glennaa11

Very nice. I love Taiwan, so this brings back some fun memories.

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Thank you. It was my first time to Taiwan! I had a great time haha but it was very hot and humid the time of year that I went. Hopefully next time I can go when it's a bit cooler

mustang281man

Nice report so far. I was in Hong Kong last October on vacation. Your pics bring back good memories. I'm anxious to see what else you are going to do in Hong Kong and look forward to reading the rest of your report.

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The majority of this post will be a few more attractions we did while in Hong Kong. However, the full write up on my blog HERE includes our full day at Hong Kong Disneyland if anyone is interested!


A THEMED CAFE

A fun thing that people love doing in Asia is going to themed restaurants. I saw many of them last year when I visited Tokyo and there were several in Hong Kong. We decided to check out the Charlie Brown Cafe one morning because they were open early and very close to our hotel! We were one of 3 parties in there and more trickled in as we were leaving. They did fun sprinkle art on our lattes and have cute themed desserts!


It was a fun experience. There was lots of decor and statues of Charlie Brown and the whole gang. It was nice that this place opened early, especially in an area known for shops opening notoriously late (think 11am onward). Hong Kong people really love staying out late and waking up even later than that!


SYMPHONY OF LIGHTS

On one of the nights, we walked down to Avenue of the Stars at the Tsim Sha Tsui Waterfront. The area is a big tribute to the Hong Kong film industry like Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. The highlight was a lifesize statue of Bruce Lee to commemorate his life and impact on the industry!


We stayed for the nightly light show, A Symphony of Lights. A bunch of the buildings on both Hong Kong Island and Kowloon sides participate in the show with lights installed on their roofs that are synchronized to music. In particular, the Bank of China building (arguably the most iconic building in the HK skyline) was probably the highlight of the show. The night was kind of cloudy so the lights projecting into the sky weren’t that noticeable.

The show was honestly only okay. Yes, it was a sight to see, but I wouldn't come back JUST to see the show. The skyline, yes, but the light show was underwhelming.

STREET MARKETS

Throughout our stay in Hong Kong, we went to several street markets to shop. Hong Kong is known for its amazing shopping but many malls are usually filled with high end stores with luxury goods and brand names. For those not wanting to break the bank, I recommend street market shopping!


Lots of bargaining and haggling to be done at these places. Expert hagglers can usually wear prices down ~40-50% of what the stands originally offer you! Of note, we visited Ladies Market, Fa Yuen Street and Cheung San Wan/Sham Shui Po. More information on all the street markets in Hong Kong can be found here.

I had a fun time haggling down prices. It's sort of an unspoken rule that you do so! I got some good deals on souvenirs to bring back and gifts for myself

SHENZHEN - MAINLAND CHINA

On our last full day in Hong Kong, we did a quick day trip into China and visited the city of Shenzhen, a major port city in the Guangdong Province of China. It links Hong Kong to Mainland China. We took the MTR and it only took us 35 minutes from Hung Hom station in Tsim Sha Tsui! Our tour guide hinted that China built and developed Shenzhen from a fishing village because they weren’t sure that they would receive Hong Kong back from Great Britain. This is why Shenzhen is a major economical zone and modern, developed city.


The museum was great at explaining the history and development of Shenzhen into the modern city that it is now. It also had an exhibit that had lifelike replicas of what old China looked like and Canton/Cantonese culture!


Of particular interest in Shenzhen, we wanted to visit Luoho Commercial City, a five-storied mall where you can buy and bargain anything you can think of to your hearts content. This mall is also well-known for their faux designer goods. *hint hint*

HONG KONG DISNEYLAND

I'll insert a few pics of my day at Hong Kong Disneyland. The full report can be found HERE. I am unsure whether FTers share my obsession with Disney :P


That wraps up my time in Hong Kong! Look out for the next part of my journey home to HNL via Asiana! If your interest in HK Disneyland is piqued, a full write up of my experience is HERE!

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Thank you! Yeah I really really enjoyed Hong Kong and can't wait to go back again. There is still a lot that I want to see!

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For the full write up and more pics, check out the post HERE!


HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

We took a taxi to the airport from our Tsim Sha Tsui hotel. The check in lines for Asiana were not busy when we arrived so it was a pretty smooth process. Check in and security/passport check were smooth and unremarkable. We arrived pretty early for our 2pm flight. By the time we got through to the airside of HKG, we had a good 2.5 hours to explore and lounge hop!


True to Hong Kong style, shopping is the thing to do.. even at the airport! Most of the shops were luxury brands along with the usual mix of duty free cosmetics and alcohol. We did find some reasonably priced souvenir shops though!

After all the walking, we were ready to eat so we began our lounge hop. When we had checked in, the agent informed us Asiana doesn’t have its own dedicated lounge at HKG so we were allowed to use any of the three Star Alliance airline lounges: Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways and United!

SINGAPORE AIRLINES SILVERKRIS LOUNGE

The SilverKris Lounge is the only Star Alliance lounge located directly after the security checkpoint near Gate 15 of Terminal 1. All others can be easily reached by taking the tram that goes toward Gates 40-80.


We made it right before the switch from breakfast to lunch options so we got to sample both menus. The food was decent from what I sampled. There were some fried noodles, scrambled eggs, turnip cake as well as some curry options later for lunch.


The lounge seating was plentiful even though the lounge was on the smaller end. There were tables right near the buffet area as well as ‘pods’ for solo travelers which I found very convenient since there were outlets built right into the pod! Perfect option for business travelers imo.


THAI AIRWAYS ROYAL ORCHID LOUNGE

The SilverKris Lounge is the only Star Alliance lounge located directly after the security checkpoint near Gate 15 of Terminal 1. All others can be easily reached by taking the tram that goes toward Gates 40-80.

The lounge is located on the second floor, above the gate concourse, and is completely open air to the rest of the concourse. There are no walls! It was a nice change especially because the SilverKris lounge had no kind of view of the apron whatsoever. There were awesome views for plane spotting!


There was plenty of seating available. I didn’t really understand the color scheme though. It seemed very random but I was just thankful we had a lot of options to sit. There was a partitioned side just for first class passengers. Each side of the lounge also had two electronic massage chairs that were first come first serve. First time seeing those in an airport lounge!


UNITED CLUB

The United Club is easily accessed from the Thai Airways lounge. It is located on the same level but you just walk across the concourse and follow the signage for the lounge.


Out of the three lounges that we visited, the United Club at HKG is definitely the largest! There is tons of seating available but it was also much more crowded than the other two airline lounges. We found seats without a problem but had to maneuver around lots of children and families, which were abundant at the lounge. Like the Thai Airways lounge, the United Club was open air to the rest of the concourse and there were great views of the apron.


Overall, this was definitely the best United Club I’ve ever visited. The HKG United Club puts all of the U.S. clubs to shame. I could have done without the children running around and the crowded feeling but it makes up for it in great food selection and awesome views.

ASIANA 747 BUSINESS CLASS

After our 3 lounge hop around HKG, we were ready to start our journey home. I was excited to try out Asiana Airlines after reading many great things about their service and product. It also worked out well for us because we got to fly on their Boeing 747 to Incheon then onward to Honolulu on their Airbus 330. I was excited to fly in a 747 for the second time! (The first time was our flight to Narita on United’s 747 that began our summer trip!


OZ 722: HKG – ICN
Boeing 747-400
Depart: 2:10PM
Arrive: 6:40PM
Time: 3HR30MIN
Seats: 1A/K

Since it was only a short 3.5 hour to get to ICN, Asiana doesn’t offer First Class service even though the 747 is fitted as a 3-class aircraft. However, since we were flying Business on this flight, we were able to select the First Class seats to sit in while getting Business class service! Thankfully I called into Asiana before our flight to reserve our seats in this cabin. Otherwise we would have been in the Business cabin on the second floor.


The First Class cabin of Asiana’s 747 has 10 seats total. There are 4 rows of single window seats then Row 4 has two middle seats that are great for couples traveling together. The seats turn into a full 180 degree flat bed and has a personal in-flight entertainment screen at the base of every seat.


