You know just another week overseas, just another trip away….this time HONG KONG! It was coming up to three months until my intial visa date was up so it was time to jump a plane and take off to Hong Kong to get a new one and get myself legal! :)
Thoughts of Hong Kong didn't incite much excitement from this little chicken but WOW!! I eat my words! Hong Kong is amazing and I am already planning to go back for my second helping this time next year.
The culmination of a bunch of islands, beaches, city skyscrapers, lights like Vegas, beautiful untouched nature in the mountains, foreigners galore, majority of English speakers, no hawking, spitting, peeing, pushing, western toilets, a good currency exchange from the RMB, tonnes of tourist attractions, an awesome metro and a clean clean city left me wanting more. The downside - a pending typhoon that meant rain rain rain and more rain and most key attractions shut down. However, it didn't stop me from having an amazing week!
I was there to do official visa business which meant long lines, lots of forms, angry Chinese consulate workers, blah blah blah and I wasn't really looking forward to the time it would eat out of my trip. But amazingly enough, everyone's horror stories previously foretold turned out to not be mine and it was a successful and pleasant experience. Apart from the sweltering heat and humidity - the line to enter the consulate turned out to be most productive. As soon as I arrived (nice and early to avoid the giant queues) I met an American - a guy from Texas who struck up a conversation with me and didn't stop until the following day! Both English teachers who have been in China only a couple of months, we spent the time comparing stories and situations and became fast friends. Whilst filling out the forms AGAIN that I had previously filled out (just cause they feel like making you do it again), the line zoomed through and I found myself within the air-conditioned consulate building submitting my application and out all within the hour (including line time)! I was so surprised and over the moon I had a whole extra day to explore!
Mike and I set out for some real coffee!!! Even in the sweltering heat I couldn't resist and some food! We opted for some sandwhiches! Something I haven't had in so long! I can't wait to get home and get a chicken and salad sandwich with avocado on whole wheat/grain bread - preferably Helgas! Haha! It's amazing the things you crave - so simple!
I really wanted to go check out the beach in Stanley (at the bottom of Hong Kong island) so I figured out the best route and hopped the bus down their. To my disappointment the second we got off the bus it started pouring! No beach for me! But it was a beautiful, scenic ride and ended up being a great day!
Whilst trying to find a decent beer, a place to sit to avoid the rain, I heard through the crow an almighty "Oi" - Had to be an aussie! It turns out he heard MY booming aussie accent and thought it appropriate to get me over! Their names were Burt and Joyce, late fifties couple and the epitome of everything Australian! We ended up joining them for an afternoon of beers, stories, jokes about America to the detriment of Mike and a difficult job of translating most of what Burt had to say to Mike! Very humerous! Burt was a laugh a minute! We ended up spending the arvo, the night and the next day with these guys making it quite a hilarious couple of days!
The hostel was a bunch of fun! There was a neat little crew staying there and each night we had fun playing cards, singing along to the many random songs played on guitar and comparing notes on China (as everyone was in the same boat getting their visas). I met a couple more people and decided I wanted some company up to the big Buddha on one of the Islands so invited along a guy from the Netherlands and a chick from London who was on this mega travelling adventure! It's amazing how much time you can take up just talking about the travelling journeys you have been on and all the crazy experiences!!
I also got to catch up with a lady I met on the plane on my way over from Europe! She is a Hong Kong native and we became fast friends on the plane so we had a little dinner catch up which was so lovely! It's amazing how if you make the effort, you really can make friends all over the world! I have started quite the collection. My friend Martha puts it quite well on a caption to a photo:
"This is my friend Helen, she is from Australia, I am from America, we met in Prague and hang out in China!!
It's such a small world!
So I packed quite a fair bit into my Hong Kong jaunt! There was still so much to do and so much I missed out on because of the typhoon! But all good I will be back to conquer!
The trip back was quite eventful! In true Helen fashion, I made my check in and plane with only minutes to spare! But the plane ended up being delayed so all was ok! Got to make the most of starbucks right next to my check in lounge and enjoy my last indulgence of real coffee for a while!!
After a very turbulent plane ride back into to the capital of my province and because of delays - I missed the LAST 3 hour shuttle bus back to Cangzhou and was stuck in a city where barely a soul speaks English and had to figure out how to get to the city centre (an hour away), get a hotel (at midnight) and get back to Cangzhou the next morning! It was a bit of a disaster but all ended up working out as I am here to tell the story - always the way!
Anyway, just another little adventure to add to the novel that my journeys are becoming!
I have been away for 5 months. On one hand it feels like 5 seconds and the other it feels like 5 years!
Only three months left in China would you believe and I will be on my way to Dubai and India after a bit more China travel! Very excited for the next adventure! This time with a backpack and a bit more sense of adventure!
Love to you all! Sorry for not posting for a while! Haha!
HJ xx
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