The train started running at 6:00 AM, so I left the airport and went to the Kowloon waterfront, where I took the Star Ferry across to Hong Kong Central. (Hong Kong refers to both Hong Kong island and the Special Administrative Zone that includes it. I think the name of the city itself is still Victoria, although no one seems to call it that.)

I couldn’t check in until afternoon, so I had to carry all my stuff with me. It’s only about 20 pounds, because I’ve slowly been learning how important it is to travel light. Still, I didn’t want to spend the morning hiking, especially since I only got about two hours sleep last night, so I caught one of the double-decker trams, went upstairs, and rode around for an hour or so. The fare is HK$2.30 (about 30 cents).

(Note the bamboo scaffolding in the background. Most of Hong Kong’s gleaming modern skyscrapers are built using bamboo scaffolding.)

After all that it was still only 9:00 AM, so I walked down some side streets that had rows of small markets.

The food seemed very fresh.

But I stopped in a bakery instead and got a pastry, then sat in Starbucks for a while. Eventually I meandered back to Kowloon and checked in right at noon.

And now I’m going to take a nap.