Life in Hong Kong: Part 2 (Foods)

Dinner at North Point (1st Day)

It has almost been a week since I wrote part 1 of my life here in Hong Kong. I couldn't get myself writing again, I was so bored to pick up my computer and write about the next topic: Foods! But here I am, writing the topic everyone loves when they are here. Great foods!

Every inch of Hong Kong is a culinary wonderland, you can find exotic Cantonese foods to everyday Western fastfood places like McDonald's and KFC. Hong Kong people are food lovers, no food business here in Hong Kong will go bankrupt because everyone basically eats out, and they usually eat fast. So what are the many great foods Hong Kong has for travelers like me? Well all of them. Let me break them down.
Western Fast-food diners:
Just like what we have in the Philippines, Hong Kong people are also invaded by many fast food store chains everywhere. So what's different? Well, just like in the US, these fastfood chains doesn't served our beloved staple food, which is rice. Their menu are akin more from the menus in the UK or US. nothing much. McDonald's nuggets seems to taste differently but its what we have, less the rice. Most of you would be tired of eating in these places anyways. So I'll just leave it at that.

Hong Kong Fast-food diners: typical cantonese fastfood diner

Hmmm... What to Eat?

Dinner at a Sino - Japanese Resto

Hong Kong people pride themselves in efficiency, and here is where they shine. They have general restaurants built by aspiring Chinese chefs that caters to the fast paced life of Hong Kong. What would that be exactly? Well, you sit down, order some foods and it comes to you in less that five minutes. Without falling in line at the counter (except when the resto is full). You eat these foods fast and bring your receipt to the counter and pay. That easy. And the food? Well, I only have so much word to describe the feast in your mouth. Eating aythentic Hong Kong foods will make you regret eating Chinese foods in the Philippines (Let's just say mag lelevel up na ang taste buds mo). These fastfood diners are cheap and efficient (clean too!) they pride themselves with their home made style cooking and no frills service. Just show up, eat, then pay. this is my favorite part of Hong Kong dining.

An order of cow's intestines or excess coupled with Nai Cha

Buffets:

buffet at the Regal Kowloon Hotel

Just recently, we went to Regal Hotel - Kowloon, where they have "The Terrace" (which was ironically, underground). It is a buffet style place where you are introduced to the cuisines of different countries just like that of Spiral by Sofitel in the Philippines. the ambiance is just right but I regret saying that the food leaves much more to be wanted. I have to say, Spiral in the Philippines was much better. They have more innovative ways for having your food, like a Japanese chef will cook what you have selected and a waffle making machine. Overall, the experience is good but the food leaves room for improvement.

Eggettes - Yum!

Street foods:

The street foods here in Hong Kong is just as exotic albeit cleaner than that of the Philippines. The food usually tastes great and will leave you wanting more. My top favorites? Fish Ball Curry, Egg Tart and Eggette. So what are they? Well, these foods are more likely to be eaten since they look just about normal (sometimes, great) to eat. The fish ball curry typically cost 5 dollars per 10 pieces (3 pesos a piece) and they are THAT good. The best I've tried is that of Tsim Sha Tsui but of course, I take what I can get. The next is egg tart, a popular Macao dessert which made its way to the shores of Hong Kong. made with egg, sugar and flour, the result is a heavenly treat. They are a less sweet version of Leche Flan encased in a short crusted bread. Once you try one of these, you will want more and more. Last but definitely not the least is Eggette, my favorite street food here in Hong Kong. Usually served hot, they are like crispy pancakes that you can much down one by one just like picking grapes. These little monsters typically cost 10 dollars per roll and they often satisfy you with a sweet and crispy texture with a soft and gooey insides. Just like that, you can enjoy the streets of Hong Kong. There are many more street foods in Hong Kong but these are the ones I liked most.

Well that's it for my review of Hong Kong foods. Believe me, that's only 5% of what's out there so I suggest you try the other 95% just see if you can eat Chinese foods in the Philippines again.

