2010年12月5日 星期日

Join it now!!! The Extraordinary Trip --- Before Sunset


"Before Sunset"


        For the last day staying in HK, do you want to just stay in the hotel and wait for the departing time of the plan? Why don't you hold the last golden time to explore more in Hong Kong? Don't just sit there, come and join our trip! We provide you a perfect planning for you to make use of the last 12 hours in finding out both the eastern and the western culture in Hong Kong. Here's the details:

  • Tour: "Before Sunset"
  • Operation: Daily
  • Target: couples, family
  • Cost:$500 per person [ with fine dinning dinner in Zaks Restaurant, lunch and tour guide fee all included]
  • Quota: 12-15 people per group
  • The Itinerary
9:00 am         Pick up at Tung Chung MTR Station Exit A
                       Transit to Tai O by Bus No. 11
10:00 am       Arrive at Tai O Fishing Village “Venice of the East”
                       Traditional Chinese Temple
                       Sunki Bridge (Stilt Houses)
                       Lunch (Guangdong Cusine)
                        Tai O Museum
                        Wing On Street (Tai O’s souvenirs)
2:30 pm          Arrive at Tung Chung Center Citygate Outlets
                        Kinetic Fountain
5:30 pm          Arrive at Discovery Bay Tai Pak Bay (Beach Walking )
                        D Deck Waterfront Promenade
                        DB Plaza
                        Dinner (Fusion Fine Dinning)
9:30 pm          Depart to HKIA Transit to Airport by Bus No. DB02R
  •  If you are interested, just send an email to beforesunsettrip@gmail.com or leave a comment here. We will have tour guide to follow your case.
 

 


 

Want to do something special in Hong Kong?
In our trip, many extraordinary spots are included, like Discovery Bay.
So what are you waiting for?
Join our trip to get a memorable last 12 hours in Hong Kong!




Tung Chung ---Shopping Paradise







      For a shopaholic like my friend, Tung Chung is her paradise. The Citygate outlet is the first outlet mall in Hong Kong, with more than 80 international brands offering yearly discount of at least 30%. The discount items include designer fashion, sports, beauty, accessories, children’s wear and home items, you named it. With so many stores, how can you finish shopping all these shop in one day or even one afternoon? From my experience with running out of time, spending all day in the Citygate outlet, I can give you some little tips and some must-go shop.

A list of the designer fashion outlets:
  • AIX Armani Exchange Outlet --- up to 50% sale!! [shop no.101A]









  • Esprit Outlet --- more collections are shown when compared to the outlets in Mon Kok or Yuen Long [ shop no.201]





  • I.T. Outlet --- up to 40% discount [shop no.G01]


 






  • Levi’s Outlet--- only has to pay $ 3XX for a new jean!!! [shop no.G17]






For the accessories, Ice Watch Outlet [shop no.SK2] and Folli Follie Outlet [shop no.114]are also recommended shop. If you want to buy a gift for your spouse or friends, these are your good choice.



What can your spouse do when you’re shopping around? Don’t worry. There are a couple of coffee shops for him to park himself with a book to watch the bags! There is also a movie theatre--- UA Citygate [shop no.L2] to keep him entertained. There's also a nice food court---food republic[shop no.261] to sample some cuisines. So put away all your concerns and go shopping!



Contrast of living style [East vs. West]



Yeah!! we are in Tai O

a funny advertising method


dried seafood
It's waiting for its meal..
the footbridge it's beautiful with hanging lanterns adorning it

  







He is going for work!!


If you want to see how Hong Kong looks like before turning into a financial monster, you should come to Tai O. It is a quiet little fishing town. Arriving there, I immediately feel the different atmosphere. The fresh air with fishy smell, no tall buildings, and rickety wooden fishing boats, all these features bring you back into the traditional world. The stilt houses are home to the Tanka people, a community of fisher folk who built their houses on stilts above the tidal flats for generation. I saw boats chugging out to the sea, fishermen hoping to catch a boatload of fish and birds descending down on Tai O in order to catch small meals of fish. All these are the things that I have never experienced in the modern town. It just likes I have get into a time machine and get back to the past Hong Kong. A small Tai Chung Footbridge has connected this village with the modern world, like the tunnel crossing from modern to the past.

one of the estate in Discovery Bay

playing in the children playground on the beach
     Another place, which is also away from the hustle and bustle, is the Discovery Bay. The European-style garden houses are resort-styled. So going there makes you feel like enjoying your holiday in Europe all the time. The extra-large green areas, beautiful beach and the golf carts travelling around turns you into a leisure and luxury world. Walking there, I can imagine that my live will be like this if I have become a millionaire in the future. Surrounding you are all foreigners or maid walking the dogs and the nice song from the birds, it was the most relaxing day after my A-level examination. The residents there are very friendly and nice. I have played ball games with a lovely kid. She gave me a warm goodbye kiss. If you want to go there with your boyfriend or girlfriend, I would recommend you to go in the Valentine’s Day. This is because in that day, the beach will fill with heart made up by candle lights. So Discovery Bay is a modern holiday hotspot with western style.
playing with the lovely kid, she give me a goodbye kiss later!!!
are you taking a rest also..?
the golf cart, which is as expensive as a brand new luxury car!!!
the amazing sea view
in the Valentine's Day




it so romantic!!!! the heart made up by candles.

