April 10, 2009: Hong Kong Nights

Emily had to work again, so I was on my own. I slept in a little and explored the hotel’s gym facilities. Keep in mind; this wasn’t your typical simple hotel workout room. Talk about state-of-the-art! I counted…about five treadmills, a few elliptical machines, rowing machines, a small running track, free weights and several weight lifting machines. Those machines even had digital screens to they tell you the number of repetitions and a calorie count. The gym area had another room for different aerobic classes and then the bathrooms were another story. Along with the modern toilets and sinks, the bathrooms were equipped with a steam room, sauna and showers. After the fascination wore off, I took advantage and got some exercise.

I left there ready to eat lunch, so I headed for the attached grocery store. I found a few American brand favorites that I missed, but for lunch, I just found stuff to make a ham sandwich. Before long, it was time to meet Emily at one of the train stations for dinner. Which means, yes, I was able to figure out how to manage the Hong Kong train system (it's called the "MTR"). Piece of cake!

Emily and I both love American food, so we were on the same page when I suggested “Outback Steakhouse” for dinner. To say the least; we indulged!

It was getting late, maybe 9 o’clock, but we knew that this was only the beginning of our night! There’s a place called the “night market” and it doesn’t close until midnight, so we had plenty of time to inspect each and every stall. It’s overwhelming, at first, but then you just get sucked in. I felt like I was in a shopping daze, I was wanting to look at all of the sunglasses, purses, watches, jewelry, t-shirts and every possible item with the words “Hong Kong” on it. It was mesmerizing.

Brandon, on the other hand, would be finished looking after 10 minutes. He’d be looking for something else to do.

We practically shut-down the place and left when people were taking down their booths. We caught the last trains back to the hotel, just in the nick of time. We almost missed them! Another late night!