LAleslie

Well, Eks, at least the Chinese are keeping the marble and column business booming. I love architecture and am dying the see the various Chinese interpretations, though I imagine they
've imported most of the architects from afar.

It's really all about phallic symbols.

ekscrunchy

There is also a South Beauty right next to the Meridien Hotel, but there is little or no indication that it is inside the building. But it is not as attractive as the one in the SuperBrand Mall.

S., that building with the columns is not on the river. The taxi passed it when traveling from the SuperBrand back across the river to the hotel. It is south of the OP tower. I found this photo of the construction phase:


http://www.flickr.com/photos/11795120@N06/3718695529/

ekscrunchy

Interesting link about architecture in the city:

http://www.architravel.com/architravel/building/754

m_bran

ekscrunchy,

Thank you for such a wonderfully detailed report! Truly enjoyed all posts.

I've been searching for a Fall 2010 destination & am now looking into Burma & Pandaw Cruises. It would be my first visit to Burma. All advice is appreciated.

Sending belated thanks for recommending Charlie Ratcliffe in Cape Town. He was delightful!

I guess I am following your trails...
So where are you going next?

ekscrunchy

MB: I am thrilled that you hired Charlie. I've done a lot of traveling in my time and I would be hard pressed to come up with the name of any other guide who has come close to him. I traveled with two friends--incidentally, the same ones who took the Burma, China trip with me--and they feel the same about Charlie. We often reminisce about our trip and his name always comes up. In fact, just today I thought of him when I heard the news of Jackie Selebi's sentencing, because we had had many spirited discussions with Charlie about his case, and about SA current affairs in general.


I would be more than pleased to discuss Pandaw, and Burma, with you.

I am headed next to Puglia, next month.


I WILL return to finish this report soon!

LAleslie

Puglia! Good choice eks.

m_bran

Eks –

Yes - Charlie was a big hit with my 2 friends, as well. Felt more like a very informed South African friend than someone programmed in the tourism industry. So thanks for the recommendation & for making me quite a hero for ‘finding’ him.

I was wondering if your travel partners were the same as on your Southern Africa trip. Cause I’m guessing the Cape Town prune juice hunt resulted in the necessity of 48 cans for Burma/China?? Love your details.

I’m doing my research now & will back with Burma questions.

Many thanks for all & look forward to reading the rest of your report.

Buon Viaggio!

ekscrunchy

Yes, same friends. Same quest for the same type of juice. Apparently does not exist in Southern Africa.

I did leave out some details from the SA trip, such as the ATM card of one of said friends getting stuck in the machine (person was not familiar with ATM use) and the bank's "expert" having to make the trip from Pretoria to free the card. Charlie had a leading role in that caper! I agree that he was more like a friend than a paid "guide."

Please come back and ask away!!

Marija

Eks, the time has come to switch them to dried prune powder:

http://www.blenderculture.com/prunes.shtml

Gpanda

Enough fooling around. Time to finish this. Or give us insight into your psyche about the prohibition against finishing trip reports.

ekscrunchy

Marija: I LOVE that!!!!!!!

I hope they have their sense of humor intact because they are about to get an e-mail with that link!

Panda: You must be feeling in fine fettle, since you are back to nagging me! Ok, ok--I have my notes with me and will attempt to resurrect this very soon. And you can bet your bottom dollar that I will persevere, even though I am having the painter coming this week!

HappyTrvlr

Eks..I cana't find your Hong Kong report. We're heading over there and I alwys enjoy your foodie focused trip reports.
Is it under another heading?

ekscrunchy

Happy: You can't find it because I did not get around to writing it! Shame on me, I know..

When are you leaving for HK? If you are leaving soon, I can give you some tips, but if you have some time, I will try to finish this report by adding the HK portion.

HappyTrvlr

Thanks Eks..we're not leaving until early September...I really enjoy your foodie trip reports and from reading them, believe we have similar dining tastes. I look forward to reading the Hong KOng portion whenever you post it!
Thanks.

ekscrunchy

Happy: You have given me a well-needed push! I agree about the similarity in our tastes.

I will try to write the actual HK part soon.

Meanwhile, these were the locations of the main meals; all of the food we tried was good, some was great, and some was flat-out fantastic.


Hutong (I was warned away from this place and went anyway, for the view) http://www.aqua.com.hk/#/eng/global/...hutong/concept


Fu Sing Seafood Restaurant, Wanchai (two dinners)


Lung King Heen in the Four Seasons (dim sum lunch)
http://www.fourseasons.com/hongkong/...ung_king_heen/


Tim's Kitchen


Tasty Congee and Noodle (IFC mall)-lunch
http://www.tasty.com.hk/
http://www.ifc.com.hk/en/mall/detail.jsp?id=221


Guangdong Barbecue, Kowloon ( lunch)


Lei Garden, IFC mall
http://www.leigarden.hk/English/loca...A-927FFDB812B6

pattyroth

Thanks, ekscrunchy! I am loving your report as I prepare for Burma. So helpful. I so appreciate your details.

ekscrunchy

Patty, I am living vicariously through you now--have a fabulous trip and be sure to keep us updated! I am here and happy to answer any questions before you depart!! Remember those crisp dollar bills!

