Hong Kong, China

 
For orientation: from Manila, we sailed in a NW direction through the South China Sea to reach Hong Kong, and from there we sailed SW to go to Vietnam—Phu My is the port for Ho Chi Minh City. Visit our Hong Kong page for 2012 world cruise. This time it was foggy and drizzly when we reached Hong Kong, but the weather cleared up some in the 2.5-hour delay caused by red tape from the immigration officials. We'd been tremendously lucky weather-wise on this trip, so that continued, sort of, due to the unwanted delay.

 
First order of business when we got off the shuttle bus was to buy some Hong Kong dollars, so we could buy train/bus/ferry cards called Octopus cards. Originally, we'd planned to go hiking up in the mountains, but the weather was not conducive for that activity, so we headed to Aberdeen, the original British settlement, instead.

 
We took a train and then a bus to Aberdeen and marveled at the great spring flowering shrubs, until we got up close and found that the flowers were fabulous fakes.

The Aberdeen waterfront area was a narrow strip of land bordered by water on one side and tall buildings on the other.
There were several areas where period photos of those old days were on display.

 
These days, most boats are more modern, but some still have the look of those old boats.

 
After our late start, it was already lunch time. We liked this dragon canoe with many seats for the paddlers.

 
As built up as this big city is, there is still quite a bit of green space squeezed into the urban areas.

There were 2 huge, floating restaurants in the middle of the harbor. This is the one that's called Jumbo.

 
We crossed this covered pedestrian bridge.

Beyond that bridge, we came to this...

 
There was a Buddhist shrine just outside the makeshift structure, which turned out to be a large, well-established boatyard.

 
Despite its chaotic appearance, there was some type of order.

 
Note the roof dog over the red and gold banner.

 
We'd come to the 2 floating docks with ramps from the shoreline where people boarded ferries out to the 2 floating restaurants.

 
The 2 floating docks were pretty fancy to get you in the mood for the floating meal experience.

There was no clear path forward from the restaurant ferry docks, so we headed back through the boat yard.

 
A good-sized boat was being launched as we came back though the boatyard.

 
Eventually we worked our way back to the other end of Aberdeen to the fish market area, but it was too late in the day and none of these floating fish markets were open.

 
These sculptures honor the past days of the fish market area. The sails are mounted on an elevated walkway.

 
A fisherman statue on our way to the bus stop. But wait... we saw a vertical cemetery between the skyscrapers.

 
We'd seen vertical cemeteries in 2012, but we were never close enough to explore them, so up we went.

 
And up...

From the top of this steep hillside.

 
A broom still life at the top of the hill and a view of a floating fuel station in the harbor. We asked some workmen at the top of the hill about the bus and through sign language, we were directed back down the hill, but via a small road.

 
We took the bus back to the center of town and then crossed over the street to the train station. The location was not obvious, so someone stopped to help us and walked us to the top of the escalators. How nice that even in a big city, people made the effort to be helpful.

 
We were staying overnight in port, so we did not need to rush back before sail-away. So our next adventure was to ride these double decker trolleys from one end of Hong Kong Island to the other.

 
There were double-decker buses as well. As we approached the east end of the island, the stalls for the market there were only a few feet from the tracks.

The tram had to go slowly because people were busy with their shopping activities and paid no attention to the tram.

It was the end of the line near the easternmost point of the island. We got off to experience one of the more interesting markets we'd been to, and we've been to a lot. Note: This is a night-market and is only open in the evenings.

 
Many of the fish were still alive and flopping around.

 
Fruits and noodles...

 
Crazy cauliflower heads and a small woman wearing waders to keep dry.

Aerated fish tanks keep those fish alive until sold.

 
There were many booths there that were actually small manufacturers with specialized sewing machines—This green machine only sewed buttonholes.

Okay, we were back on the tram again to go back to the central station. The crosswalks were teeming with people.

Big screens vie for your attention as you ride along.

The trains were jammed and almost everyone was focused on their cell phones.