I'm back for a compact post on Hong Kong + Macau. This trip with my brother was really last minute, we bought our flight tickets less than a month than the departure date and did no planning at all. I just booked the highest rated hostel, Yesinn Causeway Bay from hostelworld.com and there we went!
The expenditure for this trip was around RM1200 for a person, including flight tickets! Since we flew from KCH-KK-HK and HK-KK-KCH, it was considered real cheap for a flight bought less than a month~
When it comes to a trip with me, of course I would prefer a backpacking trip and on real budget. This is probably the most "city" country I could ever be at. It felt so much like being in KL, except that there were more luxurious shops and you see Chinese (be it from Mainland China, Taiwan or from close descendants the Japanese and Koreans). No doubt Macau was the highlight of the trip, given that it was the first Casino we ever entered.
All the plannings were made a day before the trip, in bed, at the hostel in HK. Thank God for high speed WiFi throughout the whole hostel. And scary enough I only realized I was sleeping in a 9-bed mix dorm but turned out it was filled with 8 guys (I was the only girl yikes!), on the last day. Good thing my brother was really the protective type and took good care of me :)
The triple-deck bed! Frames are DIY-ed using steel pipes screwed to the ceiling and floor, creative I should say. Very sturdy and made no squirky noises like most double-deck beds do.
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| triple deck beds. sorry this was taken using lousy phone camera xD |
Anyways, because the trip was so last minute, my camera broke right on the last day of my Taiwan trip and I had no time to borrow one, all pictures were taken using phone camera =.= Nothing artistic (since we were in a city anyways) but enough to snap memories. Too bad the weather was cold and it was quite foggy in HK and Macau so we could not get much nice scenery shots.
DAY 0 - KOTA KINABALU, SABAH
Arrival in Kota Kinabalu. Took Malaysia Airlines (MAS) so had to transit in Sibu, or was it Miri >__<
First time riding MASwings. Spent a nice at KK Airport while waiting for early morning flight to HK.
Coincidentally met a Uni mate who is currently working in KK. So we had dinner together at Tanjung Aru!
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| Avocado + Milo, must have when I'm there! |
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| Spent miserable night at the airport, sleeping on floor. What backpackers could get use to~ |
DAY 1 - HONGKONG
Arrived HK! Because we had no plan so we kinda got lost looking for our hostel.
We took the bus (all the buses are double deckers!) and stopped a few stops earlier.
Had to carry our backpacks and the road (with small alleys) were really confusing.
Finally rested at McDonald's to take lunch first and drew out our huge HK map trying to figure out the street names. Asked the cashiers but their English is very basic and to my surprise, I was kinda scolded(??) for speaking Mandarin, please brush up your Cantonese if you plan to go to HK >__<
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| Bus routes (1) |
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| Bus routes (2) |
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| sorry for all the containers photos, I was amazed by how huge the port was |
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| So here is directions from Causeway Bay MRT |
Found our hostel at an alley, just a tiny signboard at the door =.= But get the streets name right and you can actually find it. Right after refreshing up and setting down our backpacks, went to Ocean Park! Ocean Park is one of the Top 10 themepack in the world so it's a must go! We were contemplating between Ocean Park and Disneyland HK. But Disneyland seemed too kiddy and girly, isn't so much of a place siblings would go.
