DimSumDolly* - the different morsels of the life of a foodie

木綿洞 Mok Min Cave

Being the avid hiker that I was in Hong Kong, it was only fitting that my last Sunday there was spent in my favourite spot - Sai Kung (西貢). Writing this blog entry now and looking at the pictures brings back such fond memories of Hong Kong that it makes me want to go back right away!

We started our coastal trek (泳涃) at Pak Lap Chai (白腊仔). This shows us moments before we went into the water. There's me in red with my yellow float.

The winds were really strong that day, resulting in large wave action as seen from all that froth in the sea. If you look carefully, you can see some of my friends still bobbing in the water. We couldn't get onto shore at those parts as the waves were too strong and we were carried back and forth by the waves when we attempted to climb onto the rocks. It was impossible and at one point I was seriously scared.

Thankfully after a while all of us managed to swim into this little cove where the waves weren't so strong. It was there that we all managed to climb onto the rocks. Upon assessing the strength of the waves, we decided to abort the rest of the coastal trek as it was too dangerous to go into the water. Two of my friends had to be rescued by two of the guys as the two weaker ones weren't able to swim into the cove.

I LOVE SAI KUNG!!!!

Mok Min Cave (木綿洞), one of the famous landmarks in Sai Kung.

Waves crashing onto shore - we certainly didn't want to be in the water at that spot!

I can't say it enough - I love the beauty of this place.

I look like a 傻婆 (meaning crazy woman in Cantonese) with my hair flying in all directions, but this was taken when we were standing on the other side of Mok Min Cave.

An unusally quiet Pak Lap Wan (白腊灣) on a sunny Sunday. Usually the bay is dotted with yachts.

We then made our way to 沙橋 where's there's a beach and seafood restaurant. It takes about 20 minutes to walk there from Pak Lap Wan (白腊灣).

Close to shore, we could see lots of sea urchins! There were many fishes too. It was just a bit difficult catching them on camera.

Our contingent of eight who braved the choppy waters. Later that evening, we all sat down to a delicious seafood dinner at the Sai Kung town centre. My friends very generously treated me to the meal as a farewell dinner for me. It's fantastic that I got to know this group of local hikers who go on such interesting coastal treks. Being all locals, they all naturally spoke Cantonese among themselves and this gave me a chance to practise speaking Cantonese. In the year that I was in Hong Kong, my Cantonese improved a lot and I'm a little sad that I don't get to use the language as much back in Singapore.

I need to find a way to get back to Hong Kong to live!!! Ideas anyone????

Getting to Pak Lap Chai: From Sai Kung town centre, take a taxi and tell the taxi driver you want to go to Pak Lap. You'll be dropped along the road and there'll be a sign pointing down to Pak Lap Wan. You'll have to take a 10 to 15-minute walk down. Pak Lap Chai is a small beach next to Pak Lap Wan and you can get there by walking through a path at the back and then leading left of Pak Lap Wan. The taxi fare will cost about HKD90 from Sai Kung town centre.

50 Things I Love About Hong Kong

Sai Kung, my favourite place in Hong Kong

How fast a year has gone by. Today I leave Hong Kong on an evening Singapore Airlines (of course) flight back to Singapore after what has been an absolutely fantastic year in Hong Kong. For a person who's been in Hong Kong for just one year, I think I've been really good in making an effort to know the city. I'm leaving Hong Kong with mixed feelings as I actually can't bear to leave it. If I loved my job more in Hong Kong, I'd probably have chosen to stay awhile longer. But there's something I need to do at the moment and I want to do it in Singapore, so back I go. Hopefully I'll return to Hong Kong to live one day. While I'm away from Hong Kong, here are the things I love and will miss about one of my favourite cities!

