It's the last day on the ship! We woke up earlier than usual for breakfast at Windjammer because we had to disembark about 9.45am. We did not "check in" our luggage for the crew to assist to transport out of the ship for convenience. It was too much trouble to think beforehand what to pack in the luggage the day before. We also had to put our luggage outside our room before 6pm or something. Since we only had one luggage each, it wasn't so bad to push it around ourselves.
Okay call me noob or what. I did not realize Hong Kong would be so cooling / cold at that period of time. And the clothes I left were mostly sleeveless. It is the kind of temperature that wearing a cardigan would feel so comfortable. Standing on the open deck, it was really awesome to enjoy the cool breeze. We went around walking our last round at places we have been to over the past 7 days :(. We bought the cruise event DVD at USD 29.99 but we were not really captured anywhere, except during ice skating. Then we went back to our room and grab our luggage (Anyway, I realised we did not snap any pictures of our room! We only captured a video). We found a monkey hanging in someone else's room!
Anyway, back to my necklace part. My bf kept asking me to fill up the immigration card but I always rejected him and did my own things. I told him to open the safe and do it instead of telling me to, but he found excuses not to. So I finally unlocked the safe and wanted to pretend that I was surprised to see the necklace. However, my silly face just gave me away because I laughed so hard. I told him I already saw it hehehehe. The box has a print stating "Travel Exclusive" so I believe this design can only be found on board. It cost about USD 70 if you are wondering. Duty free!
Although the ship was already quite vacant, we were still lingering around, unwilling to leave haha.
Finally, we left the Voyager of the Seas, excited for the next part of our travel. We docked at Kai Tak Cruise Terminal. I read online that there were shuttle buses available and that it might be longer to get a cab. There is no MTR station nearby either. The queue to pass the immigration counters were zig zag and it probably took about 30 minutes before we get to the next part. We saw Dino and family there too. They were heading to Disneyland and who knows, we might just bump into them there. It was announced that there will be no shuttle bus services! And the queue for Taxi was super long! Surprisingly though, we did not wait too long for ours because cabs were flowing in one by one.
The taxi journey was relatively fast too. We reached our hotel at Tai Kok Tsui at about 11am and that cost us about HKD 100 ++ . We stayed at Dorsett, Mong Kok for 4 nights at S$386.58, booked through Hotels.com. Initially we intended to stay in another outlet which is nearer to one of the MTR stations. We compared prices on different websites and chose the cheaper option, to realize a few days later that we have booked the "wrong" hotel. Thankfully, the location in Mong Kok is not so bad and still a walking distance to Olympic Station. It will be quite a distance if you want to walk to Mong Kok Station. It was a relief that the places we were visiting are mostly on the yellow line. When you take the MTR from Olympic station to change to the red line via Central station, the walk underground to change lines is very long! So make your hotel location decision based on the places you wish to visit. Our choice of hotel during our first visit in Hong Kong was located in Jordon and it is in close proximity to Jordon station. That was an awesome choice especially with the number of food places nearby, and was just walking distance to places like the ladies market.
One of best things about this hotel is that they provide us with a smart phone with internet access! They have wrote about this on their website but we were still rather skeptical until we saw it for ourselves. We were checked in swiftly and the staff taught us how to use the phone in the room to utilize the hot spot so that we can use our phones for internet access. The amazing thing is that you get to bring the phone out and that means internet access everywhere you go! Saves us the money from buying 3G card. You can also get tourist information and buy tickets to attractions at a cheaper rate by using their phone app.
The hotel room is really quite small but very cozy and well designed. There is a comfortable bed, a mini fridge, a safe, a small wardrobe, a small little toilet area and a window side space for our luggage. The toilet can be quite awkward for friends as there is no lock system and the glass is kind of translucent. Our shower head and TV had some minor problems but it was fixed promptly after our feedback. 2 bottles of drinking water was also refilled every day.
We explored the hotel's gym before we went for lunch at the nearby Chef's Porridge, at the opposite street of the hotel. We stayed on level 12 and I have to say the lift is really the slowest I have experienced. It takes 1 to 2 minutes just to get down to level 1 especially when other guests from various levels board the lift. The gym is small but rather well equipped, though I doubt many people really utilize it.
