We had less than two days in each of these cities, so it was a bit of a tease, but both were magnificent. Hong Kong reminded me of both New York and San Francisco, and was much more modern and cosmopolitan than I imagined. I went on a walking tour of Hong Kong the first day, led by a professor who had lived there, and realized I would've been completely lost had I gone on my own. Hong Kong Island puts on a light show nightly, using all the buildings on the waterfront, and because we were docked at Kowloon, just across from Hong Kong, we had a perfect view.
We sailed for two days from Hong Kong to Shanghai, and there were only a handful of us on the ship. Most of the students went to the Great Wall and other destinations, so those of us remaining were treated to special dining both nights and movies running continuously in our Union. We also encountered the worst weather of our voyage, and as a result we were five hours late getting to Shanghai.
Unlike any of the other countries we've visited, almost no one spoke a word of english in Shanghai, so we couldn't even get a cab. I realized how spoiled I've been, and between that and the chinese signage everywhere in the city, I actually felt like I was in China, which wasn't the case in Hong Kong. The city is under a lot of construction, and there is some incredible architecture, new and old, in this city. There's no building code, so apparently architects worldwide compete to have their buildings constructed here. The shopping was also insane, with the usual bartering we've encountered along the way.
We're sailing for two days to Japan, in rough waters once again. In fact, as I'm typing this, a bunch of reserve books and cd's just fell onto the floor and the library cart rolled into a table. More to come from tranquil Japan......
Pictures: Hong Kong Park; walking thru the street markets of Hong Kong; my first bulldog sighting (Hong Kong); Melly (student) and me at a Starbuck's in Shanghai (coffee is still a priority); some of the unusual architecture in Shanghai.
