[DIARIES] 20141218 Day 2 Hong Kong - Wong Tai Sin, Central, Victoria Harbour

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Day 1: [DIARIES] 20141217 Day 1 Hong Kong - Lantau Island, Tsim Tsa Tsui, Mong Kok
Day 2: [DIARIES] 20141218 Day 2 Hong Kong - Wong Tai Sin, Central, Victoria Harbour
Day 3: [DIARIES] 20141219 Day 3 Hong Kong - Jordan, Mong Kok
Day 3: [DIARIES] 20141219 Day 3 Shenzhen - Luohu
Day 4: [DIARIES] 20141220 Day 4 Shenzhen - Nanshan, Luohu
Day 5: [DIARIES] 20141221 Day 5 Shenzhen - Futian
Day 5: [DIARIES] 20141221 Day 5 Guangzhou - Haizhu
Day 6: [DIARIES] 20141222 Day 6 Guangzhou - Baiyun, Haizhu
Day 7: [DIARIES] 20141223 Day 7 Guangzhou & Zhuhai - Liwan, Yuexiu, Gongbei
Day 8: [DIARIES] 20141224 Day 8 Macau
Day 9: [DIARIES] 20141225 Day 9 Macau

Woke up early after a tiring first day. It will be another busy day with jam packed schedule due to my short stay in Hong Kong. I only have 2 mornings in Hong Kong, so today I have planned to pay a visit to Tim Ho Wan followed by a visit to Wong Tai Sin Temple and Chi Lin Nunnery since all three places located at the North side and will be along the way.

Brushed up and packed up with my camera gears since I won't be coming back to the hostel until late night, I load as many equipment as possible because I'm also heading to Victoria Peak in the evening for the signature Hong Kong night view (regretted after that due to the heavy weight). 

Head down to the Tsim Tsa Tsui MTR station right below my hostel building. The station is crowded but moving. I'm not sure whether I'm too early or too late as I don't see much office crowd around. I'm heading to Tim Ho Wan's main branch which is located at Sham Sui Po, which is few stations away from Tsim Tsa Tsui.

I took the B2 exit and end up at this junction. Trying hard to determine my direction and using my tablet as my map and compass with my preloaded location tags. The restaurant is about 10 minutes walking distance away from the station.

Spotted this lady near the main street. There are many ladies, especially those in the elderly age earn their living through collecting recyclable items. In a competitive country like Hong Kong, every opportunity to earn money will further ensure your survival in this concrete city.

I'm actually at the older part of Hong Kong, which is also known as Old Hong Kong where the community and buildings here are towards the older age. Despite the run down buildings, the real estate price here is still phenomenal with a small size apartment cost as much as few million Hong Kong dollars.

After a few turns and junctions, finally I saw the big sign board of Tim Ho Wan. I purposely came early to beat the lunch crowd later. Luckily there are still some tables and don't need to queue for it. I guessed my planning pays off.

One of the must order in Tim Ho Wan is definitely their signature oven baked Char Siew Bun. Overall the dim sum here might not be the best in Hong Kong, but definitely value for money especially with the one Michelin star status.

Read more about Tim Ho Wan in a separate post:

[FOOD] 20141218 Tim Ho Wan HK 添好运 @ Sham Sui Po

After the fulfilling meal, I took a walk towards Prince Edward MTR station where I will be heading to Wong Tai Sin via MTR. I chose to walk to Prince Edward instead of Sham Sui Po because I want to explore more on foot instead of travelling underground. 

The streets are rather quiet as opposed to what I had in mind about busy Hong Kong. Probably due to the early hours during weekdays as I see most of the shops are still closed. Eventually I arrived at Mong Kok area, which is just next to Sham Sui Po.

I walked passed the Gold Fish street but most of the shops are still closed. Gold fish is rather popular in Hong Kong with a whole street selling them. Only a few shops are opened when I'm around (I did came back the next day afternoon and the street is full of gold fishes).

Read more about my Day 3 experience in Gold Fish Street in a separate post:

[PLACE] Gold Fish Market 金鱼街 @ Mong Kok

Passed by the famous Kam Wah Cafe at Mong Kok that is well known for their Polo Bun. But I was still full from the earlier breakfast and decided to take away instead of dining in.