Contrast in Food --- Chinese and Western

The traditional cuisine's tool setting
If you are a foodie in Hong Kong, Tai O should be a place that is familiar to you. The best part about this local fishing village is the traditional Tanka seafood. The signature dishes are fried rice with shrimp paste and fried egg with white rice fish. With the great variety of ingredients like shrimp paste, salted fish found in Tai O, it is the most local and freshest food that I have tried. The foreigners nearby are so amazed by eating at a round table and sharing dishes. They really looked confused in using the chopstick. If you have never tried traditional Chinese food, I really suggest you starting from Tai O.
The Chinese Restaurant

Fried rice with shrimp paste, really delicious!!!


Fried egg with white rice fish


       





















wonderful snacks---mochi!!!

look at the fillings. Yummy!!
the tofu budding.

















Here is a little reminder: don’t eat too much in the lunch. Leave some space for the delicious local snacks in Tai O. The one I like most is the peanuts mochi. It is stuffed with fillings .The fillings is not sweet but very crunchy. Another recommended delicacy is the tofu pudding. Don’t underestimate these snacks, some of which are so popular that grannies can sell hundreds of them daily since they are really traditional that I, even a Chinese, have rarely see.
   


zaks restaurant- the no.1 popular restaurant from openrice.com
candles on table outside---really romantic!
the Baby Back Rib
the relax atmosphere
For the dinner, I have been to the Zaks restaurant in Discovery Bay. From Tai O to Discovery Bay, I just like traveling across the world, from the east to the west. In the dinning zone of the Discovery Bay, there are restaurants with international cuisines in alfresco setting. Eating with the breathe-taking sea view and nightly Disneyland fireworks, I have relaxable meal there. The signature dish of the restaurant is the Baby Back Ribs. With different settings like long wooden benches, sun chairs , love seats and family areas, I think this is the perfect hangout at all time of the day.

The excellent fireworks from Disneylan

If you really want to experience the busy atmosphere in Hong Kong, you can have your dinner in the foodrepublic in the Citygates outlet. With some fast-food and a canteen-like design, you can finish your dinner with not more than half hour. For a shopaholic like my friend, this is the best place for her dinner in saving time for shopping without missing a feast on the sense.

2010年11月25日 星期四

Sheung Wan Dried Food Cruise


Hong Kong is famous for its bustling and flourishing living style. Do you want to find out another side of Hong Kong? Here have a chance! We are going to held a new tour to bring our guests to Sheung Wan. It is symbolized as a place selling dried seafood, salted fish, cured duck since the last century!

Tour  Sheung Wan Dried Food Cruise
Operation   Daily
Sheung Wan Boarding Time  Departure at 1:30pm (Sheung Wan MTR Station Exit A2)
Route   Wing Lok Streetà Bonham Strand à Ko Shing Street à Des Voeux Road West
 永樂街 à 文咸西街 à 高陞街 à 德輔道西
Duration   2 hours and 30 minutes, and return approximately at 4:00 pm.
Price   Adult HK$230.00 Child HK$140.00 (2-12 years) Exchange Rate   USD$1.00 => HKD$7.70 (Approximately, for reference only)
____________________________________

Start at Sheung Wan MTR station















1* Wing Lok Street
 














Many shops selling dried foodstuff and dried ingredients are concentrated in the Wing Lok Street. For example, Dried Tangerine Peel, dried shrimp and dried mushroom. They are usually used as condiment in Chinese meals.

Different brands in Wing Lok Street

Introducing the goods to our guests

Different dried ingredients


2* Bonham Strand W

Besides some seasoning ingredients, we would also bring our guests to the shops selling some more expensive dried seafood, like Dried Scallop, Dried Abalone and Dried Oyster. Many tourists like dried seafood very much as they are special ingredients used in Chinese meals. The dried seafood are unique and special as souvenirs.

Shark Fin














Dried Abalone














3* Ko Shing Street



Our guests can buy some Chinese snacks in Ko Shing Street. We would recommended them to try some sweetened fruits 涼果. The Chinese sweetened fruits are different from the Japanese sweetened fruit and also the others.

Many types of Chinese sweetened snacks!!!




Our guests are buying some to try~















4* Des Voeux Road West


Des Voeux Road West are famous for the Preserved Pork Sausage, cured meat, cured duck and so on. The Chinese like eat such food especially in winter as these food are with high fat content which can keep them warm.

Preserved Pork Sausage












cured meat, cured duck and salted fish


After the Sheung Wan Dried Food Cruise, we would send our guests back to the MTR station.














_____________________________________________________________________________________________
After leading this tour, we think being a tour guide is not a simple job. Although we have done well preparation before, we still met some chanllenges during leading the tour and had some lessons from it.




Challenge 1: have to memorize lots of information
                   professional image may be spoiled if always look
                   at the cheat sheet
Lesson 1:    try our best to remember the important points and
                 response to the questions raised by our guests

Challenge 2: have to keep all the guests within one place at the
                   same time
                   some guests may want to buy some dried goods while
                   the others may want to leave the shop
Lesson 2:     introduce more about the goods that sell in the shop to
                  those who want to leave and try to keep them just
                  outside the shop but not to enter the next shop

Challenge 3: no fast-food shops/restaurants for our guests to buy
                   something to eat and no toilets along our route
Lesson 3:   suggest our guests to eat lunch first and ask them to go
                to toilets first when we first meet at the MTR station.
                 They can buy and eat some snacks from the shop in our
                 route if they have the needs.

Challenge 4: a bit tired if keep walking for 2 hours and 30 minutes
Lesson 4:  suggest our guests to wear comfort outfit and sportswear
               during the tour. Sunglasses and fan is also useful as this is
               a outdoor tour.