FOOD

1. I can get food at any time, anywhere!
2. Whatever the size of your wallet, you can always get good food.
3. Dai pai dongs
4. Fantastic Cantonese food
5. Tasty and great variety of dimsum
6. The great variety of food - Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Italian, French, German, etc
7. The shops - 凉茶铺 - that sell traditional herbal teas that are in every other street corner
8. Good patisseries
9. All the dessert shops (糖水铺) selling traditional Cantonese desserts
10. High tea at the Intercontinental - fantastic view from the dining area (I think it beats The Peninsula)
11. Freshly baked egg tarts of traditional bakeries at every other street
12. The wet markets with all the fresh vegetables and live seafood
13. Citysuper supermarket (especially the one in Causeway Bay 'cos it's the biggest!)
14. SOGO's supermarket
15. Vegetable farms in the New Territories
16. 飲食男女 － the very well-written and well-researched weekly food magazine which comes with the trashy tabloid 忽然一周. I buy the latter just to get the former - really.
17. Jenny's Bakery - love their pineapple tarts and butter cookies!

TRANSPORT

18. Star ferries that ply the harbour and the outlying islands
19. Trams in Hong Kong Island, more affectionately known as the 'ting ting' by the locals
20. Efficient and well-run MTR train system
21. Mini-buses, even if the drivers drive like maniacs
22. The frequency of buses and its comprehensive network
23. Octopus cards that can be used to make payment at all major shops, car parks and even vending machines
24. Chep Lap Kok international airport
25. The Airport Express - the best airport commute in the world
26. Taxis - you can flag one down easily any time, anywhere

PLACES

27. Tai O fishing village in Lantau Island for the unique lifestyle it offers Hong Kongers
28. Central (中環) for its little alleys and mix of modern and old-styled shops and restaurants
29. Hong Kong skyline as you look at it from the Kowloon side
30. Victoria Harbour
31. Victoria Park (just a five-minute walk from where I live)
32. Mong Kok's madness and quirky streets like Goldfish Street

GEOGRAPHY

33. Dragon's Back hiking trail - one of the best urban trails
34. Sai Kung for all the outdoor activities it offers - hiking, coastal trekking, stream trekking, wakeboarding, boating
35. Lantau Island for similar outdoor activities to Sai Kung that it offers
36. All the hills in Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories that offer numerous hiking trails
37. Mild winters - I can't deal with harsh winters and Hong Kong's winters are perfect for me!
38. Proximity to China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea and South East Asia

SERVICES

39. Efficiency of the immigration department
40. Efficiency of services - time is money, so people do things fast!
41. Laundrettes that are everywhere and provide cheap laundry services
42. Traditional Chinese Medicine physicians are recognised and allowed to give out medical certificates
43. Being able to hire a junk boat or yacht for an affordable price, for a whole day and with food catered! Makes going out to sea a very accessible and affordable activity for the masses - fantastic!

PEOPLE

44. The cosmopolitan and international mix of people with a respect and tolerance for people of different races, creed and religion to co-exist
45. Tradition and modernity co-exist in this cosmopolitan city
46. People can protest and take part in demonstrations without getting arrested. People actually make the effort to take part in a demonstration / protest for a cause they believe in.

SHOPPING

47. My favourite lifestyle shop G.O.D
48. H&M - I never walk of the store empty-handed
49. Cheap tickets for concerts staged by Hong Kong artistes
50. Cameras are relatively cheaper - I love my new waterproof Pentax Optio!

Ping Nam Stream 屏南石澗

Ping Nam Stream 屏南石澗 is located in Fanling and is considered one of the most beautiful streams in Hong Kong.

The trail head starts in Nam Chung 南涌.

Crossing the stream

草裙瀑布 literally translates to hula skirt falls.

Standing beneath the falls

Pothole

The next pool we swam in

Fish in the pool

Me standing at the side wondering or not whether I should make a jump for it

Wweeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!

