March 13, 2018 – Hong Kong – Day 2

Today we are on an included tour that took us back to the Hong Kong Island. However, we saw all new things.

The first stop was to ascend to Victoria Peak, the 1,800-foot summit that soars over the city’s skyscrapers. Known as “the Peak” by locals, it offers breathtaking views of the metropolis, Victoria Harbor and Kowloon Peninsula. To get to the peak we took a bus from the port to the Peak Tram. The Peak Tram opened in 1888 for the exclusive use of the British governor and The Peak’s residents, but today it can be enjoyed by everyone as the steepest funicular railway in the world. The trip takes only seven minutes is a visual experience to remember, especially if you are afraid of heights. The skyscrapers glide past at what appears to be impossible angles while the tram makes its ascent.

Once we got there and took some pictures though it was a little hazy (smoggy). We walked around and found a marvelous foot path that goes up to the very top. However, we did not have time to explore it.

We then got back on our bus to explore the locale of Aberdeen, a fascinating juxtaposition of modern and ancient. Here, we took a traditional sampan for a cruise through the harbor. This used to be where hundreds of people lived on fishing junks. Today there are very few left as the fishermen have gotten older and retired and their children do not want to live on the water. Some of them are using these boats for these tours.

The next stop was where else but to a jewelry factory. Here they were selling jade. Needless to say, we did not buy anything. We could not take pictures inside.

When you travel in this part of the world, you often we not encounter a western toilet, but you will encounter an Asian toilet. And here it is, basically a hole in the ground.

Lastly, we went to Hong Kong Island’s south shore to browse the open-air Stanley Market, a picturesque area of lanes lined with a rich array of open air stalls and shops. We explored the markets and made a couple of purchases, and then walked down by the water where we were able to get some sand for my collection.

And that was the end of our tour. The tours we took both days were excellent and gave us a great overview of this area. We are thinking of taking Holland America’s Grand Asia in 2020 and it will bring us back here as well as many places we have not been to.

Tomorrow is another port day on the island of Haikou in China.