I never really had the desire to go to Hong Kong or Thailand because I'm not all that big on eastern cultures. Fortunately, (and to my great surprise) Hong Kong is as western as New York and much less expensive. We were only granted four days of liberty (the last of which I have duty) and I wish I could spend another six weeks here. Most of the people speak Cantonese and English so getting around is very easy. There is more than enough to keep one busy day and night and well into the morning. The food is great for the most part -- I don't recommend eating Mexican food here. But, enough of the generalities, let me give you some details.

Background: Hong Kong is situated on the southeast corner of China and until 1999 was leased to England. It was and still remains one of the busiest ports in the world. When speaking generally Hong Kong is made up of over 650 islands the largest of which are Hong Kong, Lantau, and Kowloon. North of Kowloon (which really isn't an island) are the New Territories. China has deemed Hong Kong a Special Authority Region because they know if the mainland government took over the whole place would lose its appeal.

We pulled into Hong Kong Friday, November 29, during the early morning hours under a dense cloud of fog. By 10:00 we had set anchor and after a few hours of busy work liberty was called away. The liberty boat took a long 45 minutes to cross the 6 miles of water to Fenwick Pier where the fleet landing is. I gathered up a few tourist guides and a map and set out with Doug (the guy that was on the Lincoln) in search of an ATM. Almost an hour later we managed to locate one relatively nearby. We had one plan for the evening which had already been set in place almost a week before. A birthday party was being thrown for Scott (one of the guys we work with) at a restaurant/bar in Tsim Sha Shui in Kowloon simply called Someplace Else, which has to be the greatest name for a bar I ever heard. Doug and I crossed the bay on a quick ferry ride for a mere 25 cents American. Upon arrival on the other side we went into the Hard Rock with the intent of picking up some shirts (this never happened). Like the model sailors we are we had a couple beer before trying to figure out where Someplace Else was.

Once out on the street we figured out we had no idea where in the heck we were in realtion to where we needed to go, but a overzealous Arab salesman would be more than happy to provide directions if we came to his tailor shop and have our measurements taken in hope that we might buy a suit. It was on the way to the hotel and we tried to be friendly about saying no, but this guy wasn't taking hints. We followed him to his store and met the owner who I swear by my right hand was queer as a football bat. For some reason having measurements taken by a man who wore such nice shoes was not high on our very short list of things to do. We managed to talk our way out of the store and made great speed towards Someplace Else.

After a very reasonable meal and two for one drinks we began to wonder if the rest of our party was ever going to show up. Doug made a couple rounds about the establishment to see if they had wondered in without being seen. Along the way he had eyed the singer of the live band and was head over heels with lust. Side note: Doug is married and has a little girl.

He calls me over and before I realize why and our seats are gone, so, we plop down next to the stage so that Doug can get his eye candy. Just as the rest of our group start showing up Doug feels the need to sing and manages to talk his way on stage to sing a duet with Belinda, the South African singer. While he didn't realize it, his microphone was turned off and one of the other guys in the band did the singing, but Doug was happy and considerably sloshed. About this time one of Belinda's friends shows up and is generally making a scene of arriving by greeting everyone she knows (which is quite a few people.) Rachel as it turns out will become our guide, but not before Doug has another drink.

Rachel takes our party and a couple of her friends to Wan Chai (on Hong Kong Island) which is one of the many nightlife areas in the region. Somehow or another our group splits and Doug and I are left with Rachel and her friends, Kate and Erin. We go into a small club (Carnegies) by American standards where dancing on the bar is encouraged. Doug tries his best to be good, but can't stop drinking (and grabbing Rachel) and this turns out to be his downfall. We depart the club to go to another with a bit more space, but alas Doug's habit has caught him and dropped him to the floor. I helped him back to his feet and surprisingly enough Rachel is not disturbed by his disturbing behavior. In fact she helps me take him back to the pier so he can pass out in safety. With Rachel in the lead and I holding Doug upright, forcing him to drink water we make it back to the fleet landing where I turn Doug over to the care of a few hundred drunk sailors waiting for liberty boats. Rachel and set off for the clubs and some dancing and conversation.

