TR(tdl/sdl/hkdl)-> This Is Where Your Dream Begins; A New World in Every Chapter. COMPLETED 12/8!!!

[katt789]

Y'all. Posting from an Iphone is WAY HARDER THAN YOU'D THINK!! Im going to try & post as much as I can tonight!


************
Kara & I realized that we'd gotten so distracted earlier we hadn't taken our heart photo, and NEEDED to do that, so it was BACK to the front of the castle for another photoshoot!

IMG_3719 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

Y'know, sometimes I STILL can't believe that I've seen this castle in person, this whole experience feels like a dream really.
IMG_3723 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3729 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3735 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

I wanted to do another one like the Torii Gate in Miyajima but the castle's so freaking big it wouldn't really focus lol!
IMG_3736 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3740 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3743 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

And of course we had to get one of all of us!

IMG_3751 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_3752 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

 

[katt789]

Abby really wanted to meet Rapunzel, so we popped to the back of the castle to see if she was out. The wait looked super low, and Snow was out currently, so we opted to wait, and took a turn at the castle walkthrough.

https://flic.kr/p/VXENr2]k29[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/127532342@N06/]Katt McCluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/PdAqJe]IMG_3754[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/Pb3JNC]IMG_3755[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/NQcKC3]IMG_3756[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/Pb3HGu]IMG_3757[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/PksEHL]IMG_3758[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/Pb3GUY]IMG_3759[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr

So pretty!!
https://flic.kr/p/PksEro]IMG_3760[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/Pb3FP1]IMG_3761[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/PksE2A]IMG_3762[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/Pb3tF3]IMG_3763[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/PksDU1]IMG_3764[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/Pb3Efj]IMG_3765[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr

Legit ALL of them


The staircases were lined with portraits of all the princesses, which made me happy. The walk through for the rest of it was a retelling of the story of Snow White. It was wonderfully done & a neat idea, but it didn't work wonderfully. It was very start & stop as there were scenes that would play out in each little room, and everyone was very shovy & pushy to make sure they got to the front & got out of the room & into the next one first. I gave up and just let everyone go in front of me coming out of one room and a cast member handed me a sticker..... Bahahahaha...


Castle explored, Evil Queen defeated, we hopped into line for a princess meet and greet. The wait wasn't that long, but we were sprinkled with pixie dust as Snow swapped out to Rapunzel RIGHT before we got up there! Yaaay!!

https://flic.kr/p/VUdB1C]15036755_10153928330457624_3341879432103326710_n[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/127532342@N06/]Katt McCluskey[/url], on Flickr

Abby wanted a solo picture, and chatted with Rapunzel first. She asked where we were visiting from, and when Abby said her favorite part was pirates, Punzie said she thought her ruffian friends would like that ride. She called us all in for a group picture & said she liked our matching outfits!

https://flic.kr/p/VLeWJB]15193688_10157896253720360_1894574508140068405_n[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/127532342@N06/]Katt McCluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/VUdAZL]15181474_10157896254020360_4447484920790619810_n[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/127532342@N06/]Katt McCluskey[/url], on Flickr


Being on a character roll, and knowing it was a good day to track down Jack Sparrow, we ventured into the land of pirates to try and find the Captain. Unluckily for us, we appeared to have missed him for the day. Fortunately for us, there was a gorgeous sunset going on, so it was time for another photoshoot.

https://flic.kr/p/PksDKd]IMG_3770[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/PksDHu]IMG_3773[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/PksDFf]IMG_3778[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/Pb3Dc7]IMG_3780[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr

I will NEVER get over these sunsets! We were SO LUCKY!

 

[katt789]

To kill some time, we rode Pirates again. I kept my head down during the first big screen part, I already had a headache & didn't want to make it worse. But that didn't make it any less amazing. Upon returning to shore, there was still no Sparrow, so we gave up.

https://flic.kr/p/Pb3CNS]IMG_3783[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
https://flic.kr/p/PksDzy]IMG_3784[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr


https://flic.kr/p/Pb3Coo]IMG_3786[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr

Tomorrowland was our base for the day, and because there were Tron fast passes to be used, we decided to grab food there! Tomorrowland Terrace had the usual Tomorrowland grub, burgers! I opted for the veggie burger & it was great!

https://flic.kr/p/Pb3ABh]IMG_3806[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/PksDbs]IMG_3807[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr


Normally, I would have offered to hold the girl's bags while they went on Tron, but I wanted to take some pictures, so I told them I'd meet them in the gift shop. I took some of the Tomorrowland area; including playing around with the colored fountain!
https://flic.kr/p/Pb3BYL]IMG_3792[/url] by https://www.flickr.com/photos/131804258@N08/]Katt mccluskey[/url], on Flickr
IMG_3794 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3799 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3803 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
Then I moved into the Tron dome, it definitely did look way cooler at night!