Here's our menu for the flight:

I decided on the Korean option which was a bibimbap, which is a Korean dish of rice mixed with beef, vegetables and red pepper paste. As expected, it was quite tasty. It would have been unfortunate for a supposed 5 star Korean airline to fail in making bibimbap. I also had a few pours of champagne throughout the flight. This was the only flight throughout the entire trip where the FAs poured right at the seat for me!


I really enjoyed this flight on OZ. They really deserve their 5-star rating for their wonderful service. The flight attendants were so attentive and friendly without hovering too much. As much as I enjoyed their First Class product, I have to admit that I prefer EVA Air's Royal Laurel hard product that we flew to Hong Kong. I much prefer EVA's sleek and clean evergreen tones over Asiana's beige and brown color scheme. Sorry OZ, but it made the cabin look a little dated/tired.

For the full write up and more pics, check out the post HERE!

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For the full write up and more pics, check out the post HERE!


INCHEON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (ICN)

After a brief but very enjoyable flight from HKG on Asiana’s 747 Business Class, we were about to land in ICN and I was able to snap a few pictures during our descent! This was my first time, albeit very very brief, being in Korea!


After landing and disembarking, we had a quick trip through security and were once again airside at Incheon International Airport.


I wanted to check out the Asiana Business Class Lounge while we were at ICN. When in Korea, right? Unfortunately, since we only had an hour layover in ICN, our time inside the lounge was very brief. We had enough time to walk around, use the restroom, and grab a quick bite.


I found the lounge to be pretty well appointed. Lots of seating was available even though it seemed pretty busy at the time. The buffet area looked decent enough and I grabbed a quick bite to eat before our flight but it was unremarkable.

The seats that are right up against the window have great views of the tarmac and I would have loved to settle in there if we had more time to enjoy the lounge


ASIANA A330 BUSINESS CLASS

For our longer flight back home, we flew on Asiana’s Airbus 330, which is a two-class cabin with Economy and Business Class. I was a little disappointed we weren’t able to fly back home in a cabin with lie-flat bed style seats. Instead, the Asiana A330 Business Class has angled-lie flat seats which, to be completely honest, could never hold a candle to its 180 degree cousin.


OZ 232: ICN – HNL
Airbus 330-300
Depart: 8:00PM (June 28)
Arrive: 9:20AM (June 28)
Time: 8HR20MIN
Seats: 3A/CK

With a pitch (leg room) coming in at 58 inches, the Asiana A330 Business Class seat was roomier than ANA’s 767-300ER Business Class seat. The cabin was in a 2-2-2 configuration also. But for an 8.5 hour flight, I wish Asiana flew better aircrafts/seats to HNL.


Menus were distributed soon after settling in and orders taken soon thereafter. Our choices included:


Ssambap is a Korean lettuce wrap that is filled with rice, beef, veggies and bean paste. The appetizer, a ginseng a buckwheat roll, was tastier than it sounded straight off the menu. The ssambap veggies were quite fresh and the bulgogi to wrap in it was very tasty.


The flight was not bad considering the angled-flat seat. I managed to get a few ZzZs in before breakfast service began. I still wish we had better (read: lie flat) business class seats, but it does beat flying in the back of the plane.

The service of Asiana FAs were next to none, however. They were very attentive and courteous and were seemed to be always available if anyone needed something.

Before I knew it, descent started and we were greeted with views of the islands..


Not a bad way to wake up in the morning.

So ends my series of posts about my summer 2015 trip to Taiwan and Hong Kong! It was an unforgettable trip and a great way to spend my last summer ever in medical school. After a tough first year, the time away from studying and books and tests was much welcomed.

I thoroughly enjoyed both countries, but believe I am leaning towards saying I prefer Hong Kong. The culture, food, and language of Hong Kong is something I grew up with so there might be some bias there :P There was just so much to do in Hong Kong that I feel the need to return very soon!

Thanks for those that have followed my entire trip. I really hope you get something out of it and was able to live vicariously through my eyes (and iPhone camera)!

For the full write up and more pics, check out the post HERE!

asiantraveler

Awesome TR reverted!

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Thanks!