I lied. I forgot that on our way to Chiang Mai Thailand we stopped in Hong Kong to visit a dear friend, a professor at a university there, and her family. That’s what I’ll be writing about this week. Unfortunately, our timing for our visit was terrible.
Early December is full of activities on the still heavily British influenced island, so we were unable to see the busy, busy kids. It was the end of the semester which is the busiest time for most professors. Plus, this was 2019 when the uprisings against Mainland oppression were hot and heavy. Recent reviews of our original booking were positive but a few mentioned being unable to make their way back to the hotel due to its location in the middle of the protest zone. So, we booked a place on Macau. While still paying for our nonrefundable place on Hong Kong island.
We arrived at the HK airport from Cape Town at God awful in the morning then had to schlep all the way to Macau. Optimistically, we’d hoped to be able to meet up with our friend that day but, yeah. No. If we’d been sans child and certainly if we’d been ten years younger, we probably could have done it. Instead we were in our 40s with a toddler and it just wasn’t happening. We went directly to sleep. Upon awakening we sought out food then took LB to the playground opposite our hotel, The Hotel Macau Royal. Then back to sleep. Remember: when traveling with young children always book near a playground. Google Maps is great for this. The hotel also had decent service, nicely sized and well-equipped rooms, bathrooms with tubs, and even a view.
Miraculously, we were somewhat adjusted by the next day. Meeting up with people who live in Hong Kong you get to see a different part of it. Most people don’t think nature when they think of the city. But our friend has introduced us to some laid-back beaches, mountain hikes, and quiet jungle temples. Our first day hanging out we spent the day at a different beach than we’d been to previously, but one we’d heard about. With shopping, restaurants, and bathrooms Repulse Bay was the perfect place to hang out, have a few drinks and some snacks, while LB outran the waves and played in the sand.
The next night we met up at Yum Cha, a restaurant famous for its playful take on dim sum. In the morning it was more dim sum at City Hall Maxim’s Palace. It was so good that by the time the xiao long bao showed up we were too full to try it! Dim sum is fantastic for kids. There are so many little bites they are sure to find something they like. Then our friend had to go to work, and we took LB to an amusement park.
We had to choose between Ocean Park and HK Disney. Our friend suggested Ocean Park because her own eldest, at all of 5 years old, found Disney to be rather lame. However, they lived on the same island and her daughter had been to the park multiple times. We chose Ocean Park because it was much more convenient for us. To get to Disney meant another ferry ride and to get back from Disney to Macau would have taken a minimum of a couple of hours. And the ticket prices were cheaper than Disney. Unfortunately, the prices posted online were about twenty bucks (USD) cheaper than what was posted at the park. (No, it wasn’t because it was cheaper to buy online. The rates were just outdated.) But we were already there and there was no way we were turning our daughter around at that point. We just aren’t that cruel.
The park is divided between the Waterfront, which is where the kid’s rides are, and the Summit at the top of the mountain. The Summit closes half an hour before the Waterfront. To get between the two there is a gondola and if you don’t make the last gondola ride you may find yourself hiking down the mountain. In the Waterfront are carousels, animal features including the two most cuddly creatures on the planet: pandas and koalas, shows (that they were in Chinese didn’t faze LB one bit), and eateries with Chinese food as well as fare more familiar to Western tastes. On the Summit is where you will find the rollercoasters. We only had time for my husband and myself to ride one ride on the Summit and we both chose the Hair Raiser. It’s the top of a mountain so all the rides on the Summit have killer views, but Hair Raiser takes you off the side of the mountain and leaves you hanging over the South China Sea! If you enjoy rollercoasters, I highly recommend it.
The next day was our last in China. Our friend was working all day, so we headed to the casinos. If you are a gambler or a shopper, then this place is heaven. We are neither. But the casinos have other ways to separate you from your money. We found a great indoor play area that kept LB and me busy for several hours. For dinner we gave Din Tai Fung a second chance and had yet more dim sum. The place thoroughly redeemed itself. I blame our disappointment in Dubai to having to be pork-free. It does, however, make me wonder what traditional Uighur food tastes like. Then we went back to the hotel to prep for the next day’s flight to Chiang Mai.