Our final pool stop

Going down my water slide

The skyscrapers of Shenzhen are visible in the distance

Hiatus

I've been busy packing up and settling matters for my impending departure from Hong Kong ever since getting back from Taiwan last Friday. Taiwan was fantastic and I took many pictures. Updates will come when all this packing up is over. Till then, this blog will be a little quiet! I'll be back soon!

Off to Taiwan!

Becoming a Kid Again

A preview of what I got up to on Saturday - we couldn't resist playing on this water slide at one of the rock pools we passed along Ping Nam Stream. I have to add that I was the brave one to test it out first - the others were too scared that the pool at the bottom wasn't deep enough. Of course before I tried it I had a look at the how deep the pool was and decided it was safe enough before testing out the natural water slide. After seeing what fun I had on it, the others followed suit. What great fun we had! :)

Taiwan Here I Come...Finally!

I think I must be one of the last Singaporeans who hasn't been to Taiwan. It seems that everyone I know has made a trip there before. So anyway, I'm finally making my way there this Thursday. I thought I'd make a trip there from Hong Kong since it's closer to do so than from Singapore. It also helps that I have just enough Asia Miles and credit card points to redeem for a ticket to Taipei from Hong Kong.

Thursday will also be my last day on the job - I'll be going to work for the first half of the day and then my flight to Taipei will be at 1555 hours. I know, I don't waste any time, do I? :p

I'll be travelling alone and any travelling tips or recommendations are welcomed! Or even better if you can hook me up with some friends who can take me hiking or be my eating companion!

I'm No Trust Fund Baby

I fear I may be giving readers the wrong impression that I don't work due to my exploits in Hong Kong. A recent blog comment asked if I worked, because he / she finds it rather incredible that I have the time to trek, eat and travel etc.

Yes, I do work - very much so. It's precisely for work that I'm in HK. Without work, I wouldn't be here. Without work, I wouldn't have the money to eat and travel. I, unfortunately, am no trust fund baby nor am I a rich tai-tai.

I work Mondays to Fridays and on weekends I make sure I get out and do something. I can't stay at home and do nothing. It drives me mad not doing anything at the weekend. When I move to a new place, I believe I should make the effort to know it as much as possible. This is precisely what drives me to go out and discover new places and do new things in Hong Kong every weekend. Imagine how many more things I'd get up to if I didn't work???

Perhaps I really do have more energy than the average person, which is why I always seem to be up and about. Maybe I have slight ADHD (attention deficit hyperactive disorder). Haha. There's nothing to envy about my lifestyle - it's actually really accessible to most people. It's just a matter of making the effort to get out there to do things. It might also involve making little sacrifices like getting up a little earlier to make more use of the day instead of sleeping in. Or bigger sacrifices like deciding to relocate to a new city and starting life anew, quitting a job, giving up some creature comforts, making do with (a lot) less money especially after a holiday. I don't make a lot of money so I travel on a small budget, I don't buy designer goods nor expensive facial products, I don't spend money going to pubs to drink or clubs to party. I guess it's usually only the surface that people see, but there is a lot beneath that they don't.

Age also isn't a barrier to many of the things I get up to. Trust me, many people whom I hike or paddle with are in their late 40s, early 50s and some are even in their 60s! There's a spritely 62-year-old man in my hiking group who can outrun people more than half his age. These people are such inspirations and I hope I'm just as active as them when I reach their age.

I believe life is about the accumulation of experiences and that's what drives me to go to new places, eat new foods and try new things. So really, don't let inertia set into your life. Life wouldn't be very fun that way!

Wang Chau 橫洲

In summer, some local tour groups organise hikes in some offshore islands and I joined one several Sundays ago for a trip to Wang Chau 橫洲, an island in the Sai Kung geopark.

The meeting point was at the Tsim Sha Tsui ferry pier and the ferry left from there. From there, the boat made its way up north.

The little rock on the left is one of the most famous rocks in Hong Kong and its Chinese name is literally translated 'Chopping board rock' because of its flat top.

