It's been 3 years.
10 years ago
Friday, January 13, 2006
our third day was dedicated to the Lantau Island area. we had our US dollars exhanged at Shop 9B of Mirador Mansion, the Wing Hoi Money Changer. it has the same exchange rate as the one along humprey's street. however, the latter is still closed before 9 AM whereas the one in Shop 9B do business early than most exchangers. we also recharged our Octopus Cards in the nearby 7-11 Store before heading off to the MTR Station downstairs.
from TST, we took the MTR to Central Station. i wasn't able to take note of the fare though. we rode back to Central as this was one of the exchange stations that will take us to the lane bound for Tung Chung (do refer to the map for the right color, hehe). we were able to deduced as to how come there were a few poeple on HK streets in the morning, as most of them were down the MTR stations! haha! they walk like ants down there! =)
from Central to Tung Chung was bout 30-minutes ride via MTR, fare was HK$15. we got off the station and proceeded to the bus station going to the monastery. the bus (bus #23) ride costs HK$16 during weekdays and HK$25 during weekends. commercialism! tsk..tsk.. anyway, the ride going up to the monastery takes approximately 1-hr and another hour downhill. this was because the lane can only accomodate one vehicle at a time. so, the bus that took the people up, will be the same bus that will take them down. however, there's a recent construction going on so expect to find an improved transport system in a year or so. the ride to the monastery also gives you a glimpse of the coastal area in some parts. however, the rest of the travel were mostly ups and downs.. (just like a trip to Baguio City! hehe). we also consumed an hour for climbing the 250 steps to the giant buddha plus picture-taking, etc.
the giant buddha and the offerers...
the 250 steps to the giant golden buddha!
photos outside the Po Lin Monastery
we were able to return to Tung Chung station at about noontime. we ate our lunch at McDonalds and then rode back to Sunny Bay Station, fare costs HK$ 2.2 each. at the Sunny Bay Station, we had a short ride to Disneyland via the Disney Train! so, cool! the train's windows and hand guides were shaped like mickey's head. there were miniature statues of the disney characters inside as well. train pa lang, enjoy na! =)
some pictures inside the disney train
me, nanay and tatay at the disney entrance
we were in Disneyland right after lunch. unfortunately, it was only at this time that we were to mention the senior citizen's status of my parents. they only asked for their passport copies (which i always bring) and then you get to pay the senior citizen rate which is HK$ 170 during weekdays and HK$ 200 on weekends. normally, adults pay HK$ 295 on weekdays and HK$ 350 on weekends. laking tipid, di ba? too bad, we weren't able to avail of the said discount in Ocean Park and Octopus Cards. haha. here are some snapshots inside the park :
mickey mouse statue inside the park
just after the entrance, fountain with the whale and mickey statue...
and the in-house train that brings visitors around the park...
me and my sister... mga nag-isip bata... haha!
the parade where most performers were filipinos... hooray!! proud to be pinoy! =)
the disney castle which to my dismay was just a few meters tall...
an excalibur-pose...
mom and dad beside the grand carousel...
photos outside some disney souvenir item stores....
picking out a minnie mouse stuff toy...
the magical world of disneyland!!!
we have enjoyed our half-day tour of HK Disneyland. we were able to ride the Space Mountain and tatay had a wonderful time! nawiwili ang lolo sa rides, hehe. however, the park fails in comparison with Tokyo. the princesses in HK were kinda shorter. hehe. bad ba? ;) if in Tokyo, i looked like the alalay of these princesses on photo. in Hong Kong, these princesses looked like my sisters. haha. ang kapal!!! mascots and the parade were shorter as well. bakit kaya? ;p
despite the negative sides that i could think of, Disney is still a wonderful place to be young at heart, to be carefree and be merry! (pambawi for all the bad things i said about it, hehe). as with any Disneyland, the highlight of all the day was the fireworks display at night. what can i say?? it was simple magical!!!