Chef's Porridge is there, with the metal post blocking it. We ordered soybean milk, and the hot one taste better. The porridge is very smooth and has the nice pearl rice taste. The XO sauce beehoon is slightly spicy and very appetizing. Our first meal was a needed change from our western cuisines on board the ship. The whole meal only cost us about HKD 75 - 85.
It was about 2pm and we prepared to head for The Peak. We have been there before but I guess I wanted to revisit the place with him and have our favorite wanton noodles. We tried to walk to Mong Kok MRT because we were going heading for Central MTR Station, and the distance was horribly long. Without my personal guide aka boyfriend, I would have been lost in directions. The Peak is walking distance from Central MTR station and everything was so familiar and I remembered how to walk there. The queue for the tram at 4 plus was long, similar to the previous time. We bought the tram and skypass tickets at HK$ 88 per adult. Since we did not manage to get a seat on the way up, we held on tightly to the bars as it moved diagonally up, with my bf wrapping me from the back in case I let go. That was a memorable moment and fun experience <3.
There are some shops at The Peak and The Peak Galleria. It was very cooling and wonderful to walk around up there. We ate an egg tart and had our "snack" at Mak's Noodle! Our first experience with Mak's Noodle was at this same outlet and the taste of their wanton mee is delectable. The soup is so flavorful with the right amount of pepper. Their noodles so Q and the prawn wantons so crunchy and fresh. However, the portion is really very small for a price like that. I believed they have increased their price since. But okay la, they provide free Chinese tea. We tried the Centrepoint outlet in Singapore but it is just different and cannot be compared to this in HK. There was a strong noodle taste after while when we ate it in Singapore.
There is this colourful shop called Happy Lab, which sells jelly beans and chocolate in a large variety of flavours. The sweets are mostly contained in test tubes and measuring beakers, which is why the shop is called a lab :D. These were great gift ideas and we bought one for Zhang Fan, whom we will be meeting later on for Dimsum! But one small tube already cost about S$ 5. The lady staff in this store was really friendly and we sampled so many flavors of jelly beans. She said she recognize us as Singaporeans from the way we speak haha.
There is a Tsui Wah Restaurant at the peak too and we had good food there the time before. However, to our disappointment, they no longer sell buoluo bao! That outlet's ambience wasn't so good either, felt a little dirty. Hence, we decided to have dinner near our hotel. We had some sushi at Olympic station because it was already 8 plus and our stomachs were protesting.
Bon Bon Cafe (车品品） was opened when we were back. It is also located opposite our hotel. I read about it from blog reviews and many had positive feedback. And I think they only open at certain hours and there was a queue then. We waited for 30 minutes before we get our table. The waitress was quite nice to us and recognize us as Singaporeans as well lol. We were supposed to order right at the counter but we didn't know and the waitress was kind enough to help us with it. Anyway, the menu is quite messy with words everywhere. If you cannot read Mandarin words, it might pose a bit of a problem. We ordered runny yolk century egg because it is such a novelty. My bf did not like century egg on its own because of its strong pungent taste. I think the century egg is like the usual ones and it goes well with the marinated ginger slice. The homemade hawthorn and luo han guo tea are refreshing thirst quenchers. The shark fin soup is quite nice, especially with the Nissin noodle inside, but we do not think it really contained real shark fin. The meat dumpling noodles is the one which many reviews have recommended. I think the dumplings require time and effort to marinate. It has a sour taste which I assumed is due to vinegar. The taste is very unique and not something we have eaten before. But both of us do not think that this is worth the wait for.
One of best things about this hotel is that they provide us with a smart phone with internet access! They have wrote about this on their website but we were still rather skeptical until we saw it for ourselves. We were checked in swiftly and the staff taught us how to use the phone in the room to utilize the hot spot so that we can use our phones for internet access. The amazing thing is that you get to bring the phone out and that means internet access everywhere you go! Saves us the money from buying 3G card. You can also get tourist information and buy tickets to attractions at a cheaper rate by using their phone app.
The hotel room is really quite small but very cozy and well designed. There is a comfortable bed, a mini fridge, a safe, a small wardrobe, a small little toilet area and a window side space for our luggage. The toilet can be quite awkward for friends as there is no lock system and the glass is kind of translucent. Our shower head and TV had some minor problems but it was fixed promptly after our feedback. 2 bottles of drinking water was also refilled every day.
