LAX-Xiamen-Hong Kong

2019 Summer Trip to Asia

Just returned from a tiring 2-month trip to Asia. This had to be the longest trip that we took and the longest duration being away from home. With MOR just retired, we were able to schedule this trip that covers Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, and China. I must say that this was an interesting and rewarding trip with many surprises but I will never do it in the summer ever again. The hot and humid weather in Asia can really drain and melt you, making traveling a lot harder and very uncomfortable which I kind of forgot when planning on this trip.

Itinerary:

July 10~11 -- Hong Kong

July 12~21 -- 9-day RCCL Voyager of the Seas Best of Japan Cruise

July 21~25 -- Hong Kong

July 25~ August 29 -- Taiwan

August 29~September 5 -- Tour-Xiamen, China

September 5~September 11 -- Tour-Qingdao, China

I was not able to write a journal like I used to in keeping track of all that had happened on this trip  because of the broken laptop. I will have to rely totally on my fading memories with the help of the photos. Please bear with me and I will try my best to report as much as I can remember on all the details to make this a meaningful and informative trip report. 

July 9/10, 2019 LAX -- Xiamen 

Our flight was scheduled to leave LAX at 00:15AM, July 10. Which means we had to be at the airport around 9:00PM July 9. As usual, we arrived Tom Bradley terminal early, I believe it was around 7:00 and the check-in counters were not even open for service. That's OK, we just got in line and waited. Soon enough we were checked in, boarding passes in hand and ready for security check upstairs. Unfortunately, Xiamen Airlines do not have contract with TSA, so we just had to get in the regular line without the pre-check privilege. The line wasn't bad though and soon enough we were air-side.

Priority Pass and P.F. Chang's

One thing about leaving this late in the evening is that there is no lounge access with our Priority Pass. Korean Air was the designated lounge provider but they close up before eight. Our only option was to pay a visit to the P. F. Chang's which serves as an alternative for lounge clients. We were allowed to order $30 worth of food/drink each which Priority Pass will cover. Better than nothing! (This option was changed in August 2019, not available anymore.)

We checked in, waited for about 15 minutes before we got a table. No problem, we had plenty of time! P.F. Chang is at the mezzanine on level 5, air-side. Normally, I would not eat at a P.F. Chang for the price and not-so authentic Asian food but since Priority Pass pays for it, it would be OK, I guess.

Mezzanine on level 5, Tom Bradley Terminal, with the colorful and ever-changing clock tower in the background.

OK won-ton soup

Hot and sour soup that was obviously too heavy on soy sauce.

Passable Pad Thai

Pretty good Singapore noodle

That was our $60 worth of meal that evening.

Xiamen Airlines, flight MF 830

Summer is not a good time to travel because of the higher prices on plane tickets. Xiamen Air seemed to have the best rates when we booked. It was right around $1000 USD for each of our roundtrip tickets with stops in between. When we were booking the flights, we were told that on our flight back from Taiwan to L.A., we would have to transfer at Xiamen and then Qingdao, before flying back to L.A. That was why we decided we might as well get off the plane and spend a few days at each of those stops on the way, which did not cost us any extra on the tickets. It was a good decision on our part, that we did not have to make the long, long flight home with two transfers in between. Instead we were able to spend some time in these cities with just the additional cost of the tours.

I flew Xiamen Air last year when we took the Princess cruise from Japan to Singapore. Other than having the mandatory transits at Xiamen airport on both legs, I kind of liked this airline. Their planes are quite new and seats comfortable with good leg space. Food was decent and better than some of the more popular airlines. The only complaint that I have is for their boarding gate at LAX. It's not at the regular gates on level 4 of TBIT but way down on the ground floor at a space looks more like a warehouse with hundreds of people herding like cattle. We also had to take the bus to get to the remote gate to board the flight. Not fun! But once we settled in, it was fine. We were hoping that the middle seat would remain vacant as we booked our two aisle seats in the middle section on this Boeing 787 with the 3-3-3 configuration. No such luck, the plane was full! It's good as long as I have the aisle seat!

Like all transpacific flights, they serve two meals on board, one about two hours after take off and then another one about two hours before landing with snacks available in between.

First meal, quite delicious!

I was able to sleep for about five hours and watched a couple of movies between meals, making the long flight time a little easier to bear.