Admission fee: 250HKD (Adult), 125HKD (Child)
Getting there: Shuttle buses 10.60HKD (Adult), 5.30HKD (Child)
from Admiralty MRT (9AM-4PM)
and Central Ferry Pier (9.35AM-10.55AM)
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| Beauty >>> Pain (??) Ain't no beauty, my feet felt as they were gonna break at the end of the day >__< |
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| Ignore that oily hair, we slept at the airport the day before and came straight to Ocean Park *^^* |
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| If you watch Running Man, you'll remember Yoo Jaesuk "conflict" with the panda here xD |
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| Panda! |
After Ocean Park, it was dinner time! We went back for a refreshing shower and decided to eat just nearby because we really need that good sleep (though I went back to the hostel and had to plan for the next day >__<)
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| This noodle shop was located just right behind our hostel |
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| While everyone were covered up, we wanted to challenge walking down HK streets in slippers LOL |
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| in slippers, and went back feeling my feet aching. Not sure from the cold or whole day in heels =.= |
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| Night street snacks is a must when in HK (and Taiwan!) |
DAY 2- HONGKONG
The next day we headed to Central MRT for Tim Ho Wan's Dim Sum! Long queue and we had to take numbers, order your Dim Sum in advance and wait for your turn. We were not really sure what to order so we took a peek at others' orders Lol
They had pictures of some of the Dim Sum so I guess those are must-eat. The Char Sao Bao (Pork Bun) is definitely must have! Salivating thinking of it <3
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| Char Siew Steam-Baked Bun *yummy* |
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| Lo Mai Kai, this portion is quite big, 2 persons sharing was just perfect |
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| And Siew Mai is a Dim Sum must-have |
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| silly us ordered Dessert which cost us so much yet weren't the main attraction. But bill came out cheaper than our expectations |
For more information about The Peak HK visit : http://www.thepeak.com.hk/en/2_1.asp
At The Peak, you get to shop and enjoy the scenery. However it was rather foggy so we decided to visit Madame Tussauds wax museum. We were both hesitating because we are both not museum kinda people but we were there and there was nothing much to do. Paid 240HKD but it was quite fun!
Tips: book online for savings up to 40% http://www.madametussauds.com/HongKong/en/BuyTickets/Default.aspx
(do note that we did no planning so it was our lost)
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| there were little people so we did all the funny selfies |
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| so Jay is actually just slightly taller than me Lol |
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| And I am at Lee Minho's shoulder height |
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| Remember back then in Korea's Wax Museum I also took a photo with President Obama? xD |
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| Get to do silly stuffs |
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| work on props |
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| Forgive me that I acted inappropriate Lol |
After exiting the Wax Museum, it was still kinda foggy so instead of going for a tram ride, we just went out to the balcony and enjoy the breeze and view from there!
Went back to Central MRT and to Tsim Sa Tsui MRT to visit The Avenue of Stars!
This is another HK must-go!
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| I'm busy eating/drinking most of the time =.= |
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| Near the Art Museum so there were many artistic displays |
Took soooo many photos with the Stars' handprints that it's impossible to post all here.
And I actually look similar in all the photos FML. Using these 2 for example =.=
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| Lin Ching Hsia (not our era but this is for you Dad!) |
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| Jackie Chan's |
After that went to Tsim Tsa Tsui East to meet up with my HK friend Tszlam I miss you!!
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| Yummy braised pork! |
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| Me & Tszlam <3 |
DAY 3 - MACAU
Day 3 we went to Macau! Do note that Macau consists of 3 parts: Macau peninsular and islands - Taipa, Coloane and Cotai (most recent claim). Initially I had the plan to fly from Macau back to Malaysia, but staying in Macau would have been more costly. To our surprised, we spent least in Macau. The transports were all free!! They had shuttle buses to most of the attractions! It is afterall a tourist-generated income country.
To take the ferry, had to go to the Ferry Pier at Seungwan. We planned for a day-trip so bought 2-way tickets. What's surprising, we spent only 5 hours in Macau and managed to cover quite many places. Thanks to proper planning? :D Not so, it was because we woke up late, took a later ferry and only arrive Macau at 2PM, our return ferry was 7PM. LOL
We took the Turbojet Ferry from Seungwan (HK) and arrive at Macau Ferry Terminal. From here, there are free shuttle bus to the casinos along Cotai Strip (Venetian and City of Dreams) even if you are not a guest so it was really convenient.
We took the Economy cabin, if not mistaken it cost around 150-190HKD (depending on the season - low, peak etc.) Tickets HK >> Macau is more expensive than Macau >> HK.
