Marija

I love reading about food. Thanks! I hope you didn't need the Imodium from the exquisite meal at Amber...

aussiedreamer

So after our great lunch we headed back to the supermarket in the IFC building and bought what we thought was going to be our dinner provisions. As it happened after a short rest we decided to head to the Night Markets. What fun, so many interesting people to watch, and we bought some souvineers for our 'kids'.

My stomach had begun to 'hurt' but I put it down to a huge lunch of very rich food. Dh & Ds decided they just had to sit and have street food. I had no appetite but was quite happy to sit and watch. Ds enjoyed all the wonderful seafood etc. 'flapping' around in tubs. They ordered Chicken wings (which DH said were fantastic) a huge steaming bowl of vegies and Singapore Noodles.

By the time the food arrived I was in agony. So I left them to it and walked (very quickly ) to Nathan Rd to find a ladies room. I sent them a text to say I would meet them on the corner when they had finished. (I didn't want to venture to far from ladies room)

So we jumped in a cab and headed back to hotel. I was so disappointed a/ to have missed out on our first 'street food' & b/ to have spoilt their night. Once back in room I took an Imodium and like a miracle I was better in about 20mins. Gotta tell ya it was a pretty rough couple of hours. We don't know what caused it, we had all eaten pretty much the same food. The only thing I had done different is clean my teeth with tap water! So we chalked it up to bad luck.

Had a sleep in the next day and got over to central and caught the #6 local bus to Stanley. I had read about it on this forum. So helpful to be able to suggest a place and know what bus to catch. We sat up the top, on the right, as was suggested. What fun, the ride was fast and bumpy.

We really enjoyed Stanley. Lovely clean town on the water. More markets, I bought a set of sketches which look great framed. Stopped at one of the many cafes on the waterfront for lunch. Not spectacular but sufficent. We shared Spring RollsThai Fish cakes, chicken wings and crumbed mozarella. Had a good walk around and headed back on the bus.

We had dinner this night at <b> AquaRoma</b> back at #1 Peking Place. I think we had been a bit spoilt as far as food goes but we weren't overly impressed. Very cramped seating albeit beside the window with great views. You can order from the Italian (Aquaroma menu or the Japanese AquaTokyo menu) Service was all over the place. Food was lovely but not great!

Ds & I passed on entree,
my <b>Main</b> Roasted Italian Wild caught SeaBass with celeric puree, zuchini & marinated tomatoes with oregano. (very tasty)
Dh <b>Entree</b> Pumpkin soup (Which was lovely, I had a taste ;-) )
Dh <b> Main</b> Veal fillet servied with potatoe, asparagus, carrot & onions. (now, my dh loves his spuds and veg, so thats what sold him on this dish. The Asparagus and carrot were 1 of each about the size of my little finger, more of a garnish........he was very disappointed. Fortunately we ordered a side Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary and beans to share)
Ds<b>main</b> Pan fried John Dory, with asparagus, snow peas, fennel bell pepper & chardonay vinaigrette. (which she said was very nice, but as we are spoilt for seafood here on the East Coast of Aus, it wasn't a standout.)

So we ordered coffee and as my DS had mentioned it was a trip for her birthday when she was booking a lovely <b>desert</b> platter came out. With a sign in Chocolate saying happy Birthday Leanne. The waiter sang happy birthday, much to her embarrasment.

It consisted of Creme brulee, Tiramasu, Trifle, Choc pudding & icecream. All YUM!

We shared one bottle of wine & predinner drinks in the bar($2764HKD)

marya_

Glad your GI disorder was brought under control so quickly so that you could go on to savor more glorious meals. Did they do anything unusual to spice the pumpkin soup?

Love that bus ride on the upper level in front as well.

aussiedreamer

We were very lucky to 'score' front set, on the top, right hand side. All of which we new to do from suggestions here and of course to catch it at Central, where it starts.

It was a pretty simple pumpkin soup, if I had to guess it had some cummin in it (I say that 'cause it tasted a lot like mine & I add cummin!)

