Hong Kong without Daddy Lim Day 3: Cheung Chau

When I woke up in the morning, I thought that the sky outside looked gloomier than the day before. I saw people with the brollys and the trees dancing in the wind from the hotel window. The rain wasn't heavy but the wind looked fierce.

Ah yee said that signal no. 3 typhoon warning was raised last night at 11pm. We slept through the typhoon apparently. She sent me this long and detailed weather forecast.

In short, it was still at signal no. 3 in the morning but the typhoon would be moving away from Hong Kong and dying down in the late morning after hitting China. We decided then that we would still proceed to Cheung Chau but to do so after the signal was removed.

Ah yee and I then bought Mac bfast back to the kids. The rain was somewhat like a heavy drizzle and the wind didn't feel that bad too. If this was signal no. 3, then the thunderstorms that we have in Singapore would easily qualify for a signal no. 5 or 6. Anyway, life goes on with a signal no. 3 and people were still rushing for work and school.

The Mac was still crowded. I am always very amazed with their tiny seats and had to snap these pictures. So small; not enough for Daddy Lim. Haha.

It was a lazy morning bcos we had to wait for the typhoon to pass. We lazed around and finally got out of the hotel at 11am, when the signal was lowered to no. 1. Yeah! There was a light drizzle when we left the hotel.

We took the MTR to the Central station and walked to the connecting Hong Kong station to get to the Central Pier. It was the same place that we last took the ferry to Lamma island, just a different pier.

Ah yee caught the timing down to the last minute; we were the last few to catch the ferry. We caught the fast ferry that took only 30 mins as compared to the usual hour.

With the wifi egg that ah yee rented, the kids self entertained with YouTube for a while. I had to stop them bcos the vessel was slightly rocky but nothing as bad as I imagined it would be. It wouldn't be nice with vomiting kids though. Fortunately we were in the fast speed one.

The plan upon arrival was simple - buy raincoat in case the rain gets really heavy and find a light lunch. Cheung Chau is surprising populated and modern as compared to Lamma island. Shops lined the street. There is even Mac when we exited the pier.

We had a nice and light lunch before starting the walk. There was a light drizzle still but it wasn't chilly, which made wearing our waterproof/ resistant jackets difficult.

Then, the rain and the sun were playing a prank on us, taking turns to come out. We were constantly playing this wearing jacket, taking out jacket game. It was too warm to don the jackets most of the time.

After a short walk, we came to this big slope but the silver lining was the playground midway. Despite the drizzle, the kids were quick to make a dash for it.

We also found a roller skating rink. That is like so 80s!

Soon, we continued with our long upward climb. It was up and up and up.

Interestingly, houses lined the way. I cannot imagine doing this kind of climb everyday from the pier. I think I would not go home or stay home forever. Lol.

Actually, we didn't quite figure out where we were walking to. We just went along the way, which a particular part was mosquitos infested and those mosquitoes were like having their buffet. Zzzz.. Mosquitoes repellent was not at all effective. The only solution was to quicken our steps and leave the mosquitoes behind.

We then saw the sign to the famous Cheung Po Tsai Cave and wanted to explore; I read in blog that we could go into the cave to explore. We were on a narrow concrete pathway that suddenly stops. At the end, it was the "cave". It wasn't the typical cave (where the bear in the story book lives) but something that looks like big stones overlapping creating some super narrow and steep openings. The kids were super keen to explore but with the rain, it looks mega slippery and dangerous. One wrong step and it could be fatal.

No kids were allowed near the "cave". At that, Zaky loudly lamented that he wished Daddy Lim was here with us. I wished the same too. He said that if Daddy Lim was with us, he would help us and allow us to explore the cave. Lil Shauna was eagerly nodding in agreement. Too bad kids. We ended up having to be contented with just taking pictures on the narrow walkway.

On the way back to the main path, we saw another narrow and steep stairways. There were some railings and it looked safe enough for the kids to explore. I had to hold on to Zaky with my dear life though. I saw ambulance on the island but wouldn't want to activate any. The stairways led to again some big rocks that were near to the shoreline. The only access way was covered by litter that was probably washed up by the recent typhoon.

It looked too dangerous to explore further and we headed back up. I had to constantly yell at the kids to hold on to the handrail even if bugs were crawling on it.

Once back on the main path, we took a slow walk back to the pier.

We were bored and the kids and CY agreed to pose for me.

Cheung Chau is a lot bigger and we probably just explored one tiny part of it. Maybe it was the rain plus summer heat and the itchy mosquito bites, nobody complained when we suggested to call it a day.

We were right on time again and were again the last few to board the ferry. No need to wait. This time, the sea was a lot calmer and the kids got to watch YouTube for the entire journey. It was such a peaceful ride for me. Haha.

There was no other itinerary for the day and the kids spent the late afternoon and evening lazing in the room, watching TV and soaking in the tub. We had dinner at one of the restaurants nearby before turning in for the night in anticipate of Disneyland the next day. Hooray!

