Hong Kong with kids and friends (Part Two- Lamma Island)

On our second day in Hong Kong, we finally fulfilled another goal- hiking in Hong Kong! We followed these instructions and took a ferry to Lamma Island to try the 'Family Trail.' My friend wasn't feeling so well, they were mostly carrying their toddler, and it was really hot at 2pm when we were doing the uphill part, so they may never go hiking with me again, but hopefully they still had fun.

This outing is great in that you take the ferry to one side (Yung Shue Wan), hike for about 1-1.5 hours), finish at an area with a bunch of seafood restaurants (Sok Kwu Wan), have a great lunch/dinner, and take the ferry from that side of the island. I mean, really, that is my kind of hike. You could do it the other way around, too. 

It starts out with an easy walk through the town, where you can stock up on snacks and drinks, and buy a hat or two. It's a cute little town! You keep walking down an easy path and arrive at a lovely beach pretty soon (maybe 20 minutes?). 

The beach is well equipped with nice changing areas/bathrooms and some shady spots. The water was so refreshing!

After an hour at the beach, we headed up the mountain, hugging the shore. This is where it got more intense. It was HOT and quite steep, but luckily, at the top of the mountain, there was a guy selling frozen pineapple and drinks. The view was exquisite. I don't think the uphill part was more than 20-30 minutes, but I could be wrong. 

Then you start going downhill to Sok Kwu Wan village and end up there for lunch. 

I really loved Lamma Island and would like to do this hike again in cooler weather. HK just has so much to offer. 

Hong Kong with kids and friends (Part One)

Over Labor Day weekend, we went to Hong Kong again, this time to meet up with my dear friend who served with me in the Dominican Republic and her family. It was wonderful to see them and their adorable baby! We lucked out with warm, sunny days. This time, we stayed at the Cosmopolitan Hotel,  one of the few hotels I could find that provided 2 queen beds in a room and didn't break the bank. It's about a 10-15 min walk to Causeway Bay MTR station; they also provide shuttles to some major spots. If only they included breakfast I would stay there every time- the room and beds were very comfortable.

After breakfast, we headed to the Peak, one of Hong Kong's top tourist attractions but a place we had never been. It was a long, hot wait in line by the time we arrived, but it was worth it! Again, cool transportation options are key, and we all loved the tram ride up. I didn't realize there would be so much at the top- shopping, food, even a park and playground- and you could easily stay there for hours. What a view! I'd like to come back early in the morning and at dusk and watch the city change.

 During our weekend, we also ate at one of our favorite restaurants, Din Tai Fung, a chain famous for its soup and other dumplings. We have a branch here in Guangzhou and I just love their soup dumpling mascot!

We also saw the daily 8pm light show at Tsim Sha Tsui promenade, which honestly, wasn't anything to write home about. The view is gorgeous at any hour without a bunch of lights trying to shine to the beat!

Macau with kids (Part Two)

If you go to Macau with kids, I highly recommend you spend a few hours at the Guia Fortress, a 17th century colonial military fort, chapel, and lighthouse complex. It's a short cable car ride up to the top, where you can visit a museum and a chapel, take a lovely shaded walk with great views of Macau, and lock your brother in a military jail.

Everyone's excited about the cable car!

The whole crew!

Macau with kids (Part One)

Lately, before I travel anywhere, I google “xx with kids” and find all sorts of helpful advice for traveling to these destinations with school-aged kids. Especially here in China, it’s helpful to get a readout before going. I really want to instill in my kids a love of travel, so I do this research to make sure we hit the best spots. We all get excited about cool transportation options and they are starting to read the guide books and tell me where they want to go. Anyway, I’m going to entitle my travel posts “xx with kids” going forward, so maybe my posts will help someone else.

One thing that appeals to any age, of course, is food. I look up mid-range/budget restaurants that are highly recommended, and I take note of special desserts/treats a place is known for (in Macau, it's the Portuguese egg tart, yum). If that’s not happening, there is usually ice cream or McDonalds somewhere, and it’s amazing how a little treat can turn around an attitude. I want my kids to associate travel with fun, treats, exploration, challenge, and some indulgence. So far, it’s working!

So anyway, Macau with kids. To be honest, during my first year, I wasn’t that excited about visiting Macau, though it’s literally next door. But my husband was, and my brothers couldn’t sit still, so we decided to go for about 36 hours. I am SO glad we did- what a fascinating place!

According to Wikipedia, there are some 600,000 people living in a 11.6 square mile region – plus hundreds of thousands of tourists. It is incredibly densely populated, and we could feel it. It was a bit overwhelming. 

Ginormous train station!