HappyTrvlr

Thanks so much Eks..

ekscrunchy

As promised, here is the continuation of this report which will include details of our 5 nights in Hong Kong. I had been to Hong Kong several times in the past, so did not follow the usual sightseeing trail. The report will have lots of food detail, though.




After forging through the assembled crowd at the Shanghai Railway station, we joined the laden-down masses in the waiting room and were soon led onto the track to board the waiting train. There are a couple of security and immigration checkpoints along the way but English signage makes the process fairly straightforward. The train itself appeared fairly new and, while the compartments were a tad less luxurious that those on the Beijing-Shanghai z train that I had taken a few years before, they were roomy and very comfortable. As I noted above, I had booked both berths in the two-berth compartment; I had an attached, private bathroom but no shower.

From my notes: “The train ride was superb—much too short!!” Unfortunately, much of the ride was in darkness, so scenery gazing was at a minimum that evening. There is a dining car manned by rather stern railway personnel; no picture taking!!! No standing and gawking!!!

Ok, ok, I retreated to my compartment and stayed put for much of the ride. From the reports of fellow passengers, the food available on the train was edible, but I would recommend bringing your own supplies, as I did. My larder included a fairly unbalanced array of items: Kaufu (wheat gluten and black mushrooms—a signature Shanghai cold appetizer that I adore); sesame noodles; mangoes; chocolate bars; and sliced pomelo and yogurts for breakfast. Washed down with canned fruit juices and Mandalay rum.

We arrived in Hong Kong early the next afternoon and, piling into a taxi from the lineup outside the terminal, were off to the Four Seasons. I will offer more details later but for now will comment only that the hotel proved to be a fantastic choice and one that was well worth the splurge. Mindful of price, I had chosen the least expensive room, so I had a view of the towers of HK island. My friends chose the harbor view, which was everything they had imagined. We were able to get a deal marginally better than the one offered on the hotel website by contacting a Virtuoso agent.

This has certainly one of the most memorable hotels I've ever had the good fortune to visit. I had extensive e-mail exchanges with the concierge before arrival and their professionalism and responsiveness was impressive. (One of our restaurants required booking and selection of dishes long in advance (much like a Cantonese banquet would require) so there was much e-mailing back and forth before we settled on a dinner..)


http://www.fourseasons.com/hongkong/


For our first meal in the city, we were scheduled to meet up with someone I had encountered on Chowhound. Unfortunately, one of my travel companions had not slept well on the train and opted out of dinner. Her dutiful husband remained with her and I set out alone for Fu Sing, on Lockhart Road in Wanchai, a restaurant which has been much discussed, and much lauded in the Michelin guide and on international and local Hong Kong restaurant sites. Fu Sing is particularly famous for their dim sum, which I had hoped to sample later in the trip.


FU SING, 353 Lockhart Road, Sunshine Plaza, Wanchai, Hong Kong Island

I took a taxi to (prepare for traffic near dinner hour) to the unprepossessing Sunshine Plaza office building in Wanchai (an up and coming area that I wish I had had time to explore that week) that houses the restaurant and followed the sings to the elevator, which whisked me to the first floor. (Note that many of the better Hong Kong restaurants, especially those patronized by locals, are located within concrete-block office towers. Fu Sing has another, newer branch in Causeway Bay. The restaurant is reminiscent of countless other Cantonese banquet-style restaurants—large, fairly glitzy dining room with large round tables; a few private rooms opening onto the main area. Bright lighting. The emphasis is, as it should be, on the food. Adequate English is spoken. Service is brusque. Two of us at our table were among the few non-Asian diners on that evening.




This blog shows the main dining room, along with a few of their notable dim sum offerings:

http://epicurious.wordpress.com/2009...sum-hong-kong/


There were three of us at the table and since one was fluent in Cantonese, we left the ordering to him. From my notes, this is what we had that first night in Hong Kong:



Fried whiting—heaped on a platter. Sparkling fresh. Yes, you eat the whole fish!

3-Layer Roast Pork—crispy, meaty, fatty, luscious. Meticulously cut into small squares. Essential.

BBQ Pork/Char Siu. Worth the trip. The best I’ve ever had.

Yunnan Ham with lotus seeds. Served with pancake. Swoon-inducing.

Oxtail braised with Red Wine. A signature dish. Excellent. Rich.

Sauteed Grouper filet with green onions and preserved vegetables.
Excellent.

