April 14, 2018 Saturday -- A Short Trip to Hong Kong and Taiwan
This morning we checked out of the Hyatt Regency TST and moved to the Hilton Garden Inn in Mongkok for our final two nights in Hong Kong. Hate to leave but we have used up our annual free-nights for this year and spent some points on our third night here also. Time to move on!
With the help of the concierge we hailed a taxi that was waiting at the basement for the ride to the Hilton Garden Inn. I was worried that they would be upset being that it was a short ride but the concierge assured us that it would be OK. Some people even take the taxi from Hyatt to TST East area, which is much closer.
For many years, the Hilton group have not had any facilities in Hong Kong other than the Conrad, which needs a lot more points for a night stay. A little over a year ago they finally had the Hilton Garden Inn set up in Mongkok. I was really curious to find out how this place is like. As Hilton Honor Gold member, I do like to stay at the Hilton chain which provides complimentary breakfast and free upgrades if available. And this location needs less than half the points required by Conrad. It was an easy choice.
Hilton Garden Inn Hong Kong -- 2 Soy Street, Mongkok, Kowloon, Hong Kong
This hotel is situated in the old area of Mongkok or should I say Tai Kok Tsui. It's very convenient if you are into shopping and being in the center of action. It's just a few blocks from the famous Ladies Market. Four short blocks from Nathan Road and the MTR. There are endless restaurants and stores in that direction. The immediate neighborhood though, are mostly hardware stores or building supplies stores. Not your idea of where a brand hotel would be. Other than not having better connection to the airport, I have no complaint at this new hotel.
Again, I am quite familiar with this neighborhood because the church we grew up at and where my dad used to ministered is just a couple of blocks away. Most of the buildings in the area remain the same but certainly some have been torn down and replaced by new buildings like the Hilton and the Holiday Inn next door.
Our room on the 11th floor at the end of the hallway.
All the rooms are facing one direction, the prettier part of town.
The back side facing the old neighborhood with buildings close by.
Mongkok with both old and new buildings.
Glass facade on the exterior of Hilton Garden Inn.
Interior of the room with view looking out to the newer Olympian City area.
Smaller room but still clean and nicely appointed.
A compact desk.
Bathroom
A little bigger than a regular cabin on a cruise ship.
Two single-beds
Amenities provided.
Tall buildings of Olympian City. There is another MTR station that way (Olympic station) on the purple line, right at the huge mall.
One may have a view of the harbor if on floors higher up.
The walkway to cross over to the other side of the highway.
Cherry Street Park with tennis court, football fields, and playground.
Sang Kee Congee Shop Yau Ma Tei -- 9 Tung Fong Street, Yau Ma Tei, Hong Kong
After settling in, it was time for lunch. Dr. Lee told MOR that he should try this place if he likes porridge that much. It's a local favorite which we have never been before even though I have heard of its name. Sang Kee Congee (Porridge) Shop Yau Ma Tei is a branch of the 40-year old establishment with a main shop in Sheung Wan. This one is right across from the YMCA/City View Hotel on Waterloo Road. I believe one of the Airport Express shuttles has a stop here at City View. This would be a good opportunity to try it out since we were so close to this location.
Storefront. The sign on the left says to line up on the left if dining in and wait for your to-go order on the right. I was quite surprised that there was no line and no waiting when we got there.
Unlike most porridge shop that opens early for breakfast in the morning, they open at 11:00AM.
A little bit more expensive than most other shops but they have all kinds of porridge that you can think of.
The ginger, green onion, soy sauce mix is their signature item. We also ordered the fried dough but it was just OK.
Small and tight seating with shared tables which is quite common in Hong Kong.
MOR's fish porridge.
I had the beef and chicken. Quite delicious with lots of meat, albeit a little too salty for my taste.
It was good but MOR decided that he still likes Wo Mei better.
Dinner with Cousins
We had dinner appointment with my cousins whom we have not seen for a few years and I just wanted to take the opportunity to spend some time with them on this trip. We were going to host the dinner but ending up as guests of this wonderful seafood dinner.
Stopping by Millie's beautiful new apartment before dinner.
fresh steamed fish
steamed scallop
This restaurant is owned by the gentleman on the right. He is the father of Millie's future daughter-in-law. Thank you for a wonderful dinner, you all! I really treasured the time we had together!
No comments:
Post a Comment