That's what I was thinking to myself early yesterday morning, as the coach my colleagues and I were on drove over the Tsing Ma Bridge (which bears a striking and, I suspect, deliberate resemblance to the Golden Gate Bridge). It was perfect, watching the ships below us pass by, the post-dawn morning revealing the fauna on the hillsides, the dog and his master walking up the then-deserted road leading up to Disneyland, my trainee buddy nodding off next to me. Absolutely ordinary, plebeian, routine even, but the beauty of it was: I was there.
Better still, I was going home, home to The Boyfriend (who hopefully would be waiting for me at the airport) and everything that I so love. And having nothing to do, I decided to go through the things in my standard-issue handbag, just to make sure everything was there.
The first thing I pulled out was my passport - funny, my bag feels a lil empty... maybe because I left the wretched hairspray in my cabin bag. Hmn, wait a sec.
The moment I grasped the reality of it (ie getting past the oh-no-this-can't-be-happening-to-me phase, which thankfully took all of 2 seconds, because time was of the essence), I grabbed the wrist of my buddy, waking her with a start. And, point-blank:
I looked as the horror of realisation sank in onto her face. Consequences were dire if we didn't get those back. We wouldn't be able to board the flight, we'd be stranded, when we finally get our sorry selves back to Singapore we'd be called back to the office where there'd be certain death waiting for us in the form of Office Investigations with the Management. Oh god.
Quickly, we informed our supervisor (and praise be to everything that is good and pure on this earth, because we got a nice one), called the hotel - which was a stroke of luck in itself, because my buddy, whom I shared the room with, hadn't surrenderred the card key which came with the hotel's number because she had been busy settliing a bill - and got the hotel staff to rush the passports down to us, who were by then about 20-30 minutes away.
The price (literally) we had to pay? A freaking HKD$500 (or roughly S$100). Them opportunistic Hongkongers. But it was worth it, because what mattered is that we made it in time, despite the embarrassment of having to trouble the counter staff to escort us to the aircraft, where an off-duty captain stood waiting for us at the door. Most of all - there would be no office enquiry. Alibaba thankyoumama.
And that's not the only stupid mistake I made. On the way up, I chose only to bring a garment bag, besides my check-in luggage (for all the shopping I was to do there) , only to be told, sternly, that hand luggage was mandatory, and that I could be written in for the lapse. Once again, I was lucky to get a kind supervisor who decided close off the proverbial eye and let me off - once. And, as penance, blew S$100 buying a new cabin bag.
Well then, that's that. Enough drama for the day. Pictures, people! More exciting are the HK ones, mainly because we had more time there, and also because in Auckland (so yes, that's where the tower stands) shops close at 6pm and we were pretty much in the outskirts anyway, so I was told. But because I am idiocyncratic, I will present the pictures in chronological order - with regards to which city I visited first, not the date/time that the pictures were taken. Thank you.
A King-sized bed, all to myself!
One of the beautiful buildings in Auckland. This one was particularly well-lit. Many older buildings were sandwiched between more modern, nondescript ones, making an interesting juxtaposition. I wonder how much more kooky and wonderful it would be like in Barcelona, hmn.
For some weird reason, the words on the side of the building say, on the top and bottom respectively, "Crashing from 125km/h is like falling from here" and "Crashing from 90km/h is like falling from here". Maybe its got something to do with the elevators.
What happens when you need to pee and the only loo for 20 miles around is closed and locked up for the night.
I know I look really wrapped up, but in reality it wasn't that cold. I just didn't know how low the temperatures would really get at night, and so brought the only winter jacket I had along with me. A thick jacket would've sufficed, actually. Still, it was fun walking around like that for the first time in my life, even if it elicited sarcastic comments like "It's freezing, huh?" from the locals we passed by.
And while I over-estimated how cold it would be in Auckland, I under-estimated how cold it would get in Hongkong. The newspapers said 26-29 degrees Centigrade. 26-29! That's like Singapore, I thought. But when I got there, boy. Brrrrrr. My holey cardigan was no match for the wind. Which was a good excuse - erhem, I mean, reason, for me to buy some winter wear at the Esprit Factory Outlet there. Among the many things I got:
The drink du jour in HK: Honey lemon. Way better than the mediocre (now, I know) fare sold at the local S-11.
Picture 1 (on the left) - Left: Wan Ton Noodles (too salty for my taste); Right: Tomato-beef hand-made noodles (very nice)
Picture 2 - Background: Tofu with braised egg; Left: Bamboo shoots (not sure how it was prepared); Right: some kind of dumpling with curry sauce. Nice.
Yummy roasted chicken hanging on the display rack, albeit a lil skinny? Take a closer look. Those are pigeons! The Boyfriend tells me they are a common sight in HK.
Ah... "Hong Kong! Kowloon Hong Kong, I love Hong Kong..."
I'll be back one day. Armed with more cash, I promise. Uh-huh.
5 comments:
Heh Lene, I decided to reject your comment coz of one word you used. I know, I'm picky, but one can never be too cautious, right? Anyway, yep, have definitely learnt my lesson(s), and will be dropping my respective guardian angels a nice thank you note soon.
wahhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i am sure u were very, VERY happy to be THERE.
i wish i were like you, THERE too!!
thanks for sharing the lovely pics :D
Hee hee you are most welcome Daf! Sharing just multiplies the happiness - I know that's really badly phrased, but I trust you know what I mean. :) And yes, you are soooo right - loved it to bits.
Haha no worries...
But i dont remember what i wrote exactly :P...
Haha good advice!
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