Day 1

Woke up bright (more like dark) and early at 4am in order to get to the airport by 6am for a 8:05am flight. Before leaving for the airport, we had to shovel the driveway one last time. We arrived at the airport a little bit before 6am and there was already a line-up at the check-in counters. Compared to the Air Canada agents, the Cathay Pacific agents were quite efficient and fast, so got the line up went by pretty fast. Security was better than expected as they didn’t question anything that was in my carry-on luggage or gave me any dirty looks.

Our flight was delayed for almost an hour and a half because there was trouble with the baggage bays and we had to go to the de-icing facility again. To keep me (and my brother) entertained, we watched the “planecam” channel. Basically, it was a camera attached to the base of the plane and it shows the tarmac and when in the sky, clouds. It was pretty neat, especially on take-off and on landing.

The flight was okay, but it wasn’t the greatest. I had expected more from Cathay Pacific, since I heard many horror stories about Air Canada’s flights to Hong Kong. The seats were a little cramped and they ran out of snacks so I was pretty hungry. But the meals (breakfast and lunch) were pretty good for airplane food. I spent most of the time on the plane sleeping and then watching Atonement, The Nanny Diaries, and a bit of Armageddon. I also played some video games.

We arrived in HK a little bit before 2pm, Sunday February 3 and was greeted by two armed (with machine guns?) police officers or military personnel who basically followed the passengers on the train towards Customs. I didn’t know what to think about them, whether to be scared or whether to be thankful that if someone would do something harmful, they would be right there to save us. Customs wasn’t too bad. Since there were many booths and officers, it was quick and easy. I even got a free candy!

The HK Airport is awesome. It’s huge and very spacious. Beats Pearson International by a mile or two. Can’t wait to see what their departures level has to offer. I heard it was awesome since they have many restaurants and boutiques.

After unloading our luggage at our aunt’s place, my mom and I headed out for a walk around the area, since we knew that if we stayed inside, we would fall asleep and our body clocks would be screwed up. I got my “bat dat toong” (Octopus Card) and “dooted” by way through the MTR to meet a family friend who showed us (more like me) around. Then we went out for dinner at a restaurant that was soooo loud and packed that my head was spinning. But I was told to expect this level of noise and amount of people at any restaurant. After we got home, took a quick shower and headed off to bed.