Friday in HK = work + play means a really long day.

Friday is the day I was her for, the day of our presentation at the Conference. I put on my 'work outfit', prepared for being sweaty in slacks, and headed to the subway.

By now I'm feeling so great and comfortable with getting around in HK. I have my routes, and I can estimate my time well. But halfway to my subway stop, which is all downhill, I realise I've forgotten the flashdrives for our presentation. Deep sigh. Channel a cool breeze, turn around and walk back up hill to my apartment to get them.

I'm drenched in sweat by the time I get to the Conference Centre. But it's all good. I've spent most of my time here outside. Being in this fancy, massive building, is an experience in itself.

I don't understand this sign. Really. How is this even possible, on an hourly basis? And then to put this info on a permanent sign? I still have so much to learn.

The presentation goes well and my co-workers move on to the rest of their weekend-long conference. I am free to go and so I head home, change into clothes that feel less sweaty (but that's really all in my head. Everything is sweaty) and think about how to use up my last afternoon and evening in HK. Thankfully I can take the mid-levels escalator to get up the hill on my route home.

On my way home all those store fronts that were shuttered at 8am are now open for business. They're selling packaged sandwiches and rice bowls, and the commuters stop to grab one on their way into the subway station. It's a very tidy operation, meaning small and specific, as opposed to clean. :)

When I head out again, my first stop is having one more lunch at Bun Cha, proprietors of tasty Pho, salad rolls and thick mint iced tea that I swear I'll replicate every day next summer at home. I love comforting foods, and want to soak up this small local routine of mine one more time. I need all the memories I can make to take home with me.

In looking at my neighbourhoods map that I've been using thus far, I decide it's time to explore the neighbourhood West of me. Po Hing Fong and Tai Ping Shan. Passing street-level worjsip spots is just the norm now, and I love the variety of each one.

I start wandering and quickly discover I've been right beside the coolest places all week. Every turn in this area provides me with a visual explosion of street art, old buildings, modern meccas and quirky businesses. Just look.

This shop is wall-to-wall craft beer. I miss Kit. I can picture us sitting on these stools and him sampling beers through the side service window. No matter how crowded Hong Kong is, they find simple ways to fit everything in.

All the old buildings have built in drying racks on the outside of them. I love that this city is built for life here. That a drying rack outside your window, above the street, is just a given feature. Like the covered walkways, and umbrella bags inside every store, they set things up to work. And it works.

I love the tall high-rises built around cobblestone streets and ancient-looking stone staircases.

That street signs are often on the corners of the buildings, because there is just no room on the narrow sidewalk for a sign post. Do what works.

A great little antique accessories shop, and an amazing florists. I bought some vintage hair clips and drank in the scent of these flowers. These colourful storefronts at the base of tall, grey and weathered buildings is exactly what this neighbourhood is about. 

I couldn't help myself, this felt too rich. A coffee shop with HIPSTER on the front counter, and a hipster seated behind the sign? You just can't pass this sort of thing up. And check out all the A/C units just for that floor.

I love this photo. The cobblestone steps with tropical trees growing up the middle; the weathered, moldy looking building and signage, simply because in this climate of rain and heat, things just get dirty and worn. And yet these are home to vibrant small businesses that are making life work in modern HK. And doing it all on a really steep mountainside.

The mural outside an organic underwear shop. Yes, an organic underwear shop. I did  not go in. I knew it'd be out of my price range, by about 50 miles.

I love this photo for 2 reasons: the design aspect of this building, that they tiled it in such a way to give it this awesome Escher-esque look. And that there are repairs being done that high off the ground, and it's being done on bamboo platforms. They have no need for a more modern option, this clearly works. 

This is one of the elementary schools in this neighbourhood. It looks run down from the front, but inside the rooms are bright and colourful, all the kids so neat and tidy in their uniforms, their book bags all hung in a row. (I can see all this from the courtyard around the back).

A little rest/play space in the jungle. A bit sad-looking due to the construction, but a cool part of such a vibrant neighbourhood. They just fit little scenes everywhere.

One place I'd planned to go what this little tea shop, Tea-Ka. I'd read about it before I came to HK, and thought I'd make it a place to try new things. But my shyness won out, I felt too much the odd one out, wouldn't know what to order, be standing there forever, holding up the line. So I just admired it from the outside. It was lovely. 

This was one block of pre-war buildings that the city had tried to demolish to build high-rises, but the people protested and so they stayed. I can imagine HK back when this was the norm, without the high-rises surrounding it on all sides. 

This place. Holy hipster batman. I wondered if they built vegans in there or just fed them.

Call me the Lorax, but we need to talk about the trees here. They are massive, majestic and mighty. They grow within a truly concrete jungle; there is no visible soil or grass here. And yet they thrive, and tower over me as I wander these winding roads.

Growing out of cracks in the walls, crevices between buildings.

Their roots twine down to find something to feed on, and they become part of the structure.

Or the city builds a structure for them, once the tree has chosen it's spot. I freaking love this!