2nd meal, a decent breakfast

We arrived Xiamen airport at around 5:30AM in the morning on July 11. It seemed I know Xiamen airport quite well by now after our trip last year. All the passengers had to go through immigration check even for those who are transiting. For transiting and visa free passengers, you need to fill out the blue form for immigration purposes to enter the country. For those who have the official visa (even if you are just transiting) you need to fill out the yellow form. I did the blue form last year on my first transit and was told by the official that next time I should do the yellow one since I already have the 10-year visa. This time I did it right and all was well. Then we went through the x-ray machine to have our carry-on checked before leaving air-side. Out the automatic glass door you can be at curbside of the arrival level of the airport. We were officially IN China. Around the corner we found the escalator that takes us up to the departure level, went through security then immigration and then the boarding gates.

We had a couple of hours before boarding our flight to Hong Kong so we found the lounge at the farthest end of the building hoping that it would be quieter. It was. There were only a few people there at that early hour. We found a corner with some loungers and settled down.

Nice and quiet

Quiet corner

Desperately needed a cup of good coffee.

Not much food-wise with lots of crackers and snacks.

I guess I am not a beer drinker, even this did not appeal to me.

Xiamen to Hong Kong, Flight MF 381

It's just a short flight of 308 miles from Xiamen to Hong Kong on this Boeing 737-800 on this rainy morning. This 10:00AM flight was full to capacity which kind of surprised me.

Again, good leg space.

Leaving Xiamen Airport

Xiamen is a fast-developing city.

Island of Gu Lang Yu 

We shall be back!

Snacks on this short flight.

Arrived Hong Kong at around 11:30AM.

Hong Kong

We quickly went through immigration with me using my HK ID and MOR using his e-channel fast track. Soon we were out with our luggage. First thing was for me to purchase my Senior Concession Octopus card for cheaper public transportation. We also double-checked with the staff at the Hong Kong Tourist Information booth making sure that we would be fine as long as we stay away from Central on this day. We had no intention to run into demonstrators and rioters on this trip.

Our next task was to find the stop for Airport Bus A21 which should take us to our hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui. We usually take the Airport Express train and then the complimentary shuttle to the hotels on our previous trips here but taking into consideration that the hotel we are staying at is right near the bus stop, we figured that it's easier and cheaper to take the airport bus this time. The person selling us the tickets at the booth outside the airport was neither nice nor helpful. When we asked her where to catch the bus, she just aimlessly pointed at the wrong direction which caused us to walk around the bus port more than we needed to. We finally found the right bus and off we went to Holiday Inn Golden Mile. The actual bus ride was comfortable and enjoyable once we settled in. Just had to make sure we knew when to get off.

Looking out the window on the bus.

Inside bus A21, we were at the very last row of seats. We stayed downstairs just so we could see our luggage on the rack.

Holiday Inn Golden Mile -- 50 Nathan Road, Tsimshatsui, Kowloon

We got off the bus right near the hotel on Nathan Road, just a short walk to the front entrance of Holiday Inn. One can feel the hustle and bustle of the city as soon as we got off the bus. Checking in was easy with their designated area for IHG Rewards Members. Soon, we were inside our room for the night.

This hotel is in a great location right on the main street of Kowloon--Nathan Road. Once you step outside, there are tons of restaurants and shops in the area with much to explore. But it is nice and quiet inside.

Our room

A good-size room for Hong Kong standard.

We were given HKD $100 to spend on mini bar/snacks. We did not find anything worthwhile so we took the adapter/converter instead, which was exactly $100.

We could see the K-11 Mall (with Hyatt Regency on the upper floors) right outside our window on the side street.

A little snack was waiting for us.

It was time for a late lunch, so we walked across the street a couple of blocks down and found Goose Manor, a restaurant I picked out for our first meal in Hong Kong. We don't usually get roast goose in California, so this is a good time to satisfy our appetite. 

(Goose Manor--Shop C, G/F, Kowloon Center, No. 29-39 Ashley Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong)

Not too busy at this hour.

Lunch set for two, including half a roasted goose, stir-fried vegetables, soup, white rice or rice noodle for HK $350. 

Yum!

A very delicious and satisfying lunch, indeed!

Kowloon Park

After lunch, we decided to walk to Kowloon Park, which is nearby. We were hoping to fight jet lag doing as much as possible during the day. Walking around the park seemed to be a good idea. To tell the truth, I don't think I have ever been inside this park, so it would be good for me to see what's in here.

South Gate Entrance on Haiphong Road

 

Chinese Garden

Avenue of Comic Stars

Miss 13 Dots, my favorite comic character when I was a teenager.

Yep, we grew up with these comic characters!

So cute!

I know we have only scratched the surface of this park right in the middle of the city, but it was getting very hot and we were tired. We ended up walking back to the hotel and called it a day. On the way back, I did stop at a store and bought an embroidered blouse for HKD $50. What a bargain!

Tomorrow we will board the ship for a 9-day cruise to Japan. Can't wait!

"For wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her." -- Proverbs 8:11