A great thing about Hong Kong is the Octopus Card and the public transit system. With a population of about 7 million people, most people rely on the subway (MTR)/bus/trolley/minibus/ferry system and you can access it all with your octopus card! You just load your card with money and wave it over the scanners on the turnstiles and value is deducted based on the length of your travel or your mode of travel (eg. the trolley is cheaper than the subway). Not only can you pay for transportation, you can pay for things at participating retailers like the 7-11 (quite popular in Hong Kong), the Circle K, some clothing stores and even parking meters are equipped with an octopus scan. Also, the MTR escalators run twice as fast as the ones in North America keeping with the pace of Hong Kong living. Move it or Lose it! No Dawdling!
We head out early and ride the MTR to the east end of Hong Kong island to have dim-sum with Mom's Aunt and relatives. Mom's aunt's favourites are jung and bbq pork buns. She won't eat anything else.
Since Uncle Wah is with us and knows the way, we take the opportunity to go pay our respects at the cemetery for mom's side of the family. We ride across to the western side of Hong Kong Island to Pok Fu Lam Cemetery. In Chinese, to go pay your respects at the cemetery is sometimes called "walking the mountain" and no kidding! The graves are all over the hillside looking out to the water as it is believed the deceased should have a good view. We scramble and pick our way between tombstones to visit mom's parent's grave and other relatives.
Uncle Wah takes us back to Tsim Sha Tsui via the Star Ferry. We will ride the ferry frequently in the next few days because it's free for seniors, but $2.50 HKD for me (about 35 cents CAD) and still a convenient way to cross from Kowloon to Hong Kong Island. You also get to enjoy the Hong Kong cityscape. Another great thing about the ferry are the ingenious benches. You can push the seat back forwards or back depending on which direction you want to face, or which direction the ferry is going.
Uncle Wah suggests we go eat, so he takes us to Mak's Noodle for the classic Hong Kong wonton noodles. And then we go for some lovely steamed milk desserts at Yee Shun Milk Company. The cold custard is very refreshing. YUM YUM YUM!