I came back in Day 3 for lunch and you can read more about it via separate post below:

[FOOD] 20141219 Kam Wah Cafe 金华茶室 @ Mongkok

I find my way towards Prince Edward MTR station for my next destination i.e. Wong Tai Sin. Prince Edward Station is also the interchange between Tsuen Wan Line and Kwun Tong Line. The long escalator leading directly to the respective platform clearly shows how effective the public transport system of Hong Kong despite its age. In other countries, you probably need to use two different escalators to get down two platforms. The locals self cautiously stand at the right side and opened up the left side for those in a hurry. something rarely seen in Malaysia due to the lack of civic cautious. 

Kwun Tung Line is a rather quiet line as most of the crowd will commute via Tsuen Wan Line to popular hot spots like Tsim Tsa Tsui and Hong Kong island.

Long heard about Wong Tai Sin in HK TVB dramas and decided to drop by the temple since it's also along the way. The Wong Tai Sin MTR station is just next to the entrance of the temple and I was shocked by the huge crowd of Chinese tourists pouring in via tourist buses. The temple is basically flooded by the mainland tourists.


The guards were very impatient towards the tourists, trying their best to crowd control but it was never an easy job with most of the instructions fall on deaf ears of ignorant tourists.


I followed the crowd up the stone stairs to a platform with statues of the 12 zodiac in front of the main arch. It was not easy to get a clean picture of the arch without someone trying to photobomb you.


Wong Tai Sin is a relatively "young" temple which was established in the 20th century but it's the most "powerful" one as almost every wish will be granted. There were more Chinese tourists than the locals and everyone's been busy burning joss sticks and 求签 (shaking a barrel of sticks while making your wish, the first stick that falls out from the barrel will be the answer). Devotees will then bring the stick to the counters at the sides to ask for an explanation on your "fate".


The trip to Wong Tai Sin took longer than expected and I have ran out of time for my next destination to Chi Lin Nunnery and Nan Lian Garden which is also nearby. I'm heading back to Tsim Tsa Tsui since it's noon time already and I have many more stops to make by today. On the way out, I saw these stalls outside of the temple that sells various item for worshipping, similar to any other popular temples in Malaysia.


Ok, rushed back to Tsim Tsa Tsui via MTR. I'm heading to the HK Island today which is what I have planned to spent the whole day there. Passed by the famous The Peninsula Hotel and spotted the wicked RR Phantom, I will be back in the night for a night shot.


Continue my pace towards the Tsim Tsa Tsui jetty. Of course I must not miss the ride on the historical HK Star Ferry 天星小轮 across the Victoria Harbour. But before that, I took some time to explore the Victoria Harbour in day time before coming back at night. I took the Polo bun that I bought earlier at Kam Wah for a quick lunch while resting my legs.


There are many street vendors along the pathway that offers photograph service to tourist and visitors to have a picture with the remarkable cityscape behind. But the weather today is a bit disappointing with gloomy and misty weather. The red ferry looks very identical to the ferry back in Penang, which I believed both ferry services are related somehow.


This particular spot appeared many times in HK movies or dramas where the actors will be either here to date, to quarrel, or to "jump sea". A life buoy is there to standby for any person who attempts to be a "movie star" for a day.


The clock tower is located along the way towards the jetty. This is also a hot spot for movie or drama scenes especially for romantic scenes. Nothing much about the clock tower besides the historical sentiments. Grab a few frames and continue heading towards the jetty.


After a short walk from the clock tower, the Star Ferry jetty is in view. Despite the modern transportation like the MTR, the Star Ferry still operates the traditional way, keeping the historical sentiment value just like our very own Penang ferry. Many locals still prefer this cheap and convenient mode of transports across the Victoria Harbour.


In contrast to the modern city, the jetty still retain very much of its old look with the kinda run down facilities but still in working order.


The stairs still keep a very traditional look with green paint and sprayed words.


Lucky I have bought my Octopus card much earlier instead of getting the tokens from the vending machine. The octopus card is indeed a very convenient card in comparison to our Touch n Go which has limited usage.


Not many people is on board and it's a very old looking ferry despite the new paint job. One interesting thing about the seats is that you can swing backrest according to your direction. I didn't realise it was swing-able until an middle-aged man swung it with a grumpy face.


The ferry attendant called for the last call and then pull the deck up manually before the ferry departs. He is also the guy who lower the deck when the ferry is approaching the opposite terminal.


The ferry took off slowly, moving towards the HK island. The ride cost HKD2.50 and span about 8 minutes to reach the opposite side.


The ferry slowly approaches the Central Star Ferry Pier with the sight of the Hong Kong Maritime Museum located just next to the pier. The notorious Hong Kong city scrapers are located just behind.