IMG_3811 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3815 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3828 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr


I found a seat outside, but still under the dome to hang out for a while. I chatted with Steve a bit, he'd sent me the pictures we'd taken on his phone, and had uploaded one to WeChat earlier in the day. I was sitting there catching up on blogging & taking the occasional picture when a local came running up to me, phone in hand. Oh great, another paparazzi, I first thought, but he was super polite. He said something about me being "Steve's friend" and showed me the picture on WeChat! I said that was me, and then the surprise came! I hadn't recognized him, but he'd been hanging around a kid with a robot earlier!! Ah!! He was actually super nice & said he'd wanted to come say Hi, and that it was nice to meet me! So cute!

IMG_3829 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3832 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
url=https://flic.kr/p/PoBYYr]

[/url]IMG_3818 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3821 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr


My visitor left, and the cold was starting to bother me, so I moved inside the gift shop. It didn't help a whole lot since it was pretty open air-ed in there, but yolo. Abby & Kara finally came through the exit, exclaiming that the ride was SO much better at night! Yay! We were all feeling the chill, and knew there was hot chocolate where we'd eaten earlier, so we picked up some on our way back to the hub.

 

[katt789]

Following Steve's advice yet again, we got spots for the Nighttime Spectacular at the edge of the flower bed, where there wouldn't be anyone in front of us! There DID end up being a super obnoxious group behind us, but they weren't even locals! I mainly just wanted them to stop shouting in my ear during the show but hey, you can't win 'em all!

IMG_3874 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3876 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3882 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr


Post show we hung around a little bit to let the crowds die down, but it wasn't long before we joined them to head home. We had a good laugh about how EARLY we were coming home from the parks, this never happens in Florida! It's 8:00am open to 1:00am close! Here, we were home by 9:00pm! Heck! We were pretty sure we were home faster than if we had been staying at a Value resort at WDW! Bahahahah!

IMG_3885 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3886 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3887 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_3888 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

I just love the look of Mickey on his steamboat with the castle and "train station" in the back!

IMG_3898 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

 

[katt789]

So, to start off with, I've got some bad news....again.....lol. I got my computer up and running long enough to email the updates to myself but somehow missed our last day at SHDR. To summarize, we did the following:
-met characters on Main Street, the mice, the ducks, and Duffy, all short waits
-rope dropped the challenge courses, they were pretty fun, not to daring, they had some of the more challenging courses blocked off which was a bummer for me!
-Steve had been texting me about how the lifts for the castle show were all messed up, so we ran there next to catch a ONCE in a lifetime show of Ariel being on stage from her entrance till the end and no Merida!
-rode Tron
-watched the parade
-ate dinner at Wandering Moon Teahouse (?)
-explored the gardens of imagination
-took pics with the partners statue
-rode the carousel
-attempted to ride dumbo (took pics with the photo op instead)
-rode pirates again
-attempted to find Jack sparrow
-rode the Winnie the Pooh ride (exact same as the US versions)
-watched the nighttime fireworks
-attempted to book it out during the finale to beat the bus crowds and go explore/have a drink at the hotel only to find out you needed a room key to get on the bus at that time
-had cheesecake and wine at the cheesecake cafe again

Sorry for the lack of pics, my iPad doesn't want to copy & paste the links properly....

 

[katt789]

Goooood morning!! Today we slept in a teeny bit, finished packing, and said goodbye to our lovely BnB, and lugged all of our stuff off to the train and headed into the heart of Shanghai. Our hostel was about a 5 minute walk away from the Train Station, where we hilariously found 2 stores right across from each other….

15134681_10153933748262624_5940325567958304677_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15095013_10153933748122624_4401342762401989416_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
We checked in pretty easy, and found our room that we shared with 3 other girls. After settling in a little bit, Abby & Kara wanted to go check out the French Concession. My throat was really bothering me after being outside ALL day for 3 days in a row with no mask or anything, and I really just needed some quiet time, so I opted to stay behind.

15056405_10153933746792624_7291923519357332723_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15032170_10153933746762624_3521081605056807098_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15032661_10153933746777624_2468962902750659341_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
I got some dinner and a baileys and coffee from the hotel café, and WAS LUCKY ENOUGH to find a book from one of my favorite series in the library and spent the evening getting super into it!
14947662_10157918916095647_432991915726782812_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr


It was a pretty chill night!

 

[katt789]

It was FINALLY time to explore the city of Shaghai! The three of us started off with a breakfast from the hostel café, which was decently priced and very filling!
14962569_10157918916115647_2533711395401585782_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

Our destination today was the Yuyuan Gardens and shopping stalls, a major tourist spot in the city!

IMG_4210 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4221 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4224 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4229 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
We took a few hours exploring it, and discovered new areas around every turn, and even areas that you wouldn't have known were there had you not explored around what looked like a dead end!

