I see Hong Kong...er, um, at night

I’m not sure if I should admit this publicly on my blog.

But the secret is that I never really saw Hong Kong in the daylight. Yup, you read that right. This girl that loves to see and do as much as she can never toured Hong Kong like a proper tourist.

And I have no regrets.

It's cool at night

I’m writing this entry after spending a couple days in Tokyo. I loved Tokyo and will write more about that later, but I’ve come to a conclusion about big cities: they are lonely.

After going through so many big cities alone–Lima, Madrid, Cairo, Dubai–I’ve realized that it usually results in my loneliest times. There’s something kind of sad about being in a big city all alone. Maybe it’s the swarms of people around. Maybe it’s the fact that truly experiencing big cities is about enjoying delicious restaurants and hot spots with people. I’m not sure what it is except to say that I’m now a believer that big cities should not be explored alone.

Here's Dan as we ride the longest escalator in the world

I met Dan and Caroline in the Philippines. They’re Canadian law students doing a semester in Hong Kong. Their semester just finished. Caroline travelled on, but Dan was planning on sticking around Hong Kong for a bit, and offered me his couch to crash on and said he’d introduce me to his friends.

A big city not all alone? Sign me up!

Meeting new people is the best part of travelling alone

I’m tired when I make my way to Dan’s apartment, of course. The overnight bus ride from San Juan to Manila got me again. The first thing that strikes me about Hong Kong is that they drive on the left side of the road. Sure, I know the British influence is huge, but since mainland China drives on the right, I assumed it would be the same, sort of like us Canadians mirroring the US driving habits.

1997, the date Hong Kong was handed over, is prominently displayed in many places

Dan has made plans to go out with some of his friends, and thus I latch onto the coat tails of night-life loving law students.

We have a lot of fun. The highlight of the night is great Filipino cover bands who take many requests, from old school Green Day to the Killers to many other great sing-along and dance-along songs.

The night life doesn’t stop in Hong Kong. Like the black of night, It wears off when the sun comes up. After having a great time with Dan and his friends, we finally head back to the apartment at 6am, sleep most of the day and surface again when it’s dark out.

We take a tram to "the peak" which boasts a fabulous view of the city

That night we take a tram to the famous “Peak” of Hong Kong where we hang out a bit, marvel at the night view of the city, and then meet up with his friends, repeating the night again. It ends with breakfast at 7am. Not bad for a girl who comes from a country where the night life stops at 2am.

Such a cool view

I’m only in Hong Kong for a couple days, capitalizing on a layover. Admittedly my original plan was to stay longer, but when I wanted to enjoy Israel a little more, something had to give, and Hong Kong and Tokyo were first on the chopping block.

So my conclusion on Hong Kong? It’s a fun city that not only looks great at night, but is great at night. And that’s about all I’m qualified to say on the subject.

Only two days later at noon I head to the airport to catch a flight to Tokyo. I’m exhausted and have a cold, coughing and wheezing enough that I’m afraid I’ll be detained as a “swine flu suspect”, but I know it’s my own fault.

For those who know me and my absolute favorite food, I was surprised to find dropjes in Hong Kong! Yum yum!

Do I feel guilty that I never saw much of Hong Kong in the daylight?

Absolutely not. I’d rather connect with people then sightsee anyday, and I’m relieved that I was let off the hook, to be honest.