Thursday, January 12, 2006
because of our late night shopping, we woke up later than scheduled. we had a quick breakfast and did not venture into my planned Ocean Park by-bus-all-throughout plan. =) we first had some dollars exchanged inside a watch store in humprey street. the rate was HK$ 7.7 to a US dollar. quite higher than most money exchangers in the area. hehe. after which, we walked to the ferry terminal down Nathan Road. we crossed to the Hong Kong Island going to Central by ferry. 'twas our first ferry ride! the ferry ride from TST to Central costs from less than HK$2 to less than HK$ 3. i forgot the exact fare though, but the lower deck is much cheaper than the upper deck. for less than HK$3, would you rather drown first? we'd better not! so, we always take the upper deck in order to buy some time and grab some lifejackets, just in case. hehe.
tatay, nanay and my sister mirla on a ferry ride to Central
buses (bus # 629) going to Ocean Park can be found at the left side of the Central ferry station (actually, dahil sa kakuriputan, it took us awhile to find it, haha. we went to the bus station near the TwoIFC mall first kasi..tsk..tsk..). fare costs...hmm..i forgot already. anyway, that'll be around more or less HK$20, i think. hehe. we reached the park around 11 AM. entrance fee was HK$ 180 each and they accept credit cards. hehe.
me at Ocean Park entrance
some picture-taking on the way to cable car station
from the lower part of Ocean Park (called as "lowlands"), the first thing we did was ride the cable car upward to the "highlands" (hindi naman kami sobrang excited, hehe). the ride was just breathtaking and awesome! the cable cars went from one mountain into another, which took about 8 minutes of sure fun! there's also a great view of the South China Sea and the nearby islands as the cablecars traverse the coastline. ganda talaga, sobra!!! =)
the cable cars
me inside a cable car - just couldn't get enough =)
upon alighting the cablecar, we then started on the tour of the highlands. the Pacific Pier was where the sea lions and sharks are. ang kukulet nila! they were playing and teasing each other under water. one can even see a live stage-by-stage development of a shark. galing!
waving with the sea lions...
the sea lions at play...
the family, after having our lunch. full kaya naka-smile lahat! =)
am i lost???? nope, i'm on my way to the aviary
me, nanay and some flamingos at the back...
the mini buddha/pagoda
behind a chinese garden
the highland attractions were connected by steep escalators. nakakalula! :$ the escalators travel faster than what we were used to. the whole stretch of each escalator is being monitored by series of cameras for safety reason. so, no horse playing! hehe.
the wild river ride was closed when we were there. however, my dad had his first "carnival ride" sa space wheel ba yun. hehe. the wheel spaceshuttle-like seats, spin with increasing speed as it gradually inclines to 90 degrees! me, my sister and tatay took the ride and literally have our heads spinning. still, it was so cool!!! hehe. we also had a 360 degree view of the whole area and its suroundings via the Ocean Park Tower. the highlands is full of magnificent rides that those of the fainthearted will surely miss (me included!).
me and nanay after the space wheel ride - poised na poised pa din.. hehe.
we watched the 3:30 PM dolphin show and got entertained by talented dolphins. they were such lovable creatures! they waved, danced, showed some stunts and tricks! the presentation lasted more than 15 minutes.
right after the show, we went to the the aquarium and atoll reef. sobrang na feel ko na worth it yung ibinayad namin after touring these parts! the fishes and all the other sea creatures were so magnificent na para ka na ring nag-snorkeling! we were able to see fishes & shellfishes of different colors and characteristics. there's also this fish that resembles like a praying angel. too bad, i wasn't able to take a clear photo of it since this fish is so small. it is best to experiment with your camera on how to take pictures on dim places and without the flash, so as not to scare the underwater creatures. baka ma-trauma sila eh! =)
some beautiful and not-so beautiful fishes... see the bump on his forehead? hehe. nauntog siguro sa salamin.
corals, starfish (see the blue one?) and stingray
some sea horses.. yep, these are fishes... not horses and not algae either!
some jellyfishes....looking like inverted mushrooms under the sea. some have spots and some even have lights on them. hehe.
we took the cable car again downhill before its 6PM last schedule and toured the lowlands just before its 7 PM park closing. we only got to see An-An, and have no idea where Jia-jia could have been at that time. if Jia-jia is as big as An-An, then i am disappointed with their size, hehe. anyway, at least, i was able to see a panda in real life. we also went in the dinosaur land (which has some replicas of gigantic dinosaurs that growls), the butterfly house and the amazon trail.
the flamingos at nighttime.. quite a vivid orange color!
me and nanay, messing with a dino!
after ocean park, we got back to TST area (by a bus ride) just before the Symphony of Lights. timing nga eh kaya nanood na din kami. however, my digicam as well as my handycam both became dead before the presentation began. =( kainis! from the avenue, we went to Peking Road and look for the Ka Ka Lok food stall which was famous among PExers. haha. their spaghetti was "different" yet tasty. i love all the grilled goodies as well as their singaporean fried noodles. yummy!
view from the Avenue of the Stars during nighttime
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