Day trip to Shenzhen

The Chef

This past week we visited the exchange student's favorite restaurant - Mr. Wong's.  This was the first time that I had been, and I was quite surprised by what I found.  Mr. Wong himself was our "server," however server is a term that should be used loosely in Asia.  Let's just say that service levels aren't quite as high here as in the States.  But that's another story...

Anyways, Mr. Wong remembered the German's that I was with from their last visit and was very eager to find out where the rest of the table was from.... however, I was the only American.  He made some jokes (as many usually do) about America and proceeded to tell me he was from Tennessee... his Asian accent and inability to understand my jokes about country music were a sure give-away that he, in fact, was NOT from Tennessee - shocker.  At Mr. Wong's the food is all-you-can-eat-and-drink for 40 HKD (about $5).  It's no wonder that this is a favorite of the many poor exchange students.  Kathrin and I asked if he had any wine.  He replied "no" and whipped out a 500 HKD bill and sent the boys to the grocery store to buy us wine.  I am 100% sure that he lost money on our table since the wine was more expensive than I paid for the meal.  (My belief is that Mr. Wong's is actually a front for some shady illegal practices... just a hunch.)

For 40 HKD the food was actually pretty good... until I saw the chef's crack hanging out the back of his apron.  Only in Asia, my friends, only in Asia.

Mr. Wong and the group.

 We then headed to the IFC building to enjoy the beautiful night on the garden terrace before heading out for Ladies' night at Lan Kwai Fong.

 

McDonalds, not only a mediocre restaurant, but a place to take a nap.

 Later on Friday, we went to Sai Kung in the New Territories.  Such a relief to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city.  The air is clean, the water is wonderful and there is fantastic pizza!

The boats in Sai Kung

Seafood!!!  You can actually pick the items you want and take them to a restaurant where they will prepare the item just like you like it!

Ahhhhh, behold, the pizza.

Yesterday we headed off to Shenzhen for some shopping and spa.  Shenzhen is Hong Kong's neighboring city in China and only a 45 minute train ride across the border.  People don't usually think of Shenzhen when they think about China, however this city has twice as many people as in Hong Kong and their own stock exchange... but enough about finance, onto the shopping...

Right when you get off the train station from Hong Kong there is a HUGE mall full of many "authentic" brands - NOT!  Before heading to the mall, we roamed the streets in Shenzhen.  One of the girls that we were with wanted an imitation bag, so we ducked into a purse shop.  Many of the bags in the store were just your basic bags, almost as if they were from Target or Wal-Mart.  After asking whether they had a certain brand available in the storefront, the salesperson said that they only keep those brands in the warehouse (since the police aren't a huge fan of imitation handbags, go figure).  So, stupid as we were, we followed her through a small door, down a hallway, and into the tiny room that contained handbags, watches, wallets... you name it.  OK, so I realize that this was dangerous, please don't be worried.

The pricing is absolutely ridiculous for these items!!  The salesperson usually starts at about 600 yuan, about 90 USD.  Many of the travel books say that if you get the item for one third of the price, you're doing well.  On the contrary, this item should be somewhere in the range of 50-100 yuan.  They really try to scam you.  But bargaining is half of the fun!

The small "warehouse"

Seafood sales in Shenzhen

Then we headed to the Shenzhen art district.  This is my favorite part of every city in China.  The district in Shenzhen was very similar to districts in Beijing and Shanghai, but on a much smaller scale.  The atmosphere is relaxed and calm with many small shops that sell unique items.  In these markets you don't need to bargain.  While things are a bit overpriced, prices are set.  I have learned that I prefer paying a bit more to not be fully and completely scammed.  It's a terrible feeling walking away from a purchase and wondering for weeks whether you overpaid.  I am still learning that I overpaid for items in Beijing as my friends have similar items that were half of the price.  Thank goodness for a market economy.

For the grand finale of our trip, we headed to Queen Spa.  This place was amazing!  So amazing that we skipped our scheduled trip to Guangzhou to stay an extra few hours.  We arrived at the spa around 9pm and were cheerfully welcomed.  After separating the men and women, we were shown to lockers to store backpacks.  We were quickly rushed to the showers and handed a fresh robe.  After cleaning up from the day, we went to the third floor - the "rest area".  This spa was 6 floors of pure heaven.

The rest area was filled with hundreds of recliners, each accompanied by a personal TV.  Many of the workers did not speak English, but there were English speaking managers to help explain the elaborate spa.  We found a place with enough recliners for the group and got comfortable.  All you had to do was push a button and request which service you wanted.  They had everything from manicure/pedicure to skin whitening treatments (whatever that is).  And it was cheap!

After being pampered, we decided to go have a massage.  By this time it was about 12am.  They had many types of massages:  Chinese style, Thai style, Hong Kong style, and aromatherapy.  Chinese style is done with your clothes on and focuses on Chinese medicinal theories, focusing on acupuncture spots to provide relaxation.  Thai style, which is only about $3 for an hour massage in Thailand (highly recommended), is more stretching to loosen up the muscles.  For Hong Kong style, the masseuse literally uses his/her feet to stretch the back - there were even handles on the ceiling to assist with this method!  Ouch.  I eventually chose the aromatherapy massage, however I made a mistake asking for a "firm" massage and am in quite a bit of pain today.  For a 90 (yes, I said ninety) minute massage, it was only 25 USD.  Unheard of!  I forgot to mention that they have screens where you are able to choose your masseuse, if you like.  Before we went on the trip, we read on TripAdviser (the BEST traveling tool) that you are to pick the women that are dressed in nurse-like outfits.  The girls with makeup and skimpy clothes provide, well to make this a G-rated blog, a "happy ending".  Thankfully, none of us were blessed with this type of massage on this trip to China.

By the time we finished the massage, it was about 2 in the morning.  We headed to the sauna to relax before showering and heading to bed.  I failed to mention that you are allowed to sleep at the spa for free!!!  I had heard from some friends that you can just sleep all night in the recliners, however, we were pleasantly surprised to find a female sleeping room.  Free night's sleep, in a real bed... not the one inch mat in the dorm room.  Score!  If I didn't have exams, I would have stayed another night.  It was fabulous and a must-do if you are ever in Shenzhen.