Hong Kong Day 1 - Mong Kok & The Peak

Hi! Back from my short 5D4N trip to Hong Kong/Macau! It's my second trip there but I actually enjoyed this one a lot more, since I got to plan the itinerary and visited a lot more places. Weather was a bitch though. We thought it would be like 18-20 degrees, but it ended up being 14-16 degrees. I brought shorts, minis and slippers, so we actually could have enjoyed it more if we were more appropriately dressed. =(

Anyway, here's day 1. ^^

We arrived shortly (on Tigerair) before noon and the first thing to do - get data! Lol. Done some research and thus we headed directly to the 1010 shop at level 7. We got the one2free power prepaid card for HKD 88, which comes with 7-day unlimited data plus HKD 10 stored value (for emergency calls and stuff). Connectivity was better and faster than Singtel. =X Here's how it looks like.

Then we took the airport express train (HKD 70 per pax) out to Kowloon Station, where we switched to the free airport shuttle which stopped directly outside our hotel, Metropark Kowloon. Thankfully our room was ready.

Nice and clean, and big enough for the two of us. We spent about SGD 667 for the 4 nights. Only complaint would be the lifts. One was down for upgrading, and the remaining three were slow max. And it was a 10-15 min walk from either Yau Ma Tei or Mong Kok Station. 

So after dumping our luggage and a brief rest, we headed out for food! Spent some time finding our way to Argyle Centre. Had lunch at the basement. And that's when we found out the food was actually more expensive in Hong Kong. I miss Taiwan!

Briefly browsed through the 4 levels of Argyle Centre. It's like our Bugis Street. Most of the shops sell the same items but the way I see it, the prices are also almost always the same. Was looking for some long pants or covered shoes (cos it was so freaking cold) but ended up with a top and a pair of skorts. -_-|||

Then we headed to the Goldfish Market. It's basically just a street lined with aquariums and pet shops on both sides. They have lots of bagged fish and they actually look clean and healthy, at way cheaper prices. Just for that I wish I was living in Hong Kong LOL.

We entered in almost every pet shop and finally got a non-slip bowl and a toy for the girl. Prices are slightly cheaper but dehydrated treats aren't exactly very common. There are still a lot of commercial food and treats on the shelves. Boo. 

And I found my 臭豆腐! It's very common in Taiwan but this is the first and only time I've seen it in Hong Kong. And SSD's shark fin. =X

Made a brief walk through the infamous Ladies' Market. Just 2 rows of stalls selling almost identical stuff, with a too-narrow walkway in between. I remember the prices used to be exorbitantly high to 'cheat' tourists, but it seems like they've toned down quite a bit. SSD got his jacket there cos he forgot to bring his HAHAHA! And unfortunately we suck at haggling.

All these were in the Mong Kok area so it was very convenient to walk from one to the other. 

Next stop - The Peak! Took the MTR to Central Station, then walked about 5-10 mins to the tram station. One way peak tram is HKD 28, and can be paid through the Octopus Card (albeit a little more expensive). We didn't get to visit the sky terrace cos it was super misty and I was freezing. This is how it looks like outside.

Got Genting feel? Haha. Had dinner at the cafe just outside the exhibition. I guess we ordered the wrong stuff cos others looked so much more appetizing than ours. Tried the hot coke with lemon for the first time as I was nursing a runny nose. I thought it would help. It didn't. Tasted quite nice though.

Bill came up to HKD 150. This is what I meant by expensive. X_X

We bought the Madame Tussauds couple package online for HKD 399 (plus free photo frame). Much cheaper than if we got it there at the counter. It was my second time there and to be honest, it wasn't interesting both times. SSD looked a bit bored too. But at least now he can say he has been to the wax museum. LOL!

My loots for the day! ^^

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day 1 | day 2 | day 3 | day 4 | day 5
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Pet Expo 2014

Yesterday we went to our first pet exhibition - Pet Expo 2014. To be honest, it was......disappointing. =X

We were lucky to be able to get a parking lot as soon as we arrived, and the ticket queue wasn't very long. ($3 per pax by the way.) But the exhibition was very small. Much much smaller than I had expected. And the booths didn't exactly interest me at all. Was there for the agility, but it was so boring that we left halfway. 

