Getting Ready For Malaysia and Singapore

So I'm heading to Malaysia tomorrow afternoon. We're going to be there until Saturday, then we're taking an overnight sleeper-train to Singapore for the weekend, and finally returning to KL on Monday to come back to Hong Kong. 

I realized after the Philappines that my NorthFace pack wasn't nearly big enough to carry things for a 5 day trip, so today I went and bought a 60Litre Lafuma backpack. I got this thing all packed up and ready for my trip. I like this pack a lot...

More updates to come after landing in KL.

- Pete

Nice Weather

After almost a week of rain, mist, and fog the weather finally cleared up. It reminded me again how awesome this campus is. I don't think we've had this kind of visibility of Clearwater Bay since I've been here. Here's a picture from my iPhone.

Wednesday Means The Races

So for the past couple of Wednesdays, I've been going to the horse races in WanChai. So many people in HK gather here to see about 12 races and gamble. I can't say my gambling skills have improved at all since I've been here but it's always been a blast. Hundreds of thousands of people show up for the races here - horse racing is like a religion. There are also great races on Sundays at Happy Valley. 

The HK Jockey Club runs many promotions at its races. February was based a fashion promotion titled: Race In The City. They would have themes (Bling, Animal Print, Prince & Princess) and you could get your picture taken and receive free drinks. It's a lot of fun, and a perfect (and cheap) pre-game before the usual Wednesday night craziness in Wan Chai.

Under The Sea...in Puerto Galera, Philippines (Updated 3/7/09)

Last week, we took a four day trip to Puerto Galera in the Philippines. The flight was only about $80USD and we stayed at a really nice resort for only $15 a night. Talk about cheap... The food there was awful and the nightlife was very sketch but we made the best out of it.

To get to Puerto Galera, we had to first fly to the capital city Manila. There, we took a 3 hour bus ride to the port city of Batangas, and then hired a private boat to get to Puerto Galera, Batangas Beach. We arrived in Batangas at around midnight, so the fare was hiked up and had to take the sketchiest boat ever. To even get to the boat, we had to be escorted by the police who oversaw the payment and sailing so that we wouldn't get "hijacked..."

A huge group of UST students went so we just hit up the one

 dance club and also hung out at the many bars around town. We also got massages that rivaled that of the Queen Spa for only $8 USD. If you want to hang out on beaches, rent out private boats, and live like kings...go to the Philippines. It's dirty, sketchy, but it's paradise. 

 Things I did in the Philippines:

- Kayaked

- Scuba Dived

- Rented a Private Boat for a day

- Massages on the beach

- Met awesome Philippino children. 

- Ate lots of Tequitos

- Mastered the Red Horse

The Scuba Diving was excellent. The coral laden beaches were perfect for seeing exotic fish and plants and we didn't even have to go far off the coast to catch a glimpse of this beautiful underwater world. 

Here's a video below of me and Dustin diving in Sabang:

Queen Spa, Shenzhen, China

The Queen Spa is a fantastic weekend trip to take if you just want to relax and do some shopping. Located in Shenzhen it's a 1 hour MTR trip from HKUST. Shenzhen is across the Chinese border so you will need a Chinese visa to enter - which is not hard to get. 

I took a trip with a few buddies of mine two weekends ago for the first time. We arrived by MTR and immediately began to browse through the shopping mall outside the station. This isn't your typical mall, it's filled with small booths selling designer fakes for anything you can imagine. DVDs, Prada, Chanel, Rolex, you can get just about anything replicated here. We knew a tailor who sold custom suits for students at UST for about $80 USD so we went there right away. We were given catalogues for Canali and D&G and were told to pick a style. This past week, we received our suits and they are awesome. I'm definitely going back to get a few more suits and tailored shirts. 

Now, about the Queen Spa (which is the original topic of this post). The Queen Spa is a 24hr spa with a large set of amenities. About $30USD gets you a 90 min massage (any style) and a overnight stay in the spa. There are recliners with TVs or sleeper pods you can sleep in when you get tired. Also, there are free drinks, fruits, as well as icecream and other

 snacks. Well worth the $30USD you spend and much cheaper than a hotel. It was a great experience. 

Since Shenzhen is so close, I can imagine I will be taking many trips to this fabled city.  

FOOD!

The food here in HK is actually quite good but you really have to have an open mind. Food here is oftentimes cooked in weird ways. For example, chicken is cooked with the skin on and bones, and chicken feet is a local delicacy. Fish is never filleted and you have to pick the bones out, but some of the fish dishes I've had had been absolutely delicious. 

We have about 4 or 5 places to eat on campus, and the styles range from western (McDonald's has been VERY crucial), to Chinese, to Indian food. Food is also VERY cheap, $4 gets you an entire meal. 

My favorites so far has been DimSum, Sushi, and Hot Pot. Also, Hong Kong's mix of Eastern and Western Culture really allows you to enjoy anything you crave - but you have to pay for it. Soho has many restaurants you can menu shop - including Mexican, Italian, American, etc. 

NO EAST TUNNEL!!!

Another simple way of getting around Hong Kong is by taxi of course (the MTR closes at midnight). Fortunately, we met a freelance cab driver named Dennis Cabman with special fares for UST students. But if you don't have the time to wait for one of Dennis's guys, you'll have to take one of the many taxis in Hong Kong. The number of taxis here easily rival NYC or other large cities. $120HKD - $140HKD usually get us from HKUST to downtown quite easily. 

But always remember the #1 rule of HK Taxis.....NO EAST TUNNEL!!!!!! Or you are in for an extra $40HKD and a long, swearing-filled, argument with a "non-english" speaking taxi driver. An argument you will NOT win.

HKUST

I'm studying at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. It's located right on the beautiful Clearwater Bay on Kowloon Island. From almost everywhere on campus (or Grounds?) you can have a clear view of the Sea. It's absolutely gorgeous. The campus is about 30 minutes away from downtown (or Central) Hong Kong. It's really cool because the city can be quite crowded at times so it's nice to get back to Campus where it's peaceful and quiet. 

Even if you don't want to take the 30 minute MTR ride into Central (LKF or WanChai are prime nightlife areas), you can always hang out at the UniBar on Campus. Here you can find a good selection of drinks (at reasonable prices) and the best food on campus. Also, the dart board is always a great way to start the night out. The UniBar is a prime meeting spot for exchange students before going out as well. 

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is an international business center. An exotic, cosmopolitan, world city. These are the two faces of Hong Kong. From its rugged peaks and gleaming skyscrapers surrounding its iconic and bustling harbour, Hong Kong is one of the most exciting and vibrant cities in the world. With its heart and mind dedicated to business, the soul of Hong Kong extends from the trading floor and boardrooms to the bustling shopping malls, street markets and 24-hour nightlife.You can find out more about this amazing city here. 

Getting around Hong Kong is simple with the Mass Transit Rail (MTR) system. As you can see from the map, HK is separated into four main islands:  Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, New Territories, and Lantau. HKUST is located on Kowloon island (More about my University in a later post). It can take 20 - 30 minutes to get from school to the nightlife, food, or shopping.

So...

...I made a blog. Don't laugh, it's going to be awesome and you're going to read it everyday. I'll try to update this as much as possible to fill you in with everything that goes down during this semester abroad. Stay tuned for more!

- Peter