HK in 2 Days

My brief trip to Hong Kong was the first time I’d left Xiamen since I arrived here almost three (!!) months ago. Trust me, it was a much needed break.

While there are certainly things I enjoy about living in China, traveling to a truly international city replete with other foreigners and plenty of English was just what I needed to put a little spring back in my step. Between the incessant staring, the trials of teaching, and the monotony of our cafeteria food, I was more than ready to hop on a fast train south to experience a little excitement. Even though the purpose of my trip was to (finally!) get my work visa, I was much more excited about the idea of shopping for American brands and eating food that wasn’t Chinese.

I set off on my mini-adventure bright and early on Thursday morning. I had not reserved a ticket for the train and was simply hoping that if I showed up early enough I would have no trouble securing one.

Getting to the station proved to be an ordeal in itself. I ended up crammed on the back of a bus and was unable to get off at my stop because my foot got caught in the door. (Figures.) I got off at the following stop and then had to run all the way back (and right through a massive mud puddle) to just barely catch the bus I needed to transfer to.

Once I got to the station, I was hoping that there would be at least some English to direct me to where I needed to go. No such luck. The ticket windows were ensconced in Chinese and I had no idea which line would get me a ticket to Shenzhen. I breathed a quick prayer and hopped in the shortest line hoping for the best. (The best being an English speaker of some level who would understand my near non-existent Chinese and frantic hand gestures.)

Thankfully, that’s pretty much what I got and ended up with a ticket leaving at 8:50 to Shenzhen.

I knew the train ride would be almost 4 hours, and once I arrived in Shenzhen I knew that I would need to take the subway to the China/Hong Kong border and then from there take another subway to Causeway Bay where my hostel and the visa office were located. Based on that information, I figured I would arrive in Causeway Bay around 2:00pm, leaving plenty of time to get to the visa office and then relax at my hostel before doing a little exploring.

After all the trips I've taken, I should’ve known better than to assume such things. As it turned out. I arrived in Causeway Bay well after 3:00pm and proceeded to get myself lost. (C’mon, Hong Kong. You need street signs at every intersection!) As the clock ticked closer to 4 o’clock (the visa office closed at 5), my panic levels skyrocketed and I began to formulate a Plan B. I decided if all else failed I could always stay and leave on Monday.

As I wandered down yet another road (without a street sign), I noticed with a wave of relief that one kindly business had posted their full address on their wall, including the street name. I was walking in the right direction!

Moments later, I raced into the visa office praying for short lines and an accommodating visa officer. Again, no such luck. There were 77 people in front of me! I grabbed my number and sank down in the frigid air conditioning to wait my turn.

As I sat there silently shivering, I noticed that there seemed to be quite a few people being turned away due to, what seemed to be, a lack of documentation. I was terrified that after traveling all the way to Hong Kong and arriving in the nick of time and after waiting for the 77 people ahead of me that I would make it to the window only to be rejected due to some minute detail I had overlooked. So every five or ten minutes, I kept taking out my visa application and reviewing it for phantom errors lurking between the lines.

My number--330--was finally called. I walked sweaty-palmed up to the window and gingerly placed my information in the tray. I was just waiting for everything to come crashing down around me.

The visa officer flipped through my passport and application and it seemed like everything was as it should be. Just as a sigh of relief started to escape my lips, she paused and my heart froze.

“I need your Hong Kong visa.” I frantically scrambled around the corners of mind trying to determine when and if I had ever acquired such a visa. Nothing came to mind.

“I—I don’t have a Hong Kong visa,” I responded nervously.

She insisted. “Your visa. I need to see your Hong Kong visa.”

Again I replied in the negative.

With a long-suffering sigh, cultivated to perfection after dealing with thousands of inept foreigners no doubt, she pointed to a small square of paper that looked exactly like the one I had been given at the Hong Kong border. It was literally barely larger than a postage stamp and I had had no idea that that insignificant little slip of nothingness was my visa. I silently thanked my lucky stars that I hadn't chucked it like I had originally planned and slid it to her under the window.

After that, everything was smooth sailing. I was told that I could pick up my visa the following day at 3pm and was sent on my way.

After having been so tightly wound since departing that morning from Xiamen, I almost didn't know what to do with myself. I literally had to take a moment in a nearby bathroom stall to keep myself from collapsing into a soggy heap of tears of relief.

But I was starving and my back ached from hauling around my backpack all day, so all of that melodramatic nonsense was quickly squelched and I was off to find food and shelter.

Happily, the rest of my time in Hong Kong was quite pleasant. It mainly involved me wandering around the area near my hostel. It was perfectly situated smack in the middle of Causeway Bay so I had easy access to all of the big stores and shopping centers like SOGO and Times Square, as well as some amazing restaurants. I took full advantage of this time to indulge in those “American” pastimes that I had been missing. Like sipping coffee at a legit coffee shop and buying my first pair of Toms. And some things less "American" like digging into a heavenly plate of Pad Thai or a steaming bowl of Japanese ramen. I even stumbled upon my favorite cookies from Australia, Tim Tams! I also managed to squeeze in a bit of sightseeing and spent Friday morning strolling around Victoria Park.

For lots more info, pics and footage of my HK experience, click the video below. And be sure to click here to check out my Facebook album as well!

(Please note: Most of the video was taken on my cell phone hence the smaller size and lower quality.)