Air Travel in Asia and business class perks

We all know Hong Kong is the best travel hub in Asia. Hong Kong's airport is annually rated in the top 2 in terms of efficiency, available dining options and architectural design. It lost it's top spot to South Korea's airport last year unfortunately.

In the last couple of years, I've been to Chek Lap Kok airport more than some of my favorite restaurants. Being in Kong Hong, one must constantly take advantage of its close proximity to other Asian countries like Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Taiwan, Japan, etc. Unlike being in the states where a typical flight is usually domestic; in HK, every flight is international. Wherein lies the benefits of flying in Asia.

Here in Asia, I don't feel like the airline industry is in turmoil like I do in the states. There's no extra charge for baggage check or carry-on. Every time I fly, it's international and that means a full meal is served and on top of that, they offer beer, wine and sometimes whiskey. This is just in economy class! In the states, all I get is a bag of pretzels or peanuts on a coast to coast flight. An extra $5 charge, I get a snack pack! It's going to take some time to adjust to flying in the USA again *sigh*

On a recent flight back to HK from Hangzhou, China for a friend's wedding, we were lucky enough to have been upgraded to business class. Thanks to the wife for racking up a ton of miles from her business trips.

As we boarded the plane and on our way to business class, a tall, good looking mid-30s Asian guy was apparently sitting in her seat. I was trailing her when she handed her ticket to the flight attendant who then asked the guy to take the aisle seat since the window seat was hers. Immediately after he got up, she asked him if he'd trade seats with me. I had a window seat but it was in the last row of the business class section. He hesitated but was willing to give up his seat.

This is how it went down...

He - "Sure. I don't want to deny two love birds from sitting together."
She - "Thank you so much."
He - "No problem."

(5 secs later as I was putting my backpack in the overhead bin)

Me whispering - "Hey. I think that guy is a HK movie star. He looks really familiar."
She - "Yeah. He's kind of cute. I should have sat with him instead of you." *ouch*

(Throughout the flight, I couldn't figured out who he was. I kept stalking him during the flight to see if he was a really a HK pop star)

Me whispering again - "Hey. He dresses like a star and he's wearing shades on the plane. All signs of a mystery movie star."
She whispering back - "Looks like he's wearing Dolce & Gabanna outfit"
Me - "Yeah. He's wearing knee high boots! What kinda guy wears that?!"

(Still very determined to figure who he was, I devised a plan to trail him during the de-boarding. The opportunity came during the shuttle bus ride to the arrival gate)
Me - "Hi. Thanks a lot for trading seats with me. That was really nice of you."
He - "Sure, no problem"

(2 second silence as I thinking of my next line.)
Me - "You probably get this a lot but you look really familiar. Are you in the HK film industry?"
He - "Yeah. Yeah, I'm." (pretty humble guy)
Me - (without hesitation) "Oh. I'm Nam Cheung. What's your name?"
He - "Hi. I'm Michael" (I still had no idea who he was!)

(By this time, I was totally focused on acquiring more info. I had no idea where the wife was. For that matter, she might of been on the plane still :)

I chatted with him for the entire ride. Found out he grew up in the Burlingame area. He has family there still but he works in HK now. He was in Hangzhou to sign a film contract. China is where most of the funding is now in the film industry so HK movie stars are in China more often these days.

I found the wife when we got off the bus. We continued to chat on our way to immigration and baggage claim.

(At baggage claim)
Me - "Hey, honey. Here's our bag."
He - "Well. Great talking to you. Good luck"
Me - "Michael, what's your last name?" (Still with no shame but I felt bad for not really knowing who he was)
He - "Oh, Tong. Michael Tong"
Me - "Well, nice to have met you. Do you mind if we get a picture together? Hey honey, how about if you take a picture with Michael?"


This is Tong Mun Long (AKA Michael Tong). Not a top tier star like Andy Lau but he has bay area connection! :) He turned out to be a really nice guy. After baggage claim, he was actually on the same Airport Express train with us. He made sure to wave good bye to the both of us on his way out of the train. Really nice guy! That was a nice surprise with the upgrade and meeting Michael Tong.

Here are some pictures of Hangzhou. The city is built around a beautiful lake.

Delivery Scooter!

On our way out yesterday, we spotted this McDonald's delivery scooter outside the building. After a little bit of research, I found out that your big mac value meal could be delivered to your doorstep 24 hours a day! I think the minimum order is $100 HKD. Check out the mickey D helmet! I totally dig that helmet but cold fries just don't taste good.


Hmm...I wonder how much of their revenue is derived from delivery orders. We also see delivery scooters for other fast food chains like KFC and Pizza Hut so there must be value in providing delivery service in a fast pace metropolitan area like HK. But still, there are plenty of Asian and American fast food restuarants within walking distance. I really don't think there's a high demand for it. Maybe it's this additional service that differentiates these chains from others. I guess I'll have to do a bit more research...

$2.50 Big Mac and Short Coffee

I've been working the morning shift lately so I can get one contiguous block of sleep at night. I typically start my work day at 11PM and end around 3-4AM. I sleep for about 7-8 hours and when I get out of bed, it's usually time for lunch.