Through our wanderings I find out that Rachel is originally from California and has been in Hong Kong for nine years when her father moved the family due to business. Shortly thereafter the father up and left leaving her and her mother (Carol, who is from Texas originally) to fend for themselves. Rather than moving back to the states the two decide to stay. Both teach in the Northern Territories (Rachel teaches kindergarten and her mom teaches grade school) Both are fluent in English and Cantonese and are working on Mandarin which is used in mainland China.

Rachel drops me off at the pier on her way home (one of the local taxi drivers lives a few blocks from her so he ends his shift when she wants to go home) and I take the long ride boat ride back the ship reeking of stale bar smoke and alcohol which I haven't noticed in entirety until I enter my clean work center to say hello to the watch. I tell them of my goings on and ask if they have seen Doug (which they haven't), so I tell them that he in "in a bad way." They completely understand. I check to see that Doug is safely in his rack (clothes scattered about the floor) before calling my first day in Hong Kong complete.

I woke with tapping at my feet. "Jason get up. It's time to go." Mike has just gotten off watch and doesn't want to risk falling asleep in fear of not waking up until the next day. I crawl out of my little hole, shower and gather my things. Doug is still out like a light and I don't have the heart to wake him. Mike, Mark and I head out in search of eternal peace.

I take Mike and Mark to the ATM now that I know how to get there quickly and we take a half hour ferry ride to Lantau Island which bears the largest bronze Buddha in the world. After some confusion as to which bus to take after arriving at Lantau we start reading the signs and head for the one that simply says "Big Buddha." Bus drivers (and taxi drivers for that matter) are crazy. I swore I saw speed limit signs, but that doesn't seem to apply to public transportation. We rounded turns at high speeds and climbed what I am assuming was a couple thousand feet in a rather short time. Thus we arrived before a mammoth of a statue in any respect. High atop a hill sits Buddha in his true form, not the happy drunk Buddha you usually see. Below him sit smaller, but equally impressive statues of his followers bearing gifts. At the foot of the hill is a monastery. The whole thing has more or less become a tourist haven, but there are still practicing monks present below the likeness of the master of mediation.

I don't know how many hundreds of steps we climbed to the base of the statue, but I will never again complain about climbing four flights from the galley to my work center. I'm not sure which was more impressive, the enormity of the statue or the view from where it perched. I was awestruck and thoroughly impressed with both. We spent over two hours wandering about the statue and the monastery below.

Once arriving back in Hong Kong we were starving since we left early without breakfast and it was already a bit after lunchtime. This is when we discovered that getting food anytime between 2:30 and 6:30 is a horrible joke, even in such a busy city. We walked for miles through arcades and city streets searching for something other than McDonald's. After two hours we found a small cafeteria style eatery where I ordered some noodle soup and to my surprise they gave me Ramen noodles, straight from the bag. I had to laugh. I come 6,000 miles across the world to eat Chinese food and get the same thing I eat back home, go figure.

With our bellies full we decide it would be wise to locate lodging for the evening. I knew of only a few hotels in the area, most of them far outside of our price range. Mark planned on going back to the ship so it jwould be Mike and I splitting the cost. We ended up at the Sheraton for a reasonable price, HK$900. While Mike washed up and changed and Mark sat around eating our complimentary candy I called Rachel at her request. Her mom, Carol, and she had not yet eaten and wondered if we would like to join them. She knowing the city far better than us I had to oblige. She met us at the hotel (the same cab driver from the night before was driving) and we went to a Mexican restaurant named Coyote.

The atmosphere was fitting even down the little cowboy and cowgirl on the restroom doors, but the food... Well, let's just say that the Chinese cannot cook Mexican food. It wasn't that it was bad; it just wasn't up to standards for a Texan. The Chimichonga was a little overcrisp and I swore it was Old El Paso chip dip. I believe the chips were made locally, but they weren't straight from the fryer fresh. The food aside we had a great time.