The rock face on the left side of this photo is said to resemble an elephant drinking with its trunk in the water.

The Nine Pins

Basalt Island's sea arch

The back of Wang Chau has lovely volcanic rock columns that resemble the pipe organ in a cathedral.

Wang Chau's sea arch on its north face

There were about 60 people on the tour and we had to take turns to transfer to a small boat in order to sail under the sea arch.

Going towards the arch

Directly under the arch

Volcanic rock window frame

After everyone had a chance to sail under the sea arch, most of the people were dropped off in Wang Chau island to go on a three-hour hike on the island. However, I chose to go swimming instead at Pak Lap Wan beach which is a beach just across Wang Chau on the mainland. It was so hot that I wanted to swim instead of hike. Pak Lap Wan beach was filled with people who got there on their junks. The bay was filled with junks! Near the shore as I stepped into the water, I saw two fishes about 20cm in length! The water that day was simply amazing.

After three hours, the hikers in Wang Chau are picked up by the boat for the journey back to Tsim Sha Tsui.

I'm a sea farer! :)

The tour group I went with is called Yau Shing Travel. The tour costs HKD160 per person and it's a small amount to pay for a fun day outdoors. These tours are conducted in summer only as the winds blowing from the northeast in winter make the waters too rough to head out.

Exploring Sai Kung Peninsula

The Sai Kung Peninsula has many islands within it and these islands are part of Hong Kong's geoparks. The landscape in Sai Kung has been formed from millions of years of volcanic action and the islands that you see now are a result of the rise in water levels from the end of the last Ice age about 6,000 years ago. The Sai Kung geopark features many beautiful rock formations that have come about as a result all these volcanic activity. It is worth going on a boat ride to admire these amazing works of nature. All you have to do is turn up at Sai Kung ferry pier and hire a boat. There are usually many available for rent.

I had been wanting to go to the geoparks so I organised an outing with some friends and colleagues two weekends ago. Some of them couldn't make it at the last minute, so it ended up being only six of us. We hired a boat for four hours for HKD1700 - very affordable. Here are the pics!

C and I decided to go for a swim at a cove in Sharp Island, while the other four remained on the boat as they didn't want to go swimming for one reason or another. But me? I'm a total water baby and I couldn't resist the call of the water. The water was also too inviting to resist.

Nothing like a lazy boat ride admiring such lovely scenery on a sunny Saturday afternoon.

Spot beaches, waterfalls and sea caves as you sail along.

You'll be able to see many sea caves formed by thousands of years of erosion as you sail around the islands.

The Nine Pins group of islands (果洲) on the left. It was named the Nine Pins by the British because the islands looked like bowling pins to them. The Chinese, on the other hand, name them 果洲 (literally translated 'Fruits Islands') because the islands looked like they were a platter of fruits that had scattered down from heaven.

Town Island has a white cross at the top of one of its hills and the island houses a drug rehabilitation centre.

At Leung Shuen Wan (糧船灣), we stopped to buy a drink. Those who are hungry can also grab a bite at the small seafood restaurant there. During winter, it's the place to go to have raw sea urchin. The place is actually a sea urchin farm!

Having a quiet, pensive moment to myself at the bow. My colleague took this shot of me without me knowing. I like it - good for Facebook profile pic. Haha.

When we got back to Sai Kung ferry pier, the pier was buzzing with fishermen selling live seafood from their boats and customers looking to buy at the jetty. We had a wonderful and relaxing day out and this is only something you can do in summer as in winter the wind direction changes and the waters become too rough to go out to sea during that time. So grab the chance to get out in the sun while summer's here!

Coastal Trek: Po Pin Chau (破邊洲) to Pak Lap Wan (白腊灣)

Reunification Day on 1 July was a perfect summer's day in Hong Kong and it being a public holiday, I spent the day outdoors in my favourite place in Hong Kong - Sai Kung. I joined a local group of outdoor enthusiasts in their coastal trek adventure that started from the eastern end of High Island Reservoir (萬宜水庫) over to a small island called Po Pin Chau (破邊洲) and then back to the main land to Pak Lap Wan (白腊灣). Here are the pics!

