The alarm sounded at 9am. Yeah it was late because we’re not really obligated to visit as many places as we possibly can. We were supposed to go to this eatery Nina recommended but has to move that in the afternoon. Instead, we dash to the street to find a good breakfast place. We passed by McDonalds on the street, no way are we gonna eat there. 7-11 Convenience stores? We wanted something a bit local and authentic. Then we found ourselves at Mallory Street staring at this giant wall facade art of buildings and junks done with a paintbrush. It was the Art Community building with illustrations done by Dickie Seto.
Then we noticed at the small side street under the eye catching artwork, there were people eating and tables being set up. Is it an eatery? We took a closer look and yes, they were serving breakfast. What a very interesting set up. We noticed even some of the cars that were parked here were patrons. A guy there, who seems to manage, if not the owner of the eatery set up a table for us and took our order.
I was looking at the other diners and was wondering if Hong Kong locals are like Vietnamese, too lazy to make their own breakfast and prefers to eat out on the go. Our bowls of steaming hot noodles were served as well as the ham and egg sandwich I ordered. Surprisingly it was large. The broth was good and the beef was really tender. The meal comes with a pot of hot tea, refillable to our liking. All these meal for only HKD 23.
We were now en route to Man Mo temple, but first we had to make a stop at Statue Square to catch a bus from there. This time we took a Tram, also known locally as a “Ding Ding” basically from the sound they make. This tramline has been running since early 1900’s servicing the eastern and western routes of Hong Kong Island. It’s one of the most cost-effective way to explore Hong Kong since it only cost HKD 2 whenever and whenever the stop.
At the Statue Square, a small park surrounded by high profile skyscrapers like the HSBC Building and the City Hall, we made a chill-out stop for one reason – free government wifi. Since some Hong Kong hotels don’t have internet like the one we stayed at. We took some time to catch up with our emails and social life. The park is quite cool and windy making for a comfortable stay.
Aside from Sir Thomas Jackson’s statue at the central part of the square and the water fountains which also doubles as a bird bath, I noticed that there is a large number of Filipinos here. There’s also sign there written in both English and Tagalog. Then I remembered, this is the park where a lot of Filipino Workers gather, especially during Sundays at their day offs. Even on a Saturday, I could see a lot of them gather with their own pic-nic lunch sharing laughs and company.
It’s good to see the Filipino Community here free and easy. With the recent scares of Filipino security in Hong Kong due to the recent Bus Hostage, I could not see any sense of alarm from their faces. It seemed it has died down sooner than expected. And hey, we’re here, enjoying the breeze in the city.
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Join our Backpack Photography Photo Tours and Workshops for early 2011. Banaue Photography 101 for beginners on February, Bewitching Siquijor Photo Tour on March 2011 and Batanes Island Hopping in April 2011
Ferdz Decena is an award-winning travel photographer, writer and blogger. His works has found print in publications such as Singapore Airlines’s Silver Kris, Philippine Airlines’ Mabuhay, Cebu Pacific’s Smile and Seair InFlight. He has also lent his expertise to various organizations like the Oceana Philippines, Lopez Group Foundation, Save the Children and World Vision, contributing quality images for their marketing materials.
