Batgung

Here are some tips from MrB and our readers for Hong Kong attractions that you may miss if you're not well-informed:

Let's kick off with a great idea from MrB:

A suggestion -- especially if jet-lag means you are waking up early -- is to head out to one of the parks to see people doing their morning exercise. You’ll see various types of Tai Chi, including ladies with large red-cloth fans [link to banner photos], and people with swords. There are also other (usually older) groups of people doing their exercises together, often to music. This is one of the things I like about Hong Kong, that when people get into their sixties here, many will start taking more care of their health, and join one of these informal groups to do their morning exercises and have a chat. Read more »

Ladies’ market/flower market/jade market/bird street in Mongkok

How long will it take?: ½ day is likely to be all you can take!

How to get there: All easily accessible by bus or MTR Read more »

Museums

HK’s museums are reasonably diverting, if not wildly inspiring. The Art, Science and History museums are all in Tsim Sha Tsui, and all are accessible by bus or MTR.

The art museum has some nice displays, but its flagship exhibit comprises a great deal of Chinese calligraphy, which is pretty hard for non-Chinese to appreciate beyond a cursory glance.

The science museum gets good marks. It's nothing world-shaking, as this kind of museum goes, but it's got the requisite hands-on exhibits illustrating electricity, biology, sound waves and so on. If you've got small kids, the downstairs section has a great soap-bubble-making area that's a sure hit. Overall, good value for money.  Read more »

First off, note you can read Mr Tall's review of Hong Kong Disneyland, and his tips for making the day more efficient if you like.

Now let's get on to some more interesting -- and characteristically Hong Kong -- sites!

Cheng Chau Island

How long will it take?: ½ to full day

How to get there: Bus/MTR to Central, then ferry from Central Pier Read more »

Wong Tai Sin Temple

How long will it take?: 2-3 hours

How to get there: MTR to Wong Tai Sin

The sine qua non of HK temples – huge, busy, bright, and utterly overpowering at festival times. You might be tempted to skip this one if you’ve already seen Man Mo Temple on HK Island, but if you’ve got any interest in Chinese religion and culture whatsoever, a visit here is obligatory. It’s no museum – it’s an extremely active, i.e. ‘real’ temple, and it operates on a whole different scale from the rest of Hong Kong’s temples.

Temple Street Market Read more »

Peak Tram and Victoria Peak

How long will it take?: Allow 2-3 hours; the view is best at dusk/early evening

How to get there: Peak Tram from Central, or take the #15 bus from Central, or a taxi. Read more »

1 Do try to arrive right at the opening, and go deep into the park immediately to take a couple of the rides you're really looking forward to. This is standard advice for amusement parks, but it really paid off for us, as a couple of the Fantasyland rides we walked right onto first thing in the morning had hour-long queues just a little later. Read more »

Mrs Tall and I are pathetically weak. Daughter Tall had just learned that familiar-to-all-parents whine that goes:

Iwannagotodisneyland Iwannagotodisneyland Iwannagotodisneyland

[biiiiig breath]

Iwannagotodisneyland . . .

So we caved right in and took her. Read more »

We've covered buying computer stuff in part I of this article. Now it's time to consider all the other items that make the digital life such fun -- sound and video equipment, cameras, and other electrical appliances. Read more »

I've spent large chunks of a couple of recent weekends geeking about with electronics.

(Incidentally, Mr B is well aware of this, as he wasted much of a precious Saturday afternoon on the telephone counseling a cranky and frustrated Mr T, who was unable to configure his new wifi router without professional help. It turned out Mr T had done everything right except for one minor detail: how was he to know the stupid password his ISP expected of him?) Read more »