THE LAST SPRING BREAK

It's April and the long-awaited spring break is finally here. Me and 3 other friends of mine decided to go to HongKong for 5 days for our little pre-graduation trip and we had the best time. It's my second time in HongKong so they kind of make me the guide for the trip. We didn't particularly plan ahead on what to do and where to eat, we just winged it and look up for places to go on the last minute (procrastinating to the core), and let me tell you that this is probably my most unorganized travel ever. I usually jot down things to do before my every travels because I can't do an unorganized travel, but it's different this time. Although I do feel like we wasted our time too much on sleeping and searching the web for places to eat, it turns out an okay trip for me, not the best though but just okay. So, here are the places that we go and (not so much on) the food that we eat during our 5-days-stay and hopefully I could be of help in giving you guys ideas on what to do for when any of you who are planning to visit HongKong!

1. Kowloon

Kowloon is our first destination because we booked an Airbnb here in Tsim Sha Tsui. Before this trip, I didn't know that Tsim Sha Tsui isn't really located in HongKong Island, I also didn't know that Kowloon and HongKong are two different islands (correct me if I'm wrong cause I don't really understand this geography thing). So, we basically spent our 50% of the time here in the crowded Kowloon. We went to Victoria Harbour straight away after settling our luggage down in our Airbnb and after grabbing our first dim sum in this busy city.

After wandering around Victoria Harbour, we then move on to Mongkok and walked around Ladies Market, which I must say is a very crowded place that is full of energy. We saw lots of old ladies singing, dancing, and just enjoying themselves. It was a nice atmosphere, but it can be overwhelming if you stay too long because the crowd is insane. I found the old ladies performing on the streets very unique and cute, they really do enjoy themselves lol.

2. Central (中環）

We spent our second day in the Central of HongKong. We made our first stop at Soho where you can find a street full of people taking pictures around the mural walls.

Also, there is an elevator in the middle of the street! So you get two choices, either take the elevator and be the lazy bum that you are or do some exercise and walk instead. And of course, we chose the elevators lol.

We then visited Bing Sutt style themed Starbucks on Duddell Street. "Bing Sutt" means "ice room" in Cantonese. It is a style of a traditional coffee house in Hongkong. When you walked in that Starbucks, it gives you the vibe of the 90s Chinese coffee houses, as if you've traveled back through time.

Moving on, we went to Victoria Peak. Going up to the Peak on peak hours (around 4-5p.m.) is definitely a mistake. Apparently, we are not the only ones who wanted to watch the sunset up on the peak; everybody else seems to have the same thought like us. A tip for you guys if you ever want to go up the Peak by tram, purchase your tickets in advance! Book it in Klook.com and get a reasonable price for the express ticket. If you decided to purchase your tickets last minute like we did, you either have to wait in line for at least an hour (if you buy the standard tix) or you can purchase the express tix for around 300+ HKD, which is ridiculously pricey. Since we travel on a budget, we search for cheaper alternatives and decided to go up the peak with a taxi instead. We ended up paying for 52 HKD/4 people and felt satisfied with our wise choice lol. We did use the tram on our way back though because the line is not as crazy as it was earlier.

As predicted, the peak is so crowded that we have to squeeze ourselves amongst strangers in order to get a nice picture of the view.

3. Disneyland

I can never get bored of this amazing place. Coming here always gives me a feeling that I'm allowed to go back as a child again for a few hours. What I learned from my second time in HongKong Disneyland is that you've got to stay until the place almost closes and when everybody else is rushing their way to the MTR station to go home; because then you'll get to have your little photo shoot session without hundreds of people as your background.

4. Macau

It would be such a waste of opportunity if you are going to visit HK for 5 days without squeezing a day trip to Macau on your itinerary. Macau is only an hour away by ferry. I think if you are staying in HK for more than three days, a day trip to Macau is definitely a must. Macau will give you a different vibe from HongKong, HongKong is a city full of skyscrapers and busy men in suits walking around the Central; in Macau, you'll feel like you are on two different continents at the same time; it is a mix of Cantonese culture and Portuguese heritage, all played out against a Las Vegas backdrop. I love it in Macau. Macau had me at the streets and the historical buildings, I'm all about visiting historical places when I travel. There is one thing that I dislike about this amazing city, that is the taxi drivers. We spent around 30 minutes looking for a taxi and when we finally found one, the driver refused to drive us (?!!). When I say that finding a taxi in Macau is hard, I'm not the slightest bit kidding. I asked my Macanese friend about it, and she did say that finding a taxi in Macau is not as convenient as in Taipei. So, I guess that's another thing that I learned about Macau, other than the fact that Portuguese meal is expensive.

Colosseum look alike in Macau Fisherman's Wharf.

Ruins of St. Paul's

Travessa da Paixão（戀愛巷）

The Venetian Macau

5. Choi Hung Estate

Behold, the most instagrammable spot in HongKong.

It is actually a basketball court, but people don't seem to play basketball here, they take Instagram pictures instead. The 'they' that I just mentioned happened to be me and my friends too lol.

6. Tim Ho Wan

Let me introduce to you the world's cheapest Michelin-starred restaurant. The food is delicious, the service is good, and most importantly, it's not pricey for a delicious good food. Say no more, I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves.