Our final league in Hong Kong is visiting Lan Kwai Fong. We made an exit from the Centrals-Mid-Levels Escalator towards D'Aguilar Street. There are restaurants, cafes and bars along the streets and it is most happening when the night falls. 

We had a long walk and needed a quick bite to fill our tummies. Hubby and I rested our feet and had a little chill out drink.

Pizzas for us to share. See how BIG it is for just a single slice. :)

We walked on and passed by Li Yuen Street East & West. It is another popular spot where there are many stalls selling cloth, bags, accessories, souvenirs etc.

Since we didn't manage to grab anything in our last minute shopping, the kids get to have their favourite cooling drink from Gong Cha. Their cup is bigger and cheaper. Definitely worth to try if you are in Hong Kong.

Our dinner is at Jollibee - the famous fastfood chain in Philippines. Jollibee has successfully ventured into Hong Kong and recently even in Singapore. It was very crowded in the restaurant but we managed to get a seat.

Before we end our journey, we brought the kids to Gourmet Desserts Cafe to have some desserts. It is conveniently located near the apartment that we are staying and Yau Ma Tei MTR. You have to order their award winning dessert -  Premium Flaming Snow Mountain. who won the Most Creative Award and Gold Award in the dessert team category.

When the ice-cream was served to our table, they flamed up the snowy mountain. Not only was it entertainment visually, our taste-bud was filled with satisfaction when the melted chocolate immersed in our mouth.

There are also a range of dessert selection we can choose from the menu and each of them have a unique flavour and sweetness.

We finally completed our Hong Kong tour and it has been a journey filled with fun and excitement. We hope to be back soon to shop, eat and explore more outlying islands. ^_^

Places of Interest 
Lan Kwai Fong (蘭桂坊)
Address: D'Aguilar Street, Central, Hong Kong Island 
How to Get there: MTR, Central Station, Exit D2. 

Website: www.lankwaifong.com

Li Yuen Street (利源街)
Address: Li Yuen Street East and West, Central, Hong Kong Island 
How to Get there: MTR, Central Station, Exit C. Walk along Des Voeux Road Central towards Sheung Wan

Food 

Big Pizza

Address: G/F, 5, Lan Kwai Fong, Central 

Gourment Desserts Cafe (貴花甜)

Address: G/F, 6 Portland Street, Yau Ma Tei, Kowloon Hong Kong 
How to Get there: MTR, Yau Ma Tei Station, Exit C

Central-Mid-Levels Escalators (中環至半山自動扶梯) has always been a place I wanted to visit during our previous visits to Hong Kong and we finally made it this time! Stretching over 800 meters in distance, it runs through Des Voeux Road, Shelley Street, cutting through the SOHO district and to Conduit Road in Mid Levels.

We took the MTR to Central and found our way to the staircase that lead us to the escalators. 

The escalator runs daily downhill from 6:00am to 10:00am and uphill from 10am to midnight. If you do not wish to climb all the way up, its best to visit after 10:30am and avoid the rush hours in the morning. The escalators are covered and there are several exits/entrance for us to explore the Soho district.

The Central-Mid-Levels Escalators has been a popular filming spot for a couple of movies. However, the one that left a deep impression on me are the scenes from the Hong Kong movie - Chunking Express (starring Faye Wong, Tony Leung). Two years ago, our favourite Korean game show - Running Man has also filmed an episode at the escalator where they did a speed quiz challenge which attracted a crowd. 

It feels so good to be standing here, admiring its unique structure and the pack of restaurants and shops surrounding it.

View from the top of the escalator

Shelley Street

Soho district - This area is filled with eateries, restaurants, bars, art and antique shops.
Do you know that SoHo stands for "South of Hollywood Road" and NoHo stands for "North of Hollywood Road"? 

Looking at the steep slopes, the series of 20 escalators and 3 inclined moving walkway has definitely helped the residents in their daily commute. We had a leisure walk and it took us about an hour (to and fro) to complete our trail along the Central-Mid-Levels Escalator.

Travelling on the covered walkway.

Central–Mid-Levels Escalators is not the usual tourist spot but definitely a not to be miss if you like to experience taking on the longest outdoor covered escalator system. I can only imagine how vibrant this area would be when the night falls with the restaurants and bars packed with the locals and tourists. 

7 September 2012

Day 7 - Our second final day in Hong Kong and we are going to give ourselves a nice breakfast treat. While planning for our anniversary trip, we got to know Tim Ho Wan (添好運) is the cheapest 1 Michelin Star Dim Sum Restaurant. Reading through the good reviews from Tripadvisor and various websites definitely tempted us to mark this as the place that we Must-Go, Must-See and Must-Try.

Anticipating that there will be a long queue (even though it was a weekday morning), we arrived at Tim Ho Wan 45 minutes before it opens for business at 10am. Tourists and locals were already forming a long queue outside the shop. Despite being early, we were number 35 in the line. -__-

The restaurant opens at 10am to give out 130 queue tickets and another 60 tickets at 4pm. If you wish to taste good dim sum, you will need to have lots of patience. (*Note: The shop at Mongkok has closed due to high rental cost. Diners can continue to visit other outlets to enjoy the dim sum at Tim Ho Wan.)

The shop space at Mongkok was very small. It can only accommodate about 30 people at one time. The first batch of 30 diners went in at 10am and we have to wait for our turn as the 2nd batch.

10:45am - After waiting for 1.5 hours, we finally got a seat! We were famished by now. 

The famous Baked Bun with BBQ Pork! It is not the usual 叉烧包 that we normally eat. The crust is crispy and the BBQ pork filling melts in your mouth as you sink your teeth into it.

We ordered two portions and it was cleared in a few minutes. We were definitely HUNGRY!

Siew Mai, Har Gao and other assorted dim sum. All of them taste delicious.

Steamed mixed vegetable dumpling. The dumpling has a good stuffing and of assorted crispy veggie within. Tasted yummy too.

Our children favourite - Chee Cheong Fun! We ordered 3 different types of Vermicelli. 

Vermicelli roll stuffed with shrimp

Vermicelli roll stuffed with BBQ Pork

Vermicelli roll stuffed with beef

They also have Vermicelli roll stuffed with pig's liver but we decided to give it a miss. :)

Pan-fried turnip cake

Steamed rice with Chicken feet and Sparerib - This is probably the only dish that I don't really fancy throughout my dim sum meal at Tim Ho Wan. Somehow I do not like the unique taste of the meat.

Steamed rice with Chicken feet and Sparerib (left) Steamed rice with beef and egg (right).

Congee and Glutinous rice dumpling. I adore glutinous rice a lot and will not miss ordering one even though it is rather filling to the tummy. 

Deep fried spring roll filled with shrimp & vegetable (left) Deep fried dumpling filled with meat (right)

Our tummies were so full that we have to "Ta bao" (packet) our dessert back - Tonic Medlar & Osmanthus Cake.

Dining at Tim Ho Wan has definitely left an impression on us. To date, it is our longest waiting time that we have ever encounter and our first dining experience at a Michelin rated restaurant.

Tim Ho Wan has ventured out of Hong Kong and set up a branch at The Atrium @ Orchard in Plaza Singapura. Not sure how much is the difference in pricing or taste compared to its 'mother' branch in HK, but its good name has definitely attracted a huge crowd during its opening. 

Food 

Tim Ho Wan (添好運點心專門店)

Address: Multiple outlets 

G/F, 9-11 Fuk Wing Street, Sham Shui Po, Kowloon
九龍深水埗福榮街9-11號地下
Nearest MTR station: Tsuen Wan Line, Sham Shui Po, Exit B2

Shop 12A, Hong Kong Station (Podium Level 1, ifc Mall), Central
中環香港站12A鋪(ifc地庫一層)
Nearest MTR station: Tung Chung Line, Hong Kong, Exit A1

*The shop at Mongkok has closed due to high rentals.