Life in Hong Kong: Part 1 (The Culture / Life)

North Point

It has been a full three days since my landing in Hong Kong. Being a regular visitor (and citizen to some extent). I find being in a fast paced country as, well, fast paced. I don't get to see this fast paced life in the Philippines. So how does a typical Hongkonger live? Well after observing people for the past 3 days and about 4 years of recurrence to this region of China (since 1997). This post will be divided into three sub topics namely: attitude, transportation and living.

Shabu-Shabu @ Yau Ma Tei (my sis, left and her friend, right)

A. Attitude
At a glance, what would you think of a Hongkonger? Think about it for a while. No, they are not those Chinese you meet on the streets of Manila who spits anywhere and sometimes smells very bad. and NO, they don't have weird fashion here, in fact they are almost westernized (not that it is any better). But here is where Hong Kong people shines.

I. They follow rules - most Hongkongers follow rules even if it isn't THAT important, and that is what makes Hong Kong a successful country. Even crossing a street with no cars, they wait for the pedestrian green light to cross the street (but of course not all people do that). I would not classify them as polite though, they just follow them because it has worked out for so many years. Keep right? yes, when you are lazy to walk the escalator, you must keep right at all times for those businessman to walk pass you. Do I get that on the MRT stations in the Philippines? Well, no. People line up anywhere and blocks passage for those in a hurry. and that is what I admire about their respect for each other.

II. I don't judge attitude - Most Hongkongers live their lives without a hint of judgment, and that on its own is a very very VERY different feeling when you are out. Remember those times when you wear a less eye pleasing tee or you tripped a little on your walk, well I did and what? no one cared. ZERO even that won't earn you a second look. Some (even I) am guilty of judging a stranger for their fats, dress and looks but you will be humbled that they give not a single giggle of when you look your worst.

III. Workaholics - Juan Tamad will be dead in three days if he stayed here in Hong Kong, not just because there are little fruit trees here, but no one can even save up if He/She only has one Minimum wage work. Look at it this way, it is either you are a student, an employed person, or a retired elder. There are no tambays (even if, I bet they are finding work), and especially no jejemons (haha!). They have 2 - 3 jobs and gets most of their exercise from work (that is why they are surprisingly fit).

B. Transportation: 90% of Hongkongers use public transport, why? because its hella fast and efficient and owning a car is like owning a house in the Philippines, parking rates ranges from 5 dollars to a whopping 25 dollars an hour depending if you are on a residential or business district.

MTR Signboard @ Yau Tong station

I. MTR - Aahh, the MTR my ideal transport, my fast way around the city. Looking at it, the Philippine LRT would really look like a third world transport (clean and efficient, yes but less thought out). Yup, MTR is the most efficient transport in Hong Kong, not only is it long and wide, it is also fast and reliable. Trains every minute, and the long and wide body (mga 1.5x longer than the LRT new trains) It also has automatic system which tells you what will the next station be and maps with LED dots that indicate if the station has been passed or not. But fare wise, this is also a upper class transport (at least comparing the the LRT) If you want to travel 1 station, it would cost you 3.6HKD or about 18 Pesos. add a dollar for the next three stations and when traveling the whole line, about 7 dollars or 42 pesos. That's almost riding the LRT for 3x! A fair trade off for a clean, spacious train and big underground stations.

Typical HK Bus

II. Buses - See those famous double decker buses? Aside from London and some European countries, Hong Kong also adapted double decker buses to accomodate more passengers, their seats are spacious and their buses don't stop just anywhere, it is like trains which has a route and bus stops. It is the cheapest way to go around Hong Kong but also the most complicated transport of numbers and timing. Buses typically dispatches once every 10 - 30 minutes depending on how high the the demand is. The fare is cheap, from 3 - 6HKD, it is cheaper than the MTR and will most likely drop you off nearer your destination.

HK Taxis
III. Taxi - This is the MOST convinient and MOST expensive transportation in Hong Kong, going from the Airport to HK Island would cost your about 300-400 dollars a great deal if you are 4 in a group but a pain if you are traveling alone. This will get you ANYWHERE you want and most likely just outside the door of whatever building you want to be in.

