Last month, Kevin and I traveled to Hong Kong to celebrate Lunar New Year with family. We boarded our flight from Ohio to Toronto and then straight to Hong Kong. Long distance flights are typically very rough. At least, it gives me the opportunity to enjoy many of the movies I’ve been meaning to see, but just never got around to. Kevin and I had cozy seats near the back of the plane. We tucked ourselves into our spot, sat, slept, and snacked there for the next 16-18 hours. We landed in Hong Kong Saturday afternoon and proceeded to the arrival gate. We hopped on the convenient airport express shuttle and took it to the last stop. We then waited in line to catch a cab straight to his parents’ home. Hong Kong is in the opposite time zone as the States, so we had to try very hard to fight jet lag and stay awake. We stayed in for the rest of the day, enjoyed some dinner, and then went to sleep. The next morning, we met up with Kevin’s family for dim sum.
Day 1: We had a tough time sleeping through the night. I woke up multiple times throughout the night and did some light writing and reading on my phone. Kevin squeezed in a game here and there as he tried to sleep through the night. When the sun rose and morning approached, we enjoyed some toast and strawberries for breakfast and then proceeded to meet up with his family at Tien Yi at Pacific Place for dim sum. We sampled a variety of small plates and spent most of our time catching up with Kevin’s family. After a couple hours, Kevin, his mom, and I went for an afternoon stroll up to the Peak to enjoy the views of Hong Kong from the highest point. I used this as an opportunity to get in some exercise and fight off the jet lag. The late afternoon is when jet lag hits me the hardest. When we got to the Peak, Kevin and I got our fix of bubble tea at TenRen’s Tea. I stopped by my favorite beauty shop, SaSa, to pick up some personal care products – mostly handwipes and acne spot dots (my latest beauty addiction). We strolled through some of the shops, picked up some specialty jerky, and stopped by the Monopoly display at the roof of the mall. During our stroll, we saw a lion dance troupe performing at the center of the mall. The store fronts were decorated with images of cartoon rats, the upcoming zodiac sign for the new year. Red and gold was everywhere. We soaked in the beautiful sights as we departed from the Peak.
Day 2: Kevin’s parents brought us to visit the family ancestral home in Kai Ping, China. We met up with Kevin’s dad’s cousins for lunch at a restaurant known for their roast geese. The meal brought back familiar flavors of childhood for both of us. We enjoyed the restaurant’s specialty geese prepared two ways. One was prepared similar to plain cut chicken. The other was braised in soy sauce. I loved the simple and distinct flavors of the dishes we savored. After lunch, we headed towards the ancestral home where Kevin’s dad grew up. We toured through the home and the surrounding areas while soaking in some of the historical sites. Kevin’s aunt explained the background and history behind some of the structures in the area. We spent most of the morning and afternoon in Kai Ping and then headed to our hotel in Tai Shan. Tai Shan was where my family was from. A few years ago, when Kevin and I initially got married, we traveled back to Tai Shan to visit family. The village where my mom grew up looked and felt similar to the village where Kevin’s dad grew up. The visit definitely brought back memories of our previous trip to China. After checking into the hotel, we rested for a bit before heading out to dinner at a local restaurant to enjoy the area’s specialty. Kevin’s parents insisted for us to try the yellow eel fried rice, a well-known dish in Kai Ping. The flavors of the fried rice were unlike any I’ve had before. It had large chunks of crispy eel sprinkled throughout the savory fried rice. Kevin’s parents urged us to eat more of it because we won’t be able to find this dish anywhere else. When dinner ended, we headed back to the hotel for the rest of the evening.