To reward our kiddos for completing the hiking trail at Lamma Island, we brought them to Tai Yuen Street to hunt for a toy each for themselves. ^_^

Tai Yuen Street (also known as Toy Street), is located in the Wan Chai district. There are all sorts of toys here and it is a paradise for children. Denver & Gladys' face brimmed with joy as they hopped from one shop to the other in search for their present. Although the area is not as big compared to the other night markets, children will be delighted to see the range of toy collection it has to offer here.

It started to drizzle and we had to end our walk earlier. We have never taken a tram in Hong Kong and  decided to take the tram ride to the next MTR station - Admiralty. Tram system is one of the earliest public transport in Hong Kong and it has undergone some changes since it started its service in the 1900s. Passengers can pay the exact fare via Octopus card or coins and the experience is best sitting on the upper deck.

6:50pm - We had a late lunch earlier and hence we had a light dinner at McDonalds. It was very interesting to find the Sausage McMuffin hamburger meat patty is made of pork. Definitely not something that we can find in Singapore. :)

I love Yau Ma Tei as there are shops still operating till late hours. ^_^ Hubby and I can always go out to look for extra food around the area. The next day will be our final full day in HK and we will be missing a lot on our late night supper hunt when we return home.

Places of Interest 
Tai Yuen Street (太原街)
Address: Tai Yuen Street, Wan Chai, Hong Kong Island 
How to Get there: MTR, Wan Chai Station, Exit A3.

1:50pm - We were halfway through the hiking trail. Denver & Gladys had done a great job following us through ever since we started our walk in the morning.

It was a hot day and the slopes were steep. We have to replenish our body with water constantly to avoid getting dehydrated. 

Our reward for the workout- Magnificent scenic view of the mountains and Lamma island along the walking trail.  

2:15pm - Spotted another pavilion. Denver & Gladys making their way down to rest.

Hill Top Pavilion - Best viewing spot on the island.

"Hi" !!

View of Sok Kwu Wan from afar.

The trail from here gets easier as most of the slopes were heading downwards. The hardest journey is finally over. :)

Heading towards Sok Kwu Wan town.

We were at the lowlands. :)

"Kamikaze Grottos" (神风洞) - Looked very eerie and it was so dark that we only dare to see it from afar. The paint of the wordings engraved on the plate has mostly gone off but here's whats written on it.

"Along the coast of Sok Kwu Wan, there are several grottos about 10 metres wide and several tens of metres deep. They are named by the locals as Kamikaze Grottos. It is said that during Second World War, the Japanese army took Lo So Shing as a naval port and thousands of soldiers were stationed there. The Japanese had a plan to hide some speedboats in the grottos, which would launch a suicidal attack on teh Allies' warships if they passed  by. But the war ended before the work had been completed"

3pm - We were totally famished by now. Many hours of walk and its way past our lunch hours! There are so many seafood restaurants in Sok Kwu Wan and we were spoil with choices. We heard that Rainbow Seafood Restaurant is very renowned and popular here but we decided to dine at Tai Yuen Shark's Fin Seafood Restaurant instead.

We ordered the set lunch for 3 at HKD258 (~SGD43). Here's what we got: shrimp, scallops, clams, fried calamari, 3 bowls of rice, choice of soft drink/beer and a serving of fruits. Ordered an additional bowl of rice for Gladys and it was a filling and satisfactory lunch.

The string of seafood restaurants along Sok Kwu Wan. Diners can enjoy the view as they indulge in their meal.

4pm - Sok Kwu Wan Pier - Our boat ride back to Hong Kong Island.

*The schedule of the rides is listed and it is advisable to check out the timings first. If we missed the 4:05pm ferry, we would have to wait for another 1 hour plus before the next ferry arrives. 

Although tiring, it has been a rewarding 5 hours experience taking on the family trail around Lamma Island. Initially I was a bit worried that our children will have difficulties completing the trail but they proved me wrong. Our very first outlying island trip in Hong Kong was full of surprises and we love to come back again and explore other islands when we are planning for our next trip. 

Food 

Tai Yuen Shark's Fin Seafood Restaurant (泰苑魚翅海鮮酒家)

Address: 15 First Street, Sok Kwu Wan, Lamma Island, Hong Kong