With nothing planned ahead, we get into day 4 of my Hong Kong vacation. ย I honestly didn’t do much planning since I thought I would just go with the flow and find things to do when I was there. ย Beforehand, I did watch a couple of videos on Youtube of vlogger’s experiences in Hong Kong. ย One video, a lady was shopping at a street market which looked like my cup of tea. ย Let’s get onto the recap shall we?
We set off this day at around 9 am. ย I specifically asked my aunt if it was okay for me to eat breakfast in a restaurant since I wanted to try more of what Hong Kong had to offer. ย She was fine with it and I was free to finally try out Mcdonald’s breakfast! Once I frolicked down to where the hustle and bustle was, I got to see what Hong Kong McDonald had to offer. ย To my surprise, they actually didn’t have anything out of the ordinary. ย From my memory, I remembered they offered macaroni noodle soup but I guess that might have been KFC.ย
A lot of places in Hong Kong, people do not like their photos being taken as well as the establishment. ย I had to sneaky take these pictures with an iPhone sigh… ย From the looks of the menu, it doesn’t look too far from the North America breakfast. ย But does my little eyes spy the filet o fish on the breakfast menu along with katsu? ย Whaaaa? ย I didn’t notice those when I was there haha.
Since there was no room at McDonalds nor did the menu really appeal to me, I ended up going to the place across from it called Yoshinoya. ย I’ve personally never tried Yoshinoya but Gudetama was too appealing for me not to try this place. ย Unfortunately, they ran out of ever “gift with purchase”. ย No Gudetama cup for me :(. ย Oh well…ย
My next dilemma, how on earth am I going to order? ย Everything is in CHINESE! ย Thank goodness for Set A and B HAHA. ย I have no idea what i ordered but I think I got Set A of some sort. ย Because it was so busy, they ran out of crossiant and toast! ย What?! ย LOL That is crazy!! ย But then again, a whole breakfast including eggs, toast, teriyaki chicken, veggies, rice noodle with sausage and a milk tea, all for $5 is a steal of a deal. ย If only Gudetama goodies came home with me, that would have been the best experience ever!
After confusing the cashier, I finally got my order in and now the real battle begins. ย Waiting and also trying to get a seat at the same time. ย Hong Kong, or Asia in general, being able to find a seat that only you will be sitting at is little to none due to the dense population here. ย I nervously waited for my food to come up and spotted a couple getting up. ย Another guy sat down there and I thought he maybe was saving the seat across from him. ย Luckily for me, he wasn’t! ย So I politely asked “Hello! ย I was wondering if I could sit here?” ย He gave me the most confused look and stuttered “Uhh… sure.” ย I think people get confused because I look like a local and I can speak fluently, but I’m asking such odd questions. ย Finally, I secured a seat!ย
We don’t have these fast food cafes in Canada unfortunately, so this is definitely and experience for me. ย Being a chef myself, I always love to watch how people work in the kitchen and how it operates. ย People work dang fast at this place. ย They even offer take out as well.
Got my food, good morning to me! ย I joked on instagram, if you want to go on a speed date, you might as well just come to Hong Kong since you have to sit with random strangers in very close proximity. ย For only $5, you seriously get a lot of food. ย I honestly didn’t mind they ran out of bread since I don’t think I could even be able to finish everything. ย Half way through my meal, a lady went around the place and placed toast on those who didn’t get bread. ย LOL before I could tell her I would not like to have bread, she already whiskedย away into the restaurant. ย To my surprise, I actually finished every last bit of this breakfast! ย The egg was nice and tender with a little bit of mystery cheese, really gross mixed veggies that was I couldn’t swallow, decent chicken teriyaki, clean tasting bonito stock rice noodles with a hot dog as well. ย To wash everything down, I also had a milk tea. ย Everything, other then the disgustingly overcooked veggies, was devoured. ย Off to my adventures!ย
Back at it again at the MTR. ย Yet another Anello bag sighting. ย Everyone and their mothers, literally, has this bag. ย I didn’t understand why I kept seeing this bag, until I bought one for myself couple days later. ย This bag is like Doraemon’s pouch, small when not filled up but you can actually fit a crap load of stuff. ย Think about it. ย I bought the smallest size but I could still fit my DSLR, wallet, light jacket, and other random necessities.