IMG_4243 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
15134606_10153933747972624_7336921164093460462_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15109353_10153933747487624_7291669804357243897_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15350611_10157918095040360_7596236868469569280_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4252 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4263 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4264 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4271 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
15055664_10153933748452624_7911080755672081318_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15350520_10157918092465360_3346753665439522192_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4280 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
It's always entertaining to me to see the areas of such detail, culture and history in the same skyline as the huge new skyscrapers!

 

[katt789]

IMG_4287 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
15355671_10157918092115360_1592431089565950063_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

The shopping streets were crazy crowded as it was a weekend. At some point I stopped to buy ear phones for the equivalent of like $1 since I needed new ones (spoiler alert, they were broken in like, 2 days, but yolo)

IMG_4310 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
15037070_10153933748732624_6654545641151122185_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

We found our way down to the Bund area pretty easily as it wasn't too far away from the Gardens.

IMG_4315 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

I even found a Hidden Mickey bahahha!
14925505_10157918916245647_9077393888024955901_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15055806_10153933749147624_7827390066986019005_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15036436_10157918916265647_8427257771428333280_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

The cityline was pretty impressive that's for sure!

IMG_4324 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
15337569_10157918094165360_3675814489665987092_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15283987_10157918094255360_5556002555395024012_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

And bless that selfie stick!
15032867_10153933748947624_3789340702932574346_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15055777_10157918094425360_3984403029195708567_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

Our adventures took us across the river, and closer to the Pearl Tower!

15032877_10153933749127624_4558526135223894680_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15337515_10157918094485360_7110379555073672282_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
The most exciting part however, was still to come!

15078750_10153933749272624_5046006380646272564_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
14955862_10157934047480647_7538827072496125309_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15267882_10157918094695360_3665652389239178514_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
YUP! We'd been gone from a Disney park for like, 24 hours and were already in need of another fix!

15241418_10157918094735360_3319721910341601533_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

We got there right in time too since on our way out there was a QUEUE to get in! We browsed around, each of us bought Tsum Tsums since they were all on sale (though the didn't have as many as Tokyo did lol) At one point Kara was holding the GIANT Stitch one, well knowing that she couldn't buy it, and some little local girl came walking by and was all "too big!! Too big!" to her, bahahahha! The kid clearly didn't speak a lot of English so it made it even funnier lol!

The three of us crossed over the shopping mall across the way and were looking for a place to have lunch when Kara & I saw the Hooters sign, and had a good laugh over it, and talked about how much we loved the food there, and Abby said she'd NEVER been to a Hooters…well…clearly we do tourism RIGHT, because you can guess where we had lunch, drinks, and spent the next like, 3 hours….

15027876_10157918919205647_8551710750405704909_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

I'M NOT EVEN KIDDING!!

It was delicious, the drinks were cheap and strong and the servers were decent enough lol!

Post lunch and relaxing, we explore the Pudong area a bit more, Abby definitely loved it. We stopped in Sephora for a bit, each of us picking up some stuff (spoiler, the eye brow stuff I picked up broke within a day….ugh…)

 

[katt789]

When night hit us, we headed back over to the Pearl Tower and Bund for some more photos!

15032921_10157918919300647_3234966119832571045_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15056488_10153933749277624_7197098301849497907_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15170958_10157918095225360_6172891186038296495_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

It was a completely different experience at night!
15241943_10157918095465360_8597793765818553922_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
...yup...

It's okay…she classied up back on the other side of the river

15337420_10157918095760360_1637732276021327095_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4331 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4337 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

It was definitely prettier all lit up at night!

15032687_10153933749387624_5129276010210295310_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15327335_10157918095610360_1044875653060654922_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

We called it a night and started our journey back to the hostel. I'd been texting with Steve during the day (he'd sent me pictures of one HECK OF A CROWDED Disneyland, so we were glad we weren't there!) and he'd sent me info on a caramel popcorn sundae from McDonald's, so it was obvious we were making a pit stop before bed!

15036731_10157918919975647_4197479312163163811_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

Y'all it was THE greatest thing I've ever had lol.

 

[katt789]

Well, the time had come, it was already our last day in Shanghai, and today we were venturing outside the city a little bit to explore Zhujiajiao Water Town! It was about an hour outside the city, accessible by bus, and it was a bit tedious to get to not speaking any Mandarin…. We took the train a bit, then had to find the right bus, it was a bit of walking in circles and being confused, I was definitely not having it today, and neither was my respiratory system, it wasn't too fun.

LUCKILY, we got on the right bus, didn't get scammed, and found our way to the right place! We avoided the scammers outside the bus station and wandered our way over to where the river streets and touristy areas began. YAY! WE DID IT!

