Refuge of a Maladjusted Moose

the Bus - Upon arriving in Hong Kong and meeting with my Father in Law we were guided to the right airport bus to take us to the district that we were going to stay at. It was late so the bus wasn't too full and the bus took about 45 minutes which wasn't that bad as it had a long way to go.

The next day we got another bus to the centre of HK (we were staying in the New Territories). It was packed and even though it was the express the 30 -45 minute ride was pretty uncomfortable. Needless to say I didn't get many more busses while on my trip. Just a bit too uncomfortable an experience to do too often.

the Taxi - I ended up getting a lot of taxi's whilst I was in Hong Kong. Fortunately they are really cheap, unfortunately ended up having to get about 2 taxi's a day. Our accommodation was a little way a way from the MTR station so we ended up having to get the taxi to the station a lot. Price was less than 2 pounds though and there was 4 of us most of the time so it worked out okay.

The taxi drivers appear to be some of the better drivers in Hong Kong. I don't know why this is, maybe they are more conservative with Westerners in the back, but I think I felt the most comfortable with the Taxi drivers than any of the other drivers I had the pleasure of experiencing.

the Tram - This was a fun little form of transport to get through HK Island. Double decker, really thin, and with hard wooden seats. It also bumped around quite a bit. But I'm really glad I got the chance to ride it. It costs less than 20p and drives through the nice parts of time. Well worth it either to get somewhere or just to appreciate the view from the top deck.

the Ferry - One of the things I managed to do on the trip was take the ferry from Hong Kong island to Hong Kong mainland. Its a short trip but in the evening its really worth it. Staring out the windows as the lights start to turn on in the night was great. Shame about the smog.

Also took a trip on the ferry from Lantau Island to Hong Kong Island. This one was a bit longer and there wasn't really as much to see. It was also choppier, which didn't bother me but did turn my wife a bit pale (which did bother me).

the Minibus - and why you should NEVER RIDE A MINIBUS IN HONG KONG!!!

Had to take one of these after seeing some of my wifes relatives in a different part of the new territories. It was the most convenient way to get from one area to the other. It was terrible (if you hadn't already guessed.

The mini-buses all line up at a stop (a bit like taxi's), when the fill up their off. They head pretty much to a single destination with a stop or two on the way. I get the impression that the drivers make more money the faster they go as they can make a return trip faster and make more cash. And boy do they go hell for leather. Our Driver decided that 70km/h was a good speed for tight twisting hillside roads and that breaking was not necessary. What I particularly enjoyed was the speedometer that was rigged up to show everyone in the bus how fast the driver was going in BIG RED NUMBERS. It even had a buzzer if he made it past 80. Not that this stopped him. By the time that we passed the car crash at the side of the road my hand was tightly gripping the handle in front of my seat. At one point I though it might have to get off the bus with me.

By the end of the trip I felt more than slightly shaken and decided than mini buses in Hong Kong are not a good idea.

the Cable Car - Interspersed in between the shopping and all the visiting relatives/ eating meals (which seemed to coincide), we actually found a day to do some site seeing. My parents decided to spend this day visiting Lantau Island on which there is a touristy cable car to ride. It was okay, but well, its primary view seemed to be of mountains and an airport. So it wasn't exactly what I would call scenic. There was a big Budda at the end of the ride though and that was impressive.

the Airplane - The necessary form of transport to and from Hong Kong was mercifully short and almost pleasurable for once. It clocks in at about 4.10 there and 3.30 back. This combined with a selection of your choice movies and tv shows to choose from meant the time went really quite quickly. A few episodes of top gear and it was all over. Oddly Top Gear appears to be on of those things that I seldom do on anything but flights, that and drink coke.

*edit* the MTR - I forgot to mention this one, must be subconsciously leaving the best till last. The MTR in Hong Kong is easy, well priced, fast, clean, and efficient. It was only packed on a few occasions and we were often able to sit down after a few stops. We probably used it the most the whole trip and tried to use it over any other form of transport. Most of this is because it is so new I suppose, but its a very good example of a subway none the less. Also I noticed that it has been built with expansion in mind. Many of the stops seemed to have space for an extra car or two at the end (thinking ahead). If your in HK and need to get around the MTR with an Octopus card is your best bet.

Well thats enough for now, its time for tea. Will try post more on my trip over the weekend.