Hong Kong (8/14-8/18/26), Southern China 2026 Part I

Nowadays, traveling is much more troublesome than it used to be. We started our 2026 China trip stranded at the STL airport for over 12 hours. Our flight to Chicago was canceled because of stormy weather there, which meant we missed our 4 pm connection to HK. I asked AA to book us on a flight to Boston and then a midnight connecting flight to HK, which would get us there early in the morning (5 am) on the 14th. Since we booked business class this time, we had the privilege of using the lounge at STL airport – free food, free drinks, and wifi. Still, spending the whole day at the airport was tiring and boring. We got to Boston almost at midnight, as the connection was less than an hour; we requested wheelchairs for both of us for the first time. What a lifesaver, since the distance between the two gates was well over a mile. We were wheeled for at least 25 minutes before arriving at the HK gate, and boarding had already started. We finally settled into our seats, and here was the value of the business-class ticket we paid for. Cathay Pacific’s Business Class seats lay totally flat, and it was a nice way to spend the 15-hour flight to the other side of the world.

Hong Kong consists of Hong Kong Island, the Kowloon Peninsula, the New Territories, and over 200 outlying islands. It has approximately 7.5 million people over 429 square miles. It has a population density of 18,000 people per sq. mile. Ray was fascinated by all the high-rise buildings and packed apartments. Our hotel was on the Kowloon side, but it took only a short time to get to Hong Kong Island by bus, metro, or ferry.

Victoria Peak, at 493 m, offers the best view of all of HK. We took a bus up, then took the tram back down. We went up to the Sky Terrace and, luckily for us, the weather was good enough to see Victoria Harbor clearly, with all the high-rises. On a different day, we visited the old fishing village of Tai O on Lantau Island. We took another nice bus ride to the town of Tung Chung, then took a 25-minute ride on the Ngong Ping Cable Car. The Cable Car has a glass bottom, so you can see the ocean below as well as the mountain and sky above. Along the way, you can see HK International Airport. When we arrived in Tai O village, we took a boat ride to see the houses on stilts. It was a very hot day, and the shops would take cash only, so our options were limited. One of the nice shop owners invited us into his shop with AC. We sat down and had a nice conversation with him about the village’s history. The population has dwindled from over 10,000 in the early years to about 3,000, with most people being fishermen or salt farmers. Most of the salt farms no longer exist, but some fishermen remain; most villagers have switched to tourism.

One of the popular spots on Kowloon Peninsula is the Star River Walk in Tsim Sha Tsui. A 440-meter scenic waterfront promenade that lights up at night with a drone show. We took a boat ride on Victoria Harbor at night for the best view of the show. Near the River Walk is K11, an artsy shopping mall with interesting sculptures. We even had time for a quick tour in the HK History Museum, which was free. In addition to the HK story, the top floor has a “National Security Exhibition Gallery” that piqued my interest. It covered the 2019-2020 Hong Kong protests, when the government introduced a bill to amend the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance. There was a lot of violence and property damage during the demonstrations. In the end, the police arrested many local activists, and China tightened its control over HK legislators. However, it’s hard to detect any disruptions in local people’s daily lives.