IMG_4370 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4375 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
15284178_10157918093415360_5176539619501549533_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15032786_10153933750527624_5261567821078307758_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15232203_10157918093335360_1628856765987430338_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

It was a cute little area, full of shops, restaurants, you could even take a little river cruise!

15267526_10157918093740360_7299089772567613271_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15253560_10157918093605360_3042974138176850365_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4392 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4409 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4410 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4414 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4416 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

We were there for most of the day, checking out things for sale and just exploring, looping around all the canals, seeing where everything was.

It made me laugh that among all these ancient buildings and such culture and home owned stalls and crafts that there was still a Starbucks…

IMG_4432 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4437 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4443 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4454 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

None of us were particularly hungry, but in need of at least a snack before we headed back so we found a nice little café to have one!

15109413_10153933750657624_7554517185410508560_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

Back at the bus depot, we came across hands down the GROSSEST AND WORST thing we came across the entire trip. We stopped to use the bathroom, and by this time, were used to the squat toilets…thing is, this one wasn't JUST a squat toilet, it was like a TROUGH that, despite private stalls, it was all joined together and was WITHOUT DOUBT the most disgusting experience. Like, ugh, please, never again…

 

[katt789]

The three of us managed to get onto the right bus back into Shanghai and around an hour and a half later, were back at our hostel. We took a bit of a break before we headed back out after dark to explore something Kara had really wanted to see!

15285031_10157918096015360_4992905701369129654_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

It was just a MAZE of alley ways, little side streets and CRAMMED full of amazing things. So many different specialty stores, weird crazy awesome foods, restaurants, bars, and full of life!

15219543_10157918096440360_5105817168174866241_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

15036218_10153933750742624_5879282673024431507_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr15203178_10157918095855360_714108933573690171_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

You'd be that excited if you had cotton candy the size of your HEAD too!

We spent the better part of the evening there, eventually finding a neat little place to have dinner (lets be real, we were enticed by the buy one get one drink offer they had…) Post dinner we HAD to find the cotton candy ice cream, because one giant treat wasn't enough for one day!

15349727_10157918095905360_1933652969900840013_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15317962_10157918096225360_1770277626095960261_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15107327_10153933750797624_2815356551982752994_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

15338706_10157918096360360_2484879322242753428_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
DELICIOUS, and well worth the sugar!

15230809_10157918096145360_5468536795903555749_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

Our sugar rushes got us back to the hostel in one piece, where we decided to call it a night after a bit of packing and organizing things. I headed to bed, since we were on different flights the next day, Kara & Abby took off early, and I was able to sleep in, have some lunch, and finish my book before having to check out of the hostel and head to the airport!!

Monday November 7th

Today I'm gonna throw onto the end here since it was a travel day for me and that's about all I know. Kara & Abby had one HECK of a time since they had to battle the rush hour traffic on the trains with their giant back packs. Apparently the doors were nearly shutting on Kara & a local woman reached out, grabbed her by the pack straps and PULLED her into the train, bahahah. I'm SO thankful that I had such a later flight and didn't have to worry about crowds at all.



I arrived in Hong Kong with a decent idea of where to go, but naturally didn't have any change, or the right amount of cash or something. I'd headed straight to the bus I needed and the driver sent me BACK to a ticket counter, and thus I had to wait for a second bus. Ugh. I was tired, didn't want to deal with it, but hey, it worked out in the end. I had the directions printed off for our hostel, but also had directions in a message from Kara since they'd had some troubles finding it earlier on. Turns out the hostel has TWO different entrances, on different streets (aka sides of the building). I followed my directions until it came time to using the elevator, and used Kara's, and was promptly confused, lost, alone and frustrated. I eventually found where I needed to be (Kara and Abby had come in the first entrance they saw and not even known there was another door/set of elevators!) They'd left the door unlocked for me, and BOY OH BOY IT WAS THE SMALLEST ROOM I THINK I've ever seen! Kara didn't even FIT in her bed properly, and it's not like she's crazy tall! I jumped into bed pretty quick and was out like a light!



During the day I'd been travelling the girls went and got some rainbow grilled cheese that I was SUPER bummed I'd missed out on….

15085541_10153939942097624_6637310668141655015_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15181708_10153939942047624_4736714935046288831_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

15355558_10157922557780360_3111555438549529707_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

 

[katt789]

Our tiny hostel room couldn't hold us for too long, we were up and sorting to get ready to explore Hong Kong today! Abby took the lead and said we were going to go to the Friend's Café for breakfast, and then head over to Secret Honey (a store that specializes in Disney inspired outfits/costumes). We set off with the plan of finding Central Perk. It started out in the wrong direction, then ended up in circles while google maps confused Abby, and we couldn't find it. We found some WiFi, I googled the place, and found out it had been closed for a while now…well…crap… We knew there'd be food in the metro stations, so down we went to get some breakfast, and oh God did I need coffee. (In case it hasn't come apparent, I am one of those people who's mood improves a million times after coffee, and before can be dangerous…. Lol)



