I made it! Yay!
The 14-hour flight was not nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. There were some rough patches (mostly hours 10 and 11) but for the most part I was happy and comfortable.
The plane was huge compared to the little Southwest planes I am used to flying. There were three sections across, each with three passengers per section and 66 rows (I know, because I was in the last row!). Plus business class.
We got two meals during the trip and I chose a baked salmon with mashed potatoes dish for lunch and a beef with steamed rice for dinner. It was pretty good food considering that it was on an airplane.
The entertainment selection was pretty awesome. I watched two movies —The Muppets Movie and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs — and a couple episodes of the TV show Once Upon A Time. I was also able to listen to a bunch of music when I wasn't watching something so I didn't even have to get my iPhone out my bag.
The weird thing was that during the flight it was pretty much always day light outside because of the direction that we were traveling. That was a little bit deceptive. Here is us crossing the international dateline!
Hours 10-11 were particularly bad because I was tired of reading and watching television but I couldn't for the life of me get comfortable enough to sleep. I was really antsy by that point. I ended up just standing up next to my seat for about 20 minutes and walked around a little bit and by then we only had about two hours left of the flight. Seeing the light at the end of the tunnel helped get me through.
When we got to the airport we had to wait a little while for our bus to get there to take us to our apartments so we got some drinks. I got a kiwi soga drink. It was basically a kiwi smoothie with tapioca balls in it. Man was it refreshing after a 14-hour flight!
Then we took a bus through the city to get to our various apartments. My first impressions are probably not that reliable because I was exhausted and it was getting dark outside. But I was amazed at how industrial-looking the city is. All of the buildings just look so rough and kind of dirty. But the city is also very alive at night. Stores stay open late and there are always hundreds of people on the streets.
In fact as I look out my window right now, there is a line of about 200 people waiting for various buses.
My apartment is ... well ... tiny.
In all it is about 150 square feet. But it's in a great area and it seems very safe and secure. When you walk in my apartment to your right is a kitchen sink and a hot plate and some overhead cabinets. To the left is my IKEA desk and a small closet.
Take a couple steps in and on the right is the shower, which also encompasses the toilet and sink. And on the right is the bed. And that is really about it!
The next morning after I got in I went to a little market right around the corner to get some toiletries. They sell some American brands (like Dove and Pantene) but I wanted to get an authentic experience so I bought some brands that I did not recognize: Bilansan Santan conditioner, BodyMilk lotion and Giv soap. I had to be careful with the soap because 90 percent of those on the shelves were "skin whitening." How crazy is that? But I guess it's the same as when I buy bronzer in the states!
Then I went across the street to a little bakery called Taipan. I got a walnut chocolate muffin that was amazing. It tasted like Hawaiian sweet bread with nutella and walnuts in the middle. And it only cost USD $1. I might just have to get breakfast there everyday since it's on my way to the Subway!
After that I bought a cellphone for about USD $60. The exchange rate is about 7.7 by the way. And had to go back to the store because the box didn't come with a cord to connect the charger to the phone! At first I think they thought I was a dumb American who didn't know what a charger was, but then I convinced them I was missing a part!
After that I went and met up with the rest of my group for dim sum at Metropole Restaurant in the United Centre in the Central area of Hong Kong Island. I have had dim sum in the states but it is so much better here. I liked everything I tried — which was a lot of stuff!!
After dim sum, we walked through Wan Chai and Central areas and checked out this huge electronics warehouse. On our walk we came across the
LDS Chapel in Wan Chai where I will be attending church while I am here. I am glad now to know what it looks like! It's the orangish building in the middle.
Next, the entire group headed to Tsim Sha Tsui via the Star Ferry. From TST we were able to see most of Hong Kong Island and all of the fancy office buildings and not-so-fancy ginormous apartment buildings.
Across the bay we walked through the Avenue of Stars and saw both Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan's stars. Then we all posed with the Bruce Lee statue!
After Avenue of the Stars we walked around a little bit more and got some drinks at a restaurant near the water. My virgin strawberry daiquiri was quite delicious and refreshing after all our walking (and the fact that I had to drink hot water at the dim sum restaurant because all they were serving was tea).
After that I went home and did some grocery shopping. Again, I tried to get mostly Asian foods — a couple of noodle dishes, some tropical fruits like rambutan and asian pears and then a bunch of water (it is not advised to drink from the tap).
Here are a few more pictures from my first day! Until next time :)
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| Just outside my apartment |
