Friday 7th August 09

Today we had a chilling day by the pool and we went to The New Sangeet for tea(it has become our weekly restaurant!!). The Indian food is fantastic and we love the live band-which also play Jai Ho from Slumdog Millionaire! It is time for my weekly review today, but instead of reviewing restaurants I am going to review all the trips I have been on this week. We have eaten in a lot(because we got back late from the trips) which I have enjoyed because Mum and Dad are great chefs: Normandy Chicken; Bruschetta and fried potatoes; Spaghetti Bolognaise and many more!

Disneyland - is absolutely fantastic. I was glad that we went when it was forecast to be rainy because 1. it put a few people off and 2. we didn't get as hot and exhausted. We went on lots of rides but my favourite was It's a Small World because you got in a boat and sailed round the different countries of the world. I also liked The Lion King Show and the Mickey Water Parade.

The Science Museum - is very good because it is interactive and there is a lot to do. You learn a lot about different aspects of science and I particularly enjoyed the electrical experiments and the fitness tests. It was a good way to spend half a day when the weather wasn't that good.

Cheung Chau - you have to get the fast ferry from Central to Cheung Chau. This was a great ride because we went up and down a bit which dad wasn't too keen on because he gets sea sick. It was particularly good when a hydrofoil went past us and created a big swell. We hired bikes at the harbour and the place was very interesting because it felt very Chinese compared to Hong Kong Island. We had a great time and would recommend the Windsurf Shack which is run by the only Chinese olympic gold medallist produced by Hong Kong.

The Escalator - the escalator starts near the Hang Seng bank, a short walk from Central Pier. It runs downhill until 10.00 am to let the people who live in mid-levels go to work. From then on it goes uphill so that people can get up the steep hills of Hong Kong! It is a fun way to see different areas of Hong Kong. We went right to the top and then proceeded on to the Zoological and Botannical Gardens.

The Zoological and Botannical Gardens - you would think that there is no greenery to be seen in Hong Kong but actually when you seek it out there are plenty of places where you can go and enjoy tropical gardens. There were different cages dotted amongst the tropical greenery. The gibbons were particularly good fun because they were swinging along their cage and were very active. The raccoons were very cute and seemed very interested in their carrots! One of them even attempted to make carrot soup by dropping his carrots into the water and stirring it around with his paw. This is a great place to spend a few hours and we are thinking of going again but taking a picnic with us.

Overall favourite outing: Disneyland.

That's all for now.

Speak soon.

Love Meganxxx

PS. The picture is of a party boat that goes past our apartment every evening.

Thursday 6th August 09

Today we ventured out to Park 'n' Shop to buy some food and a new umbrella(it was raining and the umbrella Dad bought us didn't work)! A man, whom we had never met before, kept following us around Park 'n' Shop talking some nonsense about chocolate chips! He even followed us to the checkout!

On the way back we went to Jumpin' Gym arcade! I accumulated 83 tickets in about 10 minutes. Before I go I am going to exchange my tickets for a prize! I now have a deal with Mum and Dad: if I go to Park 'n' Shop with them to help carry the shopping, I get 10 minutes in the arcade! I am very satisfied with that deal. The arcade is a bit like the one at Butlins.

Once we got back we went up to the pool. A 10 year old Korean girl called Lauren, was keen to be my friend. She spoke very good English.

Andy (one of Dad's friends at work) came to have tea at The Waterfront Cafe-see blog entry for Friday 31st July 09. We had Spanish tapas to start and then I had penne carbonara. As usual Dad had fish which we avoided!I don't know about Andy but we had a great time!!!

Speak soon! Watch this space for my weekly Friday review!

Love from Meganxxx

Wednesday 5th August 09

Today we went to Hong Kong Disneyland on Lantau Island!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was like the coolest ever-even better than Ocean Park except the Pandas!

We got the MTR from Central to Sunny Bay(5 stops). Then changed to the Disneyland line. The metro had Mickey windows and Mickey handles!!!

When we got there I think I was more excited then than when I was 4! We walked down Main Street, USA and it was done like a proper street with Mickey's House and things like that. We went on loads of rides but we ran out of time to do everything. We went on the carousel, the Jungle River Cruise and loads more. My favourite ride was It's a Small World. You went round in a boat and there were little models of different countries. We also watched Mickey's Waterworks Parade. We got absolutely soaked!! It was a really fun day.

When we got home Dad cooked us Spaghetti Bolognaise. It was delicious.

Write soon.

Love from Meganxxx

Tuesday 4th August 09

Today we went to the Science Museum in TST, because the Space Museum was closed! Something tells me that someone doesn't want us to go there! The Science Museum was really interactive, and there were plenty of kids there, making it really noisy! There were plenty of things to do, and loads of different subjects to cover: Life Science; How to Keep Healthy; Magnetism and Forces and Telecommunication. Also, running throughout the whole museum, was a giant marble run. It went all the way through the museum- top to bottom! It was great!