I was worried for a while that it may 'curb' my food experience but while I was 'careful' I went on to enjoy some more delicious meals.

aussiedreamer

So the next day we again had breakfast downstairs and headed off to TST. Found our way (with a couple of wrong turns) to the China Ferry Terminal (its the big gold building....how did we not see it???). We did walk through the International Cruise Terminal building, Woh, lots of high end kids shops.

Turned out we were quite rushed through as a ferry was leaving in about 15 minutes. Fortunately before we left this morning I had gone on to Fodors to have a look at a few things to do in Macau and saw that we needed our passports!! Doh, of course we do. Grabbed them out of the safe at the last minute. I wonder how many people get to the ferry building and have to go back and get their passports?

It was an awful day, overcast dull and a bit windy. But we were leaving the next day, so this was our last chance. The ride was only about 50 minutes, bit 'rough' at the start, made me feel a bit 'seasick', but not for long.

Once we cleared customs I knew thanks to fodors that we should catch the 3 or 3a bus to Senado Squ. But we ended up standing by one of the Casino free buses and thought what the heck, so jumped on. BAD MISTAKE! I guess the only good thing about this error in judgment is we got to see 'that' part of Macau. Not impressed, we got off at the Venetian and thought we may as well go in for a cuppa. I think we were there 5minutes and just wanted to leave. I've been to Vegas a couple times and let me tell ya, this place made Vegas look classy! I think the thing that stood out the most was that nobody was 'outside'. It felt like a ghost town, 'till you walked inside.

So after much deliberation we got back on the free bus to the ferry terminal and started again. This time jumping on the #3a bus and arriving at the square shortly after. Phew, thats more like it. We had a lovely walk around the square and the markets, again looking in amazement at all the wonderful food options. Ds & I were thrilled when we saw our first portuguese egg tart.

We bought one each (what were we thinking?), they were so yummy, flakey, creamy and delicious. If anyone has 'mastered' making these please share your recipe!

Walked up and around St Pauls Ruins. Then back down through the markets, this time getting two tarts each. Grabbed a coffee at Maccas (I know, but their coffee isn't too bad) and sat in the square munching away. Delightful.

Got the bus back to terminal and did the customs thing again. Really glad we went to Macau, but nothing like I imagined and thats my fault for not researching before we left.

Got off the ferry and went straight to the TST subway (what a great system & so cheap) and went back to the Temple st Night Markets, as our previous attempt had beena bit cut short!! We ended up back at the same street stall as the other night but this time I joined in.

We ordered Chicken wings (they really were yummy), Singapore Noodles, deep Fried Prawns, chilli crab and sweet n sour pork. YUM. Washed down with a huge bottle of Carlsberg Beer. So while we were sitting there chatting about our amazing week and all they great food we've eaten and patting ourselves on the back for using chopsticks 'everytime' (not DS she's an old hand at it) a couple sat beside us. Now they looked like your average tourist, about our age and I'm pretty sure they were american BUT I'm not casting dispersions.

The 'waiter' bought over cups, bowls, wet towels and CHOPSTICKS to their table, just like he did for everyone who sat down. Well the 'gentleman' picked the chopsticks up and all but threw them back at the guy as his wife was screaching, "take these back and get us some forks"! I wish I could convey the manner in which it was said. Just so horrible, we were mortified, the guy looked at us and we at him and we all had a little chuckle. Now, theres nothing wrong with asking for a fork, but, they were so completely rude. Sorry, end of rant!

Last day and I'm done, sorry its a bit long winded, sometimes I can't stop once I start.

aussiedreamer

http://tinyurl.com/y8d5arn

Photos from Macau

rkkwan

You forgot to tell how much the dinner costs at the Temple Street Market!

aussiedreamer

Ha Ha Ha.............. I actually don't remember. The first one I wasn't there for the paying of the bill. I believe it was about $30AUD.

aussiedreamer

Ok, this is it last day. We didn't think it through to well but worked out fine. Our flight wasn't until 11pm, so we had all day. The hotel gave us a 1pm checkout.