Our starting point. See that small island in the picture? That's Po Pin Chau - in Chinese its name translates literally to 'broken sided island' - it's broken away from the main land due to thousands of years of erosion of the volcanic rock. We were going to head towards it to scale it.

And off we go!

You can see I'm absolutely happy being in the outdoors!!!

We trekked along the coast and where we couldn't walk across, we swam!

And in I go! Woohoo!

Upon reaching Po Pin Chau, we climbed up to the top ...

... and were rewarded with some gorgeous views

Our party of 15 going over the top of Po Pin Chau to head down to the shore for us to swim back to the main land and continue trekking along the coast.

We then swam across to this rock where there were many small oysters stuck to it.

Some of the guys decided to have some seafood :)

We then swam towards this rock with two sea caves next to it. We had wanted to go into the sea caves but the waves were too strong so decided that it'd be too dangerous to do so.

We trekked past these amazing hexagonal basalt columns which the Chinese call 六角竹, literally translated to 'six-sided bamboo'. These big columns are about 70m and really impressive looking.

A massive bamboo screen

I look incredibly tiny at the bottom!

At this little pool of water, we rested and the guys went fishing for sea urchins in the pool. They found quite a few and put them in the blue basket we had found along the way.

Of course we opened some to eat it fresh!!! Is this cool or what??? I've never had so much fun I tell you!

The sea urchin loot. It's not the season for sea urchin though - there are more of them in winter. It's just that where we were, the waters are a bit cooler so the sea urchins can survive.

Us adventure seekers loving the trekking, rock climbing and swimming! There's me in front with that funny green float that was found along the way.

Came across a stream along the way and we sat there for awhile to sit in some fresh water and freshen up with the cool stream water. Heavenly.

We passed another pool of water and the guys went in search for sea urchins again.

Final destination - we ended at this beach and then walked a short way, through some bushes, to Pak Lap Wan where we took taxis back to Sai Kung town centre.

Part of the coastline we trekked along. This was such an awesome day out that it'll rank as one of my best memories and adventures in Hong Kong! Sai Kung is absolutely beautiful and is my favourite spot in Hong Kong. I'm going to miss all of these ssssooooooo much!!! I haven't even left Hong Kong and I'm missing it already. Why must good things always come to an end?

Lok Hau Fook Restaurant 樂口福酒家

A recent trip to Kowloon City (九龍城), where the old Kai Tak airport was located, brought me to Lok Hau Fook Restaurant. This is a traditional Teochew (潮州) restaurant and I was delighted to try some dishes that I had never come across before.

It's a very old-styled restaurant, so don't expect anything fancy.

First you'll get some tiny cups of Gongfu tea (功夫茶). I'm guessing it helps with digestion. If you can read Chinese, that page link brings you to an explanation of Gongfu tea - I'll translate it when I have the time!

Pickled cabbage to 'awaken' those tastebuds. These tasted good - not too sour with a tinge of sweetness.

Spinach and radish in soup - this was like comfort food. The soup was tasty and the radish was also very sweet and fresh.

The fish was actually served like that, with the skin on this side of the fish peeled away to show the flesh. The name of the dish in Chinese is 馬友魚 (Ma Yau Fish) and it is served cold. My dining companions and I liked this dish a lot as the fish was fresh and tasted 'sweet'.

Pig's big intestines with slices of goose 大腸拼鵝片

Oyster porridge 蠔仔粥

Fried noodles with vinegar and sugar 炸糖醋麵 - this was an interesting dish that's to be eaten by adding vinegar and sugar to it.

Deep-fried pig intestines - these were deliciously sinful! Crisp to the bite and encrusted with some salt, these were great to munch on!

