Asia 2023
I stumbled upon a cheap flight to Hong Kong with Cathay Pacific, supposedly one of the better airlines around, and decided to spend three weeks in Hong Kong and Taiwan.
The plan was to relax from a busy time at work, and go hiking whenever possible.
An interesting trip
This is going to be an interesting trip.
The return flight was cancelled this morning, and I noticed a fraudulent transaction on my credit card, so that'll probability be replaced during the trip.
This could mean issues with outstanding Hotel reservations. Fun times!
Betsy
Betsy is a beer specially brewed to taste its best at 35000 feet. You can only get it on Cathay Pacific flights, if available.
Tasted good!
Beef Brisket Noodles
With Milk Tea on the side
Overslept
Slept for fourteen hours, guess I needed that. Time for breakfast at 1500 in the afternoon
Busride nature
A great thing about Hong Kong is that a 20-minute bus ride gets you in nature.
No English Menu
Made it back from the hike with about 10 minutes to spare before complete darkness.
Time for dinner and I walked into a random restaurant in the street where the hotel is. Had to use Google translate for the menu, and picked something semi-random.
Sweet and sour beef with tomato and egg. It was pretty good and the staff was impressed with my "Thank you".
Light breakfast
A light breakfast to start the day.
Dumplings
Dinner consisted of delicious Dim Sum; soup dumplings and bao.
Pineapple Bun
Pineapple Bun, Milk and oats, and an egg tart for breakfast.
Probably more sugar than I normally eat in a week, but so good!
M+ Museum
Old
You know you're old when your childhood toys are in a museum
Neon
Not much neon left in Kowloon, shame because it looks amazing
Wonton Noodles
Dinner today; Wonton noodles (wanted beef, but the waitress had very poor eyesight and even poorer understanding of English, so I got whatever she thought was on the menu there 🤷). It was good, though!
Egg waffle
Egg waffle as dessert
Michelin ⭐
Lets try some Michelin star food
worth the wait
On to Taiwan
Taichung
Train to Taichung
Missing person
Missing person?
Nope!
We got your back
Street food paradise
Bubble tea and red-bean filled waffles
Curry
There was a CoCo's Curry literally around the corner soo...
Hike time
Stairs
European trails: this meandering path will take you up the mountain in about five to eight hours. It's not too steep and there's a "hutte" at the top.
Asian trails: Stairs!
Mountain Lunch
Best Lunch
Danbing
Taiwanese breakfast is the best
Banh Mi
Banh Mi for lunch
Beef noodles and Kimchi on the side
Delicious Beef noodles with Kimchi on the side
No hike today
Not the best time to be in the mountains, there's flood alerts too
Reserve the train
It might save you a 2-hour wait for the first train with available seats
Bagle
Found a coffee place to spend 1.5 hours
Finally
Train time!
Ramen
Finally something positive after a rainy day
Emer gensi
Train to Taipei
More rain today, so taking the train to Taipei
Laundry time
Slight difference
Slight difference between last nights hotel and todays.
Burger Time
Dumpling Breakfast
Hushan Peak
142m doesnt seem like much, but its 37 degrees, no wind, and all the humidity.
Sweat
When your mosquito repellent doesnt stick, because you're sweating so much :(
Also I drank 1.5 Liters of water already in an hour
Lunch on the go
Red Bean Bao Bun
Nightmarket time
There is a queue at this stand, so I joined it
Nightmarket part 2
Potato balls as a starter, then a BBQ pork sandwich, a huge chicken skewer, scallion pancake and an eggtart fresh from the oven as dessert.
Deja Vu
Went to visit a place, only to realise it looked vaguely familiar.
Turns out I already seen it three years ago 😂
Feels like hot
I can confirm it feels like 41
Beef Noodles
Lunch time: Beef noodles
Lunch Dessert
Custard bun.
Is lunch dessert a thing? If not I'm making it one.
Okonomiyaki time
Crap...
Wuliao Trail
Its steep sometimes
Most challenging hike so far
Especially the 30-meter rope descent 😱
Local delicacy
Pork chops and miso soup
Breakfast
As always, a nice breakfast to start the day.
Lunch
Spent the morning buying Muji clothes (shirts/shorts), now time for a pre-lunch
Conveyer Belt Sushi
You know the drill
Volcano
Longest hike
6 hours in total, 30.000 steps and one box of oreos consumed.
Large curry
Well deserved
Slow morning
Its 40 degrees again (feels like), so taking it slow
Kimchi Jeon
Found a Korean place that has Kimchi pancakes on the menu 🤤
Gelato
Its so hot, found a gelato place to cool off
Last hike
First peak
Ropes
Straight up!
peaking
More razor edges
Snake encountered count +1
Broken aircon
Managed to find the only place in town with a broken ac. Tiramisu was nice, though!
Tofu Cheesecake
Spotted some tofu cheesecake near the bus stop, it was delicious!
Dumplings and shaved ice
Aka dinner
Breakfast
And a coffee
Bike
As a Dutch person, Im not sure if this is art or vandalism
To Hong Kong
Layover
13 hour layover in Hong Kong, so got tickets for Disneyland
Castle
Smooth entrance, scan qr code and 👍
Small world
Time to get the "its a small world" song stuck in my head for the rest of the day
Stuck
O god were stuck.
Bye
Not the best Disney, unfortunately.
Pre flight meal
Bibimbap!
Last flight