Hong Kong’s MTR is really easy to use. ย Those who are going to travel in Hong Kong, I highly highly recommend you download the MTR app. ย It is an absolute life saver and saves you the trouble. ย I would plug in an address and it would tell me where the nearest MTR station is, which station you need to get off to transfer and also which exit you need to get out to get to your destination the fastest. ย The MTR is definitely something I miss since the one here in Canada, it isn’t as convenient as Hong Kong. ย You can get out of the station and be already inside the mall. ย Wahhhhhh!
Couple of stops later, I ended up at Apm mall. ย I remembered coming here fives years ago with ย my family and remembered there was a lot of stores and a good food court. ย I wish I had the chance to eat at the food court but I was too full at the time. ย Also I don’t recommend you guys make it a point to go to malls since most malls seems to have the same stores and of course, everything is super expensive. ย I just wanted to stroll in an enclosed area that had AC and I also wanted to check out the beauty stores there. ย They had Dior, Guerlain, Shu Uemera just to name a few. ย I ended up going to Shu Uemera since I made my mind up on getting the BB cushion, but ended up with a crap ton of stuff which totalledย up to almost $200. ย If you want to see what I bought, check out my Hong Kong beauty haul here!
There was a nick nack store there that sold literally everything. ย These caught my eyes since it was GUDETAMA! ย I didn’t end up getting any though since they were almost $5 each, nor did I know if they were any good.
This is a first for me, a cup noodle vending machine? ย It even has hot water so you can eat it there and there. ย Wahhhh!! Why do we not have this in Canada!!!
On the top floor, there was a book store which I strolled around for fun. ย I ended up seeing this famailar face! ย It’s PONYYY :DDD. ย I really wanted to buy one of these but they were all in Chinese so no point for me. ย Can’t even read it if I bought it.
After only two hours of walking around in the mall, I got bored of the repetitive stores and unaffordable prices. ย Let’s head to a place where I can feel like I’m rich HAHA.
Couple stops and 45 minutes later, I arrived at Mong Kok east station. ย I was directed to get off this station to go to Fa Yuen street by the app but apparently, it is a stupid move according to the locals. ย My aunt actually laughed so hard because she said you can just get off of Prince Edward station and just walk to Fa Yuen street. ย I’m like… well poo. ย You can also actually walk from Mong Kok as well, about a 10-15 minute walk so don’t be stupid like me and waste money going to the wrong station.
Even though I may have gotten off the wrong station, these murals were a nice surprise. ย They are so beautiful and every wall there had a unique design.
Not so sure about this one HAHA. ย It screams communism….
I used to think Hong Kong was so ugly and runned down. ย I don’t feel that way anymore after coming here 5 years later. ย I used to think this place was way too hot, stuffy and crowded, however I enjoy it the older I get. ย Maybe because I’ve been working in a hot kitchen for five years now so the heat doesn’t get to me anymore, but my family was so surprised to not hear my complain about the heat for once.
Right beside the MTR station was yet another mall. ย Surprise surprise. ย This mall is called Moko and has pretty much the same stores. ย The only time I go to a mall like this is when I want to use the washroom. ย There are some washrooms that scare the crap out of me. ย Think of the ones in the horror movies, with the blinking blue light, disease infested toilet bowl and a possible killer around the corner. ย To avoid that, I’d rather go to a nice mall and use their washroom. ย At least they actually have toilet paper. ย Yes…. some places don’t even offer toilet paper. ย So have a pack of tissue on you at all times.
