The start of our trip and our stop in Hong Kong

About 9 months ago I went to Europe for a business trip and Roberta stayed at home. When the plan started to formulate to send me back to Europe for work it wasn't even discussed. Roberta was coming along as well. There is something amazing about the history in places like London and Vienna that the locals take for granted. Sometimes it takes a tourist to remind them of how stunning their home is.

Our trip from Auckland started very nice with Roberta hooking us up with a business class upgrade from Auckland to Hong Kong. 12 hours on a plane and being able to lay down flat is pretty nice.

When we arrived at the Hong Kong airport there were signs all over the place saying that if you were sick then you need to get a health check to stop the spread of the dreaded swine flu. Roberta and I both had a slight cough so Roberta ticked the box. They instantly pulled her out of line and gave her a good going over to make sure that it wasn't swine flu. It was funny seeing her with a face mask on. That would have made a good picture.

Our plan was to get into Hong Kong and accomplish about 5 things in our 6 hour layover. Mainly we just wanted to see the city and get a feel for what Hong Kong is. Unluckily we got there in the morning before any of the shops opened so the city was fairly dead.

We took the train to the city center. The good thing about Hong Kong is that all the streets have english signs. We walked aimlessly through the city for a while then found our way to the vintage tram which takes you to the top of the big hill behind the city. At the top there was basically a big mall that went up about 6 stories to a viewing platform at the top. It gave really good views that were almost 360 degrees. I got a picture of what looks like a nuke plant on a small island behind the city. Seems like a dangerous place for a power plant to me.

One thing that I really like about Hong Kong was that to get anywhere you could take these elevated pedestrian walkways so you didn't have to be in traffic. It made for a much nicer city experience.

Our dreams of Dim Sum were dashed on the rocks as we had to hop the train back to the airport before our place left without us. I must say that Hong Kong has the most amazing airport. It is stunningly huge and clean. There is a whole entertainement area with an IMAX and arcade.

Back onto the plane but this time in economy. Luckily I got some good sleeping pills from the doc before I left.

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