Road to Hong Kong

[Philip]

OK. Cleared out my flat. Last week, hired a van to take all my stuff to my French house. Tomorrow, I fly to Hong Kong, getting there on the morning of the 30th.
This is where it all begins. I will be staying in the YWCA (to paraphrase the song - "It's fun to stay at the Y-W-C-A!"), until I find a nice apartment.
It seems my wife will not be able to join me for at least a month. She needs to get an entry/exit permit, and only then can I apply for her dependant's visa attached to my working visa. That's the only thing that puts a dampener on my excitement about starting a new life.
Ted and Willy, could you PM me your contact details. It would be great to meet up one weekend (I have weekends free), and perhaps we could give Rob some English lessons when he comes, ha ha!

[ttwjr32]

will send to you the contact numbers Philip good to hear your almost here. you at least have a little time
to get rest and aquainted with your new surroundings.

maybe we could give rob and willy some lessons might help 

[Philip]

Thanks Ted for taking the time, in what must be a tough time. You would be forgiven for ignoring us and focussing on going back to the States to sort things out.
I arrived in Hong Kong today to a wall of humidity. I think I sweated off a few pounds stepping off the plane.
Like Willy, I am a fan of Jet airways now. I knew my luggage would be over the limit, even though Jet allows a generous 32kg. My bag weighed 41 kg. So I just took out my two small cases (one with 280 CDs, the other with 280 DVDs) and the lady said I could carry them as hand luggage. So, my bag now checked in at 31kg, And I was carrying a small rucksack, a laptop and two 5kg cases on as hand luggage. No extra charge. Brilliant. Decent seats, decent movies, decent service. Thumbs up for Jet.
I now have my own self-contained flat in the YWCA near my work. Paid for by the school. There is broadband here. Only problem is I can't chat to my wife on QQ, because they have blocked it after prev ious resident downloaded too much stuff. Used 20 minutes of free wireless at the Starbucks in the nearby Festival shopping mall, but wish we could chat on QQ. My wife uses QQ almost exclusively.Hope she'll be able to set up MSN.
Hong Kong is a bit exciting. Before I meet up with the school on Sunday, I will do a bit of exploring, might even check out the New Territories.

[RobertBfrom aust]

Congratulations Philip , I am sure Hong Kong welcomes you , may you enjoy slipping backwards and forwards over the mainland border , and good luck with work , regards Robert and Sujuan .

[Paul Todd]

Exciting times for sure Phillip. I have only been to Hong Kong once and I loved it especially the outdoor markets and the draught Guinness! . I hope your meeting with the school goes well and its all plain sailing ahead for you and your wife. Good luck with the new job!

[Philip]

Did a bit of exploring today. Got an Octopus card, which you can use to travel on the underground, buses or trams, plus you can use it to shop too! The underground is fantastic. On a steaming hot day, it was amazing to wait on an air-conditioned platform and sit in an air-conditioned carriage. It is clean and cheap and fast to travel anywhere in Hong Kong.
Somewhat perversely, I bought a bike today. Space being limited in this city, I got a bike that can fold down to the size of a postage stamp (well, not quite). For 650 HK dollars (about £55), I got a neat little bike from a tiny bike shop in downtown Kowloon. The guy was very helpful. I then proceeded to weave in and out of traffic in the centre of town, hardly scarier than doing it in London. Plus I have managed to cross a few roads in China and survived! Pedestrians tend to wait until the green light before crossing the road here. (Is it illegal to do otherwise? I don't know) The streets are remarkably clean - puts London to shame. I cycled towards the hills to the north of Kowloon. The bike doesn't really do steep, but it was an achievement to reach the top of one hill to rest and enjoy a great view over Kowloon and Hong Kong.
Food is quite expensive. I may have to cut out dairy products from my diet. Either that, or get a pet cow. I'm glad I brought a decent supply of my favourite French coffee.
I returned to my room at the YWCA, carrying my folded bike. The doorman raised an eyebrow, but said it was fine to keep it in my room.

[ttwjr32]

sounds like an eventful day, i dont think it is illegal to cross but if it is they never do anything
about it. i always cross when its clear and stand in the middle of the street until its clear

[ttwjr32]

Sara has also been talking of buying me a bike so we could ride around Guangzhou for some exersize.
mmmm now that would be a challenging thing to do especially around 5 pm rush hour. she also has one of
those small bikes that fold up but im to big to ride it.