Hong Kong-Day 1

Our sole purpose to Hong Kong was to EAT. Maybe a little bit of shopping as well....hehe! We arrived quite early and we took a 10 minute cab ride straight to Tung Chung where the famous outlet mall, Citygate Outlets is located. You could also take bus number S1, S52 or S64 from the airport. This place is home to many branded names like Coach, Polo Ralph Lauren, Adidas and many more. Heaven for the girls ;) We decided not to have lunch here but wait till after we've checked in as the place around our hotel has many good eateries. Walking distance from the mall is Ngong Ping 360 where you can take the cable car up to Ngong Ping Village and the Tian Tan Buddha Statue.

All visitors to Hong Kong should get the MTR tourist day pass and for HK$ 55, it's quite a good deal as one way ticket from Tung Chung Station (nearest station to airport) to Sheung Wan Station (where our hotel and the Macau Ferry Terminal is located) cost HK$ 21 and any trips between HK Island and Kowloon will cost you around HK$ 10.50-11.50. We checked into Mingle on the Wing, a boutique hotel that's a few steps away from the Sheung Wan station. Quite reasonably priced for the amenities provided and the location.

Let's get to the food...1st stop, Sang Kee Congee Shop. This family run business has been around for 40 years and it's famous for it's variety of congee like fish, crab, pig's innard and beef. It was winter and a hot bowl of congee was just perfect. Look at the queue...definitely a must try. I found the congee very smooth! The portion is huge as you can see from the photos, the congee is almost overflowing from the bowl.

Beef congee. Complimented with a small bowl of soya sauce, fresh spring onions and ginger

Congee with pig's innard of liver, kidney and etc...

Pan-fried fish cake

Sang Kee Congee Shop

Opening hours: 7am-9pm (Closed on Sundays)

Address: 7-9 Corner of Burd and Hillier Street, Sheung Wan

Direction: Sheung Wan MTR, Exit A2

After that hearty meal, we walked along Wellington Street towards Central. We came across Mak's Noodles, fame for its wonton. This restaurant received the Bib Gourmand distinction in MICHELIN guide Hong Kong/Macau 2010 and many famous people have tried this place including Anthony Bourdain. While we were there, we bumped into Hong Kong singer Kenny B. We asked the staff for recommendations and they were very helpful. We noticed the portions were slightly smaller than what you would normally find in Hong Kong but it makes up in it's taste and luckily we were still quite full from the congee. Noodles were chewy and quite tasty. We love the shrimp wonton...fresh and chrunchy!

Noodles with shredded pork

Noodles with shrimp eggs sprinkle on top

Prawn dumplings

Shrimp wonton

Mak's Noodles Ltd

Opening hours: 11am-8pm

Address: 77 Wellington Street, Central

Direction: Central MTR, Exit D1 & D2

Read more in the next post...Hong Kong-Day 1 continue

Reviving the blog...

Wow...I can't believe it's more than a year since I started this travel blog but I have to say I've not been giving it much loveeee. Told myself I have to start doing something. Can't just leave it neglected like that.

Let's see...what have I been up to. So much have happened...I really don't know where to start. Work these past few months have brought me to most of the southern towns in Malaysia as well as to the east coast of Pahang. And I have been tremendously bless this year as I got to go to Bangkok, Hong Kong, Macau, US and Canada. Let you guys have a sneak preview first and I will update more soon. The places we went was awesome and more importantly the company was fantastic...you know who you are! Love you guys...

Good news for all, from midnight tonight to the 15th of August, AirAsia will be having RM 1 Sale. Bookings are from travel period between 1st April to 11th August 2011 and it doesn't include AirAsia X. Start planning now :)

Hubbard Glacier in Alaska

Panoramic view of Grand Canyon

Night view of Hong Kong

Busy...busy...busy

One word to sum up my absence from this blog-BUSY. Time passes so fast when you are preoccupied with work. Let's see...I attended a workshop on communication skills in the office, travelled to Ipoh twice for work (will upload some photos later on the yummy food I had), flew to Singapore for Anthony Robbins's seminar, went for 3 interviews...and the list goes on. All was fantastic and I'm sure it happened for good reasons. Will share more later :)

