8/3/06 ~ Hong Kong Part II

On the Rio: Bob Dylan ~ Under the Red Sky

I found some very tasty Chinese Cabernet wine (1999) today called Great Wall, made from grapes in the Yantai Nava Valley. Not nearly the impact of the Grand Dragon wine I subjected myself to earlier in my Shanghai stint, which is probably a good thing.

Back to Hong Kong...After the Avenue of Stars, I continued on my journey along the promenade. Unfortunately, I'm unable to upload any photos tonight.

Because of all the rain, I soon headed back to relax at the hotel. I was going up the escalator, and noticed a posting saying:
"You Are Here",
"Lobby, First Floor"
"Fook Lam Moon Restaurant, Fourth Floor"
and then "Someplace Else, Ground Floor".

I couldn't figure out why it would be listed that way, wondering why they just didn't tell us what that someplace else was. Back in my room, leafing through the hotel directory, I found out that "Someplace Else" was the name of a restaurant. HaHa.

One nice thing in the subway shopping mall area is they provide liquid soap dispensers like we would find water fountains (or bubblers for those Wisconsinites reading this).

And because they drive on the opposite side of the road than us, they are very considerate to have postings at the crosswalks to tell you which direction to look for on-coming traffic. They also have signs to show which side of the stairwells to use going in and out of the metro. That's a little to "structured" for me.

I had dinner at the Sky Lounge restaurant on the top floor of the hotel. I ordered off the Zen menu, described as simple fare, similar to tapas/mezes size portions. Perfect for one. I ate freshly shucked oysters (although I'm not a big fan of oysters, they were pretty good), Vegetarian Spring Roll, and Cantonese Pork Chop Rice (fried rice topped with a pan fried pork chop, baked over a sweet and and sour sauce). While I was having dinner I was treated to a 15 minute "symphony of lights" show over Victoria Harbor.

I've learned to always have a book, magazine or newspaper with me when I eat out alone to help pass the time.

Another observation is that the wait staff are extremely attentive in China compared to anything I've experienced elsewhere (but may also be to the shear number of staff). When I'm having breakfast in the hotel Sunflower Court restaurant, for example, as soon as my juice glass is empty, or I take the last bite off my plate, someone is there to remove the glass or dish. This is typical of other Chinese restaurants I've been at.

I also like that there is no tipping here. It takes away all of the uncertainty of inadvertantly snubbing someone. But if the service was poor, it also eliminates the ability to stiff someone for performing poorly or providing substandard food.