Hong Kong
Date: January 29, 2019 – February 2, 2019
Location: Hong Kong, China
January 29, 2019 was spent on the Celebrity Constellation cruising from Chan My, Vietnam to Hong Kong. The ship docked in Hong Kong at around 6:00 am on January 30, 2019 and this was the view from the ship towards the city.
This is the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal that we were docked at overnight. The cruise terminal provided a free shuttle bus to and from Plaza Hollywood, where the Diamond Hill subway station was located.
We took the subway to Ocean Park and walked to Aberdeen Promenade.
This is the Aberdeen Promenade.
There are a couple statues along the promenade as well.
We then went back to the ship where we planned to have dinner and then take the shuttle bus and subway to Avenue of the Stars to see the Symphony of Lights show.
Getting the shuttle bus back to the ship for dinner took a very long time. We decided that we would stay on the ship and watch the Symphony of Lights from the ship deck. It was going to be over an hour to get to the Avenue of the Stars and we would have had to leave extra time for the shuttle bus so we decided all the time traveling for a better view of the light show wasn’t worth it.
With the lunar new year coming up there was a light display for the holiday.
From the ship deck we couldn’t hear the music that went with the light show but I was disappointed with the lights that we saw. I was expecting there to be more lasers.
The next day we took the subway to Central. Shortly after exiting the subway we could see the HSBC Building.
Outside the HSBC Building are two bronze lions made in 1935 that were modeled after the original ones that were outside the Shanghai office in 1923. The bronze lions have the same names as the ones in Shanghai. This one is called Stitt.
This is Stephen. The lions are named after two bank employees.
The bottom floor of the HSBC Building doesn’t have doors so you can walk to the other side. There was a nice display set up for the Chinese New Year.
After going under the HSBC Building we walked through Cheung Kong Park. It is a small park but very nicely taken care of.
In this view of the HSBC Building you can see two maintenance cranes on top right of the building. The cranes are in the shape of cannons that point directly at the Bank of China. The Bank of China was built without regard to feng shui so the cannons are said to balance the negative feng shui energy directed at it from the Bank of China.
To get to Victoria Peak we took The Peak Tram.
The Peak Tram is the oldest funicular in Asia. It started operating in 1888.
The Lion Pavilion is free and the view was good.
After taking the tram back down we went to Hong Kong Park. The park is large with many artificial ponds and waterfalls.
In the park is also Olympic Square. Olympic Square is an amphitheater with seats for 880 people. It is a landmark to promote Olympism in Hong Kong.
In another area of the Hong Kong Park there were decorations for the Chinese New Year.
This waterfall had a walkway so you could get behind the water.
Chinese New Year decorations were set up in a mall that we walked through on our way back to the subway.
On January 31, 2019 here was the view as the ship sailed away from Hong Kong.
On the ship one night starting at 11:00 pm was an 18 plus show by the Celebrity production cast called Elyria. For the 12-plus cruises Brian has been on, this was the first time we had seen a show that wasn’t a comedian for an 18+ crowd. The show took place on an exotic island and was funny.
On the ship we also started to see decorations for the Chinese New Year, or Lunar New Year, being put up.
Another night the Celebrity production cast did a show called Land of Make Believe.
The show is a twist on classic fairy tales including Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz.
There were also some amazing aerialist acts in the show.
Of the 7 cruises I have been on, this was my favorite show ever! I loved the mix of characters from various fairy tales and the mash up of songs. I recognized many of the songs as some were by Michael Jackson, Beyonce and the Spice Girls.
