in the one shop!) We spot bird cages for sale but no birds. That's OK, Bird Street or Yuen Po Street is just down the road. Here you'll find hundreds of birds twittering in exquisitely crafted bamboo cages. This is where you can see an ancient Chinese hobby in action. Elderly men have fed and preened their feathered friends for thousands of years, all in return for a chorus of sweet songs. In fact, it's not uncommon to see owners walking their birds in local parks! A stone's throw away, the famous Ladies Markets stand with an avalanche of neatly stocked stalls brandishing copy handbags, iPhone cases and Chinese trinkets in every shade conceivable. Nearby is Fa Yuen Street or what's been dubbed Sneaker Street - where for the past few decades people have flocked for a taste of what's quite possibly the biggest gathering of sports shoes on the planet. Nike, Adidas, Puma, you name it, this street owns it. Then there's Cat Street - overflowing with rare Chinese treasures (not those of the meowing type) antique dealers offer everything from Ming dynasty furniture to ancient snuff bottles, antique coins and kitschy bargains. Jade Street is of course as it sounds. A market with a hefty supply of jade jewellery on display. Given jade symbolises 'long life and good health' in Chinese, the markets here are unparalleled by any other on the globe. If you need a lucky charm...you're in the right place. Up for some DIY action, Tile Street is dedicated to - funnily enough - tiles, wall paper, window frames, bath tubs and maybe even the odd kitchen sink! A little further afield, there's a Photocopy Street (apparently there are a lot of schools nearby)! Want a phone that doesn't cost you an arm and a leg? Step into what I like to call 'Apple Heaven.' Kowloon's Sham Shui Po is a haven for secondhand iPhones and iPads as far as the eye can see - (Let's just say I'm pretty sure this is where the two iPhones I lost have ended up!) Fancy some black moss, dried snakeskin, dried sausage, scallop or abalone? Dried Seafood Street in Sheung Wan is calling you! Birds Nest Street is not too far from here either. No prizes for guessing what's on the menu….just in case you're wondering, this is the 'eating' kind of birds nest. Sheung Wan is also home to the Business Card Market, a single lane way crowded with business card vendors who'll develop and design your personal business card in 24 hours. Handy! So about now you probably get the gist…forget about those big glossy designer shopping malls in Hong Kong, get up close and personal at street level where shopping in Hong Kong is a whole different kettle of fish. Sadly, with my visit to Goldfish Street, I think the last laugh's on me. With my toddler's half-hearted interest in Gilly and Goldy, her fish - my husband and I seem to have spent more time huddled over the fish tank, tending to their every whim. Who knew pet fish could be so much work?! Just for fun, I asked my husband if he'd heard of Cat Street……. … [Read more...]
A Foreigner in Your Own Country? Returning Home for Holidays as an Expat!
Living in Hong Kong as an Expat -- the Trip Home Getting ready to travel from Hong Kong You would think by now, being a so-called 'seasoned' expat, I would surely take a trip to see family in my great 'globetrotting' stride? I mean, seriously, when you've crossed more time zones than you can count (with toddler in tow) how hard can it be? Tickets, passports, pack a few bags…... But that - right there - is where all the trouble starts. "Pack a few bags." After trips here, there and everywhere, I admit, the airport may be beginning to resemble a second home (I can order a trusty Mint Mocha in most terminals) but alas, I still struggle to master the art of packing a decent suitcase. For starters, whoever decided 23 kilos is a fair luggage allowance clearly isn’t concerned with having the right outfit to wear on holidays, at all times. When your rather sturdy well-traveled bag takes up five kilos on its own, surely it's illegal to put restrictions on the number of stilettos (I may, admittedly, never wear) or those trainers - just in case I make it to the gym (ok, so hands up if you ever make it to a fitness centre on holidays)? But it seems the airlines aren't familiar with those 'just in case' items, hence stuffing a fortnight's essentials into a small space is at best challenging. (Thank god for my slightly more regimented husband and his military-precision packing skills!) To make matters worse, these days it's not all about me and my half a dozen handbags, now there's a small person requiring her own luggage space! (Don't even think about squeezing that Hello Kitty handbag in, short stuff!) Flying with a Toddler This trip we jet-setted scrambled to the UK …my other half's homeland. It's been awhile since we escaped the Asian bubble, six months to be precise, so it was with much anticipation we left Hong Kong and it's strapping skyscrapers, steaming humidity and all things oriental behind. … [Read more...]
Typhoon Utor turns Hong Kong into a Ghost Town
I woke up this morning in a city at a complete standstill. Hong Kong - the normally heaving metropolis from dusk till dawn -- a ghost town. From the forty something floor, the tops of trees swaying below me were the only signs of movement - a dark sky and patchy rain, reminders a super-typhoon with winds gusting up to 140km an hour was skirting Hong Kong. There was not a soul to be seen (apart from security guards at the front gate wearing crash helmets). In a city that never sleeps, Hong Kong was in a temporary coma. At 1:40am, with Typhoon Utor 300km off the coast, the Hong Kong Observatory hoisted Storm Signal 8 - the second highest signal - forcing the government to open 17 temporary storm shelters…and locals to batten down the hatches. … [Read more...]
One Night in Manila: Asia’s Forgotten City…..
When you're born in the land of the Long White Cloud - the place dubbed ‘middle-earth’ - and then raised in that other place they call 'The Land Down Under' -- getting to another country usually involves (at the very least) a good few hours up in the air. Let's face it, flying within Australia can take up to five hours and involve jet lag! So, the idea that I can be in a completely different country, new culture, new language (heck even new chopstick etiquette) within a couple of hours still manages to impress me! Suffice to say, during my time here in Asia's World City, I've managed quite a few short flights that have landed me, rather excitedly, in exotic, seemingly far-flung locations…all within the blink of an eye. With this in mind, I took my latest trip to the Philippines with a grain of salt. It’s just up the road - been there done that. That grain of salt was in fact so teensy; I didn't even check my e-ticket (properly). I'd been invited to host a corporate awards night as Master of Ceremonies (as I have done many times). But it seems the close proximity of this foreign land had me held hostage to a touch of complacency. Admittedly - I was a little sidetracked with family in town. As any expat will know, much-loved visitors on your turf means any semblance of normality is totally lost - you happily immerse yourself in the vortex of sightseeing, shopping and eating out. Every day is like a holiday in your own city (until reality bites). Click here to read more on EXPAT FOCUS … [Read more...]
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