14th November: Hong Kong SAR, China
It was a very blustery night! Typhoon, now Tropical Storm, Toraji finally stalled and began to gradually show signs of westward movement when the eye was 130km south of Hong Kong. Overnight winds in the city were sustained at around 70 km/h, which isn’t too bad in the grand scheme of tropical storms. I popped out in the morning to see what the fuss was about. It was much like a winter storm in the UK, except about 15C warmer! The waters of Victoria Harbour were choppy, and along the waterfront it was a struggle to walk into the wind. The number 8 gale warning – the latest in the year issued since 1939 – expired at 10:20am and people began to begrudgingly return to work and school. Quite a few shops remained closed all day though, with masking tape on their windows to limit any storm damage.
I found an open supermarket to get us some breakfast and snacks. Everything is so expensive here compared to in mainland China! 3 to 4 times the cost, on average! Next to our block is Chunking Mansion, synonymous with the crowdedness of Kowloon. On the lower two floors, we found some reasonably priced samosas and mango juice. It was great to have some different flavours!
We caught the metro over to the island (no ferries today). From Central, we popped into the Norman Foster designed HSBC building which was quite groundbreaking in the mid-80s. Today, having seen many of his other buildings, it isn’t nearly as impressive. One notable fact is that it used to be on the coast but, due to land reclamation, is now set well back from the shore. Immediately, we saw multiple double decker trams and couldn’t help ourselves but jump on for a ride. These are the last remaining two-tier trams in service as public transport in the world, although others remain as heritage projects (such as Seaton Tramway in Devon). The tram we got was all wooden and definitely felt like it was part of history!
After jumping off in Wan Chai, we encountered persistent and very damp smizzle. There was nothing on the local radar which had otherwise been reliable until now, although these can miss such conditions. Unfortunately, this weather meant an onslaught of umbrellas. I’ve probably moaned about this before, but I despise them for two reasons: firstly, being tall I’ve been poked in the face and eyes countless times by them; secondly, they strike me as a selfish grab for more space in already crowded streets. Perhaps they do make sense in warm weather where you would sweat through waterproofs, but I would unironically ban them in the UK.
We tried our best to hide from the heavier spells of rain. As usual, this meant food! We found some salads – spinach and artichoke; cauliflower, tahini, and pomegranate; and couscous with sultanas – to give ourselves some fruit and vegetables. Wandering through Wan Chai, it struck me how much less seedy it felt than 15 years ago. I’m sure there are plenty of illicit activities still but it’s nowhere near as much a blatant red-light district.
Passing under the flyover where incense still burns and fortune tellers give predictions to passersby, we made it to Craigengower Cricket Club. This imposing and futuristic sports club doesn’t actually have a cricket pitch but does have two outdoor bowls greens. This is another place where I played in an international tournament, and it felt simultaneously like no time and an eternity had passed since I was out there competing fourteen and a half years ago. Likewise, just around the corner, we took the underpass into the interior of Happy Valley racecourse where yet another bowls venue is located. I remember coming here on my first visit at night to practice and being totally overawed by the towers in every direction. I wanted to bring Kaja here as it quiet and little known to tourists but is my favourite view of Hong Kong (so far!). The empty foreground only acts to emphasise and give perspective to the simultaneous density and greenery that gives this place it’s character.
Again, heavy drizzle took over, so we got back on a tram. The was one more low-key iconic Hong Kong institution we needed to try out – the Central to Mid Level Escalators. These covered moving walkways take you up the hill to the mid levels, without the need to walk (or get wet). Just as interesting to us was the M&S Food we spotted halfway up. Stopping to investigate, we were gobsmacked to discover that it actually contained the same products as in the UK and, ridiculously, even had salad pots made in the UK and presumably flown to HK. It was all far too expensive for us to even try a slice of home, but we were really perturbed and felt like we were going to walk out into a dreary London November evening! Instead, it was a dreary Hong Kong November evening, although you wouldn’t be nearly as comfortable wearing shorts and a t-shirt at home.
For dinner, we went to one of the many vegetarian Indian restaurants in Chungking Mansions. Hopefully this masala dosa fix satisfies Kaja’s cravings until we’re next able to find one! It was only an average dosa, unfortunately, and the samba was a bit too spicy for me to risk. We’re hoping that the weather improves a bit! Toraji is set to decay to cold core post tropical storm over next 36 hours, although its rain bands and the influence of the northeast monsoon might keep the weather unsettled. Hopefully we get enough of a break to at least get across to Macau and go to the Peak.