Done in HK: Beginning the longest, largest and wildest trip of my life

Hey Everyone,

Last day in Hong Kong today! I am leaving in 30 minutes to go to Shenzhen (China) to begin my 3 week trip with Søren.

We are expecting to travel through the following cities and countries:

Shenzhen - Guilin (China)

Guilin - Jangzhou (China)

Jangzhou - Nanning (China)

Nanning - Hanoi (Vietnam)

Hanoi - Hoi An (Vietnam)

Hoi An - Ho Chi Min (Saigon) (Vietnam)

Ho Chi Min - Bangkok (Thailand)

Bangkok - Ko Phi Phi (Thailand)

Ko Phi Phi - Bangkok (Thailand)

Bangkok - Hong Kong (Hong Kong)

Hong Kong - London (England)

London - Copenhagen (Denmark) Finally Home! on the 17th of January at 14:50 in Kastrup Airport!

See you all soon,

Anders

Trip to Lijiang!

Since I don't have much time, I will let the pictures from the trip speak out about how fantastic, diverse and exciting Lijiang was:

Above: Lijiang Old Town: Where we stayed at a nice family run hotel:

Above: Lijiang Old Town Square

Above: Typical mountaineous landscape around Lijiang

Above: Tiger Leaping Gorge: Warning sign against falling stones!

Above: The Tiger Leaping Gorge

Above: The Tiger Leaping Gorge with its magnificient reflection in the running waters

Above: Evelyne and I with the Yangtzhe River in the bagground

Above: Shu He Old Town

Above: Me on a horse! Believe it or not...

COLD WEATHER WARNING - Uhh?!

The "cold" weather did apparently hit Hong Kong this weekend, not that I noticed it as I just read the message now, but it was considered seriously enough as to the Hong Kong Observatory posting the following message on their website:

"COLD WEATHER WARNING

THE COLD WEATHER WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED BY THE HONG KONGOBSERVATORY AT 4:20 P.M.

THE HONG KONG OBSERVATORY IS FORECASTING COLD WEATHER INHONG KONG TOMORROW.

AS HONG KONG IS BEING AFFECTED BY A COLD WINTER MONSOON,PEOPLE ARE ADVISED TO PUT ON WARM CLOTHES AND TO AVOIDADVERSE HEALTH EFFECTS DUE TO THE COLD WEATHER. YOU MUSTALSO ENSURE ADEQUATE INDOOR VENTILATION.

IF YOU MUST GO OUT, PLEASE AVOID PROLONGED EXPOSURE TOWINTRY WINDS.

IF YOU KNOW OF ELDERLY PERSONS OR PERSONS WITH CHRONICMEDICAL CONDITIONS STAYING ALONE, PLEASE CALL OR VISIT THEMOCCASIONALLY TO CHECK IF THEY NEED ANY ASSISTANCE.

MAKE SURE HEATERS ARE SAFE BEFORE USE, AND PLACE THEM AWAYFROM ANY COMBUSTIBLES. DO NOT LIGHT FIRES INDOORS AS AMEANS TO KEEP WARM.

WHATEVER THE TEMPERATURE, PLEASE ENSURE THAT THERE ISPLENTY OF FRESH AIR IN YOUR ROOM WHEN YOU ARE USING ANOLD-TYPE GAS WATER HEATER.

DISPATCHED BY HONG KONG OBSERVATORY AT 16:20 HKT ON 16.12.2006"

Yes, the weather is cooler now than it was in August, but the message suggests Arctic conditions in Hong Kong, and it is still fare from that... - Anders

Going to Lijiang - China

Going to Lijiang: 8-13 of December 2006.

Description by Wikipedia.org: "The Lijiang old town has a history going back more than 800 years and was once a confluence for trade along the old tea horse road. The Lijiang old town is famous for its orderly system of waterways and bridges. It has been called the "Venice of the East".Lijiang old town (including Dayan, Baisha and Shuhe) was registered on the UNESCO World Heritage List in December 4, 1997. Since then, the local government has taken more responsibility for the development and protection of the old city. Lijiang's tourism also boomed, and travellers from around the world flooded in; although many locals fear that due to much of the development, the old town of Lijiang will lose its appeal."

Looking forward to an amazing trip to the outskirts of the Himalayas, some 200km from Tibet and India, and only 100km from Burma. The city is located 2400m above the sea level and offers trekking around the local mountains, sumitting at 5596m, the mountain Yulongxue Shan from the picture above...

Looking forward to tell and report more from my trip next week. - Anders

Please leave the country by...WHAT?

(Above: Shenzhen Meridian Tower: 388m.)

During my recent visit to Shenzhen, a "small" Chinese city of 15million people boardering with Hong Kong in a special economic zone (SEZ), I came across the following sign when returning back across the boarder to Hong Kong:

I at least found it quite funny, and in fact it is true. You do need to take the lift to go through customs to enter Hong Kong. In addition, we also took a short trip up in the Meridian Tower in Shenzhen which stands at 388m. It gives you a breath-taking view from the top over the region and city, which despite its heavy smog levels stretches long in to the distance. We were told that on a clear day, you can see the Pacific Ocean behind Hong Kong Island… but then again, they could have told us anything as fact remained that the pollution level in Shenzhen covers any such claim.

(Above: Shenzhen Police Station)

The above picture is of the local police station… “Local” as it is only, as fare as I know, for Shenzhen SEZ region. Don’t come and tell me China is not a police state, with enormous governmental control and domination… Anyhow, we got safe back to Hong Kong by lift and plan to return Wednesday to pick up our tailor-made suits and shirts at a cost of 130 Yuan a piece (100Kr, believe me or not!)

Dinner with IM Group

(From left: Natalie, Kate, Christina, Faye, Dada, Me and Christine)

Friday the 1st of December, I was invited to a dinner with my International Marketing group from City University of HK. We went to Tai Wai, one stop away from Kowloon Tong with the KRC East Rail towards Lui Wo, and had a Chinese dinner. These are the pictures from the evening... as you can see Christmas is appearing in Hong Kong as well!
(From left: Faye, Natalie, Kata and Christine)
(Natalie and Me)