We explored the hotel's gym before we went for lunch at the nearby Chef's Porridge, at the opposite street of the hotel. We stayed on level 12 and I have to say the lift is really the slowest I have experienced. It takes 1 to 2 minutes just to get down to level 1 especially when other guests from various levels board the lift. The gym is small but rather well equipped, though I doubt many people really utilize it.
Chef's Porridge is there, with the metal post blocking it. We ordered soybean milk, and the hot one taste better. The porridge is very smooth and has the nice pearl rice taste. The XO sauce beehoon is slightly spicy and very appetizing. Our first meal was a needed change from our western cuisines on board the ship. The whole meal only cost us about HKD 75 - 85.
It was about 2pm and we prepared to head for The Peak. We have been there before but I guess I wanted to revisit the place with him and have our favorite wanton noodles. We tried to walk to Mong Kok MRT because we were going heading for Central MTR Station, and the distance was horribly long. Without my personal guide aka boyfriend, I would have been lost in directions. The Peak is walking distance from Central MTR station and everything was so familiar and I remembered how to walk there. The queue for the tram at 4 plus was long, similar to the previous time. We bought the tram and skypass tickets at HK$ 88 per adult. Since we did not manage to get a seat on the way up, we held on tightly to the bars as it moved diagonally up, with my bf wrapping me from the back in case I let go. That was a memorable moment and fun experience <3.
There are some shops at The Peak and The Peak Galleria. It was very cooling and wonderful to walk around up there. We ate an egg tart and had our "snack" at Mak's Noodle! Our first experience with Mak's Noodle was at this same outlet and the taste of their wanton mee is delectable. The soup is so flavorful with the right amount of pepper. Their noodles so Q and the prawn wantons so crunchy and fresh. However, the portion is really very small for a price like that. I believed they have increased their price since. But okay la, they provide free Chinese tea. We tried the Centrepoint outlet in Singapore but it is just different and cannot be compared to this in HK. There was a strong noodle taste after while when we ate it in Singapore.
There is this colourful shop called Happy Lab, which sells jelly beans and chocolate in a large variety of flavours. The sweets are mostly contained in test tubes and measuring beakers, which is why the shop is called a lab :D. These were great gift ideas and we bought one for Zhang Fan, whom we will be meeting later on for Dimsum! But one small tube already cost about S$ 5. The lady staff in this store was really friendly and we sampled so many flavors of jelly beans. She said she recognize us as Singaporeans from the way we speak haha.
If you bought the Skypass too, you get to go to to the highest point and enjoy the scenery and cool weather. But at that height, the view is generally very foggy like at Genting Highlands. They had these headphones and players which you can get free if you would like to hear more information on The Peak and other HK tourist attractions. They did not have these the last time we came in 2013. However, I was more engrossed with photo-taking and we put back the headset after awhile. My personal photographer was afraid that I would be cold and he took out his hoodie for me to wear. So I also took out my green shawl and tie around his neck so that he can become more "fashionable" :P.
There is a Tsui Wah Restaurant at the peak too and we had good food there the time before. However, to our disappointment, they no longer sell buoluo bao! That outlet's ambience wasn't so good either, felt a little dirty. Hence, we decided to have dinner near our hotel. We had some sushi at Olympic station because it was already 8 plus and our stomachs were protesting.
Bon Bon Cafe (车品品） was opened when we were back. It is also located opposite our hotel. I read about it from blog reviews and many had positive feedback. And I think they only open at certain hours and there was a queue then. We waited for 30 minutes before we get our table. The waitress was quite nice to us and recognize us as Singaporeans as well lol. We were supposed to order right at the counter but we didn't know and the waitress was kind enough to help us with it. Anyway, the menu is quite messy with words everywhere. If you cannot read Mandarin words, it might pose a bit of a problem. We ordered runny yolk century egg because it is such a novelty. My bf did not like century egg on its own because of its strong pungent taste. I think the century egg is like the usual ones and it goes well with the marinated ginger slice. The homemade hawthorn and luo han guo tea are refreshing thirst quenchers. The shark fin soup is quite nice, especially with the Nissin noodle inside, but we do not think it really contained real shark fin. The meat dumpling noodles is the one which many reviews have recommended. I think the dumplings require time and effort to marinate. It has a sour taste which I assumed is due to vinegar. The taste is very unique and not something we have eaten before. But both of us do not think that this is worth the wait for.
We were really tired today and occasionally felt woozy. We might not have got used to land yet! Awaiting the next day of adventure :D.
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