As soon as I arrived at the Central Pier, it's like a totally different world at this side of the island. Everything is more modern and organized. Pedestrian skywalks connecting most of the hotspots in Central district. Even though there are also some skywalks at Mong Kok area, but the skywalk at Central is modern and appealing, which is very contrast to each other.


Everything becomes interesting when you are at a foreign country, even the road markings seemed special.


The BIG BIG Apple store located near the Central MTR station, Steve Jobs will be proud.


First thing first, I need to look for a stop to try the "ding ding car" or basically the tram, which is only available in Central district. The name "ding ding" car was derived because of the sound of the tram bell.


I just randomly board one of the trams and paid using octopus card. It cost HKD2.70 per trip regardless of stop. The tram is tall, narrow and packed with people. I squeezed my way up to the upper deck stand right at the front to capture the best view available.


I lost count on how many stops I have passed by and finally decided to disembark at the Dried Seafood Street 海味街 which is Des Voeux Road at Sheung Wan. It's not a common place for tourist to visit. The whole street is basically selling various dried seafood like salted fish, dried scallops, dried sea cucumber etc etc.



I will just skip shopping here because I'm not gonna carry salted fish with for the rest of my trip. I walked my way towards Central District after establishing my location and route.


Passed by one of the tram stop nearby Western Market, which is also one of the historical spots but currently transformed into a tourist destination with shops and stalls, something similar to our Central Market. There's nothing much here and I continue my way to Hollywood Road.


Central District is a hilly area due to the geographical landscape. The slope starts to incline when I move towards the inner part of the island where I need to climbs stairs after stairs across streets. I also detour to Upper Lascar Road, or also know as Cat Street. This street is also know for its antique stall where various antique can be found, from the cheap up to the expensive ones.


Hollywood road is just next to Upper Lascar Road, it's a street filled with vibes and energy with various street arts. The Hollywood road is a very long stretched road and hilly as well with very steep slopes and pedestrians must beware of incoming traffic. I'm passing by Hollywood Road towards my next stop, which is the famous Tai Cheong Bakery 泰昌饼家. The main branch is located at Lyndhurst Terrace, Central District, almost at the end of Hollywood Road.


It's 3pm in the afternoon and time for tea break! Have long heard about the famous HK egg tart and really wonder how good can it be. Was anticipating a long que but it turn out that the crowd is just fine. People here are not as kiasu as Malaysian where everyone will be lining up for famous food even though some are really overrated. Besides the main branch, I also notice a few branches and outlets at various corner of Hong Kong.

With my stomach filled and sky getting dark, it's time for me to move on to my main destination for the day, which is the Victoria's Peak. I intend to reach to the top before the night falls to see whether I can capture a good sunset view of the Victoria Harbour from the peak. Hong Kong's sky turns dark around 6pm during winter. Walking in Hong Kong is so convenient with the facilities like skywalk.


The busy street.. I mean the not-so-busy street of Central district.


On the way towards the tram station, I passed by Tsui Wah Restaurant, which is also another famous restaurant. However, I don't have the time nor stomach space for this now. Maybe will come back for dinner next time.


I took a tram from Central area towards Hong Kong Park and got off at the Murray Road stop in the middle of the road and have to do some illegal crossing. Double checked my direction and walked my way up towards the Peak Tram base station. Crowd started to form before the evening, mostly Chinese and Korean tourists. Again, using the octopus card skips the ticketing counter. The queue was bad as there are no proper lines and visitors are let in by batches. When you are against some "less-civilised" people, you know what's gonna happen next.


There's a short history lane at both sides of the wall, with stories and items of the history of Hong Kong and also the peak tram. The peak tram operates using a pulley system, with two cabins at the opposite side, when one goes up, the other comes down, the weight of the downhill tram will pull the other tram upwards.


The journey up took 10 minutes, with the view of Hong Kong island at your right side, so now you know where to choose for your seating. I recorded a video of the journey upwards instead of pictures. Will upload it when I have the time to compile and edit the videos.


The tram arrived at the top station and leads you to a shopping complex with many booth and stalls selling souvenirs. Travel up the escalator to look for the exit towards the Peak Galleria where the outdoor square is located.


It was a cold and windy evening with gloomy weather. I foresee the rain is coming soon, which is a big let down as today is the only time I will be up here and was all prepared for a nice night view of Hong Kong, especially when I carried all my equipment along with me whole day.


I scout around for the best photo spot to set up my camera later and finally found a spot near the stone hut towards the side of the Peak Galleria. This is also where most of the people would choose to take their picture from as the angle is very identical. Noticed there's a construction going on at the lower side, which I think will obstruct the overall view in the future.

