Hong Kong Revisited Part 1

When the whole family went to Hong Kong last 2008, Issa was still a wide-eyed high school sophomore. And my boys still gave me the sweetest hugs at bedtime.

Well, Issa just turned eighteen last September 8, and she asked to re-visit Hong Kong for her debut gift. Of course, this time she had quite a different agenda in mind. While Disneyland and Ocean Park were the main focus of our trip four years ago, this time around, it was more of an "adult" thing--casino(?) and shopping.

Yup, she may not be that wide-eyed anymore, yet she opted to spend her special day with her old creaky mom and dad instead. So how could we have had the heart to say no to that?

Waiting for our flight to Hong Kong at Mactan Cebu International Airport

And I thought it was bonding time, here we are still not talking. Hahaha!

Our flight to Hong Kong was at 10:15 p.m. and we arrived a little before 12:50 a.m. Hong Kong International Airport is truly a class of its own. So pardon the third worlders for some airport pictures.

The details were amazing. Don't look up!

The architectural lines were simply breathtaking.

We would have wanted to save on hotel lodging, but decided to book for the day anyway. We know we had a full two days ahead of us, so even a few hours of sleep would immensely help in recharging our batteries.

The Airport Express Trains close at 12:00, so we had to take a taxi to the hotel. Our driver was pleasant, compared to the driver we had four years ago. We knew he wasn't very conversant in English, but he tried to make some one-liners anyway. His parting word to us was "Have a good day!"-- so cute considering he dropped us off at YMCA at early dawn. (Cab fare: HK$196.50~Php1,080.75)

We pre-booked at the YMCA Salisbury at the heart of  Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon Peninsula. We chose this hotel for its proximity to the shopping malls, China Ferry, the exit leading to the subway, and some well-known landmarks. We booked their Family Suite for two nights.(Hotel rate: US$260~Php10,900+/night)

Issa already looked ready to go for some serious shopping time...

...while I could barely keep my eyes open! (It didn't help that the hotel lobby had the cozy vintage-y feeling to it.)

Yes, off to Room 1288! We were pleasantly surprised that we were given the Harbour View Room, although we didn't particularly book that more expensive alternative.

The sofa in the living room was converted into a bed for the birthday girl.

The master's bedroom had a king-sized bed. There was a walk-in closet, but only one small bathroom. But I couldn't ask for a better room with the best view.

Oh, and there was also a basket of fruits to welcome us. 

Before we slept, we first ate the hot meals from Cebu Pacific, which we decided to take out instead of eating them on the plane.

We were finally able to get a snooze at 3:00 a.m.

To be continued.