DRAGONS BACK (REVISITED)

When M's parents were in town in December, we took them on the Dragon's Back hike, which I posted about last year. It was our 2nd time completing the hike and we enjoyed it even more than the first since we were in such great company.

The hike was much hillier than I remembered and the ground was uneven in several places. After selling my in-laws on a "leisurely" hike that was "easy" and "flat," I felt terrible when we hit some of the more difficult stretches. Everyone was a bit surprised by the difficulty... and rightfully so based on my description.

Love this view with the city peaking out through the hills

After the 2+ hour hike, you can reward yourself with a hearty lunch in Shek O. We recommend two lunch spots after the hike. The first is the Shek O Chinese & Thai restaurant which serves up better Thai food than we found in Thailand. We definitely recommend their tom yum soup and curries. Our 2nd recommendation is Black Sheep restaurant if you are in the mood for delicious Italian pizza, a difficult find in HK. We really enjoyed the mushroom pizza.

TOURING HK WITH OUT OF TOWN GUESTS

We have been really lucky to have a lot of out of town visitors since we moved to HK. It is so much fun showing them around our new city and it has definitely helped us feel less homesick.

We always feel so fortunate when our family and friends travel so far to see us and want to show them a great time. Here are a couple of itineraries that seem to really work for us and allow our guests to get a great feel for Hong Kong.

DAY 1: Hong Kong Island Tour

• Graham Street Wet Markets
• Dim Sum at Maxim's City Hall
• Tram to the Peak
• Taxi to Repulse Bay and Stanley Beach before an afternoon break

• Tram to dinner in Wan Chai (We love Crystal Jade for Shanghainese food)
• After dinner drinks in Lan Kwai Fong

DAY 2: Kowloon Tour

• Dim Sum at Lin Heung Tea House on Wellington Street for a more local experience
• Star Ferry to Kowloon side (if you live on Hong Kong Island)
• MTR to Mong Kok to visit the Ladies Market, Bird Market, Flower Market and Goldfish Market (listed in order of priority if you are crunched for time)
• High Tea on the terrace at the Hullett House (we prefer this setting to the Peninsula)
• More shopping at Temple Street Night Market near the Jordan MTR stop or Foot Massages at Top Comfort back in Mong Kok
• Dinner at Aqua on the Kowloon Side to watch the light show
• After dinner drinks at Ozone, a bar on top of the ICC (Ritz Carlton Hotel) with great views

DAY 3: Hike / Trip to Macau

• Early morning Dragons Back hike
• Lunch in Shek O (We love the Shek O Chinese & Thai restaurant)
• 2:30pm Ferry to Macau
• 5:00pm House of Dancing Water Show
• Stroll along the Cotai Strip. Stop in the Venetian for the famous Lord Stow's egg tarts.
• Dinner in Old Macau at Antonio's (famous Portuguese restaurant)

Here are some pictures of each itinerary.

DAY 1: HONG KONG ISLAND TOUR PICTURES

Graham Street Wet Market

Dim Sum at Maxim's City Hall

The Peak

The Longevity Bridge at Repulse Bay

Stanley Beach

Dinner in Wan Chai at Crystal Jade

Lan Kwai Fong

DAY 2:KOWLOON TOUR PICTURES

Lin Heung Dim Sum (Hong Kong Side)

Star Ferry to Kowloon

The Ladies Market (with my mom!)

The Flower Market

The Bird Market

Tea Time at the Hullett House

The Temple Street Night Market

Foot Massages at Top Comfort

Dinner/Drinks at Aqua for the daily 8pm light show

Drinks at Ozone

DAY 3: HIKE AND MACAU PICTURES

Dragon's Back Hike

Lunch in Shek O

Macau Ferry

House of Dancing Water Show

The Cotai Strip

Egg Tarts at Lort Stow's

Dinner serenade at Antonio's

EXPAT LIFE IN HONG KONG

If you are an expat and live in Hong Kong, I promise this tumblr will make you laugh. Enjoy!

36 HOUR CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

I attended a baby shower this past weekend and wanted to bring some baked goods. The problem was that I didn't have time the morning of the shower to spend hours baking. I had recalled reading about a cookie recipe where you create the dough a day or two ahead of baking (reviews here and here). It was just what I needed! I whipped up the dough late Thursday night and quickly baked the cookies early Saturday morning. The end result was perfection!

I used the NY Time's Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe, adapted from Jacques Torres famous for his chocolate shops in NYC. What makes this recipe so unique?

• Instead of using all-purpose flour, the recipe calls for a mixture of cake and bread flour.
• Once the dough is completed, you store it in the fridge for 36 hours, the key to perfect flavor and texture.
• Finally, once the dough has rested and scooped out onto a baking sheet, you sprinkle each cookie with some sea salt (love the salty and sweet combination!) before baking.

Here are some pictures of my baking process...

I had forgotten to sift the flour in the first batch, so I asked M to taste the cookies to see if he could tell the difference. I also tested 2 different baking times. The results? They all tasted great, but I did prefer the texture of the cookies with the sifted flour.

 And voila! The cookies were ready for the baby shower.

OUR FIRST TYPHOON

As I write this post, M and I are experiencing our first typhoon. Typhoon Vicente has brought heavy rains and winds to Hong Kong beginning yesterday. By the middle of last night, the Hong Kong Observatory issued the number 10 hurricane signal at 12:45 a.m, the highest storm signal since 1999.

Here are some pictures of us commuting home last night. It was madness in the subway station as people rushed to get home.

Our rush home

Our Claire and Brad wedding umbrella could not withstand Vicente:(

 And not much had changed when we woke up this morning... Here is the view from our apartment.

Now I am waiting for news that it's safe to travel outside so I can get to work!

New to Hong Kong? We get all of our weather updates from Hong Kong Observatory. They have a great smart phone application where you can receive timely weather alerts. Click here for a link to all of the weather warnings issued in HK.

DRAGON BOAT RACE 2012

This past weekend we went on a junk to see the dragon boat race at Stanley Beach. Our friend was participating in the race and we were there to cheer her on!

Everything about the day could not have been more perfect. It was spent hanging out with new friends, eating, drinking, cheering on the racers, karaoke-ing, banana boating, wake boarding and swimming. Not to mention the weather was gorgeous!

Here are some pictures of our day at sea.