The weather is very damp and gloomy, the rain started just before night falls, It was a huge disappointment. I tug up my hood and wait patiently under the hut while waiting for the rain to subside. I noticed a few other tourists also waiting along with me with their tripods. After about an half an hour wait, the rain finally subsided. We have missed the sunset but thankfully the sky has cleared with a good view of the cityscape.


I setup my gorilla pod directly on the stone henge while the others using traditional tripods. The gorilla pod gives me a competitive edge where I can place my camera directly at the edge of the view and no obstruction of traffic, means less interference to people and from people. I took a few shots, compare the settings and reframe for better view. I also shared some tips to some fellow tourists beside me as he seemed to struggle to a get a frame.


With everything set and my CPL filter attached to cut off stray lights, the results are as above. It was still early and the lights are not fully turned on yet but I'm satisfied. The journey down requires another tram ride, and the queue down is no where near short. Take a look at the time and I know I'm gonna miss the laser light show at Victoria Harbour later. The laser performance is the world's longest streak of laser performance which occur 8pm sharp everyday and has been lasted for years since inception.

The read a more detail experience at the Victoria's Peak, you may refer a separate post:
[PLACE] 20141218 The Peak @ Victoria Peak


Exhausted from the long walk the whole day, I took every chance I had to rest my legs. After reaching the base station, I decided to wait for the bus to head back to Central area for dinner. I had either Chui Wah in my list or Yat Lok for the roast goose. Didn't get to sit in the mini bus as it was filled with passengers. Took a good look at the map and drop off some where near Yat Lok restaurant. A sneak peak of the fancy tram, need to find a chance to board it next time.



Finally I reach the famous Yat Lok Roast Goose restaurant and there's already a queue outside. Most of them are locals and half of them are actually here to take away instead of dining in. The queue took about 15 minutes and I'm in.


The price ain't cheap but expected. There are two hongkies sitting beside me kept complaining about their dish, typical. I overheard them saying the goose was too dry, too much fat under the skin, xxx place is better and they even peeped at mine and somewhat thinks that mine is better than theirs. It was a satisfying meal despite a deep hole in the wallet.


On my way back to the Central Ferry Pier for my trip back to my hostel after a very tiring day via the pedestrian skywalk. Took a quick shot of the streets handheld.


The pedestrian skywalk is a very convenient and comfortable transit method between destinations. Even thou we had some in Kuala Lumpur, but that was very much a limited coverage walk.


On the way towards the pier and saw this nice spot to take a picture of the Bank of China building along with other skyscrapers. Every where in Hong Kong island seems like a good spot for a night shot, especially when you are walking on the skywalk.


The other side of the camera is the Eye of Hong Kong. However the site of the Ferris wheel is like a makeshift circus but with a fancy Ferris wheel. Nevertheless, still looks cool from afar.


Attempted to handheld for a second to grab a busy shot of the skywalk but unfortunately the bridge was shaking despite trying my best to handheld.


Saw a group of "photographers" at the pier, which I believed are from a photography hobbist club as most of them are just "beginners" with an instructor or experience guy tutoring them on how to take a long exposure shot of moving vehicles to create the light trail. Most of them just blindly fires the shutter with no clue and most of them seemed well equipped with camera and lenses much better than mine.


I joined them for a moment and also fired a few shots from where they were standing. You don't need very expensive cameras, you just need the understanding of lights and the creativity to create.


While waiting for the ferry, I climbed up the pier to the highest possible spot I can find and try to look for vantage points for a few more shots before leaving the Central District. The 2IFC tower is in the picture above, which is also the second highest building in Hong Kong.


Took the night ferry back to Tsim Tsa Tsui and on my way to the Arena of Stars. Stop by at the Victoria harbour to grab another frame of the Hong Kong island. This is where I suppose to take a picture of the laser show if I were able to make it earlier in the evening.


The symbolic red junk boat but unfortunately the sail is lowered and unable to grab a nice view. It was also challenging to take a sharp picture under such low light condition and had to use higher ISO with faster shutter and pan with the ship in order to grab a usable shot.


The famous Bruce Lee statue towards the end of the Arena of Stars along with other statues and hand stamp of other famous Hong Kong stars.


Peninsula Hotel, I'm back for a night shot again! Attached my Gorillapod on the fence just beside the street and used my ultra wide angle lens to grab a full frame of the hotel. This is my last task for today and should wrap up and head back to my hostel to end up fun yet exhausting Day 2.