This means you, Strider.

Hong Kong’s A21 Airport Bus or Cityflyer is a very convenient way to get downtown once you arrive in HK, or back to the airport from the city.

The coach itself is a swanky double-decker bus complete with A/C and roomy, comfy seats. Heading into town this way gives you some great views of the city. It’s also pretty reasonably priced at only 33 HKD to get to Kowloon from the airport.

Here are some videos I took:

Nothing beats a sweet pineapple bun as a quick bite or snack on the go. I eat these all the time in Shanghai, but usually only find them prepackaged. In Hong Kong, there are a lot of little bakeries that serve them fresh out of the oven, like this one, for 3.50 HKD.

The Lo Wu border checkpoint on the Hong Kong side has a whole series of anti-drug posters on display. In addition to the Cannabis one (excuse the awful glare), there were similar posters for Ecstasy, Ketamine, and “Ice”.

The full text reads:

Cannabis is NO FUN at all!

There is no such thing as a ‘safe’ or ‘mild’ drug. It can affect you for life.

Maybe it’s just me, but I would think that posters at the border explaining the risk of getting busted in Shenzhen would be a better way to scare HK kids from going to SZ for cheap drugs than cheesy anti-drug propaganda.

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For some reason, Peking Duck gets all the attention and acclaim as the quintessential Chinese method of serving duck. It is good, but too often the wonder that is Cantonese Roast Duck goes completely unnoticed. Why this dish doesn’t get more attention is a mystery to me. Perhaps non-Chinese are afraid of all the dead ducks hanging in the window?

Roast duck or shao ya (simp. 烧鸭, trad. 燒鴨) usually comes served on a bed of rice with some greens, and a side dish of plum sauce for dipping. When prepared correctly, it’s incredible; the juicy duck, crispy skin, and added sweetness of the plum sauce is fantastic, and it’s a dish you can find in just about every (authentic) Cantonese restaurant in China and abroad.

I’ve been a fan of Cantonese duck for a long time now, but I just recently had the most delicious serving of it in a tiny restaurant in Mong Kok in Hong Kong. For 36 HKD (served with ice-cold refreshing lemon tea), I was in heaven.

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I went to Hong Kong again for a few days and I have officially come back a fraud.

Despite the URL of this site, I did not stay at the infamous Chungking Mansions in Tsim Sha Tsui because – despite renovations and attempts at cleaning up its image – it is a complete shithole that is not very good value at all. Instead I opted to stay at the slightly pricier (but infinitely cleaner and with free drinking water and wifi) Dragon Inn on Argyle Street in Mong Kok.

Other than the novelty of the sketchy atmosphere, Chungking Mansions doesn’t offer anything other than the thrill that you may be murdered in your sleep or eaten alive by vermin. There are so many other budget options not too far from the area that are only slightly higher, and you don’t have to put up with the filth, annoying touts, cockroaches, bedbugs, drug dealers, pimps and hookers that hang out around Chungking Mansions.

I wonder if Beijing will ever try to exert its influence to harmonize the Golden Mile?

I went to beautiful Hong Kong again for a few days. Here are some videos I took walking around Mong Kok.

Apartment Building (with A/C units) SQY-T shirt

Another brutal summer in Shanghai. Right now it is pretty damn humid and going outside literally feels like stepping into a sauna. There is no breeze and the air is so thick I actually feel resistance when I walk.

It’s 38°C right now and it will probably be like this for the next month or so.

If it wasn’t for A/C I would be a dead man.