Hong Kong

One morning we decided to visit Hong Kong just because it is so close.

So we woke up early on a Friday morning, and left at about 6:30am.  We took the metro to Louhu station where one of the border crossings are.  It was pretty simple and quick process.  At Louhu they have a designated cubicle for foreigners so we didn't have to line up in the queues.

Once through the Chinese border, you walk over a bridge, no mans land, then go through the Hong Kong border.   Once through you walk out onto a train platform and queue up for the train into Hong Kong.  The train does have aircon, but has quiet a few stops.  The last stop is at a metro station where you have to decide which line you want to take.

We had heard about a diner called, The Flying Pan, that served awesome breakfasts.  So we decided to head there before exploring Hong Kong for the day.  The breakfasts are awesome but pricey.  Actually Hong Kong is pricey.

Our Breakfasts.

From there we walked around a bit and did some sightseeing.  We decided to ride on the tram to see Hong Kong from a different level.  However, the tram does only go on the perimeter of Hong Kong so you miss the inner city part.

Then we took a taxi to The Peak.  Inside the galleria you are able to view the awesome views that Hong Kong has to offer from their viewing deck.  We also visited the Madame Tussuad's. This is definitely a tourist destination and quite pricey.

We had lunch there at Burger King.  Once we had enough, we were back down the mountain side and went for a little stroll.  Then it was back on the metro, to get home.  This time we went through the Futian check point, which was a little busier as they don't have a designated cubicle for foreigners and have to line up with all the other locals.

It was a day well spent.

A stroll around the World

Today we toured around the world.  We went to visit one of the tourist sites called Window of the World (WOW).

It is awesome.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.
 

This is a “mini” town, which display the landmarks from all over the world.  This is a must see if anyone visits Shenzhen.  We met some South Africans that are performers at WOW.  They come from Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Randburg to name a few.  We even went up the Eiffel Tower and it had amazing views.

This is the entrance to WOW.  It costs 200RMB per person. 

After 7:30pm the entrance fee comes down to 80RMB.

This fountain outside WOW.

The Louvre - France

The Louvre is the entrance / exit to the metro station, with no paintings to speak about.

One of the popular landmarks is the Eiffel Tower - France.

You can buy a ticket to go up the Eiffel Tower.  Awesome views.

View of the WOW and part of Shenzhen.

View of the amphitheatre as you enter WOW.

At 7:30pm is the start of a show that is performed every night.

We also went on the monorail, at 20RMB per person.

This ride takes you around the perimeter of the park so you can see where everything is.

Even though we got to see some of the sights from up high, most of them were covered with trees.

On the Monorail.

We walked around looking at the landmarks.  However, a whole day maybe two is needed to see all the landmarks at the park.

Part of Caesar's Palace in Vegas.

It was also a reprieve to walk into an ice rink just to get away from the heat.

There are lots of places to eat at.  However if you go early and don't stay later most of them wont be open.

We found an "African Village".  Here we met some South Africans who are employed as performers.

They play games with the audience such as drumming or dancing.  The people love them.

The audience

This is a hilarious story.  I was telling one of the performers that I was so jealous that the guy in the picture could speak such good Mandarin as he interpreted everything the others said.  The Chinese audience wanted photos with him too.  Only to find out he is Chinese.  And he can't speak any English.  Ha Ha.

Mini Niagara Falls - The International border between Canada and United States.

Mount Rushmore - South Dakota

Lower Manhattan New York City

The White House - America

The Washington Monument - America

Red Indians in America.  You can also learn how to use the bow and arrow.

Some more landmarks.

Statues in Peru that are found on the mountainsides.

The Chichen Itza in Latin America.

Having fun queueing up for this ride.

This was a free ride so we decided to go for it.  We were under the impression it was a house of horrors ride.  And it started out to be like that.  On the ride we started slowly going past green light and some spiders, but then it all of a sudden goes pitch black and is a roller coaster with many little twists and turns.

Lots of walking ....

The Colosseum - Rome

Christ the Redeemer - Rio de Janeiro

Some views from the Monorail

The Taj Mahal

This is definitely a tourist spot.  A must do.  And if you can, try stay for the 7:30 pm show, but go early to get a seat.  We went during the holidays a second time, in the evening, but that is another page to my blog.  It can get really really busy.

It was a fantastic day.  Keep reading and I'll keep posting.