the wanderers

We decided to take a day trip to Macau near Hong Kong to explore! You can clearly see the Portuguese influences here in the architecture.

So in between some of the more hectic study sessions and occasional food poisoning ( it was bound to happen sometime)  we have had at university to date, the past few weeks have included some truly fun and unique moments. To begin we were quite surprised to receive an email from Swinburne inviting us to the Australian Consulate for an alumni evening with the Vice Chancellor and many other prominent Swinburne community members. Arriving accompanied by a slight air of nervousness we were quickly settled by the splendid and easy going nature of the staff and alumni, who ranged across all ages and professions in Hong Kong. The evening would be full of very interesting conversation with some incredibly knowledgeable and successful business men and equally importantly free food. It would also see us be invited a Swinburne meeting the following day (and future events) to discuss the implementation of Swinburne’s new alumni network which will be something for current Swinburne students to keep an eye out for. 

The Swinburne Alumni Workshop

The  Mong Kok area is very close to our house and has been the location of some of the more explosive confrontations between police and protestors in the occupy central movement, needless to say, exploring it has always lead to some exciting nights. While at first the sheer volume of protesters and police and the large barricade constructions which section off streets and other areas, might give an impression of hostility the peaceful nature of the protest cannot be overstated and the area has remained in a very clam state while we have explored Mong Kok. Our exploration has also uncovered some many gems of discovery that it would be impossible to share them all with you here except to say if you have a taste for it you can find it in Mong Kok be it expensive, cheap, exotic or just plain weird. In particular if you have a liking for all you can eat and drink in a party like atmosphere make sure to check out Mr Wongs and fill yourself for only $60 HKD (just over $8 AUD).

The Mong Kok Occupation. 

  Hong kong is a global city in every sense and nowhere is that more clear than in the incredible energy and excitement the city expends to celebrate holidays from almost every country on earth. It was this energy (and an invitation from the local Swinburne Alumni) which saw us find ourselves lost in a sea of Hong Kong business men wearing novelty hats, drinking beer from oversized cups and quoting whatever German they could at the Macro Polo hotels Oktoberfest  celebration. 

Octoberfest at the Marco Polo Hotel

For a weekend trip we went hiking in the New Territories with our buddies Katie, Kary and their friend Ellen. It was a great day for hiking, our trail even lead us to a creepy abandoned house. We got a tad lost on the way to the beach, but we but we appreciated the clean air of the forest.  We were also accompanied by a wild cow for some of our trip. It’s a pity it didn’t have opposable thumbs or it could have helped us with the map. 

Suddenly, le wild cow appears

The end of October means two things for Naomi….. Halloween and Birthdays. 

Hong Kong is a very adaptable city, even when it comes to Holidays, so naturally Halloween is hugely popular here. A group of us exchange students decided to dress up as the characters from the board game Cluedo for the evening. Our dinner party consisted of beer, endless food and 50’s style attire and of course, great company. The streets were crowded with ghouls, ghosts and witches. It seems that the Hong Kongers prefer a more gorey Halloween compared to the costumed westerners ( consisting mostly of sexy kittens,  sexy policemen and a few scantily clad superman impersonators). Hundreds of people lined up to get into the LKF street party. We took one look at the line and opted for a secret rooftop party nearby, where most of the HKBU exchange students were going. With a spectacular view of Hong Kong and a couple of 7/11 beers in our hands we were happy campers…..although at one point we lost a member, along with the candlestick. It’s still a mystery.

Halloween Dinner at Mr Wongs. 

My birthday the following day was peaceful and quiet. Philippe and I had a gourmet breakfast at our adorable Korean breakfast place next-door. I spent the day in my favourite stores and had a beautiful romantic dinner at our exquisite steak restaurant at Knutsford Terrace. The manager even gave us free apple schnapps shots because we gave him a piece of  birthday cake! It was a lovely 22nd birthday. 

Birthday Dinner at The Steak Kitchen

A few weeks later we took a day trip to Macau, over an hours ferry ride west of Hong Kong. As a Portuguese settlement in China, the architecture was very European. Macau is also known as the ‘Vegas of China’ and it showed. Casinos were popping out of the ground left, right and centre. We had the most amazing lunch at a burger place called ‘ The Grilled Burger’. It was the best burger we had ever had. period. 

We popped inside a couple of casinos ( not that either of us gamble) just to take a peek at the incredible interior design. We spent the rest of the day fooling around inside the Macau Space Museum and peeking over the top of railings to see the annual Grand Prix that Macau was hosting that year. It was a beautiful day spent in the sun in a beautiful city.

Our Day in Macau

The next few weeks will be filled with study in preparation for exams. To make these weeks a little more bearable, we have been planning activities on a weekly basis, cooking classes being one of them. We have taken a few classes at Ma Maison, a western cooking school in the heart of Tsim Sha Tsui. Check out the photos below of our masterpieces ( although we can’t take all the credit, the chef did most of it). 

Cooking Classes at Ma Maison

We only have one month left in this beautiful city so we are going to make the most of it! 

There are also some videos from our past few weeks on our Blog site. Check them out! 

Until next time, Choi Gin from Philippe and Naomi