After a 27-hour train ride from Shanghai through the Chinese countryside, we arrived in drizzling Hong Kong at about 1:15PM today.
The train ride was, shall we say, an experience. It certainly provided us with a slice of life in China, from the very close quarters, to the less-than-appealing toilet facilities, to the crazy old Chinese woman who would cackle and laugh from time to time for no apparent reason. Along the way we saw some beautiful Chinese countryside, complete with rice paddies and farmers tending the fields with their ox.
Before we left Shanghai, we visited the Pearl TV tower, and then headed to the Asia Pacific Brewery for a very importan tour of the brewery ... where we obviously had to sample the wares in order to be fully educated on the beer-making process. Later that day, the weather cleared long enough for us to enjoy a beautiful night cruise on Huangpu river, including a beautiful view of the Bund and Pudong areas of Shanghai.
After we arrived in hong kong we checked into the magnicent Mandarin Oriental hotel, which was a bit of an upgrade from our previous accommodations, and the headed out for a lunch of ... pizza!
Later the weather cleared a bit, and so we headed up to Victoria peak high above Hong Kong for an incredible view of the city and the harbor at dusk and night.
After 27 hours on a train, we're all beat ... so it's an early night tonight. Tomorrow we head over to kowloon for a tai chi lesson, then back to Pricewaterhouse coopers for a presentation on business in HK and China. Later we will take a boat to lamma island to enjoy a seafood dinner.
The end is near, but we haven't slowed down yet. ;-) More to come!
