Arriving in Hong Kong
The flight was scheduled to land in Hong Kong at 8pm. There was pretty dense fog outside, so I couldn't see much coming in aside form the fact our final approach (the direction and area of travel immediately before landing) was mostly over water. Before leaving I reached out to my friend, Mike, who lives in Hong Kong. Mike and I used to work for the same company several years ago, he moved to Hong Kong when his team disbanded 7 years ago. He's also a stellar photographer, having had some of his stuff published by Getty and National Geographic. I was pretty excited about hopping around the city with him.
After hearing about the hostels I was considering, Mike offered to put me up in his home in the suburbs. Since it was a short stay I took him up on his generosity. There's an express train station that connects the central city to the airport. The train is timely, taking exactly 24 minutes to arrive. The train connects to a shopping mall, which was where I would meet Mike. After landing and clearing customs in record time (under 10 minutes), I was on the train. 24 minutes later, after many text messages and a couple of phone calls, I'd find Mike.
It's hard to describe my first impressions of Hong Kong. Hong Kong has more skyscrapers than anywhere in the world, so in some respects it felt like New York or Dubai. But how consolidated everything appears is unlike anything I've seen in the world. The city is like a huge Sim City megapolis of sorts.
The American Club
By the time I met Mike it was already close to 10pm. He asked if I was hungry and suggested we visit an ex-pat club located in his work building called "The American Club". Friends from back home mentioned visiting the club was a must-do, so I was excited. We ordered food and checked out the views form the clubs Balcony. The weather wasn't cooperating much, but some of the photos came out pretty nice. The club was apparently a perk to employees, but now it's not. It's a pretty nice place though, and the burger I had was absolutely fantastic. Surprising considering how hit or miss beef can be outside the US or Australia.
Tomorrow
Mike and his wife have a two year old boy, so the day would begin around 6am. I felt exhausted and had a scratch throat (probably from breathing dry airplane cabin air for 16 hours).
The flight was scheduled to land in Hong Kong at 8pm. There was pretty dense fog outside, so I couldn't see much coming in aside form the fact our final approach (the direction and area of travel immediately before landing) was mostly over water. Before leaving I reached out to my friend, Mike, who lives in Hong Kong. Mike and I used to work for the same company several years ago, he moved to Hong Kong when his team disbanded 7 years ago. He's also a stellar photographer, having had some of his stuff published by Getty and National Geographic. I was pretty excited about hopping around the city with him.
After hearing about the hostels I was considering, Mike offered to put me up in his home in the suburbs. Since it was a short stay I took him up on his generosity. There's an express train station that connects the central city to the airport. The train is timely, taking exactly 24 minutes to arrive. The train connects to a shopping mall, which was where I would meet Mike. After landing and clearing customs in record time (under 10 minutes), I was on the train. 24 minutes later, after many text messages and a couple of phone calls, I'd find Mike.
It's hard to describe my first impressions of Hong Kong. Hong Kong has more skyscrapers than anywhere in the world, so in some respects it felt like New York or Dubai. But how consolidated everything appears is unlike anything I've seen in the world. The city is like a huge Sim City megapolis of sorts.
Hong Kong Airport
The American Club
By the time I met Mike it was already close to 10pm. He asked if I was hungry and suggested we visit an ex-pat club located in his work building called "The American Club". Friends from back home mentioned visiting the club was a must-do, so I was excited. We ordered food and checked out the views form the clubs Balcony. The weather wasn't cooperating much, but some of the photos came out pretty nice. The club was apparently a perk to employees, but now it's not. It's a pretty nice place though, and the burger I had was absolutely fantastic. Surprising considering how hit or miss beef can be outside the US or Australia.
Views from The American Club
Views from The American Club
Views from The American Club
Mike and me
Mike and his wife have a two year old boy, so the day would begin around 6am. I felt exhausted and had a scratch throat (probably from breathing dry airplane cabin air for 16 hours).
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