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| The KFC rice bucket that we don't have in Malaysia! Other restaurants had really long queue and we were rushing so this was all we had |
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| Remember your passport! Macau is a SAR of China (different immigration) so passport is needed |
From Macau Maritime Ferry Terminal, we took Bus No. 8 to Sao Paulo Cathedral (the ruins of St. Paul) remains. Also got lost, we wasted time walking the opposite direction and finally went back to where we saw many people. We were following a family without knowing that they were also lost =.=
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| Largo do Senado (Senado Square) |
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| saw the long queue here, the Macau famous BBQ Pork Ribs Bun, but not my taste. A lil too dry to my liking |
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| Sao Paolo Cathedral remains To note: cannot enter with food |
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| This, is where Running Man played the "throwing shoes" game LOL |
Went back to the ferry terminal by taking a bus from the opposing direction where we got off (when we went to St. Paul from ferry terminal). From the Ferry Terminal, take the under passage to the free shuttle buses to most of the casino. We took the one to The Venetian. You can see the buses clearly from the ferry terminal's exit as all the buses are brightly coloured with huge fonts of the casinos' names.
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| The Venetian |
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| Macau's Portuguese Egg tart is a must have! It's really the best <3 |
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| *candid* |
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| Venetian's Casino entrance! |
We did enter the casino and had a walk around though we didn't plan to gamble. The security had to look at me suspiciously and requested for my passport. Should probably start appreciating people for mistaking me as a kid. =.=
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Instead of going to the Macau Tower from the Ferry Terminal as mentioned by many, there is shuttle bus from City of Dreams to Macau Tower even though they are located on 2 different regions.
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| Arrived Macau Tower! Welcomed by Macau display made from Legos. |
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| Macau Tower! |
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| Check out Asia's highest bungee jump! |
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| It was really high and this was all we could manage with a mobile phone's camera |
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| *candid* |
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| Grand Lisboa. Casino Lisboa is like the oldest casino in Macau but not sure whether this is the same one |
From Macau Tower, we took a bus which goes to the Ferry Terminal. There is a bus stop right outside and we actually just checked out the board (did no research on the number). We also waited so long while worrying whether that bus was ever gonna arrive. So imagine the adventure we had when we had to stop at the main bus terminal and change bus. Got to see the colourful Casino Lisboa which is close to the bus terminal!
Arrived HK and got knocked out. Did no research for the next day. Only knew we were gonna go to Tsim Tsa Tsui and Mongkok because everyone said so that we should go there Lol
So our Macau trip: HK ferry >> Macau ferry >> St. Paul ruins (Senado Square) >> The Venetian >> City of Dreams >> Macau Tower >> Macau ferry >> HK ferry.
Most places we used free shuttle buses and the buses fares were much cheaper than buses in HK, turned out it was the most budget day we spent (considered we didn't gamble so no profit nor loss)
DAY 4 - HONGKONG
Since we were back into the city, we were looking forward for shopping!
Truth was, we compared the prices to Malaysia and India (brother is studying there) and turned out some things are actually more expensive, but they have more choices, more designs and I guess they receive new models/designs quicker (??) So for shopping on common brands, I'll probably not do it in HK but if I am looking for designer brands or luxurious items, HK is the place.
After get some cheapo stuffs (we were on backpacking trip afterall), checked out from our hostel and off to the airport!
At Central MRT station, you can get the direct train transit to Hong Kong International Airport. And, here you can also eat Hong Kong's famous Dim Sum @ Tim Ho Wan (it's actually the same place we ate on Day 2 cause this is the only easy place to find Tim Ho Wan)
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| steam fogged up the lens |
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| Final lunch in HK @ Tim Ho Wan |
From Central MRT, we took the HK Airport Transit to HK International Airport. And at the Airport, we had some time so we ate again! Wantan Mee and Roasted Duck. Duck was super yummy!!
And finally back to KK-KCH!
Sorry this post is not so informative because it was so last minute, we did most plannings on the day before or on the spot. Got lost many times (even when looking for the Causeway MRT station near our hostel =.=). But nevertheless, it proves that you can travel HK and Macau with less than RM1.5k even at last minute plan! We had quite an adventure and lotssss of walking.
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