It was then time to find Secret Honey, we took a train or two over to a more ritzy area, tracked down the shopping center and found our way to the store, which, luckily for us, was still open! There were SO many gorgeous things, skirts with details on them, more subtle Disneybounding type clothes, and of course more costumey type things! Neither Kara or I had enough money to splurge on anything, and of course it being a Japanese brand, the ONLY sizes they had were like a 2/4, so nothing was going to fit over our girls anyways. There WAS a gorgeous Winter/Xmas Ariel inspired dress that I did try on, and with a few inches less it would probably zip up, but it wasn't worth the cost…and I did want to eat still…bahahah. Abby DID however find a Rapunzel one that was on sale, so she ended up Yolo'ing and getting it!



With some treat yo self done, we were finally on to the tourist activities of today, a few more train rides and some walking, and we found ourselves at the base of Victoria Peak, where we picked up some tram tickets!

14947868_10157934047570647_8707315526120247260_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15317809_10157922558085360_6186644969309410667_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

And boarded our tram off to our next adventure!

IMG_4460 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4464 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
The Tram takes you up to one of the highest peaks above Hong Kong, with gorgeous views of the city!

IMG_4469 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
15284966_10157922558500360_3352348089708040207_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15285067_10157922555435360_2825356092304267035_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15356738_10157922558990360_7256504801291518210_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15350489_10157922559810360_6518563299596037867_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

Y'all, I was (and still am) COMPLETELY IN LOOOOVE WITH HONG KONG!!! It was SO gorgeous, and had SUCH a vast variety of landscape/cityscape/beaches to it. It was also INSANELY like Vancouver, lol.

IMG_4480 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4483 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4492 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
This was also the point in our adventure where things started to get WHACKY again, like, just full on, we'd been travelling so long, had too little sleep, and were just plain crazy lol! 15326434_10157922559185360_5696903396326357369_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
Though we took some time for some nice pictures throughout our hot mess express.
15193516_10153939942537624_7904191051587057521_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4506 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4508 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
15338729_10157922558750360_1373015461211475216_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15242021_10157922559260360_2995524706295474222_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

So pretty. Much model.
15337498_10157922560140360_7721055163605579266_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15232162_10157922558450360_7095088339442460494_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
That's better!
15219491_10157922558235360_211581272552622229_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15232289_10157922559910360_7428903292128149714_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4515 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
15220212_10157922559985360_7525168263245639907_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15232110_10157922558710360_4104363733878484310_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

I just don't even know….there was LOTS of photo opportunity up here!

 

[katt789]

15337446_10157922559945360_280010041541338978_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15268045_10157922560115360_271592510063649504_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15267860_10157922558120360_7243565771309758411_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15220174_10157922559095360_4632111277255620346_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

Seriously…what is wrong with us…why are you still reading this insanity…bahaha

15267815_10157922558775360_7455947456573147992_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
Good ol' Pearl showed up too!15241847_10157922558510360_3096551991379373921_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
We found a path and followed it for a while before realizing it didn't really go anywhere so we turned back to the main area of the peak. It was time for lunch too! There was a little mall type area across from the main building, and we found some Vietnamese food there! YUM!

15032772_10157934052745647_1872587169787657389_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15027552_10157934052780647_6813388656924401369_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
14955868_10157934052835647_2258918610710170494_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

Vietnamese coffee gelato/ice cream for dessert! ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!

After lunch we spent a teensie bit more time exploring the top of the peak before it was time to head down the mountain! We found our way over to a zoological garden and explored through it for a little bit.
15337406_10157922560185360_4947842524002171993_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15241224_10157922560190360_5403315801882257850_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15032794_10157934047785647_7224379608709924924_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

We had plans originally to hit up a few more touristy attractions today BUT as we were headed over to our third stop, it started to rain, and not lightly, so we decided to call it a day and head back to the hostel. I'm sure we probably grabbed a snack and hung around the room for a little bit. It had a tv, which we were all pretty excited about, even if it didn't have a lot of English channels lol!

A few hours later, we'd gotten all dolled up, google mapped our directions, and started out on our next adventure.

 

[katt789]

One of the things that we like to do best is YOLO, or…be fancy, I mean, we're the people who leave MK after parade to sit and drink wine & eat cheese plates over at the Grand Floridian, so when we heard about Ozone, the bar on the 118 floor of the Ritz Carlton with STUNNING views of Hong Kong, we knew we had to go!

