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Imagine my shock when my manager pulled me into his office on a Monday afternoon, and asked me if I wanted to fly to China the following evening to help support a project I knew little about! I realized it was a great opportunity so quickly agreed, and spent the next day coming up to speed on the project I would be discussing for the next week. I was to meet a US rep (Jerry), of the Chinese company we were working with, at the Hong Kong airport; he was to be my guide and interpretor. Tuesday, I arrive at the airport a couple hours early and spot an internet terminal - I can't resist, I swipe my card and am online surfing and doing email. I walk back to the gate, only to discover that the plane is trying to leave early, and I'm one of the few that hasn't boarded yet! Doh! I board the plane, find my seat, and prepare for the long 14 hour flight. The flight went fairly well, I was able to sleep most of the way. Each seat had its own LCD TV, and the shows were decent. One channel showed the aircraft's status - altitude, velocity, and its position overlayed on a map. VERY cool. Flying coach sucked though, it was very cramped for someone with long legs like myself. Once at the airport, I found the meeting place (in front of McDonald's) and waited four hours for Jerry's plane to arrive. No trouble hooking up with Jerry, though when we went to get my Chinese Visa, we were told it'd be done at 3:00 that day (this was at about 10 AM). We decided to head into Kowloon for a few hours (note - Kowloon is across from Hong Kong Island, see map at bottom of page). To get there, we took the Airport Express train, a high speed passenger train that cost about $10US roundtrip. Very clean, very quiet. Back at the airport, we picked up my visa and caught the company's shuttle van into China. Entering China is somewhat complicated. First, you have to exit Hong Kong (duh). To do so, you provide your passport and your copy of the entry paper you filled out when entering. Then, you proceed to the Chinese border, where you exit your vehicle and walk through the border building (the vehicle goes around and meets you on the other side of the building - walking through the building is actually otpional but can often be faster). Here, you provide your passport and another form you fill out (basic info - name, etc). Reverse process when leaving China into Hongkong. Basically, lots of forms to fill out constantly. Work went well, enough people spoke enough English that we were able to get the job done with little trouble. I worked Friday & Saturday, then headed into Hong Kong for the weekend, then worked Monday through Wednesday. I was able to wrap up work on Wednesday in time to catch the 12:00 shuttle van to the airport. Since my flight was at 10:50PM, that gave me the afternoon to head to Hong Kong island (via the Airport Express again) and wander the city, where I saw the Bull and the Bear Pub, and Times Square. - click on the thumbnails below for more pictures from each area - |
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Hong Kong Island |
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The Western area of Hong Kong Island
showed its British influence and felt like any large American city.
Shops such as Gucci lined the streets, and tall, clean skyscrapers towered
overhead. I took the subway down to Times Square, a few miles east of
the main financial district, and experienced the OTHER side of Hong
Kong - see the pictures for yourself.
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Kowloon, Hong Kong |
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Kowloon felt, at first, very alien (though
I later felt quite comfortable there). Neat city, visual overload though,
lots going on. We had lunch at a Chinese restaurant, where I first encountered
a menu with no English - doh! Thankfully, Jerry was able to translate.
We ate at the Planet Hollywood once, which was one of the few places
I saw acknowledging and/or celebrating Halloween.
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Longhua, China |
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Upon seeing Long Hua, I really felt
culture shock. This was more traditional Chinese, with little Western
influence. Very little English writing anywhere. The hotel we stayed
at was about $25US a night and one of the nicer places in town (similar
to a Motel 6 by our standards). No English anywhere. We found an EXCELLENT
restaurant in town called the California Steakhouse - if you're over
there, I highly recommend it! The menu is printed in Chinese AND English,
and features a very comprehensive array of steaks and other grilled
food - VERY good. The Chinese food, of course, was excellent and the
best I've had - full of flavor and a great bargain. Yes, I ate at McDonald's
once. Couldn't find a decent cup of coffee...although there was a place
called 'Coffee Language' that looked promising but didn't open until
noon!
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Mong Kok, Hong Kong |
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What would a trip to Hong Kong be without
picking up some pirated computer software? Unfortunately, the government
doesn't agree and has really cracked down on pirated computer software.
Fortunately, a new employee at work was able to give me directions to
a place in Mong Kok (northern part of Kowloon) that sold computer CDs.
It was in such an out of the way location that I never would have found
it if just wandering the streets as a tourist - you really need to have
known where to look to find it. Sorry, but to protect its existence,
I'd rather not give out directions online here. :-)
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Shen Zhen, China |
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The area of China at the Hong Kong border
is known as Shen Zhen, and is what I believe they refer to as a 'special
economic zone.' Entry is restricted to people with money and/or jobs;
it's similar to Kowloon in appearance. Very nice looking and clean.
We passed through this area to a 'suburb' called Long Hua.
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