By the 3rd day, I was feeling so bad towards Lil Shauna. She had been so sensible throughout the trip and fortunately she was totally at ease with Ah yee and CY. I had to pass her to them so many times bcos the boy was such a handful and he took all my attention. There were even times that I purposely entertained the boy so that he wouldn't disturb jiejie. Haiz. Thank God for Lil Shauna. I heard that the kids were angels during the Penang trip. Apparently the magic disappeared when mummy is around. Ok, half the magic bcos Lil Shauna is still one angel.

Mummy Lim

Hong Kong without Daddy Lim Day 2 Part 2: Meow Meow Day Cafe

We thought of some animal theme cafes in the 2nd part of the day to burn some time. While the kids run around in the Science Museum, ah yee diligently googled about the possible options.

The kids were looking forward to the bunnies cafe but were told that they were being investigated for selling food without a food licence. As such, the cafe may be on suspension. It wouldn't be fun to travel so far (somewhere in HKG island) to find its door shut. Ah yee didn't want to go to a cat cafe. The only dog cafe that we found online was involved in some dog abuse scandal. Not good.

Ah yee and CY were really accommodating. While they didn't fancy the cat cafe, they suggested for us to proceed while they burnt the hour walking around. We decided on the Meow Meow Day Cafe in Mongkok. There would be plenty to entertain ah yee and CY too while we played with the cats plus Mongkok was near to our hotel in Jordan.

With GPS, it didn't take us very long to find the cafe after exiting the MTR station. We were given an hour before meeting up. It wasn't a big cafe and the kids said that there were like 17 cats, most of them unfortunately were lazy like normal cats. Haha.

The place didn't smell too unlike most dog cafes. The minimum charge was HKD80 per pax. Originally, I thought that the food and drinks charges were in additional to the cover charges only to have clarified only when we were leaving. Chey. The minimum spend = HKD240 for the 3 of us and we had to pay extras if we ordered above the minimium charge. We did get a snack and a drink eventually and didn't spend the full amount bcos dinner was too near.

Did the kids like the cat cafe? Of course. They never say no to animals, even if it was a pig or crocodile cafe. We were given a piece of chicken breast to feed the cats and the kids were thrilled to be swamped by cats.

After the food was gone, they ran off to try to get cats to play with them using the provided toys. Not many of the cats were interested though.

The last part, Lil Shauna went around snapping the cat pictures.

Including this one. Meow.

I do hoped that some of the cats were rescued cats bcos some of them didn't look like they were in the best condition. There was this really fierce one with only 1 eye. There was another scrawny looking one. Some had bad tear stains.

We left the cafe after 1.5 hr. It was really time to go bcos Zaky started sneezing and sniffing and his eyes started to itch and tear. He couldn't stop rubbing his eyes. Ah yee 1st reaction was why he cried when he didn't. Zzzzz. I knew Zyrtec would solve the problem but it was in the hotel. The pharmacy in the area also didn't carry the liquid version. We decided to head back to the hotel and I had to carry the boy a little bcos he could barely stop rubbing his eyes and thus couldn't see.

His condition definitely improved after a while and thank God that ah yee had the foresight to choose a cat cafe that was near to the hotel. He had his dose of Zyrtec not long after. Yeah!

By night, it had started to drizzle. We had dinner at one of the nearby 茶餐厅. Zaky couldn't eat much probably bcos of the snacks and that he was tired. We headed back to the hotel after the kids were done, leaving ah yee and CY to have a peaceful dinner. They helped us to buy snacks and water back thereafter.

That ended our day 2. Sleep was again easy.

Mummy Lim

Hong Kong without Daddy Lim Day 2 Part 1: Science Museum

The phone alarms went off one by one. With or without, we were up fairly early at about 7.30am. The sky was bright.

The plan was either another indoor venue - the Science Museum or to Cheung Chau. Accordingly to the weather forecast, it would be rainy with thunderstorms and no. 1 typhoon could hit HKG, possibly escalating to no. 3. The following day, though still rainy, did not have typhoon warning. Logically, it would make sense to head indoor but the weather was so gorgeous when we headed for bfast. Seriously?

Since there wasn't much on the itineray, we took our time to get ready. The kids even had a bathtub dip and indulged in TV and snacks. Nobody complained that it was boring; they love staying in hotels. We headed for bfast at about 9am at one of the 茶餐厅. It was the typical squeeze and I was worried that active Zaky would get the famous dagger stares but it went fine generally and the bfast was fabulous. The kids both had a good amount of food.

We finally got out of the hotel at 10ish and took a bus 26 to the museum. The bus stop was right across the road, so convenient. See how nice the weather was.. what typhoon? We can't help but were doubtful of the weather forecast.

We are no strangers to buses in Sgp but sitting on the upper deck + front seats of a double decker deck never fails to thrill kids. It was a 15 mins ride and the kids were happily counting the number of taxis and double decker buses on the road. I like self-entertained kids anytime. Hohoho.