To get to Macau from Guangzhou, there are a few methods, but we took a cab to the Guangzhou South train station, a 60 minute train ride to Zhuhai, and then a walk across the border. It’s not well marked, but we just followed the crowds. Even though Macau is a “special administrative region” of China, you have to go through immigration. We waited in long lines on both the China side and the Macau side. It was a long and complicated ordeal for such a nearby destination, and I would recommend spending more than one night for that reason. The next day was too soon to go through such hassle. I did appreciate understanding everything as soon as we arrived, since written Portuguese is so close to Spanish!

Our hotel 

Anyway…we made it through and found our way to our hotel, Ole Tai Sam Un Hotel. We stayed downtown in a budget/mid-range hotel – we wanted to be near the colonial area and it was a great little hotel in a bustling and really convenient neighborhood. It had a decent breakfast, a great map showing bus routes, and comfortable beds. We couldn’t find a hotel with 2 double/queen beds in the room but this place was willing to add 1 small bed to each room for a small charge.

neighborhood around the hotel

We arrived around lunchtime, and headed immediately out to Senado Square for lunch. I had done my food research and so we ate at a popular place called Wong Chi Kei, famous for its shrimp roe and wonton noodles. The wait around 2:30pm wasn't too bad and we all enjoyed it, though I wasn't crazy about my shrimp roe noodles (I probably don't know what to look for but they were a little too dry/hard for me). We got to look around the beautiful square while waiting. 

Charming Senado Square (Largo do Senado)

We then set off to find the Ruins of St. Paul's Church. We thought it was just a busy Saturday afternoon, and then realized we and thousands of other people were all heading to the same destination. I have to admit, it was pretty cool. But did I mention crowded?

Following the throngs through a narrow passageway of shops, restaurants, and bakeries! So many bakeries!

We stopped to sample egg tarts, cool off with milkshakes, and take photos. It's such a lively, interesting place!

oh, egg tarts, how i love thee

Pretty majestic 

View from the ruins, looking down

My cute little travelers.

After this adventure, we were a little worn out and headed back to the hotel to decompress while my brothers pushed on. 

Halloween in China

We've been very busy lately! But I figure I'd better get these Halloween pics up before the next holiday arrives!

We had a packed Halloween, with a Consulate party, a party at our apartment complex, and trick or treating in between! The Americans in our complex organized trick or treating at our different apartments and it felt like we were right at home.

Using a tip I learned from a photography class I took this year, I held a little Halloween photo shoot a few days before the holiday. I'm so glad I did, because that night is always so hectic.

And so I present, our Jedi and Spidergirl!

Why are they battling? They are both good guys. 

In case you are wondering, I was Mittens the cat from the movie "Bolt," and Daddy was a shark.

Here's my family at the Consulate party. 

At the apartment complex party, they handed out pumpkins and people were expected to get to work carving. It was a little funny, because most of the Chinese guests didn't know how to carve them. I only managed to do one, because they were pretty hard. But it was nice to be there. 

All in all, a great Halloween. But I have to confess, I missed the trunk or treat...

Incredible Hong Kong

Last weekend we took the train to Hong Kong and like many people before us, fell in love. What an interesting, beautiful, vibrant, place! And oh, the food! I can see why many officers go there frequently. We were there for a First and Second Tour (FAST) officers weekend, but we mostly did our own thing and joined the group for dinners.

We arrived on Saturday morning and made our way to the Airbnb apartment we had rented, right in Central. Our first stop was lunch at an American style diner. Then we walked over to the Central-Mid-Levels Escalators, and the IFC Mall. The escalators are the longest outdoor covered escalator system in the world, and as you travel up, the street scenes and restaurant options are amazing.




















Later we took a cab to Deep Water Bay Beach for a BBQ. The kids took a dip in the warm water. I was surprised at how close it was - I thought it took hours to drive to the southern part of the island, but it was only 15 minutes.

On Sunday morning, we decided to take the Cable car to the Big Buddha, because it sounded like a fun outing, and it was. We chose the cable car with the clear bottom, and the kids were enthralled! It's a good 20 minute ride over the bay.

Upon arrival, there is a nice (albeit touristy) area where you can have lunch and buy souvenirs. After lunch, we headed over to climb the 268 steps to the Buddha, a major center of Buddhism in Hong Kong. It symbolizes the harmonious relationship between man and nature, people and religion. The kids were impressive and made it easily to the top. We were very proud of them.

(*note: if you do this, buy and print your tickets in advance. The lines were long!)

View from the top of the stairs

That night we took the Rainbow ferry to Lamma Island for a seafood dinner. It was definitely not what I was expecting, but awesome all the same. Then we headed home and fell into bed!

The next morning, we took the Star Ferry with our bags over to the train station. The whole trip (Hong Kong-Guangzhou) took more than four hours door to door. But it was so worth it.

I can't wait to go back.