Day 2 of Mom's birthday present!

This morning I woke up and it was almost like a scene from Oliver Twist... "Who will buy this wonderful morning..."

Mom and I ate the noodles we bought from the supermarket last night and it was delicious! I was still in a fix because I didnt know where we were going to go, but then we finally made a decision to go to Central. I was kinda dreading taking the MTR and the train, but it actually wasnt too bad. Furthermore, my luggage still had not arrived from Jetstar yet, so I had to resort to wearing my summer clothes in the Hong Kong winter. Looked like a downright tart! :S

Even though I was upset about my luggage, I still had the presence of mind to grab a few Hong Kong brochures while I was at the airport. Through these brochures I found out that it was a "Tiffany" Christmas at Statue Square, so I thought that we should check it out. I also found a few self-guided walking tours and the first one I picked was from here.

I was delighted when we arrived at Central and Statue Square was redone withe Tiffany colours! As part of the Hong Kong Winter Fest, it was a Christmas by tiffany's theme where there were Tiffany coloured presents everywhere, a candy cart in Tiffany colours, photo booths and even mailboxes which I suspected stamped Tiffany were in their signature aqua. Awesome. They even sold a limited edition Tiffany postcard with a Tiffany stamp. I tossed up between buying then and decided against it. Just another thing that I will have to find a place for in my tiny unit. No thank you!

As we were following the walking tour of Central, which was really written quite well, Mom and I got distracted with the surrounding Tiffany things and wandered off track. To get back on track, we looked for the Legislative Council building which was the second stop of our walking tour. To no avail. Turns out that we were walking around it and didn't realise what it was! How funny!

The beautiful architecture of the Legislative Council Building... which we managed to miss a few times!

After some hysterical laughter of realising that the building we were looking for was the building we were walking around, we had a bite to eat on a nearby bench and then wandered off to the Peak Tram which would take us to Victoria Peak. Reading so many guides on the way, I was aware that there would be a crowd waiting to get on this tram. But I didn't realise that it was an HOUR wait (at least). I don't even wait that long for food! :)

Yes, this is how we passed the time... taking photos!

No worries, Mom and I managed to entertain ourselves and when we finally got into the tram, it was a very steep ride to the top though! Eeeeeeeppppp! It felt like almost a 90 degree incline! Check out this photo:

Steeeeeeeeepppppp!!!!

The tram ride was so terrifying that a 8-10 year old child was screaming and throwing an absolute tantrum when we were on our way down for the WHOLE TRAM RIDE. It was horrendous, but I think she was absolutely petrified. What was hilarious though was that there was a 4 year old boy sitting next to me when this was going on and he looked thoroughly embarassed... the look on his face had me in stitches!

However, the wait and the scary tram ride was totally worth it. The view at the top was absolutely magnificent and breathtaking. I was so excited, but Mom and I thought we would take care of business first: LUNCH. :) Thinking that there was not much to eat at the Peak, and every restaurant seemed to be full, we decided to head to Burger King. And surprisingly, there was a fantastic photo op right outside Burger King! So here's a tip, if you don't have the extra mulla to head upstairs to the Sky Terrace, just head to Burger King and get a photo or two there. True story.

Of course I had the Mushroom Swiss. Amazing. Hungry Jacks Australia, you should be ashamed that you call that sorry excuse for a burger Mushroom Swiss. No where in the same league. SHAME ON YOU.

Beautiful Hong Kong...

However, we decided not to be tight and paid the additional fare to go up to the Sky Terrace (I mean, why wouldn't you, after waiting for so long!) It was so amazing but there were heaps of people there (if the wait for the tram was anything to go by... can you imagine??) There was also some sort of Art structure there with the theme of "Say I love you at the Peak" where there were paper hearts for you to write a message to the one you love. OK, so I wrote one. Guilty. :)

The said structure...

My message to my love...

 I kinda went crazy with the camera - but the views were so amazing, I wanted to get it all in!!! The result? THOUSANDS OF PHOTOS!!!! :)

There were heaps of stores in there selling little knick knacks, nothing that Malaysia didn't already offer. But what was funny was that there were plenty of places where we could grab a bite to eat!!! We just didn't know that there was more to the Peak than the building where the SKy Terrace was... there was a whole other building and a lovely outdoor area to sit and enjoy the sun. THere were cafes and coffee shops, gelato stores... everything you could imagine! It was great! (and a bit of a shame, but hey, we found a sneaky place for pictures!)

After we descended from the Peak, I made a beeline for the Tiffany candy stall! I couldn't believe my eyes, there was a Tiffany's candy stall complete with Tiffany candy! Lollipops in Tiffany's signature colour! I loved it! So I snapped a couple of photos and left!

I felt like I died and went to Tiffany heaven!!!

Off Mom and I were to find the HSBC lions. For those who don't know, there are two stone lions who guard the HSBC building. It was believed that rubbing these lions' paws were good luck. So of course we had to find it. I needed all the help I can get - it is going to be a tough year for those born under the Dog (in the Chinese Zodiac) in the year of the mighty Dragon...

After a few back and forths, Claudia and I also managed to agree to a time and place for dinner. We took a train to Yuen Long and met her there where she took us for an authentic Hong Kong steamboat! It was amazing!!! She ordered enough to feed six, but I really believed that if we sat there long enough, we could have eaten it all! There were delicious dumplings, a platter of meatballs, vegetables, MUSHROOMS (which turns out no one liked but me), bean curd and some bean curd puffs! They were DELICIOUS! All in all, a very nice meal and more than anything, it was lovely to catch up with my beloved stupid roommate. :) Thanks for the lovely dinner!

Love you stupid room-mate!!! :)

 And to top off an absolutely lovely day... my luggage arrived! Ah, Jetstar... thanks... FOR NOTHING!!! :) But to be honest, I am thankful that it at least arrived!

Onward to day 3!! x