Day 3: We awoke early in the morning for a light breakfast at the hotel’s main dining room before heading to Shenzhen. Kevin’s dad was particularly excited for us to visit Shenzhen. He wanted us to see how much China has accelerated in technology over the last few decades. I was particularly excited to visit Shenzhen because I had heard many stories about how the city transformed from a rural fishing village just fifty years ago to one of the busiest, most bustling cities in China. Plus, there was a theme park I heard of also located in Shenzhen where you could travel the world in a few hours. The theme park, Window of the World, had been on my bucket list of places to visit for the longest time. Before heading there, we stopped by for lunch at a modern Thai restaurant in the nearby arts district. Kevin’s mom ordered some Thai style noodles, fragrant curry and rice, roast pork, crispy chicken, and a specialty veggie dish. Immediately after lunch, Kevin and I made our way to Window of the World for the next couple of hours. Window of the World was located only a short distance from the arts district. When we got there, we could see the replicas of monuments from miles away. The entrance of the theme park had a replica of the Louvre in Paris. We quickly made our way to the ticketing office, paid our entrance fee, and headed up the steps to the entrance of the theme park. As we strolled through some of the replica statues and monuments, we were definitely both amused and impressed by the uniqueness of the park. There was a mixture of one to one size replicas and much smaller replicas of some of the most famous sites all of the world. We traveled through Asia first, Europe next, Americas after, and Africa at the end. With only two hours, we maximized our visit and tried to see as many sites as we possibly could. In Asia, we saw a replica of the Merlion, strolled through a Japanese garden, and walked towards the Taj Mahal. In Europe, we came across the Leaning Tower of Pisa, a miniature Buckingham Palace, a fairly large replica of Stonehenge, and a small replica of the Hagia Sophia. We followed the pedestrian path and walked up the steps of the 1:3 ratio replica of the Eiffel Tower, headed towards the Chichen Itza, looked up to Mount Rushmore, glanced at the Statue of Liberty, and soaked in the pre-millennium skyline of New York. We examined the smaller replicas of the Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, US Capitol Building, and White House. The pedestrian walkway led us to the pyramids in Egypt, villages in Africa, and Colosseum in Italy. By the time we covered all of these grounds, it was time to head back to the arts district to meet up with Kevin’s parents for dinner. Dinner was at a local mall where we enjoyed Shanghai cuisine. We then proceeded back to our hotel for the rest of the evening.
Day 4: We woke up early in the morning again and had breakfast at the main dining hall of the Hilton Hotel. Kevin’s dad had arranged for us to tour the Huawei headquarters in the morning. In the afternoon, we headed to lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant within a local mall. Kevin and his parents all ordered a variation of pho. I enjoyed a grilled pineapple and prawn fried rice. The fried rice had chunks of pineapple, golden raisins, wild rice, white rice, and seemed to have been seasoned with curry powder. The flavors were definitely unique and memorable. After lunch, we checked out the multiple level bookstore adjacent to the mall. We each spent some time strolling through different levels of the mall. My first stop was to the Chinese classical novels to pick up a translated copy of Dream of the Red Chamber. I looped back up the stairs to pick up a Chinese cookbook specializing in steamed buns. After our visit to the bookstore, we headed back towards Hong Kong. Later in the evening, Kevin and I went for a stroll before returning back for dinner. We enjoyed green beans, noodles, and Xiao Long Bao for dinner.
Day 5: We had heard about the spread of the coronavirus on the news and took precautions to wear surgical masks as we headed outdoors. We spent the morning enjoying some Hong Kong style breakfast at a Cha Chaan Teng in the heart of Hong Kong. Later in the afternoon, we met up with Kevin’s former classmate, Jason, for a few rounds of board games. The time must have gotten away from us because before we knew it, the sun had already set and it was late into the evening. We returned back just in time for dinner before heading to bed.
Day 6: It’s the eve before Chinese New Year. Kevin and I met up with another one of his friends, Mich, for lunch. We ate at a Taiwanese restaurant, enjoyed some small tapas, devoured some noodles, and sipped some bubble tea. After brunch, we accompanied Mich to a flower market near Causeway Bay to check out the fresh blooms. Mich picked out a few pink and peach colored blooms just for the new year. Kevin and I soaked in the scenery. Mich recounted how the flower market used to be packed with people the day before new year. However, most people have decided to skip the crowded areas this year. We parted ways right after visiting the flower market. Kevin and I headed back to his parents’ home. We rested for a bit before heading out to have family dinner at Lung King Heen. We spent the evening eating, chatting, and enjoying the picturesque views of the harbors.
Day 7: It’s Chinese New Year. I slept into the late morning to rest up after the long week of festivities. I paid close attention to making sure I avoided any New Year’s Day taboos. Kevin’s parents had to remind us about some of the Chinese customs such as refraining from eating meat. We spent most of the day relaxing indoors. Kevin and I made a few calls to family members to wish them a happy Chinese New Year.
