11,000 miles later and 15 hours into the future, we’ve arrived in Hong Kong.  Its just as described: modern, expansive, and English speaking.  We’ve taken the train into downtown and managed to start our day with some great coffee at Fuel, a New Zealand based coffee company. Certainly not the blue bottle/ 4barrel that i’m used to but it ain’t no starbucks either.

Fuel Coffee bar

On the todo list for the day:  meet up with Harry’s sister, track down keys for the apartment that will be our home base for the next week, find some food, and explore.

brother & sister

downtown hi-rises

Two things here are an instant reminder of home in San Fran: the hills and the fog.  After that Hong Kong becomes a uniquely separate experience.  The buildings are taller and more dense than even New York. The streets are much narrower and despite the overwhelming density on this island, the city is virtually litter free.

We trekked thru the Sheung Wan and Soho districts, both of which are in Central Hong Kong.  Soho in particular is very westernized and caters to all the brits and Aussies and other English speaking clientele.  In Sheung Wan  we pass by grocery markets and fruit and vegetable stalls, and meat markets  that typify the Asian neighborhoods back home.

fresh veggies in Sheung Wan

trekking thru Soho

By late afternoon the jet lag is kicking in,  and i want nothing more than a nice afternoon nap.  We have along night ahead of us as Harry tells me we’ll be filming his sister’s performance at Fringe gallery tonight. Looks like i’ll be having another shot of espresso.