The Google map directions included a bit of a walk, and then….we were super lost…like, WANDERING AROUND AND AROUND THE SAME building, I was getting super frustrated that we couldn't possibly find a way in. I don't remember HOW, but we ended up going into the train station that was there, and found our way into the Ritz lobby through there. We still weren't sure where to go, and popped out the front door and the view was STUNNING. (this picture does absolutely no justice…)

15319051_10157923213055360_2404549259672238786_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
FINALLY, we found the right elevator, and found our way up to the bar! There was an indoor section, and an "outdoor" section, like a balcony, but it was all sealed it with wall to wall glass. We had originally chosen out there, but smoking was allowed, and because it was all sealed, it was all GROSS out there, so we changed back to inside. The place was gorgeously decorated, but the lighting sucked, so I apologize for the horrible picture quality lol.

14947968_10157934048190647_6890654720571397788_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15134754_10153939942392624_5791477157043351676_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
I got essentially a grilled cheese;
14956639_10157934047885647_2422653277236336170_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
Kara & Abby got Truffle fries, and we all got glasses of wine!15192652_10153939942742624_925113611168107115_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15355810_10157923213015360_603589138247878094_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

Again, these photos SUCK! Lol. The food was pretty good, and the wine was delicious, everything was obviosusly WAY more expensive than it needed to be, but the price came with the location! I'm 99% sure my wine & little grilled cheese was around $30 Canadian dollars! The three of us enjoyed the views and our time together being classy, we only had 1 glass of wine for obvious reasons, lol. I made a pit stop in the bathroom before we were going to leave, and PROMPTLY returned to the table where I stated that NOT ONLY was the bathroom the MOST GORGEOUS of things but the VIEW from it was the MOST AMAZING.

Well…you can guess where us basics spent the next like…HALF HOUR….

15356546_10157923211785360_6900431619143681891_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15356753_10157923212855360_5772145294718498706_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15337607_10157923212405360_3091016438369186073_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15193492_10153939942782624_8812123856773605333_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
As you can see, it was seriously gorgeous, and the lighting was the most perfect for selfies!

15219425_10157923212625360_4008420277650287902_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15027732_10157934047940647_7143624821926382032_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
Was that lady judging us? Probably…
14962656_10157934048280647_7189177102227404576_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15036340_10157934048285647_3038178405981739912_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15253435_10157923211895360_8199366497159058925_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
Just a casual bathroom photoshoot because that's how we ROLL!

We did finally wrap it up and started our descent from the 118th floor back down to reality!

15219993_10157923211395360_5688158291127194357_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
The train took us back to near our hostel, and I made a pit stop at the McDonalds beside it because lets be real, I was still hungry, and fast food was MUCH more in my budget than Ozone was! Bahahaha!

It wasn't that late by the time we got home, but we did set an alarm pretty early. The US election was happening, and coverage would start at 6:00am HK time the next morning, despite us being Canadian we still wanted to keep an eye on it so we set an alarm for 6:00 and called it a night!

 

[missangelalexis]

Great photos in front of the castle!

The plaques in the castle walk through are to die for!

Ah the sunset pics- love!!

Love your TL pics! And what a cute encounter with the local who recognized you as Steves friend.

Sounds like your last day at SHDR was packed full of fun!

So many great pics around Shanghai! Loved the ones at night with the Pearl Tower. And the cotton candy looks so yum!

Your time in HK sounds like it was off to a great start! As usual, more awesome photos. And that bathroom is incredible, I would've wanted to spend a lot of time in there as well!

 

[hkkatie]

I live in Hong Kong, and I know that path on the Peak you were walking. It's basically a circular route, you would just end up where you started if you kept going. Takes about 45 minutes to walk the whole thing. I'm sorry you had a hard time finding places! Sometimes addresses really make no sense here. I've lived here 14 years and sometimes I still get lost! Looking forward to more of your HK trip report. It's always interesting to see it from the eyes of someone who has never been here before!

 

[katt789]

Hey team! So just as a heads up, I've been computer-less for ages now, and unfortunately, found it suuuuuper hard to update the tr's from my ipad, it was either a headache for trying to copy & past the pics, or the typing up was a headache, it was just a mess, so I'm deeply sorry for the lack of posts over the last little bit! I'm going to try to blast through our last day of HK before we moved into the parks right now, honestly not too much happened, so we'll see how quickly I can finish this!

Our last day in the city found us taking an adventure over to Lamma Island. it was recommended by Lonely Planet as a nice thing to do to explore, so we hopped onto the fairy, and enjoyed our ride over there, we disembarked and immediately found ourselves COMPLETELY out of civilization, okay, so there were still shops, restaurants and people around, but, considering it was the day fo the US election, it was probably nice to be away from internet and tv for a bit and kinda forget that it was going on.
IMG_4527 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4530 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4538 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

It was a really nice little place, gorgeous beaches, lots of places to kinda explore, our plan was to do the hike and then eat on the other side before ferrying back to the main island, so we followed the signs that way!IMG_4539 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
It wasn't long before we came across a beautiful beach! There was a group of school kids playing there too, and it was mildly hilarious as they were singing Let It Go and tossing sand into the air like they had ice powers, bahahah!
IMG_4543 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
I also promptly found the MOST PERFECT MERMAID ROCK
IMG_4541 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
It was an exciting moment.

