Breaking the Asia dry spell

After 3 years of going without some ASUH living I broke the spell with a glorious day in Hong Kong en route to Bangladesh. It was the greatest day that almost wasn't - twice. The first hiccup came with a terrible typhoon that hit the island last week, threatening to make me change da plans. The second came because a stupid, stupid and very groggy me misplaced my oh-so-important travel notebook containing my PASSPORT and Bangladesh visa pretty much as soon as I made it to the HK airport. Those two hours were among the most stressful of my young life, but ultimately some very friendly airport staffers and police saved the day. Whew! I'm legally in Bangladesh now, so all is good.

One day in HK certainly wasn't enough, but I got a great taste (literally) of what is now one of my fave cities. I will be back!

Nightmare passport situation resolved, I ventured into 7-ELEVEN and bought a delicious milk tea, the first  of three that day. I lived off of milk tea and 7-ELEVEN visits in Taiwan, and it brought back some food-centric memories. I was giddy.

Back to the ole' stomping grounds!

I then took a speedy train into the city, hopped on the very efficient MTR, and hopped off to see the beautiful Victoria Harbor and skyline - stunning. I got on a Star Ferry (THE tourist thing to do, and I don't claim to be a local) and crossed the harbor. Hong Kong certainly is a looker.

Checking out da view

By that point I was famished and decided it was time for DIM SUM. Naturally I had done lots of research on the best places to eat and found a great eatery inside a shopping mall. I made a fool of myself ordering way too many dumplings and then trying to pawn off the extras on the girls sitting next to me - they didn't bite.

This place is known for their fried pork bun. Too much!

Next I moved on to another tourist essential - Victoria Peak. I took a looong city bus ride up a circuitous road to get to the top and was rewarded with lovely, lovely views of Hong Kong island.

Some adorable fellow tourists

Cat on top of the world!

Up til' this point I had spent my time only in the upscale, everything-looks-like-a-shopping-mall part of Hong Kong, and I was ready for some Asia grit. I took the MTR to the MongKok neighborhood and whiled away the rest of the day wandering through flower, bird, and fish markets and ending at the Ladies Market, home to the world's best street hawkers and some really fun wares. Everything was so crowded and so busy, even moreso than Taipei, and I thrived in it. Lots of street food was consumed, naturally, as well as some exotic fruits.

FISH BALLS

Street food mania

I was bummed I couldn't take any flowers with me

A crazy, and somewhat weird, amount of birds plus
some hungry feral pigeons.

And the exotic fruit tasting begins! This is Rambutan -  covered in hairs and
with a white juicy flesh inside. I liked!

Fruitttt

My first ripe mangosteen - the queen of fruits, finally!

I ended the glorious day with some low-priced beauty services (amazing massage for my super sore luggage-toting shoulders and the obligatory pedicure) followed by a great bowl of fish ball noodle soup. I got off the MTR at a random stop and walked into a restaurant and asked to be served something "good." The waiter brought me a tiny fork but I impressed with my chopstick skills - JOKES.

More balls of fish in a delicious soup

Full, feet tired, and with an Asia-fixed heart I boarded my flight to Dhaka. BANGLADESH updates to come - this place is indescribably different and crazy, but so incredible!