Of course the ride was completed with some self entertainment for the adults too.

We alighted at the depot and the Science Museum was right across the road. Hooray! The entrance was reasonable too at HKG30 per adult and only HKG5 per school going kid. This was already inclusive of the special mummy exhibition that was ongoing and would even be cheaper for only the permanent exhibits.

The mummy exhibition was actually very informative and I was interested to read about the history but we have a scardy cat who was almost freaking out. Lol. I had to leave Lil Shauna with Ah yee while rushing through with the boy. Fortunately, there were some games to entertain the kids while we waited for them. Soon Lil Shauna joined while waiting for CY to finish the exhibits. Ah yee said that CY loves museum.

 We also learned how to spell the kids' name in ancient Eyptian.

We continued with the permanent exhibits thereafter. There were plenty of little stations with puzzles like these.

I forgot to take pictures bcos even I had fun. Most of the time, I had to look at the hint and then the solution to solve the puzzles. So there was always mega excitement when we managed to solve any without help. Lol.

Lunch time came quickly and we left the museum for lunch nearby. Lunch was good; look at the food! Rolling, Rolling, rolling home. We even topped it up with ice cream thereafter.

We went back to the museum after lunch bcos there was a children's deck only to realise that it catered very much to younger kids. We didn't stay longest the kids section before heading back to the other areas for more exploration.

It was about 4ish when we finally left the Science Museum; we all had overload of Science. Lol. It was indeed a good day of relatively cheap fun.

Mummy Lim

Hong Kong without Daddy Lim Day 1: Epic Land

Bcos the price wasn't too far off, we took the luxurious SQ to HKG. This is even more so when we only had to pay for 3 instead of the usual 4 tickets. Muahahaha. I needed a full fledge flight lah; it is me against 2 kids.

We had bfast with Daddy Lim at the airport before we cleared the immigration. It was kind of rush though and the kids were looking forward to playground time like all previous trips.

The kids were left at the playground for 5 mins while I stock up on my makeup essential.

This is the smallest playground out of all the terminals I think. So the kids didn't protest when they were told that they had to head for the gate. After toilet breaks and queuing to fill the bottles, it wasn't long before boarding. Exciting!

Lil Shauna had been acting responsibly as the 1stborn throughout and willingly let Zaky take the window seat.

The flight wasn't too bad. The kids were well entertained by the in-flight entertainment. There weren't too much kids' movie selection though. They did get restless along the 4 hr flight but largely manageable. I didn't manage to arrange for kids' meal and must make a mental note to do so for the flight back. Eating will take away some "pain" as well. Haha.

We were starting to get sleepy nearing landing but there wasn't time to sleep. It was a bumpy landing but we arrived safe and sound and right on time. Looking out of the window, it looked foggy. Immigration, though crowded, was smooth. I like their efficiency. Lol.

Once we exited, we saw ah yee and CY waiting for us. They had especially came to the airport in case I couldn't handle the kids and luggage.

Last minute, we had to move most itinerary indoor bcos the weather forecast said that it would be rainy. I was actually looking forward to some trails; our last Dragon back trail was fantastic. Ah yee said that it was burning hot the last few days and today's weather was the kindest so far. Given that it was already 2pm, we decided to let the kids bounce around at some indoor playground to burn the day.

We had a light lunch before we took a bus - DB02A to Discovery Bay. It was a short trip but cost HKD35. So expensive.

Epicland! I had thought that the kids had outgrown indoor playground but they were so excited! It was a huge playground.

While the kids run around, ah yee was resting. I was worried that they would be bored but ah yee assured that it was good rest for her as they had really pushing itinerary the last few days before we arrived.

The amazing thing about kids is how they can almost ignore all physical needs at play but will feel the extreme thereafter. Hunger and tiredness set in immediately after we left. The kids started munching on snacks while we waited for the bus to bring us to the Sunny Bay MTR station. Then it was an another long train ride to our hotel at Jordon. I was worried that Zaky would fell asleep. He is way too heavy for me to carry him now. Fortunately, he held up but was very whiney. Zzzzz. The hotel was 1 min away frim the MTR exit.

The kids were definitely overtired after the early morning, flight and running in the playground. Thankfully, ah yee was super nice to suggest taobao dinner in the room. The kids asked for KFC and that was what we had in the food paradise. Sleep was so easy. Lil Shauna had a bed to herself while I squeezed with the not-so-little-anymore boy. End of the 1st day of our short holiday.

Mummy Lim

Jetting Off Without Daddy Lim

In March, Daddy Lim brought the kids to Penang without me bcos I was in Barcelona for the global meeting. Now, it is my turn! It is the September holiday but Daddy Lim has insufficient leave.

We have decided to leave him home to work hard. We are jetting off to HKG to find ah yee and CY!

Daddy Lim is so sad.

It is my 1st time flying with with kids and they had been warned not to kill me. Lol.

Mummy Lim