And just before we were about to leave the exhibition, we came across the Feeding Our Pets seminar, so we sat in. Big mistake. Halfway through the lesson, we realized he was promoting......KIBBLES! *bang wall* He asked if anyone was feeding kibbles, and it totally shocked me that majority of the people there raised their hands! Someone asked about HCF and raw, and he came up with excuses to discourage them. He went on to say that kibbles are very important for dental health. What a load of bullshit! And when he asked if anyone felt that kibbles was better than HCF or raw, PEOPLE RAISED THEIR HANDS OMFG!

I wished he asked if anyone was feeding raw. Then I'd have proudly raised my hand and shout out how I think kibbles are total rubbish however premium they claim to be (even my grandmother sees that easily), and how I will never ever go back to kibbles again. Switching to raw was the best decision I ever made. It's just SO OBVIOUS from everything that kibbles are bad bad bad, why on earth is a vet still promoting it?! Sheesh. 

Only thing I agree with him - food topics are controversial.

Anyway, we went around the booths twice. Since I was raw feeding, the kibbles didn't interest me at all. Nor did the supplements and grooming stuff. I was only looking for treats and toys. Then we figured since we'll be going to Hong Kong (tomorrow!), we could probably get the toys there cheaper. So this was all we got! (She just decided to get into the picture too lol.)

Happi Doggy dental chews (bought on impulse), beef lungs, deer liver, and deer sinew! Pity deer heart was sold out. Really glad since I don't get these often. (Beef lung maybe, but where can I get deer meat?!) I think raw is still better than dehydrated or freeze-dried, but these shall work as treats I guess. *shrugs* Got a happy tails bath replacement too. Gonna use it to clean her after walkies. It smells soooo good!

Overall, while I'm disappointed at the booths (or lack of) at the exhibition, I'll still go for the next one because of Popo. She met one of her Papillon friends too! =)

[sponsored review] Trimton 2

So two weeks ago, I was sponsored a one-month supply of Trimton 2 (速效瘦) slimming pills. Trimton is apparently hit in Singapore and Hong Kong for over 8 years. It claims to use totally natural ingredients with different international certification and helps to reduce weight by taking a treatment without diet and exercise. But of cos, slimming pills have quite a bad reputation so before I took on this sponsorship, I had checked out the internet, and found mixed reviews. Some said they lost a fair bit of weight, while some had no difference. However, I didn't see any with negative side effects, which gave me the confidence to try it out. 

Trimton 2 is supposedly a newer edition which is based on a new developed medical technology: Microencapsulation. It focuses on cutting oil and losing weight in a natural way.

Reduces oil:
．Breakthrough E.Microen (肠溶性微粒) Technology stimulate the effect brought by the natural ingredients;
．Oil-blocking effect in intestine;
．Effectively blocks out and dissolves oil from food intake up to 80%.

Targets fatty areas:
．Increases body heat at fatty area and burns fat;
．HCA and Chlorogenic Acid help body to prevent fat storing;
．Effectively reduces body fat percentage.

The main ingredients HCA & Chlorogenic Acid can help to reduce the fat up to 52%; Green tea polyphenols and organic acids can help to block oil intake up to 30% and help to slim up the whole body and lose weight. And it's safe to use with no side effects. Sounds cool right?!

My take on it: 
The recommended treatment is to take Trimton 2 for 3 months (2 capsules daily), but I only had half a month to try it out before reviewing. So obviously there wouldn't be any significant weight loss. 

But what I do realize is:

• I feel fuller with lesser amount of food
• Bowels are nice and smooth (excuse me for saying this; but I actually poop more =X)
• Tummy is slightly flatter as compared to before

Of course I would have liked to see more obvious results, but having only taken it for 2 weeks (some many times I forget to take it in the mornings too), I suppose it's quite good already. Probably I'll be able to see my weight numbers go down if I complete the 3 months. (More sponsor perhaps? LOL!)

Overall I'm really glad to be able to try this out. At this time too! Hello good food in Hong Kong! ^^