Day 8: Kevin’s mom brought us to a restaurant specializing in roast duck and waffles for brunch. The restaurant, Duck & Waffle, had unique East meets West spins on many of the dishes on their menu. I particularly enjoyed the corn “ribs” and roasted duck over waffles. All of the dishes were unique including the spiced ox cheek doughnut. The outside layer of the donut was just like a light and fluffy sugar-coated doughnut. The inside of the donut was filled with a spiced ox cheek mixture. It was the perfect sweet and savory brunch treat. Though I typically don’t eat doughnuts too often, I was too intrigued by the doughnut to turn it down. Kevin’s favorite part of the meal was the duck egg topped roast duck leg over waffles. It had all of his favorite foods in one place. The mustard maple syrup brought the whole dish over the top. As if brunch wasn’t decadent enough, Kevin and I made our way through the mall to try the Hong Kong exclusive shake at Shake Shack. The drink was definitely superb despite its simplicity. It is definitely a drink I hope to recreate further down the road.
Day 9: My pizza itch kicked in today. While I loved each and every dish I’ve had in Hong Kong, it didn’t take too long for my pizza cravings to kick in. Kevin’s dad brought us to a fairly new café in Pacific Place called Emmer which served Italian style pizza. The moment I stepped foot into the restaurant, I went straight for the Margherita pizza. For Kevin and dad, we ordered a prosciutto and rocket topped pie. To round out the meal, we had a house green salad and some drinks. Lunch was quick and delicious and definitely curbed my pizza craving. We headed back to his parents’ home for the rest of the afternoon. I stayed indoors for the rest of the evening. Kevin met up with some of his former classmates for dinner.
Day 10: We spent the morning strolling through Repulse Bay. The weather was a bit cool and crisp. The beachfront leading to the waterfront was majestic. There were quite a few quaint pet-friendly restaurants along the waterfront. Our first stop was to a noodle restaurant overlooking the waterfront. The noodle shop served up authentic Cantonese style noodles and congee. We ordered congee, cheung fun, and fried rice. I had my fix of authentic Yangzhou fried rice served alongside some you choy. Right after breakfast, we continued to walk around Repulse Bay to soak in as much nature as possible. In the afternoon, Kevin and I headed towards Jolly Thinker in Causeway Bay to meet up with some of his friends for board games. We spent the afternoon playing a variety of board games including Coup, Code Names, and Avalon. Before we knew it, the sky had darkened. Kevin and I headed towards Aulis to meet up with his parents for dinner. Kevin’s parents made reservations at Aulis ahead of time in anticipation for our visit to Hong Kong. Aulis is a chef’s table type of restaurant and had a multiple course dinner featuring innovative and unique dishes in small portions. There were several appetizers followed by mains, and desserts. Everything we ate had multiple layers of flavors, texture, and ingredients. There were only twelve seats and two chefs preparing all of the dishes. I loved how unique the dishes were. My favorite was the sourdough bread served with a mushroom parfait. I also enjoyed their beetroot sorbet with blackcurrant and dark chocolate, and fermented plum kombucha with tarragon oil and elderflower. I definitely felt inspired to recreate simplified versions of some of the dishes when I returned back to the States. Dinner lasted about three hours. When we got back to Kevin’s parents’ home, we were ready for bed.
Day 11: Today was reserved for meeting up with Kevin’s aunt and uncle in Kowloon. Dad, Kevin, and I headed towards Kowloon in the late morning to meet for dim sum at a restaurant located on the bottom level of a shopping center in Kowloon. The last time we saw Kevin’s aunt and uncle was a few years ago. Dim sum was meant to be enjoyed slowly. We sipped tea as we reconnected over everything we had been up to since we last saw one another. After dim sum, Kevin and I decided to take a stroll through Hong Kong before dinner time. Dinner was at a Teppanyaki restaurant. We chose a fixed course menu and enjoyed a variety of surf and turf dishes cooked in front of our eyes. When dinner concluded, we headed back to Kevin’s parents’ home for the rest of the evening.
Day 12: It’s our last full day in Hong Kong. Kevin made plans to have lunch with two more friends in Causeway Bay. We headed down to Causeway Bay a bit earlier in the morning to walk around the mall in Times Square before meeting up with Mich and Geoff for lunch at the upper level of Times Square. When lunch ended, Kevin and I got our fix of bubble tea and headed back to his parents’ home for the rest of the day. We had one more family dinner before we departed for the States the very next day. I didn’t get the opportunity to cook at all during this trip, but after eating at all of the fantastic restaurants over the course of this trip, I definitely felt inspired to recreate some of my favorite dishes when Kevin and I returned back to the States.