IV. Trams - The century old tram is like the ones we have in Manila (before WWII). except it is the only double decker tram in the world. The cheapest but also the slowest of all the available transport, at Just 2HKD a ride, you can enjoy the scenic view of Hong Kong Island as you travel through the major road of Hong Kong. Witness being from a major residential area to a business district with people walking briskly.

High-end shopping mall

C. Living - The cost of living here is Hong Kong is staggering, second only to Tokyo, Japan. Prices of commodities here can get very expensive. A Tall Starbucks Fappe would cost about 31HKD or 180 pesos as opposed to getting it 40 pesos cheaper in the Philippines. They don't have TAX so prices of electronics is indeed cheaper than in the Philippines but living here is another story. I would not go into details about this but I hope you can imagine how getting 3 jobs is a requirement.

Watch out for Part 2: Foods!!!

*This post will be updated with MORE pix*

The Jejemon Craze

What the? I just left for HK and some fan page emerged from FB about Jejemons? So what are Jejemons? Well, if you are new to the term they are the people who thaYp LeyK DisZ. Which is a sense, a fist punch to the English grammar the Philippine is adopting. Would you rather read extraneously long messages and words with added consonants, and punctuations. I would rather not.

Jejemons emerged from the popular Filipino text speak. The Filipino text speak usually SHORTENS the required key punches by removing the vowels for shorten reply times. It evolved to be an added nuisance in reading. Jejemons think that they are cute when they type unusually. Jejemons can be classified as people who has rainbow caps, extra large tees and saggy pants and sometimes sports big belt buckles and very large handkerchiefs. They look threatening in real life but as harmless as a 4 year old pre-schooler when you have SMS conversations with them. I once had a classmate like that but I didn't really had any SMS conversation with HIM.

Sad to say, the degradation of proper grammar and language seems to stem from being a school drop out and fraternity involvement. My stand? Well I don't really care if they dress up like people who likes to be noticed or noticed not for their missing tooths or ugly faces (hence the handkerchiefs on their faces). I just find it frustrating to read when you are dealing with their profile and text messages. So next time, if you spot a jejemon, ignore them until they talk to you in a right manner.

P.S. I LMFAO on the facebook page after looking at the pictures of prospective jejemons and yes, they do look like uneducated Filipinos. (Remember that I am not a hater but a fact is a fact).

Tomorrow It Is!

Arrival at Hong Kong (May 10, 2008)

Wow, its been a full two years since I went to Hong Kong I remember it was May 10, 2008 and the last time we went there and it was drizzling because of the summer temp. Well, we decided to go earlier this year so that we can enjoy the cool weather and escape this hell-like temperature here in Manila. I love how everything is upgraded this year. We're flying Cathay Pacific this year and the irony is that we are going to use the old NAIA terminal. Oh well, a good trade off for a comfortable 2 hour flight in Asia's best airline for 2008. I just hope the in-flight entertainment would be plausible, or else I would be forced to watch a movie on my iPhone's small screen.

What's exciting about going to Hong Kong this year is that I get to stay there for more than 14 days! and I plan to take full advantage of the time I am there. Even though I was there a gazillion times before, I would explore those not-so-popular places in Hong Kong and places that has been upgraded since I was there. I would lean on more food trips and experience Hong Kong for the world city that it is.

I look forward to tomorrow. The long lines at the immigration and the plane ride to the city that I adore. from mass transits to food and shopping, no other country in Asia can beat Hong Kong.

rDy

My Account Was Hacked ... And Some Other Things...

Nothing much to say but the fact that my old blogger account + G-Mail was hacked months ago.


As much as I would like to start blogging again on my old blogger account, I just can't oh well. I just hope the hacker can sleep at night.
It's summer again and I am as bored as I could be (almost). Some of my college life is trickling down my doorway and looking at it, I am sure College at ADMU would be what I think it will be. Some of my blog posts would be about my road to college life and some would be about my trip to Hong Kong (yes, again).

Here's hoping that I could instill to myself that I can keep up with my blog and hopefully stick with my public online diary. Hey, I just graduated didn't I? So I hope this is where my batchmates would learn and catch up with my life.

That's it! Watch out for my blogpost updated as many times as I can.