Another unique thing to Asia is the copious amount of promotional events for newly released movies. ย The movie “Civil war” came out when I was in Hong Kong and almost every other mall had some sort of event going on. ย At this mall, they were selling exclusive nick nacks and T-shirts which actually looked quite nice. ย I almost bought the keychains but only wanted the iron man one, which they don’t have. ย Oh well… more shopping money for meee!
I want that iron man suit!!! That would look sooo TIGHT! ย Imaginary eight pack… whatsuppppppp~
I really wanted to get the T-shirt on the left side but they ran out. ย WHY!
Okay back to my original plan. ย I got a little confused since Google map was telling me to walk to the right but it was blocked off. ย If you guys are ever in the Moko mall, there is an escalator which takes you down and you’ll end up here. ย If you see this salmon pink and mint green bridge, you’ll know Fa Yuen street is near.
I also really appreciate Hong Kong’s plentiful signage which are both in English and Chinese. ย Thank goodness because my Chinese reading skills are little to none.
Finally here! ย This is where the action is at. ย Forget those expensive ass malls, the street markets is were it is at. ย For those of you who are looking to buy affordable clothing, Fa Yuen Street and Kwai Chung Plaza are the places to go. ย Not only do they sell a lot of affordable clothing, there are also fruit stands, pajamas, bags, socks, umbrella and reusable bags being sold here as well.
You can never go wrong with more socks!
I love me some pajamas! ย I should have bought more short sleeved ones since I’m running out ofย pajamasย shorts for some reason.
If you forgot your reusable bag, you can always pick one up at these stands. ย MAKE sure to bring aย reusableย bag with you when you are shopping anywhere in Hong Kong.ย ย They do not give out plastic bags, well at least not for free.
Oh la la! ย There is another Minisoo store here. ย This is one of my favourite stores in Hong KOng since there are really good quality products for super cheap. ย I’m talking about $1-5 for things like sunglasses, hats, beauty products, tech stuff, umbrellas, you name it. ย Think Daiso but a little bit better quality and slightly cheaper depending on what you are getting.
I really wanted to buy this mug but I didn’t want to lug it around for 6 hours so I just took a picture of it. ย Meh.. good enough. ย It wouldn’t have fit in my suitcase anyways. ย This mug was only $2!!
There was also a big stall selling some baked goods and sweets. Thinking back, why didn’t I buy any of the cookies! ย They look so good. ย During my time there, I didn’t buy anything since I wasn’t hungry but I did go back on my second to last day and bought some of the red bean filled rice cookie? ย It’s not really a cookie but more of a mochi. ย I don’t know what it’s called but it was good :D.
You’ll also see a couple of kiddie nick nack stores like this one that is filled to the brim with things like card holders, hats, toys, fans, plushies, you name it!
With all that walking, I need a little snack. ย I didn’t look up a place to eat because I just wanted to explore the place. ย This place is bound to have a street food stall. ย I went to theย entranceย of the place and walked to my right. ย Sure enough, right at the corner, there was a street food stall that was poppin’ with people. ย You known it’s goodย when there are so many people there. ย Those of you guys that want cheap eats, this is the place to be. $0.40 USD for siu miu, $0.64 USd for curry fish ball, HELL YA!
I got myself a skewer of “siu mai (็งๅ)” which is a type of dim sim that is filled with either pork or fish paste, wrapped with dumpling skin and then steamed. ย The ones in the street food stalls are usually fish paste, while the ones you get at a dim sum restaurant are usually pork. ย I also got a soy sauce marinated egg which was terrible. ย The marinate didn’t even seep through the shell so I was just eating a sad, rubbery egg that could compete with a bouncy ball. ย Pretty sure the egg would have been able to win in terms of how high it can bounce. ย Gross… but I still ate it anyways because my mom taught me to not be a bitch and eat it. LOL ย that’s the asian way…………
After the savoury, here I come with the “dessert”. ย You can’t get more Cantonese then this. ย This is “egg waffle” or “Gai Dan Jai (้่ไป) which is kind of like a waffle but the insides of each of the little egg shapes, it is a soft and chewy texture, a very nice contrast to the crisp exterior. ย For $11 HKD ($1.42 USD), I bought myself a little piece of happiness. ย To wash everything down, I also got me some fresh fruit juice, watermelon juice to be exact.