It was really windy and rainy-going on the ferry was a rough ride-and typhoon warning 8 had been issued at 9:40pm! Everyone was asked to take extra precautions: close curtains; tape up windows and not to go near the shore. Don't worry! It is no big deal, it happens all the time here.

Anyway, the weather was awful so we didn't do much the rest of the day-except order another Chinese from Dial a Dinner!

Disneyland tomorrow!!!!!!!

Speak soon.

Love from Meganxxx

Monday 3rd August 09

Today we had a morning trip up the Escalator to Mid-Levels. We got the ferry to Central and then followed the long walkway into town to Hang Seng Bank. The Escalator starts just across the road from there. For the people who live at Mid-Levels to go to work, the Escalator goes down in the morning until 10am. We went up it and there were some really interesting views over the city. It took about twenty minutes to go up it.

We then walked, along the streets and on overhead walkways, to the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens, near Hong Kong Park. We had a great time. There were cages of all sorts of animals hidden amongst the lush, green plants. There were: cute Racoons (see picture); playful Marmosets; funny human-like Gibbons; graciously, slow Tortoise and cheeky Lemurs! The Marmosets were jumping about all over the place but the Racoons just silently ate carrots! The Tortoise just sat sun-bathing, but the Gibbons swung on ropes swaying side to side. They were all amazing to watch.

We then walked through Hong Kong Park and bought our 3rd bottle of water! You probably lose a load more weight in sweat here than you do working out in the gym! I even walked through the waterfall to cool me down, because I was so hot!

After walking through Hong Kong Park we ventured over to Pacific Place (a shopping mall). Mum went into a few clothes shops and I went into Hong Kong Records-they sell CDs, DVDs, PC games, DS games and Wii games (whilst shopping we also made full use of the air-conditioning). I bought a Sherlock Holmes DS game, but I didn't have enough money so I have to pay Mum back! We went to Great Cafe to have lunch, we shared pizza and salad.

Taxis weren't allowed to stop where we were standing, but there were plenty of bus stops near by- I bet you can tell where this is going. We got the bus to Hang Seng Bank(yes, the bus) and retraced our steps back along the long walkway to the ferry pier! Dad was very impressed.

Feeling pleased with ourselves, we got the ferry from Central back to Hung Hom!

When we got home, I checked the weather forecast, and Typhoon Warning 3 had been issued! That means that a massive storm is on its way. The forecast said that Typhoon Warning 8 will be issued tomorrow at about noon. Typhoon Warnings go in this order: 1, 3, 8, 10. Don't ask me why!

Talk soon!

Love from Meganxxx

Sunday 2nd August 09

We have had a bit of a lazy day today after yesterday's exertions, so I have some time to tell you more about Temple Street Night Market. Sorry I didn't tell you much about it last night, I just don't like to keep droning on!

The stalls are set out on the street, but it is a pedestrianised street. I have to tell you, there were some weird and wonderful smells coming from the street cafes! As you walk down through the stalls, there are light bulbs overhead. It is really hot if you stand under them for a while. I found it a great experience just to see what type of things the stalls were selling. There were: fake Duracell batteries; fake iPhones; cufflinks; silver jewellery; bracelets; fake Hugo Boss products and loads more. Some items you couldn't even tell if they were fake or not! I really enjoyed seeing it all.

There is also a jade market, a couple of streets away. It sells products made out of jade. Jade is a precious stone.

Speak soon.

Love from Meganxxx

P.S. We tried to go to The Teddy Bear Museum but we couldn't find it. We have just researched it on the Internet and we found out it shut down in 2005! So don't try to go there yourself, because it is guaranteed you won't find it!

Saturday 1st August 09

Today we went to Cheung Chau Island on the fast ferry. We got the ferry from Hung Hom to Central. We then walked to Pier 5-Outlying Islands. Make sure you have plenty on your Octopus card!

Once we got there Mum and Dad rented bikes for us. They then proceeded to take us up a very steep mountain, that was so steep we had to get off and push our bikes up. On arrival at the top we then had to go down some steps, which also consisted of walking! So, you can see that we got full benefit of the 60hk dollars it cost to rent them!

Cheung Chau is a very Chinese island that is noticeably different from Hong Kong Island. The beaches look beautiful, but seeing all the rubbish in the sea on the ferry, I wouldn't swim in it. But that is just my personal view!

After a Chinese day we topped it off with an American evening! I broke the record of 4 years, and had a happy meal at McDonalds. There is one on virtually every street corner. Hong Kong is like the centre of all cultures. You can get anything you want any time you want! It is strange really. We followed McDonalds with the new Pixar film called Up! It made Dad cry!

We went to Temple Street Night Market. In case you haven't already guessed, it is a market but at night! It was very interesting to see what kind of things they were selling. There were people eating outside at strange looking street cafes. Dad said "If you want to survive the night don't eat at one of those street cafes!" If you bargained with the stall owners, you could get things half price. I bought a bracelet and a hair clip.

Hope you are having a cool summer holiday.

Love from Meganxxx