Hong Kong

June 1, 2010 — H&M, HK, Hong Kong, Jia Hotel, Jia Hotel Hong Kong, Langham Place, Madame Tussauds, Madame Tussauds HK, Madame Tussauds Hong Kong, MJ Kuok, Mongkok, Once Twice 3, Repulse Bay, Singapore Airlines, Singapore Airlines economy, Singapore Airlines new economy seats, Stanley, Stanley Market, The Peak

My “renewed” relationship with Hong Kong in terms of shopping started 3 years ago. I have been visiting yearly since then.

Going to Hong Kong means filling up my luggage with H&M stuff, my most favorite brand. Zara, Pull & Bear, Esprit being the runners up.

Here’s a photo from my very first trip to the H&M store in HK in 2007.

May 2007

At almost the same spot during my recent trip there…

May 2010, minus the yawning lady in the background

Have I aged so much that the guy in the 2007 photo looks like my son?? Oh well. I guess with age comes a higher level of maturity to control impulse shopping and improved fashion sense. My hair is parted on the other side too. :p

Anyway, this 2010 HK trip is not just for my own shopping satisfaction but that of my sister’s who has not seen this beautiful city since 1988. Back then, she always wanted to be carried around by my parents as she could not survive walking along what used to be called Ocean Terminal in Kowloon. No wonder she hardly had any recollection of that trip.

She’s all grown up now and ready to spend more than I could ever imagine! At 20+ yrs old, no one in our family could carry her anymore without risk of serious injury… ha

Welcome back to Hong Kong!

When I was booking the flight, I made sure to choose the Singapore Airlines aircraft that had the new Economy seats. Some years back, Singapore Airlines introduced a new layout for Business Class and improved Economy seats. This aircraft has the same look and feel as the A380 but single deck only. A few photos of the Economy seats I am talking about.

Larger display, better looking remote control, and improved interactive menu

We arrived in HK slightly after noon and it was shopping and sightseeing for 3.5 days.

Hotel lobby of Jia Hotel in Causeway Bay (been staying here for the past few visits)

Cozy bedroom. One new gadget this time around is the iPod player/speaker near the TV.

HK MTR stations are characterized by numerous exits, 2-3 levels of escalators, and thousands of people. This one is like 10x the size of Dhoby Ghaut MRT station in Singapore

The tram that took us to The Peak

Sky was not clear but still happy with the view from above

Near the Madame Tussauds entrance getting intimate with Bruce. We decided not to go into the wax museum due to lack of time.

With Ron and William

Langham Place (mall) in Mongkok. I braved 13 levels and had quite a few good purchases. (Nearest MTR: Mongkok)

Citygate outlet shopping (Nearest MTR: Tung Chung)

More shopping, this time in Kowloon island, near Harbour City (Nearest MTR: Tsim Tsa Tsui)

Before we packed our stuff into 3 suitcases, we checked out the shops near Times Square (Nearest MTR: Causeway Bay)

Final day (morning) spent on a bus tour of south HK island. Passed through Repulse Bay on our way to Stanley Market. Awesome residential properties with stunning view of the bay.

Area surrounding Stanley market

Grabbed lunch at agnes b restaurant in IFC mall

We didn't need to request an additional chair for our bags and jackets as they had a low bench for them.

Spent more than expected but no regrets. I'll go back in 2011. Need to check out New Territories, have a round of drinks in a bar overlooking the city, take the cable car at Lantau Island, ride the ferry to the other island, bargain at day/night markets, eat good dimsum

Special thanks to Steph Ho, Kristy Teng, Vincent Ang, and MJ Kuok for the shopping / bar hopping tips.

And speaking of MJ, check out his latest single “Once Twice 3″.

Support talented musicians like him by purchasing his music from iTunes (search “mj kuok”) or from www.mjkuok.com (Click Shop Online).