I've walked in a rambling square all afternoon, hoping to end up at this place, Lascar Street, or as it's called locally, Little Cat Row. And I know I've found it.

There are many many little trinket stalls in this block, almost like Chinatown in the Western world. Every stall sells similar things; ceramic tea sets, chopstick sets with little ceramic chopstick rests, beads, Chinese brush-script painting sets. I remind myself that I do not need any of these things, that their intrigued in Hong Kong will wane quickly once I'm back home, and that most are available in Chinatown back in Victoria. Just look Caelen.

One shop maximizes it's lure to tourists with Hello in every language imaginable.

One item, though, well, it taxes my brain. It is offensive and just fucking odd. And I cannot figure out what it means. And it's in every shop. I will never ask a shop owner what it is about. Never.

I finish my epic walkabout and head back to my apartment. It's 6pm and usually I would start my evening wind-down routine at this point, as I've been up since 4. Soak my feet in the sink, blog about the day, watch some netflix, and pass out from exhaustion by 9pm. But it's my last night in Hong Kong! I need to go OUT THERE and soak up every last drop of interesting this city has to offer. A quick wardrobe change, and a consult of my maps and notes to formulate a plan. It's my last night, so I should go big before I go home. 

First stop, the very hip bar in the bottom of the PMQ building, The Aberdeen Street Social,  around the corner from me. It is very modern-hip, black and white tiling, Edison bulbs in low-hanging lamps. They have a large cocktail menu, and the most stocked bar I've even seen, being manned by some very cool, drink-savvy looking fellows. I take a deep breath and walk in. To a bar in a foreign city, on my own. I am a woman experiencing the world. Here we go.

I peruse the drinks menu while seated at the bar. I decide on a "Frenchy" which is described as "Generous gin, lemon juice, lavender liquor, homemade peach soda". Gin, which is my thing, and it sounds the right amount of sweet, but light, and not syrupy or heavy. I think Generous Gin means a lot of it. But it's actually a French Gin brand. The bottle alone is amazing. One guy sets to mixing the peach soda, another to getting one giant ice cube out of the bin. After many coordinated steps, they place this in front of me, and I take a moment just to sit with it. And I ask to see the gin bottle.

This drink is delicious. I know I will never be able replicate it, nor get a second one, so I try my best to savour every drop. I throw off the mantle of social respectability when I tip the glass all the way back to get every bit of this moment into my mouth. It will never happen again. I'm tapping into the Buddha. 

That drink cost $26 CAN. Like I said, I'm going big. And now I'm done. 

I head out into the street and remember the shop across from my apartment, that is never open when I'm awake during the day. Imagine this in North America: a second hand shop so cool it's only open at night. I give you Select 18. I bought some cheap earrings. When you see me wearing plastic purple roses, this is where they came from. My brother would love this place.

I've decided to head back over to the huge shopping district that is Causeway Bay, East of here. I head down hill, on my usual subway stop walking route. And I pass what looks like a fresh offering to the Gods. Warm food, clean water and incense. There is no one around, the street is empty and quiet. I just stay with this moment a sec.

Reverence over, I bust a move for the station. When I come out and head above ground at the other end, I'm assaulted by lights and sound. It is so different compared to when I visited in the daylight.

Their double-decker trams are way cooler than ours. Baby blue with rainbows? Love.

I hit all the tourist-y haunts. This Hong Kong brand APE is big with the teens back home, so I check it out. 

I'm not allowed to take pictures inside the store, so imagine a silver room with brightly coloured clothes, all covered in this Ape-face logo, and me, the white mom in her 40's, being followed by at least 2 hip, young Asian staffers at every moment. I got out fast. 

Then I found this awesome shop, underground in Times Square Mall. Times Square is a 9 story mall in HK. Because land is so costly, it is a vertical mall. Plus 2 floors underground. It is massive! And on the first basement level is a shop called City Super. It is fantastic. It's a Japanese store, with a full grocery, deli, bakery, plus tons of shopping space where they stock weird pop-culture stuff and wicked stylish backpacks and gear. I spent ages wandering around in there.

One of two aisles of Japanese candy. I know my park-day crew back home will want me to stock up, so I grad the things that are the best mix of odd-but-hopefully-tasty.

I don't know what these dolls are,  but they're clearly popular, and creepy. I resist the urge to start collecting them. 

Then I head back out onto the street. It is truly dark but the neon lights are so bright, you have no idea what time it is. I see a home decor shop with something amazing in their second-floor window. I must go in.

If I could shrink any one thing down to take it home in my carry-on suitcase, this would be it. Both of them. They're almost $1000 CAN (combined).

There's a sign saying Clearance 4th Floor so I head up, just for fun. More window shopping. When you have old buildings and need modern conveniences (like wi-fi for 50) you get creative. Phone cords snake all the way the stairwell with me.

The walk up was worth the trip. This fan of human anatomy is floored that no one has snatched up this wicked serving dish set. I debated it, for about 30 seconds. But I let it go.

I'm exhausted, and I've been exploring this cool area for hours and hours. It's time for bed. I need to pack up my stuff and head out tomorrow morning. 

xoxo

C