February 2016
We stayed at the huge 5 star Hyatt Regency in Dongguan, China, while Marc was working with a factory in Shenzhen.
The photo on the right was taken looking from one side of the hotel to the other side.
Chinese New Year decorations
Pollution hampered the view from our deck until we had a rain shower.
The hotel offered an amazing assortment of food choices at the buffet in this grand breakfast room. I looked forward to breakfast each day.
Songshan Lake Park skirts the lake near the hotel.
Everything in the photo below, except for the distant highrises to the left, is the Hyatt Regency.
On the drive to Hong Kong. I’m not sure what’s piled high on the three-wheeled bicycle. Towels?
Driving into Hong Kong. What a tremendous amount of people living in this city!
Our hotel was located in Tsim Sha Tsui (TST) (southern Kowloon, Hong Kong). The area caters to tourists and features plentiful museums, shopping, and restaurants.
We had a fantastic view from our hotel room (#1816) at the Hyatt Regency Hong Kong (TST).
We boarded the Star Ferry Harbour Cruise right before sunset.
The tallest building (below left) is our hotel (Hyatt Regency Hong Kong, TST). The upper floors are luxury condos.
Dinner at Aqua. Amazing food and views.
This shot was taken later in the week from our hotel. One Peking is the tall building in the middle. Aqua is on the top two floors (29 & 30).
Day 2 in Hong Kong:
Hong Kong Museum of History. Well done and extensive.
Bamboo-scaffolded building seen from our hotel window.
Day 3 in Hong Kong:
We walked to the ferry terminal via the underground subway system.
Marc wanted to show me how you can use the subway halls to get around faster.
Taking the ferry from Tsim Sha Tsui (Kowloon) to Hong Kong Island (Central).
What a beautiful, pollution-free, day! Looking at Hong Kong Island (below left). Looking at Tsim Sha Tsui (below right). Our hotel is the tall building in the center of the photo.
Maritime Museum Lots of double-decker buses here
Man Mo Temple (124-126 Hollywood Road, in Sheung Wan). No, it’s not on fire. Even though it’s VERY smokey inside from incense, I think most of the smoke seen from the street comes from the incinerator. A line of people were waiting to throw paper offerings into the fire.
Incense: slender sticks, thick joss sticks, and conical coils that hang from the ceiling.
Man Mo Temple was built around 1847 as a tribute to the God of Literature (Man) and the God of War (Mo).
Pray for peace, success, and prosperity with paper offerings, joss sticks, lettuce, money offerings, and fruit. Chinese mandarins and other round fruit are often chosen for luck. Avoid tomato and plums!
Offerings to pray for educational success are more complicated. Do the following three weeks before school starts (https://www.man-mo-temple.hk/what-to-do-at-man-mo-temple/):
“-Prepare your offerings which includes paper offerings, 3 joss sticks, one scallion (for intelligence) and one Chinese celery (for diligence).
-Also bring along the student’s books, stationery and pens.
-Pick a good day and good time to go.
-Put the books and stationery items on the altar.
-Student should offer the joss sticks to the god, pray to the Civil God and state his/her wishes.
-Burn the paper offerings.
-When the burning of offerings is finished, the student should go and touch the big brush in front of the Civil God.
-Go towards the urn, the student’s pen shall go round the urn clockwise three times to bless the pen.
-Put a “lai see” (a packet with money offering) to the offering box.
-Back home, cook the scallion and Chinese celery and let the student eat it.”
Wow, what a lot of work!
Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens
View from Landmark Cafe at Landmark Shopping Mall.
Day 4 in Hong Kong: Chinese New Year’s Day.
This time we took the subway to Hong Kong Island.
Hong Kong Park
Our hotel was only a couple of blocks from the New Year’s parade route. We arrived an hour before it started and ended up in the middle of a swarm of people. I couldn’t see any of the musicians, dancers, dragons, etc. and could only see the top quarter of the floats, if that much. I ended up viewing the parade on people’s phones in real time, as they raised them above their heads to record the event. After a half hour or so, we were ready to be done. We didn’t feel it was worth the time and effort, but if you could somehow procure an uncrowded vantage point, it might actually be entertaining. Marc snapped the second photo above his head.
Day 5 in Hong Kong:
Got an early start so we could get to the Victoria Peak Tram before the crowds.
Tsim Sha Tsui’s boardwalk lined up with photographers getting ready for the evening’s fireworks.
We decided to watch the Chinese New Year fireworks show from our hotel room rather than fight the crowds again. We got our cameras ready and turned off the lights. What came next was the largest fireworks show I’ve ever seen and longest as well (23 minutes). The fireworks were set off from three barges in the harbor, which turned out to be perfectly aligned with our room’s windows. (More firework photos at the bottom of post.)
Day 6 in Hong Kong:
A little shopping before our evening flight home.
Bonus fireworks photos
