Getting into the Local Way of Queuing

So Wednesday was a public holiday in Hong Kong and we woke up feeling refreshed after a lie in. We ventured first upstairs one floor and I got my haircut (with a little help from a picture of Robbie!). Then having got ready, we took the tram and headed to Central (which we eventually reached after an unintended ride to Happy Valley). From here we had a short walk uphill to get to the Peak Tram station.

This is a funicular railway heading to the area about 400m above Hong Kong where there is of course shopping centre, McDos and lots of rich people with small dogs. Little did we know that on a public holiday there are queues about an hour to an hour and a half long. Well having arrived we took our place and slowly edged forward.

With barriers out making it only 2 abreast it was easy for us to hold our own in the queue but latterly these expanded to hold 10 abreast and the free-for-all started. However nothing prepared us for the crossing of the road (done in batches by the police) where 40 - 50 yr old men and women sprint around you to reach the other side first. At this point we gave up with our European manners and I remembered that I am actually about 1.5x the average size of any other person in the queue. With newfound confidence we began to wade through and quickly overtook all those who had been streaming past us for the last hour. Finally when we got to the platform we thought we had finished but the worst was still to come. After the doors opened everyone pushed (as hard as they physically can) to get into the carriage. With a women carrying a baby in front I held the queue up for a few seconds, let them through first and ran for my seat. The pride I felt as I watched Katie battle through and join me seconds later. From our seated position we could see all those other runners who had failed to gain a seat and now had to stand for the 5 minute ride while we travelled up something akin to a 30 degree railway track. 

Having reached the top we went for a walk which gave us beautiful views across to both the city and to the other side of the island (and the islands further out). We sat and had a pack lunch of cheese sandwiches and pringles and enjoyed the clearer / cooler air. Having had our fill, we went through the same queuing procedure to get down and took the tram back to causeway bay (where we live).

Now for the exciting part: on the walk home we dropped in at an electronics store and bought a toaster. Best purchase EVER. Of couse this meant a further trip to the supermarket to buy marmite but well worth it. With our new appliance set up in the flat we ventured out for dinner at a place recommended by the guidebook. To be fair to lonely planet - they have done well with this. Probably the most english version of Chinese we have seen (i.e. real meat with limited bone inclusions). Stomachs full we went to bed having enjoyed the day off!

Thursday was fairly uneventful except for Matt and Affie's footballing debut in China. The whistle blows to start the first match, the team advances and the 2 new stars from GB run into each other and fall over. The latter matches weren't much of an improvement with 3 losses overall. Communication was an issue with the only positive being Matt's goal in the last match.

For Katie, Friday was spent investigating volunteering opportunities. That evening we headed out to Carnegies for the second time. It is possibly the cheapest bar in Hong Kong and one of the few places you can dance on the bar (we are yet to experience this ourselves). After a few $10 coronas we made our way with Kate and her friends to the bars in LKF. Here we came into a spot of bother. The 5 girls walked into the bar and onto the dance floor with no problems. Matt however was greeted at the door by an unfriendly looking bouncer who informed him that in order to proceed he had to buy a drink from the bar. With his money saving hat on Matt ventured to the nearest 7/11 shop and purchased a bottle of beer that was available in the bar but at a fraction of the price. He strode back in, as if he had been taking a breather outside with his beer, bypassing both bouncers. Result! Feeling very pleased with himself he rejoined the group to boogie the night away.