The title is from the friend I was staying with, S, since we ate so much and not necessarily healthy.

It was the second to last day for me and we went to this fancy McDonald’s that allows you to create your own burger!

As we were at the terminal he said this quote and we burst out laughing especially since the night before we had a pizza and a “Philly cheese steak.” It was really just meat in bread with some cream cheese.

Plus, this day we were going to Macau with the ferry, but we had a 2 hour wait so we took a taxi to this fancy McDonald’s and then a taxi back. We were truly dedicated haha.

My time in Hong Kong as it sounds was really about food. I ate so good, which was a nice change from the instant ramen I was eating in China or just noodles in general in China.

Now, leaving Hong Kong, I’m quite tired of Chinese food.

So let me tell you about my time through the food.

The Hong Kong airport has free WiFi, like you don’t even need a Chinese phone number which was such a nice change from mainland China.

This was useful as somehow we missed each other at the exit and I had to call him.

He showed up with a coffee, my flight landed around 10.30 so not that early, but early enough haha.

We took the bus back to his place and ate some delicious Indian food (his ancestors are originally from India).

His mother was a bit concerned that I wouldn’t like spicy as their food has a lot of spice, but I love it!

After a nap, we met some of his coworkers for a drink and then went up to The Peak at night, which holds a fantastic view of the city. We got dinner there at Wildfire Pizza and got a pizza with nacho chips.

The Peak was beautiful, but you need to make sure the weather because S took a mutual friend up and it was so foggy it was just a white glaze.

You can walk it, but that would be a hike so there is a cable car. I would suggest overall in Hong Kong to get an Octopus card as it is easier swiping then getting a new ticket plus it works on this cable car.

One of the Chinese cuisines that needs to be tried is Hot Pot. S took me to spicy hot pot and it was delicious. However, I don’t think it’s my favorite meal as I found it a bit silly. I suppose it’s for the social aspect. You are given a big boiling pot, in this case the broth was infused with chilies, and you stick raw foods into it to cook and then you eat it.

S also took me to 2 bars that were Spanish themed. A lot of bars in Asia are Spanish, which I found interesting perhaps due to tapas. However, after sending pictures of the tapas to Spanish friends, the response was always:

“What is that?”

But it was authentic as possible for Hong Kong.

For dinner that night we had a huge meal of vegetarian Chinese food. That was really good. We were all super stuffed!

However, there was one day that my appetite was not with me.

We went to the Big Buddha. Its next to the airport. Which, fun fact, the airport is built on all reclaimed land.

You can hike up it, but it was nice to take the cable car (the regular one is fine, no need to pay extra for the glass bottom).

The view is awesome and near the end you have a nice view of the Buddha.

I was able to stomach this waffle sandwich at a vendor near- it had so many calories I’m sure haha.

If you are looking for some street foods, the Temple street market has some vendors so you can shop and haggle for some cheap items and then eat. I got some sunglasses as well as a magnet there.

The sites are a bit spread out through Hong Kong, which it is made of many islands (this is where the Octopus card comes in hand). Actually, I found that there are not much tourist things to do in Hong Kong. It’s more experiencing the culture and the food.

I was there when I was younger so couldn’t experience it fully as I could now.

My friend took me out one Friday night and we went to several different bars and dance bars. Some of the noteworthy ones are Ping Pong, The Music Room (which is a speakeasy and get here kind of earlier for a seat), Iron Fairies, and Ophelia. We also went to El Gringo Loco- a Mexican bar with a variety of yummy tequila drinks and party music.

Ping Pong offers some food, Spanish tapas, but it’s a gin bar. We got to The Music Room a bit late so didn’t experience it for so long, but it seemed cool. Iron Fairies has a live band and really cool decorations. Ophelia is an interesting bar as it has young women displayed on counters, tables, and swings, etc. Sexual objectification at its finest. But the drinks, if a bit expensive, are nice and it’s, like I said, an interesting bar.

 But, going back to the tourist aspects. There are several promenades by the water that are lovely. If you want a nice skyline view, my suggestion is taking one of the Hong Kong ferries across, but along some of the promenades you get some nice views.

Another great view I was able to see was this:

But to get to the East Tsim Sha Tsui promenade, you pass through this little square and some eateries with live bands. Most of the performers are Filipino, which my friend said,

“Let’s see if they are good.”

“They are Filipino, of course they are good.” I replied. Later,

“Wow, they are good.”

“I told you!”

On my last full day or second to last day in general, we went to Macau, which is it’s own country so you need to bring your passport. When returning to Hong Kong you need to fill out the customs form again as a friendly reminder.

The ferry ride isn’t that long. We just did the casinos, mainly walking through them and not gambling. There is an actual city, but my friend didn’t know how to get there and didn’t think there was much to see. But, I recommend checking it out- you are there, why not?

At the Venetian, as well as elsewhere I believe, they sell pasteis de nata or custard tarts. It is originally Portuguese, but like how the British controlled Hong Kong, the Portuguese controlled Macau so there is leftover influence. For example, many of the signs are in English, Portuguese, and Cantonese.

Besides this, the casinos made me feel like I was in Las Vegas!

For the last night we got bubbled waffles and added ice cream to it- it was super delicious!

Later, S messaged me that surprisingly, “besides our best efforts,” he lost weight. So, just because we ate a lot- doesn’t mean it was all bad for us! Ok maybe, we had too many McDonald’s haha.

It was a fun week reconnecting with a university friend as well as getting to know Hong Kong again! I hope my post made you hungry enough to venture out there!

For a more specific itinerary for backpacking, check out this amazing post!

See you soon!