We all also immediately regretted the fact that none of us had even thought to bring a swimsuit, or wear shorts, or like, be even the SLIGHTEST bit prepared for some wading/swimming!
15356599_10157922561070360_4731630859026447273_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15355675_10157922555960360_4452173158965766086_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4544 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4545 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
We seriously spent so much time hanging out just enjoying life! I'm still surprised that Abby didn't completely fall into the ocean at any point, she nearly fell a few times derping around, and we all definitely got more wet than we had planned to, but hey, we were having fun!
15338851_10157922555990360_7488353155657705791_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15338730_10157922560280360_2103089302426155941_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4558 by Katt mccluskey, on FlickrIMG_4577 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

15253433_10157922561080360_6118992241497050840_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
Soon enough, we figured we should probably keep going, found the signs of the way to go, and continued along our hike. now, I'm calling it a hike here, but going into it, none of us expected to be hiking, we thought it was a nice seaside walk, that's what the book had made it out to be, y'all, it was a true hike....#whoops
IMG_4588 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4602 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4605 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
The cool thing was at least that it took us to some awesome and scenic points! SUper pretty and I"m glad we got to see the gorgeous views, I seriously cannot rave a bout Hong Kong enough!!
15284126_10157922555410360_5918170474569212643_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
When we arrived on the other end of the island, it was time for food, and fresh seafood was the amazing thing we got! Everything is obviously locally/family owned, the place we ended up eating they gave us multiple types of FRESH DELICIOUS seafood, a beer, rice, and maybe even something else, all for like, $35-40 per person, I can't remember exactly the price but it was really cheap for what we got! WE also naturally got a seaside table to enjoy it on!
15202616_10153939944367624_4956893399089447756_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
15032903_10157934053015647_6224092213840510640_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr
when we finished eating, we still had some time to kill before the ferry came along, so we wandered around a little bit on that end, explore a little "fitness" playground they had, and eventually hung around the loading point, where I noticed a couple watching something on their phone and it was clearly about the election, the girls had seemed SO sure that Hilary would be winning, maybe I was feeling pessimisstic that day, but I knew that wasn't going to happen, so I had to ask this couple what ended up happening, and lets just say they had a nice laugh at our reactions....like...damn...

Anyway! Soon the ferry was there, and the trip home was hands down my worst experience on a boat and I was legit terriffied, I think we all were! We kept CRASHING down onto the waves that we were going over, and rocking a LOT side to side, I don't remember which deck we were on, but I was terrified that if something did happen, we wouldn't be able to get out easily. Kara tried to sleep to get away from it, meanwhile I focussed super hard on a game on my phone, but it was barely enough. UGH. WORST.

Thankfully we arrived back in one piece, and the girls promptly jumped onto WiFI to check if what that couple had said, and all of us decided we needed a starbucks treat to try and cope, and try and cope with the hellish ferry ride we'd just experienced. I'm 99% sure that we stopped back at the hostel for a little bit, before headed back down to the harbour to see the light show that night!
IMG_4641 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4672 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
IMG_4680 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr
The harbour looked nice all lit up at night, but maybe it's the Disney spoiled princess in me, but I would NOT call it a show, some stuff lit up, there was some lazer stuff, but that was about it.

Super tired from all our adventuring over the past few days, it was time to head back to the hostel for one last night, where we packed our things up, and geared up for the LAST portion of our trip!!


*********************
Thank y'all for reading, and thank you for sticking around so far, I'm going to TRY and type up the updates at home while I'm watching tv or something, so all I have to do at the libarary is move the pictures in and it'll all be good! It's so hard to believe that this trip was LITERALLY a year ago! We'd just gotten to HK a year ago, it feels like forever ago, and also kinda feels like a dream....

 

[missangelalexis]

Beautiful beach pictures! I'm sorry you have been computer less

 

[katt789]

LADIES AND GENTLEMAN!!! IT IS OFFICIALLY THE LAST LEG OF OUR TRIP!



WHAT?!?!



WHAT?!?!



HOW DID WE GET HERE SO FAST?!?!



Seriously, the last half of our trip went by SO FREAKING FAST!! It was crazy that we were checking out of our last hostel and officially moving into our FIRST Disney property of the trip! Originally, we had booked into the Toy Story Hotel for Shanghai, but it was JUST INSANELY EXPENSIVE, and lets be real our AirBnB was incredible. We wanted to have a rather nice TREAT to end off our vacation, and had originally been looking towards booking in at the Hong Kong Disneyland hotel, but ended up booking into the Hollywood Hotel. It was marketed more as a “moderate” resort, so we were excited to see how it was going to turn out. For Hong Kong I also spent a good chunk of time trying to find a hotel/hostel/bnb that was ANYWHERE near HKDL, and considering we like to be at the parks crazy early, we figured we’d want to be on property anyways.