Ugh.. so Instagram generic. Gross…. Oh well HAHA. ย When in Rome.
After my little snack break, I went right back into shopping around. ย It gets a little tiring and stressful shopping at these markets because the stores are so small but it is always packed with people. Just make sure to pack light, bring a reusuable bag and keep your phone and wallet on you and not in your bag just to be on the safe side. ย I had my wallet chained to my pains along with my phone in my other pocket so I could feel where my belongings were. ย I surprisingly didn’t buy many pieces after four hours of walking around since a lot of the pieces I saw were either too expensive in my opinon for the quality and design or they were just plain ugly. ย I came across this one store caleld “Encore” that sold a lot of pieces that were my taste with a very affordable price point, ranging around $10-$20. ย I picked up about five pieces here, all for $30 or so which is a steal of a deal considering in Canada, $30 would get you a sweater if you are lucky? ย I’d definitely check this specific store out if you can find it.
I walked all the way to the end of Fa Yuen street and came across a beauty store that I’ve never heard of or seen before. ย It’s called “Angel beauty bar” and unlike Sasa or Watsons, this store actually has some harder to find brands like Yadah and Y.E.T. ย The price point is also not bad. ย The items were being sold very close to the Korean retail price with a $2-3 price mark up.
Y.E.T is one of those very affordable prices if you were to use a buying serviceย so I wouldn’t suggest you buy it here. ย You can get the tint set on the bottom right for about $7-11, the lipsticks for about $2 and the liquid liners for $1 so don’t even bother with this brand.
Yadah however is a brand that I’d say go for it if you were eyeing something for a long time. ย I really wanted to buy the BB cushion but ended up not walking out with it since it seemed to be a satin finish. ย It might be too drying and I wanted to stay on budget so no thank you this time.
After walking for 8 hours straight, my feet hurt so bad to the point of not being able to walk. ย Unfortunately on the MTR, there is little to no seats during prime time when everyone was getting off work. ย So the whole 45 minutes, I was still forced to stand with my heavy bag of clothes. ย Now that is a true haul. ย Not only and I hauling the bag, I’m also hauling back my half dead body back HAHA.
Finally getting home, I really really had to pee. ย I hurried back to my uncles place, only to find out no one was home yet. ย I was so desperate, I kind of wanted to go to the neighbor’s and ask if I could borrow their washroom :'(. ย But I decided not to and held in my bladder and went back down to the mall. ย My uncle after called me and asked if I wanted to eat out tonight, so I waited for them at the mall. ย We went to some noodle shop that seemed to be pretty good since it was poppin’! ย Tons and tons of people. ย Going out with the twins, we always have to bring the double decker stroller, so it is a little hard to go around the tiny restaurant. ย We ended up waiting for about 30 minutes before finally getting a seat.
My aunt and uncle ordered since I can’t really read Chinese. ย They suggested me try the spicy soup. I can normally eat a good amount of spice, but this was so spicy, I was most definitely going to bleed out of my asshole the same night. ย They ordered mild spicy, however I’m pretty sure the cook accidently spilled the whole damn bottle of spicy. ย Just one bite of the noodles, I could feel my mouth on a new level of fire and my lips turning into two sausages. ย My uncle felt bad so he traded his regular soup noodles with me :'(. ย Thank you uncle, I won’t be farting blood tonight.
The noodles were actually not bad at all but we almost couldn’t finish it, even though there was three of us and two bowls of noodles. After enjoying the noodles of hell, it was time to go home, shower and rest up for more adventures to come.
What were your favourite places to go shopping where you live? ย Malls or markets? ย Or do you just shop online. ย Let me know in the comments down below how you guys get your shopping fix :).
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