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I was in Hong Kong for the BlackBerry Jam Asia 2013, courtesy of Research In Motion Limited. Thanks to the BlackBerry people, my friend and I were able to maximise our trip by flying in on the earliest flight and flying out on the latest flight possible, a total of five days and four nights.
24th Sep:
We arrived at around 10 in the morning and checked into SkyCity Marriott Hotel at noon. With plenty of daylight in our hands, we wasted no time in getting ready to explore this metropolitan city. Armed with the ticket passes we bought earlier in the airport, we decided to follow our noses and the subway lines (see attached map) to discover what locations we could get to.
Departing from the AsiaWorld-Expo station, we made a switch at Tsing Yi. Even at this early stage of our journey, someone up there decided to make our trip that little bit more interesting/challenging. Only after crossing the barricade to the yellow line did we notice that the elevator to another level had broken down.
However, I feel that it was more of a blessing in disguise as we got to see more of the subway station than any normal passenger. We were brought to the upper level via a series of service walkways and an elevator, escorted by a staff from the MTR.
After hopping onto the amber line and making a switch to the red line at Lai King station, we got off at Sham Shui Po. I presume here is one of the heartlands of Hong Kong as we saw uncles and aunties buying and selling all sorts of wares. We wandered around and covered quite a considerable area before deciding to pop into a small shop selling beef noodles at Lai Chi Kok Road. It was delicious!
Finding our way back to the subway proved to be more difficult than we thought. There were many entrances to the Sham Shui Po station but none had an elevator down, except the one we exited from. Being a bit disorientated and quite a distance away from where we started, we sought the help of Google Maps.
From Sham Shui Po, we went to East Tsim Sha Tsui, crossing from the red line to the purple line via a huge underground complex and a tunnel at Tsim Sha Tsui. There we visited the Avenue of Stars and had dinner in Sogo.
These places were very handicapped-friendly and wheelchairs should not find any problems going around. What stumped us was locating the elevators to reach the different levels. It was hard discerning the signs pointing to the lift accesses from the multitude of posters, decorations and other signage.
For the return trip to the hotel, it was once again a series of subway-hopping from line to line. We started the purple line from East Tsim Sha Tsui to Nam Cheong, crossed to the amber line, rode down to Kowloon and then took the green line back to AsiaWorld-Expo.
27th Sep:
After our excursion the first day, we noticed that it cost a lot when we took the subway along the green line, which is the Airport Express line. We really needed to figure out how to cut down on transport before we ran out of budget.
My friend found out from the hotel staff that we could take the public bus numbered S1 (he actually misheard it as X1 and caused us to wait at the wrong bus-stop) to the Tung Chung Cable Car Terminal from the AsiaWorld-Expo.
From there it was a cable ride to Ngong Ping, Lantau Island, where we spent the late morning/afternoon doing what tourists do. This place was not a problem for a wheelchair except for going up to the Big Buddha whereby it's a long flight of steps. So no go for this wheeler.
After another cable ride back to Tung Chung, it was time to hit the bright lights and do what Hong Kong is famous for - shopping. Well, the one wanting to shop was my friend as he was under orders from his wife but I was happy to tag along.
Taking the amber line from Tung Chung to Hong Kong in order to switch to the blue line, we debated as to which station we should alight. My friend was adamant that the shop was near Wan Chai station while I had a nagging feeling that we should stop at Causeway Bay.
We searched around Wan Chai station only to realise that we had to go to somewhere near the Times Square to find the shop. However, I kind of like this way of being at the wrong place and the feeling of getting lost. It was the best way to truly experience the city apart from living in it.
Not wanting to navigate the maze of accessing the station again, we decided to walk the 1.2 km down Hennessy Road, passing countless of building blocks. And oh boy it was not an easy walk! Apart from having to overcome the obstacles on the walkways, one had to look out for the people around as well as look up for the overhanging signboards.
Failing to find the shoes my friend wanted in the Sogo departmental near the Causeway Bay station, we walked on to the brand's main store at Times Square. Here we were basically playing the game of finding the right elevator as there was no elevator going to the level we wanted from the ground floor. Instead, we were ushered to an elevator that went to the eleventh floor before being told to take another one to the second floor and then another to the sixth. We called the game lift-hopping.
Night in HK city was amazing. It was so bright and beautiful and coupled with the cool weather, very suitable for sightseeing on foot. As long as you don't mind the possibility of bumping into people, just walk.
One cannot be considered to have visited HK without eating in a 茶餐厅 (tea diner/house). We popped into one at Jaffer Road for our dinner. Maybe I was not used to the food yet or my appetite was diminished from all the travelling, I didn't find the food particularly tasty.
For the return trip, it was back to the subway. We took from Causeway Bay to Central on the blue line and then from Hong Kong to Tung Chung on the amber line. Bus service S1 took some waiting but the driver drove real fast to the AsiaWorld-Expo.
28th Sep:
Since our flight is scheduled to leave in the evening, we made full use of the day to get whatever souvenirs we wanted for our family and friends. We headed to Citigate Outlets at Tung Chung, the only outlet mall in Hong Kong.
I didn't intend to buy much but shopping is an event one can never plan or rationalise, especially when one is overseas. I ended up having to do some last minute currency exchange and utilise my credit card.
I got my baby niece a branded dress which my friend said was cheaper than buying it in Singapore. Then there was the whole assortment of cookies I had to get as I tried one before and it was delicious. You can select your own from the collection ranging from wife-biscuits (老婆饼) to panda-cookies. I basically just grabbed almost all of them.
Wheelchair Accessibility
- Accommodation
Marriott is a reputable hotel chain so the SkyCity Marriott Hotel has been very accessible in terms of its facilities and amenities. There is one caveat though and that is their toilet, as like all the others I observed in public washrooms in Hong Kong, is of a considerable height. It posed a slight challenge to me as my legs are short and it became hard to find leverage while switching over to the toilet.
- Public Transport
The subway and buses are accessible to wheelchairs in similar fashion as to those in Singapore. The only difference with the buses is that in Hong Kong, wheelchairs board and alight from the front entrance while in Singapore, wheelchairs board and alight from the rear exit. The gaps between the subway doors and the platforms are also much wider than those at home so we had to take extra care to ensure the front wheels of my wheelchair did not fall into them.
- Roads and Sidewalks
Raised markings for the visually handicapped are on every pathway or sidewalk. This is very much lauded as it really takes care of a much needed group. However, the markings are really taxing on my wheelchair. Given the narrowness of the pathways and sidewalks, I had no chance of avoid going over the markings. As much as I enjoyed the walks, my butt begged to differ.
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