Our trip to Guangzhou for Canton Fair Phase 1 was organized by an agency based in Bangkok and the trip was a disaster. Or at least the management was. The Thai guides were clueless 95% of the time, hotel was yucky (and the trip from hotel to city actually took 1.5 hours) and worst, the guides lost the group visa and the flight had to be rescheduled (meaning my FIL and company had to extend their stay for a night). Good thing was, P and I went on separate ways from the group at Shenzhen and escaped from the mess. Lesson learnt: Engage a reputable tour company.
Shenzhen to Macau was a breeze. I have been to Hong Kong 5 times now and I have never contamplated about making a trip to Macau. That was before. Macau sure has more to offer than casinos. We spent half a day walking around city and I actually enjoyed it. Macau is a well-planned city with conveniently accessible attractions (most falling on the same route). We started from our hotel (which by the way is well worth the money!) and strolled down 新马路 to Senado Square > Ruins of St. Paul > Monte Fort > Sir Robert Ho Tung Library > St. Joseph's Seminary and Church > Lilau Square > Moorish Barracks > Zheng's Family Mansion > A-Ma Temple.
Senado Square
Ruins of St. Paul's
Monte Fort
Scenic views of Macau at Monte Fort
A-Ma's Temple
It was a a pity that we only had time for The Venetian. I would also like to check out MGM, Wynn and Lisboa (ok, and Sands)! Lesson learnt: 2D/1N was not enough for Macau.
Got back to Singapore on the 18th. Spent a week back at home and reignited my shopping spirit with a day in town. Visited Tangs, Wisma, Taka, Heeren, Somerset 313 and Orchard Central all in a day(!), before meeting up the girls. And this trip, I got to celebrate God-dad's birthday with the rest of the family. Spending birthdays together is somewhat a ritual in our family and I am glad to be part of it again.
The girls (or Mdms):
Us on our way to Kuishin Bo, Jurong Point.
Mdm love the food at Kuishin Bo. Whenever I get home, we will do lotsa head scratching finding restaurants. And I am glad that we found Kuishin Bo. It is relatively near our place (Dad's need), serves buffet (MM's need) and has fresh sashimi! Minori no more.
We spent our last Saturday in Universal Studios Singapore (the day before I left, which left me dead beat the following day!) and had lotsa fun (and screaming). Battlestar Galatica was closed and at least one new ride was not ready. In any case, I would not be going up Battlestar Galatica. The rides at Universal Studios are not awfully awesome but still, I enjoyed myself (especially The Revenge of the Mummy and Rapids Adventure) and my favourite Boon Tong Kee after a day at the park.
Getting wet at rapids adventure (a testimonial of the fun we had):
Lesson learnt: Time with family is never enough.We left Singapore for Guangzhou at an unearthly hour on the 25th. P and I reached Guangzhou at 10am, placed our luggages and headed straight to Phase 2 of the Canton Fair. Spent a whole 6 hours at Pazhou Complex while still feeling slightly groggy. Headed to Shangxia Jiu Lu after the fair and was pleased with Guangzhou's metro system (which brought us to our destination without much hassle)
(Would appreciate SMRT to improve their display system on train)
At Shangxia Jiu Lu
Found a restaurant serving superb roast goose. A first in my life that I actually ate roast anything with skin and fats.
Lesson learnt: Travelling F&E is way much better!
Train to Hongkong from Guangzhou East Station:
By the time we made our way to Chai Wan, it was almost 4pm. This was the most tiring leg of the journey. We lugged our luggage from Guangzhou to Hongkong and the whole journey was by public train. It was cumbersome and left us feeling worn out but we were glad that the Youth Square Loft did not let us down.
From our very quiet and nice room at Youth Square Loft, Chai Wan. It is at the end of the MTR line in Hong Kong Island but city is easily accessible by train in 20 minutes (right at its door, including 2 neighbourhood malls)
We took the mid-levels escalator and explored Soho after a rest
It was an early night for us in Hong Kong as the intensive travelling is taking its toll.
Attended the HKTDC Hong Kong Gifts and Premium Fair the following day and spent hours browsing before heading back to Chai Wan for a nap. The Hong Kong Gift and Premium Fair paled in comparison to Canton Fair but we did enjoyed the Hall of Fine Designs.
Met the USyd folks for dinner after catching some sleep. 3 of us, back together again (USyd days were 5 years ago)!
Had steamed milk at Yee Shun Milk Company at Causeway Bay after dinner. Mdm loves dessert and steamed milk is on the top of my list! Love the local 茶餐厅 in Hong Kong despite the rowdiness. Here you feel like you are really in Hong Kong!
Had dim sum everyday in Hong Kong and fed myself 100% full every single meal. We tried dim sum at Super Star Seafood Restaurant when we were at Hong Kong with my parents but this time round, we tried Star Seafood Restaurant near Youthsquare Loft instead. Food was cheaper but as yummy! Lesson learnt: Expensive is not always better!
Reached peaceful Chiangmai on Wednesday, stood on the weighing scales and find myself 2 kilos heavier. Lesson learnt: That's the price you have to pay gobbling so much in a span of 15 days.
TIME FOR SOME WORK ON THE TREADMILL!!!
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