Serious adventures.....

[serious14]

Top of the morning to ye all from the humid surrounds of Hong Kong!!!!    _Finally_ made it here after a 4 hour delay because of a tropical storm - we didn't leave Sydney until 6pm last night (Wednesday), and even now, it's still pouring a monsoon like you wouldn't believe outside at the moment.

I'll post photo's and stories and such in here as the days go by, and if anyone has any actual, proper requests for stuff (technology gear, souveneirs, whatever) for me to buy for them, you can post it in here or PM me and we'll go from there.  ;D

Currently in a rather lovely transit lounge type setup that is _very_ swish (http://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/passenger/arrival/t1/airport-services-facilities/shower-pay-in-lounge.html ), and about to grab the MTR into the city to go see The Dark Knight in IMAX (yes Alicia and Bear, I'm doing that  ), before heading off to Shanghai later today.

Hope y'all don't miss me too much.  verhead:

 

[Pokes]

You were gone??

Kidding....

How's the smog?

 

[serious14]

How's the smog?

Channel 7 lies!!!  As of this moment, I can see the Shanghai horizon AND blue sky.

Got in to Shanghai fine, but getting to the hotel was a bit of an adventure.  Our bus arrived at the main Shanghai Railway Station (zomg, it's the biggest thing EVER) at about the same time 150 000 or so people were departing for Beijing, and the lovely fellow at the English Speaking Counter didn't speak English.  The only word he knew was "underground", which we took to mean "catch the underground, not the above ground".  So about 3 hours after we got off the plane, we finally got to the hotel.

Went wandering around yesterday and today - on the riverfront across from the main city all these Olympic Volunteers were filming some TV commercial thing, they got Jess and I to be part of their commercial because I was wearing my Man U jersey, so keep an eye out on the TV during the football games, you might just see us mixed in with all these volunteers!!!!

The weather is as hot as expected, but it's the nighttime humidity that's the real kicker.  Made it up to the top of some random hotel to find a SkyDome bar and a Philipino covers band.  Awesome view of the skyline, $10 cocktails that are about 3 times as strong as the ones at home - makes the elevator ride back down something special.  ;D

I'd forgotten how delightfully cheap everything is here..... e.g.  my usual McDonald's meal of 2 large fries and a Medium Coke comes to about $7.50 back home is $3.50 tops over here.  And Macca's is considered to be expensive.  The local bakeries sell bread loaves better than anything Baker's Delight does for about $0.75, you can ride one end of the subway to the other for $1.20........ zomg, GRANNY SMITH APPLES ARE CHEAPER HERE THAN THEY ARE AT WYOMING COLES!!!! 

Righto, off for now - apparently there's a Moroccan themed bar in the "People's Park" worth checking out.

;D

 

[Sean]

you go to china to eat maccas and shop at coles for apples?

 

[FFC Mariner]

you go to china to eat maccas and shop at coles for apples?

Hey, you should see the freaky shit he gets up to in Wyoming

 

[Arabmariner]

Have they got Setanta?

;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

 

[Bear]

James, buy me a heaps swish digital camera for no more than $100 Aus, ill pay you when you get home

Oh, and kick Arnold in the nuts for me, cheers mate

 

[skilbeck]

i second bear on the nut kicking exercise. also hows it going?

 

[Mariner Girl]

Oh, and kick Arnold in the nuts for me, cheers mate

+1 million

 

[serious14]

you go to china to eat maccas and shop at coles for apples?

Everything shuts around 11pm, and there's no 7/11 type stores (well, there are, but the 2 that I've seen are in the city itself, and the trains stop at 11 as well, so it's not really worth the trip), so it's nice to have something in the room to munch on when you get hungry at 2am.  Also, I always try the foreign equivalents of stuff at home - the chips here are sweeter and the Coke is...... well, flatter, but fizzy at the same time?? 

Hey, you should see the freaky shit he gets up to in Wyoming

;D

Have they got Setanta?

They have Star Sports which is their equivalent - but it's way more mainstream and it has 3 channels of its own...... CCTV itself has about 20-something different channels, 5 of which are dedicated to nothing but the Olympics.

James, buy me a heaps swish digital camera for no more than $100 Aus, ill pay you when you get home

Oh, and kick Arnold in the nuts for me, cheers mate

Too easy chief, I'm off to "Cybermart" once I'm done uploading some photo's, I'll have a look see.

i second bear on the nut kicking exercise. also hows it going?

Hahahaha, we're hitting up the stadium this afternoon to see if we can't scalp a ticket to the game tonight - everyone wants to see "the Messi".  I will try my best on the nut kicking though..... and it's going grand - once you get used to the fact that 90% of the city doesn't speak English or is signposted in any sort of English, it's quite great.  Had dinner in the new part of the city last night with a rather amazing view across the river to all the old colonial buildings with all the ferries and crazy river shit going past.

Gonna upload some photo's in the next post.

 

[serious14]

The new Singapore Airlines A380

The Hong Kong skyline.....

The Hong Kong skyline with me infront of it

The Shanghai Skyline

Again, with me infront of it

Nanjing Road, the main pedestrian shopping mall on the 'old' side of the Shanghai River

 

[bjw]

reckon you'll be able to find somewhere to watch Mariners v Scum?

 

[fish]

I reckon more phots without that ugly prick in em would be great

 

[Mariner Girl]

Hey Serious, where's the photo of you in a Mariner shirt? 

 

[T]

James, buy me a heaps swish digital camera for no more than $100 Aus, ill pay you when you get home

Oh, and kick Arnold in the nuts for me, cheers mate

x 2.... and I don't think Arnold has any nuts, but if you do happen to find them destroy them

Sounds like your having a great time!!!

 

[Sean]

Great photos Serious. the architecture looks fascinating. Very jealous.

 

[dibo]

The Hong Kong skyline with me infront of it

amazing, there's an enormous penis over there.









and the building in the background looks pretty suggestive too!

 

[serious14]

James, buy me a heaps swish digital camera for no more than $100 Aus, ill pay you when you get home

Oh, and kick Arnold in the nuts for me, cheers mate

x 2.... and I don't think Arnold has any nuts, but if you do happen to find them destroy them

Sounds like your having a great time!!!

No signs of his balls yet, will keep an eye out. Btw, is the times 2 for the camera or for the balls stomping??  Perm - the architecture on the old Bund is amazing, will have to send you photo's later.  Fish and Dibo - haw haw, very funny.  Jo - alas, I forgot to bring it. Oh my.  P.S. Apologies for the weird spacing and such, I'm posting from my new phone in some random bar in Houhai, somewhere in Beijing.

 

[T]

No signs of his balls yet, will keep an eye out. Btw, is the times 2 for the camera or for the balls stomping?? 
[/quote]

Both

 

[serious14]

reckon you'll be able to find somewhere to watch Mariners v Scum?

There.s a thousand and one sports bars here, gonna see if any of 'em have an Australian pointing satellite.