Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour, and how easy it is to get here.
Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong
About a minute after I get on the bus it pulls out from the bay and begins it journey into the city. This was my first trip to Hong Kong - that statement alone, alludes to how I feel about Hong Kong, it’s my first, certainly not meant to be my last visit here.
I’ve got a hotel booked in Tsim Sha Tsui, which is on the Kowloon side of Victoria Harbour. I found this bus from an info sheet that I printed off from the hotel, it listed 4 different ways to get to my hotel, by express bus, by regular bus, by taxi and by train.
It's been awhile since I've been in a double decker bus, this one has very comfortable seating. I wonder how long the journey will be, as a PA system announces the stops, alongside a TV monitor listing them, as well as a scrolling LED screen in English and Chinese.
Normally on a new route I would be concerned about getting off at the right spot, however it's quickly obvious, that this won't be a problem for me tonight.
On my flight over, there were power outlets in every seat so my phone was fully charged. I now take it out and open the maps and turn on the GPS, even without a local sim card, the map I pulled up earlier on my phone is saved to the HK area. I glance out the window as we cross the magnificent Tsing Ma bridge, and slowly glance down at the little blue blip following along on the map on my phone. Technology makes things easy!
I'm all settled into my room, and I'm excited to head out, explore the city and take some photos. I've got a great (free!) app, called Stuck on Earth, I open it up, and it easily pinpoints where I am, and I can see some great photos that have been taken nearby. Seeing all the pin points in one direction, I plan my route and head out to the location that is the key point in Victoria Harbour to get the stunning view.
It's a misty night, and the 18 degrees Celsius feels like freezing to someone use to a tropical climate. I battle through this "chill" and fog, and make my own iconic photo. The low hanging fog does a nice job reflecting the lights from the buildings and compliments the reflection off the water. A long exposure smooths out the waves, as it was a bit of a windy evening.
Satisfied I head back to the warmth of my hotel, and reflect back on just how much easier it is to travel. The most difficult part of my navigating that night was Hong Kong's insistence that pedestrians cross underground, and not at street level. Big fences are everywhere as reinforcement, that if you want to get to the other side of the road, you have to find another way.
The photo above made my photo of the day blog here