After the meal Carol returned home while Rachel and we three sailors hit the town. We went to Lo Deng Fung which is another nightlife area and danced a little and drank a little. Mark decided it was time for him to return to the ship so we walked him to the pier which wasn't to far away and bid him a good night. Mike was still kicking after being awake for over 36 hours, but wanted to go to an Irish bar, for old time's sake. We walked to Wan Chai and talked for a few good hours. Mike managed to slip on the floor on the way to the restroom and so we cut him off and decided to go for a walk to burn off some alcohol. I had more than enough the night before and was very conservative at this point and had only three drinks the whole night, including dinner. Rachel doesn't like to drink too much and mostly had Sprite, although we did get her to take a shot of Zambooka, but only because I drank one flaming (in my mouth flaming, not the glass... it's a neat trick.)

We walked further than anyone thought we had and mysteriously arrived back in Lo Deng Fung. We stopped in a small couch laden club and had some water before retiring for the evening. Rachel once again escorted us home (the Sheraton that night) which was still conveniently on the way back to her home. I slept very well in a bed considering I haven't touched one in over two weeks. Old habits die hard I suppose.

My third day in Hong Kong started off much too early considering my lack of sleep, but we needed to check out of the Sheraton before getting charged late fees. Mike and I departed just after 11:30 with 3 goals in mind all of which involved shopping. We had to hit three markets, all miles from one another, in reasonable speed. We mapped our course across the islands, determined the plan of attack, and started walking.

Our first stop at the Jade Market was only a mile or so from the hotel and in a relatively straight line. We found that the regular working class locals not only dressed well, but also could be very rude with some exceptions. When you want to buy something they are nice, when you walk to walk around them I swear they gain weight so as to not let you by. They cling together arm to arm forming solid walls of flesh across the sidewalk and of course moving slower than desired. Maybe this sounds a bit far fetched (because it is), but it's true. We arrived at the Jade Market and slowed to look at the fine goods always marked "Made in China" in the US. Rings, necklaces, decorative pieces, statuettes, and of course turtles were at our disposal, all made of jade. I picked up a turtle, which I have yet to name, and a horse statuette, which a vendor basically gave me. Mike picked up a smaller horse book stop looking thing and a Cat's Eye made of Moonstone. With these weighty burdens we decided we better leave before we couldn't carry anymore.

Our next stop was a more than twice the distance we had traveled to the Jade Market and so we decided to cheat and take the subway. This was a wise choice since we walked the wrong way out of the terminal we stopped at and added an extra mile or so to our walk. After travelling full circle (with the aid of nice police officer to help else) we passed back by the subway terminal and headed in the appropriate direction. We passed through a large park (although I advised against it) and came to Boundary Street, the official demarcation line for the New Territories. I threw out a "I told you so." and led poor Mike to the Bird market where he wanted the purchase a cage for his girlfriend back home. While I still wasn't too keen on this idea, I felt bad letting him alone. Six dollars later he had a wooden cage that probably would have cost sixty in the States. For old time's sake we took the long way back to the subway to head to the next market, the most famous in Hong Kong.

Stanley Market lies on the southern tip of Hong Kong Island overlooking the South China Sea. It took two subways and a speeding bus driver to get us to our destination. Tourist trap comes to mind when I think of Stanley Market, thousands of tourists in fact. Mike had a bit of difficulty making it around with a loaded backpack, a bird cage, three swords, and some other odds and ends, so I had no choice other than to help him carry a bit of the bulk. We ate for the first time all day in a small local restaurant that couldn't have sold half the stuff they did for twice the price in the States. I ate like a king for about $8, unbeatable.

This marked the turning point in our day (literally since we reversed our course back to the subway to head back to Wan Chai and the pier). We were torn between dropping our stuff off at the boat and coming back ashore, just lugging our goodies around, or just staying at the boat once we arrived. It was getting dark and I had to work the next day so I wouldn't be able to stay out for too terribly long anyway. We opted to stay on board for the evening, which ended my time in Hong Kong. Mike and Doug went out the next day and were kind enough to bring back postcards which I failed to remember to pick up until I was permanently tied to the boat.

Now we are heading away into the open ocean and I feel sad to be leaving like I do when I leave everything behind at home. I doubt I could get that attached to a city in just three days, so I'm guessing its something in the water or the lust for dry land. Whatever the case I sincerely would love to return here without the Navy for a little more time.