Sugar-crusted yam 反沙芋 - I had never eaten this dessert before and even though I love yam, I felt this was a bit too sweet.

Lok Hau Fook is a good restaurant to go to for traditional Teochew food. Kowloon City is also an interesting area to walk around with its numerous restaurants and food stalls. Definitely worth a walkabout for all foodies!

樂口福酒家
九龍城侯王道1-3號
English address:
Lok Hau Fook Restaurant
1-3 Hau Wong Road, Kowloon City
Tel : (852) 2382 7408

Wishing Tree 許願樹

Many of us who have been watching TVB dramas for years would have heard of the Wishing Tree (許願樹) as it was an oft-used location for shoots before the authorities banned people from throwing oranges on its branches. It's a short mini-bus ride away from Tai Wo so I decided to head there to have a look at this tree that's famous among locals.

Take mini bus No. 25K from Tai Wo. The bus stop to get on is not too far from Fu Shin Street. The trip costs HKD5.10. Tell the bus driver that you want to go to Wishing Tree so he'll know when to let you alight. The tree is in Lam Tsuem (林村) and you'll see it on your right side of the road as the mini bus passes it.

The Wishing Tree is now supported by many wooden beams because it's now very weak due to years of people burning incense below it. Its leaves' pores are probably choked from smoke! Its branches are also weak from the weight of oranges that people hurled onto it over the years. So now the tree is only a display piece.

To make a wish, buy one of these papers for HKD10, write your wish on it and hang it on this board. You have to hang it below the column which corresponds to your Chinese zodiac sign.

There's also the Tin Hau temple nearby where you can offer some prayers.

About 15 metres away from the real wishing tree is this fake one. You can buy fake oranges to tie to your wish that you've written on paper and throw it up onto the tree. I thought throwing would be easy, but it didn't seem so when this girl on the right (in black) tried it about 7-8 times. She did get it up eventually.

After having a look at the tree, go to one of the stalls nearby to have some dessert soup (糖水). I had this very refreshing lily bulb with snow fungus and egg soup.

The Wishing Tree is nothing exciting but I thought it'd be nice to have a look since I saw it so often in the TVB dramas I watched when growing up. Am glad I've seen it, so now it's one more item checked off my to-do list in Hong Kong before I leave in August.

Exploring Tai Wo (太和)

As part of my playing-tourist-in-Hong Kong plan, I've been visiting some old neighbourhoods in order to know another side of Hong Kong. On 29 May, I made my way to Tai Wo, an old neighbourhood in the New Territories. Tai Wo used to be one of the old market towns in Tai Po Town.

Another dimsumdolly and her ramen-loving friend - I found them in the shopping centre next to Tai Wo train station.

Tai Po Railway Museum - just about seven minutes' walk from Tai Wo MTR station

Love these old light switches in the museum

Old signalling devices for the trains

Tunnelling back in time by sitting in an old train carriage. I should be wearing a cheongsam and I'd fit right into the setting!

The neighbourhood barber - many things still seem to have remained the same as they were decades ago.

The Fu Shin street market along Fu Shin street (富善街) - a street full of stalls selling food and other household items.

Old-style pyjamas and grannies panties. Heehee.

Coils of incense hang in the Man Mo Temple along Fu Shin street. From Wikipedia:

'A Man Mo Temple or Man Mo Miu (文武廟) is a temple for the worship of the civil or literature god Man Tai (文帝) / Man Cheong （文昌） and the martial god Mo Tai (武帝) / Kwan Tai (關帝). The two gods were popularly patronised by scholars and students seeking progress in their study or ranking in the civil examinations in the Ming and Qing dynasties.'

A shop specialising in clothing and accessories used in belly dancing (肚皮舞) - what are the odds of finding such a shop in such an obscure place???

Getting to Tai Wo: Take the East Rail Line (東鐵綫) - the line is coloured light blue on the Hong Kong MTR map.