Dessert: Sago and mango cold dessert. Excellent. I developed a new appreciation on this trip for Cantonese cold desserts, which I had always shunned.

Bolay tea, reportedly good for digestion.

The total came to 400 HK$ each. That seemed high to me, but overall I found prices in the better restaurants to be almost on a par with New York City. The difference is that you can eat remarkably well in the most basic of restaurants for very little money. Unlike New York!!

As at the other restaurants we tried in the evenings, advance bookings are recommended and, often, essential.

ekscrunchy

The next morning before breakfast, I headed to the pool area. This is what drew us to the hotel and, as soon as I walked out of the building onto the pool terrace, I knew that swimming here would be a dream! There are two large, rectangular swimming pools. One is unheated and the other, 28 meters long, is heated to 28-30C, or 82-86F. The pool itself is a sight to behold, with gorgeous mosaic tile paving and, of course, that see-it-and-die Hong King harbor view visible from the entire pool terrace! It is also one of the few outdoor pools in Hong Kong to remain open throughout the year.

And so I began that morning, as I would every morning after that one, with a long swim of at least an hour. The air was chilly early in the morning, so the pool attendant was quick to rush over with my voluminous terry robe as mounted the ladder. Clad in the robe, I returned to my room to shower and dress before heading to the lounge for breakfast.

I had been dismayed to learn that, despite the astronomical price of the room, the rates did not include a breakfast buffet. I no longer have that opinion. How much more civilized to be presented with a long menu and to be served at table! I even noted the contents of that first brfeakfast in my notebook:

Sliced pomelo
Oatmeal, served with hot milk. Bowl of fresh blueberries, raspberries and strawberries on the side.
Toasted whole grain bread.
Coffee, served with cold milk.

There was a full complement of egg dishes on offer, along with smoked fish, bagels, and an array of Cantonese specialties. I would sample some of these on the days to come. Superb! It was apparent from the clientele of the breakfast area that the guests here were predominantly business people. The concierge also told us that the hotel now receives many visitors from the mainland.


That morning, the two ladies were off on an abbreviated shopping spree.
This turned out to be more of the window-shopping variety. On previous visits I had probably uncovered every last nook and cranny on the bargain trail, including the famous outlets of MonKok, where I had snagged sample garments from Italian and US designers. Sadly, and not only for this reason, those days were long gone, and there appeared to be few bargains on ready-made items left in Hong Kong. (My shopping forays, however, were constrained by the fact that I was not alone and had to take into account the tastes of my two companions, who are most emphatically NOT shoppers!)

Our first stop on that morning was the famous Peddar Building in Central, a walk of a few minutes, largely inside, from the Four Seasons. We headed first to Shanghai Tang, where I wanted to compare pricing here with its Shanghai counterpart. (Prices in HK were a tad less than in Shanghai, I believe). Then it was on to the showroom of a local design house that I have long admired for its clean, sophisticated designs with an Asian twist: Blanc de Chine. (Despite its name, this is a clothing and accessory house!) My hopes that the prices here would be much less than in New York (they have a shop on Fifth Avenue in midtown) were quickly dashed, but my friend managed to find a few scarves for gifts. If I had the lifestyle that demanded this type of elegance, Blanc de Chine would find a permanent place in my address book!

From there we walked a few floors in the Peddar building without seeing much that caught our eyes. We tried unsuccessfully to find the Central branch of the Yue Hwa Chinese emporium at 55 Des Voeux Road but were unsuccessful. (We did find this, and a couple of other of these mid-range Chinese department stores and my advice is: Do not bother)





From there we ambled, by sidewalk and escalator, to the Soho area where we cruised Hollywood Road, visited the Man Mo Temple, and ended up at the street stalls along Lascar Row, where I found a few souvenirs: A strand of large blue and white porcelain spheres (first asking price was 150 HK$; I paid 50$ and was pleased. About the same price were the prayer beads which resembled ivory and which looks great spilling form a bowl on my shelf at home. For this type of inexpensive merchandise, Shanghai offers far better bargains, so if you are headed that way, save your shopping for the mainland.

From there, we strolled back, marveling at the street life and at the little eateries which, by 11:30am, were beginning to fill up with crowds of office workers on lunch break. It took all my strength to walk past without stopping but my friend was a bit squeamish about this type of eating and, besides, we had reservations for 2pm dim sum at the hotel’s much-lauded restaurant, Lung King Heen.

Lung King Heen at the Four Seasons has been much discussed on every food site and in every travel magazine and on countless television programs. As those who follow these things know, Chef Chan Yan Tak, who came out of retirement to head the kitchen here, is the only Chinese to have received three Michelin stars.



http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/03/wo...ia/03chef.html

http://www.fourseasons.com/hongkong/...ung_king_heen/




Details on the LKH dim sum lunch soon...