13. Last stop Hong Kong

With a 9th floor view of skyscrapers all around us this couldn't be more different than the weeks of New Zealand's wide streets with spacious bungalows to which we had become accustomed and grown to love.  However, for 2 nights we could handle crowds, traffic, noise and neon lights for one last travel experience to end our tour.  We passed a message on a huge sign on a subway wall today which I think I shall adopt:

Hong Kong is the only place in the world where you will find double decker trams and as the line was visible from the hotel this was a good way to begin our day.  

Presumably to reduce congestion and encourage people to use the excellent public transport here the price of a single tram fare is equivalent to about 25p, the same price also applied to our ferry crossing from the island (where we were staying) over to Kowloon on the mainland; marvellous.

The longest elevator ride in the world is also located here in Hong Kong and cleverly runs downhill into the CBD in the early morning rush hour to aid the commuters getting to work and from 10am until midnight it travels uphill. We couldn't resist a ride and timed it at 15 minutes from bottom to top.

It was a very grey day with low cloud but there are plenty of parks here for us to wander through to add some colour and even a free zoological park with some enormous orangutans; flamingoes, tropical vegetation and skyscrapers kind of sums it up.

I do love a good sculpture and the city and parks had plenty on view, this bronze sculpture about the size of me of a series of shells was one my favourites.

Hong Kong looks better at night with the lights, sea and skyline so we ferried back over to the mainland for a stroll and a delicious Chinese meal in a rather smart restaurant as a last night treat.  It was lovely to be strolling late in the evening still in very warm, humid temperatures.

A top tourist destination here is Victoria Peak, one of many large hills in the city, which is reached by either a 90 minute walk up steep roads or a ride on an incredibly steep tram so we opted for the latter. The views were supposed to be magnificent at the top but alas it was still cloudy.

Undeterred and with limited views we followed the 3km peak circuit for a nice level walk through lush, steamy vegetation then hiked up the last kilometre to the gardens at the summit.  It wasn't until we were about to catch our return tram back down that the sun finally managed to pierce the clouds and provide us with the city scene below.

We pottered around the harbour, then took a last boat ride before heading off for the airport, both a little weary and ready for a long flight home.