City trip Hong Kong SAR - 3 (City)

During our visit to HK we stayed at The Cosmopolitan Hotel. A high-end hotel at the Wan Chai district. Well...actually it is based in Causeway Bay since the MTR station is nearby. Happy Valley Race Course was situated next to us. Since gambling is illegal in HK, the people are looking for some excitement at the HK Jockey Club and bet on horse races.
Due to the economic crisis the prices for a stay are dropped tremendiously that low, the costs for 1 night at this 4 star hotel was about € 26,00 (US$ 36,50) per night.
In The Netherlands we can't get even the doors opened for us....
Anyway, the location was great we were right in the centre of HK Island.
If you have the chance getting there, make sure you get the infamous Octopus Card.
This card is your key to mobility. Private transport is almost impossible in HK due to the many traffic-infarctions, so the public transport (trains, underground, taxi's, busses and feries) are excellent!
You can simple charge up your card and pay electronically all your fares. The Octopus is also used for payment at convenience stores, supermarkets, fast-food restaurants, on-street parking meters, car parks, and other point-of-sale applications such as service stationsvending machines.

Eating is a very important activity in South East Asia. So people do not cook very often, as it is very time consuming. No, around every corner they have a restaurant, eating house or markets, so let's eat outside!
The 3rd picture is at a market in the New Territories city Sheung Shui.
Later that day we had a good dinner at my grandparents place.

Hong Kong's skyline is also breathtaking and we were able to see the Symphony of Light, an event with a mix of lightshow and music while presenting the skyline and the remarkable buildings of HK Island.
Also remarkable is the building proces in HK. Unlike the European which uses steel or aluminium tubes for scaffolding, the Chinese use bamboo. And they have a few points: It's a product of mother nature, easy to assemble and dissemble, it's weight is limited, also strong and withstands all sorts of stress. And more importantly, the costs are low. Incredible how an ancient method defeats modern methods.

Next time: Part 4 - Cities, Tian Tan Budha and more culture.