Globetrotting

In the break between P2 and P3, I went on a short weekend trip to Hong Kong. Back in 2010, Hong Kong was the first city I ever visited in the Far East (and in Asia in general if you don’t count Istanbul) – and I was kind of curious to see how I would relate the city to the many other Asian cities I had seen in the meantime, from run-down and chaotic places like Yangon and Phnom Penh to shiny and luxurious Singapore.

My impressions on this second visit to Hong Kong were overwhelmingly positive: While the city is certainly not as “Asian” as many of the other cities I have visited but clearly a global business center, it is much more authentic, lively and buzzing with activity then air-conditioned and neat Singapore. In terms of the people, the shops, the culture, and the life, everything seemed more “real” than in the air-conditioned gigantic malls of Singapore. Also, the night life in Lang Kwai Fong was more street-centered and refreshingly different from the high-priced clubs that INSEAD people in Singapore frequent. Some of the things I visited in Hong Kong included Victoria Peak (which was unfortunately shrouded in mist so the views were not that great, but walking on the hill top was nevertheless nice), countless temples, many markets, the Aviarium, and the supposedly cheapest Michelin-starred restaurant in the world – for plenty of Dim Sum, we payed around 12 € for 2 people (and I had some local delicacies like chicken feet).

Some pictures follow.