So we headed over to the Graham St wet markets. WOH, just amazing. What really impress's me is that with that amount of people and all that amazing food, it is so clean. We had great 'fun' checking out the butchers. I saw some stuff there I can't even name, every imaginable organ and the occasional 'tail' c/w hair.

We then went back to the IFC building for one last look. Needed a coffee after looking at all that ofal. Ds had a plate of veg on toast which looked yum. I had a Raspberry & a Black Currant macaroon.YUM

Back to check out and decided to head to the peak. (see what I mean about not thinking it through? But we loved the ferry ride, so no hardship) Asked at the ferry terminal info place which bus to catch, makes life very easy. We loved the ride up and the views are amazing. The weather had cleared beautifuly for us. We lunced at Simpatico, which was nice, but not outstanding. We wanted to go to Pearl (as there is one in Melbourne) but the menu wasn't really what we were feeling like. So DH had a pizza, Ds had Prawn Fettucine and I had a chicken Foccacia. all very nice. oh yeah and a glass or two of wine ;-). ($671HKD)

Had a lovely look around and headed back down. After we got off the tram it was too early to go back to hotel, so we jumped on a tram to Causeway Bay. Just for the ride, we loved the trams. Got off and this time caught the Ferry from Wan Chai to Kowloon. Used the hotel bathrooms to change and freshen up for the flight. Cabbed to airport, enjoyed the ride as it was dark when we arrived.

Again the airport was very easy, except DS bag was too heavy, but easily distributed between the three of us. I was looking forward to some duty free shopping. The shops are all pretty much high end. STrange to me, can't imagine dropping into Tiffany's at the airport and picking a couple of things up or Gucci or Burberry!!! And with new laws we weren't allowed to bring liquid back into Australia, so the scotch we chose should have been bought before we checked in.

Not a bad flight home, worried when we boarded as we were directly behind a boys rugby team....gulp. but to give them their due, once we took off they were fine.

so thats it. A wonderful week. Next trip (apart from Melbourne next week ) is 3.5 months in Europe. The only planning we have done for this is purchased our flights. So lots to plan, leave at the end of July.

Thanks for all your help making HK a great holiday,
AD

christiana_ako

Aussiedreamer, just the kind of trip report that I need. I'm going to Hong Kong this August and this really got me excited for the upcoming trip with my brother and mother.

How much did you pay for your ferry trip to Macau, back and forth?

Thanks!

Cicerone

The fare for the Macau ferry will depend on which ferry you take, the day you take it, and the class you are travelling. Sundays and public holidays in deluxe/first class is the most expensive. For fares and schedules see the following:

New World First Ferry, departs from the Kowloon side of the harbour, go to http://www.nwff.com.hk/.

Turbo Jet goes from the Hong Kong side of the harbour, their website is at http://www.turbojet.com.hk

Cotaijaet – this goes from Hong Kong Island to the Cotai strip area, which is where the casinos are located. The other ferries go to Macau city, which has the old town Portuguese areas and is more interesting, IMO. Website for the Cotai ferry is http://cotaijet.com.mo/en/destinations/index.aspx.

If you are going on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday I would strongly suggest you make a reservation for the ferry both out and back. This may save you hours of waiting for a seat on an available ferry, esp on the way back. Go to the websites for info on making reservations.

aussiedreamer

Hey Christiana_ako, I honestly don't remember, I'd be more than happy to look it up for you, but Cicerone's advice will be spot on as usual. We had no wait (week day) and in fact were fortunate enough to get our tickets in the nick of time to run straight on to a ferry.

Enjoy your trip, we are heading to Europe in a couple of weeks for 3.5months and may make it to Portugal....ahhh more tarts.

christiana_ako

Thanks to you and Cicerone!

My brother and I just came from Europe last month and had the real time of my lives. I submitted a trip report. I may go back before the end of the year. It's a wonderland! Von Voyage!