Nara

The town of Nara in the region of Kansai is small and it's a destination many have not heard of but it definitely packs a punch. It's Japan first capital and because of it's rich history, Nara was designated with eight UNESCO World Heritage sites, second only to Kyoto in the numbers. They are the Buddhist temples of Todai-ji, Kofuku-ji, Gango-ji, Yakushi-ji and Toshodai-ji, Kasuga Taisha Shrine, Kasuga-yama Primeval Forest and Heijo-kyo Palace. Other places worth visiting in town are Nara Park, Nara National Museum and Isui-en & Neiraku Art Museum. For more information about Nara, click here at http://narashikanko.jp/en/index.html

Todai-ji also known as Great Eastern Temple, is the world's largest wooden building that also houses the world's largest Buddha (Daibutsu)

Two pagodas of Kofuku-ji Temple-three storeys & five storeys

Entrance to the Kasuga Taisha Shrine is lined with hundreds of lanterns

Picturesque shot of the lake in Nara Park

Feeding deers with shika-sembei (deer biscuits) at the entrance of Todai-ji

Horyu-ji Temple located southwest of Nara

Direction: Take JR Nara Line for 53 minutes from Kyoto Station to Nara Station, or take JR Yamatoji Line for 36 minutes from Osaka (Namba Station) or 30 minutes from Osaka (Tenno-ji Station) to Nara Station (Japan Rail Pass can be used for all routes mentioned)

Season of Sale

It's the time again where the Malaysia Mega Carnival Sale is on. Even our national carrier Malaysia Airlines is not missing out on the fun. This weekend, they are having their Weekend Surprise for travel period between 18th August to 15th September 2009 for destinations like Seoul, Taipei, Osaka and Tokyo. One way ticket inclusive of tax to Japan only cost RM 730. I'm sooo tempted to book. How I wish I have more annual leave.

Budget airline AirAsia started having their Big Sale since the 10th August and today is their last day. Bookings are for travel period between 11th January to 31st July 2010 and includes their AirAsia X flights as well. For those who like to plan ahead like me, it's a good time to book your holiday now. Since my husband and I have not been to Hong Kong together, we bought ourselves tickets for Hong Kong and Macau a week before Chinese New Year. Looking forward to the good food and shopping!! :)

Takoyaki & Okonomiyaki

On the left is Okonomiyaki

Yaki-soba

Two popular dishes in Osaka are Takoyaki (octopus balls) and Okonomiyaki (Japanese pizza). Takoyaki is a street food that can be found at yatai (movable food stalls) and rotensho (food stalls at festivals). They are about the size of golf balls and are formed from chunks of boiled octopus fried in batter. Japanese Worchestershire-style sauce, green onions, mayonaise and katsuo bushi (bonito flakes) are all added for taste.

The name Okonomiyaki means 'cook what you like' and and it is made from batter and cabbage mix together with ingredients of your choice for instance octopus, shrimp and pork. Seasonings of Japanese Worcestershire-style sauce and mayonaise and toppings like katsuo bushi and aonori (dried seaweed) are added. This dish is a DIY affair at your own table which has a teppan (hot-plate) and customers are given spatula and chopstick to cook. For some traditional restaurants, the chef will do most of the cooking and bring the nearly finished product over for you to season it yourself like what we did in Osaka. Most Okonomiyaki restaurants also serve yaki-soba (fried buckwheat noodles). Head to Dotombori Arcade in Minami area in Osaka and look for this place called Chibo to find this yummy dish.

Places to stay-Japan

Entrance of Osaka Arietta Hotel & Osteria

One of the guest rooms in Arietta Hotel & Osteria

Bathrooms are very modern

Ueno Sutton Place Hotel

Superior Single-Sutton Place Hotel

In my previous post, I shared on an ancient castle in the small town of Himeji . This city is best visited as a day trip from other cities like Osaka or Kobe. I recommend staying in Osaka as it has more things to offer and the hotels available is much more.

One of the challenges that visitors face when coming to Japan is accommodation. Not because of the choices available but because cost is high. One of the hotel I suggest is Osaka Arietta Hotel & Osteria. The location is just minutes away from the subway and the price is very reasonable for the service and amenities provided. This hotel is under a group called Renaissance Hotel Group and they have a few other hotels around Tokyo and Fukuoka as well. Some of the hotels have 20% discount on Sundays. That is definitely good news!

I will post a few more options on the places to stay in Japan for your future reference. So drop by for more info...