SO, Kara, Abby and I packed our things up, checked out of our hostel, and hopped on the metro! We had to make a couple of train changes, but it wasn’t too crazy of a time. the BEST part was when we finally got over to the SunnyBay Station, the last stop that swaps over and only services Disneyland, so naturally, EVERYTHING WAS SO FREAKING ADORABLE.



IMG_4692 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr



IMG_4694 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr



ALL THE MICKEY SHAPES!!

AND OUR BOYS!

IMG_4695 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr



IMG_4697 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr



We crossed through the area that lead over to the parks, there’s a little terminal hub thing, train, busses, etc. We figured out we needed to get on a bus, and found our way over to the Hollywood Hotel! When we finally arrived at the hotel, I went to check in and had a MAJOR FREAKOUT, as I had been in charge of the booking, had booked it, and THOUGHT the payment had taken the ENTIRE amount off my credit card, especially SINCE I HAD COLLECTED THE MONEY FROM THE OTHER GIRLS AND KNEW THE VISA WAS NOT DOING SO GREAT.



I honestly don’t remember HOW I ended up sorting it out, but obviously I was the one who paid it off, I think they gave us overnight to sort things out since I needed to get in contact with someone in a different timezone! My Mom reminded me that I could still CHARGE stuff to the Visa, it was just in terms of WITHDRAWING that the limit was WAAAY lower. Seriously, sucked that Asia was such cash society, I thought I was prepared…so not..



ANYWAYS



Long story short I had a mini panic attack but everything was sorted out, and we were all checked in and given room keys. Before we even got into the room, we KNEW that this hotel was much more “Deluxe” than moderate, much fancier than I’d thought!



IMG_4699 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4700 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4701 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4703 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr



The room was super nice, water and coffee in the room, SUUUUPER comfy beds too! AMAZING! We spent some time chilling out for a bit, and I’m 83% sure that we went down to the pool for a bit next, considering the sun was still up, and it wasn’t TOO cold, though we were the ONLY ones swimming.



15369039_10157922561805360_2443540136713621402_o by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

15370172_10157922562525360_8726624736293072841_o by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr



The pool was heated, but it wasn’t too warm, so after a quick dip and some mermaid-ing, (and some mainlanders asking for our photos…#awks) we moved on over to the hot tub!



15235400_10157922562500360_1647110479190058252_o by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr



Post swim, we took turns showering, getting out stuff ready for the next couple of days, and decided that we were going to explore the other hotel for a bit!



IMG_4707 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr



The Disneyland Hotel is just like a mini Grand Floridian, and just as gorgeous.



IMG_4712 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4713 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4714 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4717 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr



The lobby elevator had an adorable Mickey & Minnie decals on it!



IMG_4720 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4722 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4724 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4725 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr



Off the lobby was a gift shop, naturally, lol. We spent a good chunk of time dying over the merchandise, especially all the TSUM TSUMS! There were a few gorgeous bags in there too that I seriously debated over through the next few days! We ended up kinda splitting up in the shop, and at one point, I heard a familiar, and English Speaking voice behind me! Wait…what?!?!



I turned around to see Matt & Jessie, who are current Shanghai Disneyland CM’s, who HAPPENED to be on holiday in HK at the same time as us, like, we’d ALL just been in SHDR, and managed to see a special friend of Matt’s from a distance but that was it! We spent a good chunk of time catching up before we bid our separate ways.



Abby, Kara & I continued down the hallway a little bit to explore the last bit of the hotel.



IMG_4731 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr



The chandelier had super adorable glass slipper decals all around, which was super cute!!



IMG_4733 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4734 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4735 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr



IMG_4737 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

 

[katt789]

The three of us hopped back onto a bus, and finished our hotel tour back at our own hotel, in some DIRE need of FOOOOOD!! The lounge looked pretty appealing to us to have a little treat, so we settled into a table and got some drinks.

14980608_10157934053170647_8695485289115997434_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

15036561_10157934056315647_3469086536420748222_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4740 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4742 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr

IMG_4743 by Katt mccluskey, on Flickr



Drinks were good, we all got food as well, and just had a chill night!



15036475_10157934053235647_921808156774764136_n by Katt McCluskey, on Flickr



Couldn’t tell you what that was, or who ate it, I THINK it was mine, but I know we all thoroughly enjoyed everything that we had. Our server was also incredible, super friendly, great service, and we’d definitely be seeing him again over the next few days.



Drinks & food in us, we were ready to SLEEP! lol. Those comfy beds were CALLING TO US!! We showered, got ready for bed, and set out a plan for tomorrow after setting our alarms!