The other day, I felt like grabbing a quick sandwich for lunch but on the way to the deli stand, Mcdonald was calling for me to introduce me to their Big Mac promotion! Try our Big Mac value meal for $2.50 USD! How could anyone refuse a Big Mac, fries and a Coke for that price, right? I caved in and postponed the sandwich for the next day. However, I went back to Mickey D's again and never made it to the deli. I've never see such a cheap value meal in the states ever!



For the same price as the Big Mac meal, I also got an extra small cup of coffee that day. And for half of the cost of the coffee, I bought a fruit cup to make me feel better about all the empty calories I consumed from the Big Mac meal. It was only $1.25! It's counter intuitive that nutritional food is cheaper than unhealthy food.

Humidity and Air Pollution

If it wasn't for the humidity and air pollution, Hong Kong would be a great place to live. I would go as far as moving here permanently. But the reality is, those two things are as synonymous with Hong Kong as dim sum and skyscrapers.

Dehumidifiers are probably the most popular appliance in Hong Kong. It draws moisture from the apartment through a refrigerated coil, the moisture condenses into H2O and drips into the bucket. The other side of the coil generates warm air that comes out through a fan.


This is from early March. I turned it on in the morning and within 10 hours, I got around 2 gallons of water! Water looked super clear so instead of buying bottled water, why not drink this stuff??

Now, it's late March. For a three day period, the government has warned people to stay indoors unless it's necessary to get out. I felt trapped in my little apartment.


Hong Kong pollution is typically attributed to a combination of car emissions, factories from South China and the sandstorms from Beijing and northern China. Sometimes, the sky would be clear in the morning and then, in late afternoon, it turns ito a mirky, brownish fog. We wonder all the time whether it's fog or smog. We like to think of it as fog.

Halloween with the Cheungstones

Hong Kong loves Halloween. It's one of the most celebrated events of the year. I'm not quite sure why. It might have to do with how superstitious people are here. Cantonese people have a huge fascination with ghosts and goblins. Their version of Halloween is called "yue lan" which occurs at the end of August when ancestral spirits roam the city for 24 hours. But because Hong Kong is a big international city and people have a desire to adopt everything Western, Halloween is a big deal here. The practice of TrickOrTreating is not a common practice from our observation. Stores don't advertise candies and kids didn't ring our doorbell in the evening to fulfill their sugar appetite.

Many people dress up in costumes and roam the streets to check out how their outfits stack up with others'. Streets are barricaded and specific routes are set up days ahead to direct traffic to the parade or parties at the bar street, LKF.

Deterred by the huge crowds around LKF, we decided to party at a lounge/restaurant in Central called Zuma.


Fred and Wilma Cheungstones - Pre-partying at home.


There are security guards/cops at every major intersections to guide people in the right direction.


Most of the sidewalks were set up to go in only one direction. Overall it was a very orderly night. Getting home at the end of the night was tough because most taxi's were holding out for long haul customers since the demand was so high. All trains and buses shut down after midnight.


Get there by 11PM or deal with the huge line, even if you've prepaid.


Special guests were photographed at the entrance by professional photographers so I decided to join in...not sure if she was a star or just a random guest.


Look, it's Daniel Wu! Cantonese actor/producer/martial artist, born and bred in Berkeley, CA.


Before 11, everyone was congregating around the bar for the free Belvedere Vodka.


At midnight, the lounge was only half full. At 2AM, there was barely any room to maneuver on the dance floor.


Russell from the Disney 3-D animation, Up.


Some cheerleader friends.


A bunch of our friends visited Lijiang, China and came back with tribal outfits.


Snow White and her dwarfs.


My favorite of the night, Predator!


Not sure who these girls were. Every minute of the night was a bit fuzzy and dark.


I think we freeloaded Vodka shots from these people.


Another Fred in the party! Hottest mermaid I saw all night :)


Not sure what this scene was. I think these are blood thirsty zombies attacking a Central bag lady.


Mario and Luigi!


Warrior girl


Darth Maul

The Paper Anniversary

With our wedding anniversary due in less than a month, we decided to finally go on our official honeymoon. As you may have known, we didn't get a chance to get away after our wedding since my wife went back to Hong Kong immediately after the wedding. On top of that, the tiny Maui wedding practically broke our piggy bank. Who would have thunk the wedding photographer alone was going to cost $5k+? We thought we were smart to have a destination wedding to control costs...hah!

So what I learned recently is that the end of the first year of the marriage is marked as the "paper" anniversary. We are supposed to eat the top layer of the wedding cake. The cake should have been frozen in the freezer. We didn't do it. Who does that anyway? Who eats a 1 year old cake?? And on top of that, what kind of gift is exchanged during the "paper" anniversary? Does anyone have clever suggestions for a gift?

Our honeymoon destinations were Chiang Mai & Phuket in Thailand. Since we totally enjoyed our last trip to Thailand, we decided to go back and check out the rest of the country. These two places can't be more different, Phuket is a tropical island with tons of beautiful beaches while Chiang Mai has the old town feel, surrounded by luscious mountains and rain forests. Phuket is full of tourists with an international airport while Chiang Mai is by way of the capital, Bangkok.

Though both places are worth your time and money, you can certainly stretch your dollar a little further in Chiang Mai. Chiang Mai is worth experiencing if you have never been there but once is enough to take in the culture and outdoor activities. Phuket is much easier to get to but being a tropical paradise, it's more expensive. Who gets tired of laying at the beach, eating wonderful Thai cuisines, and getting massages right? It's cheaper than Hawaii and if you prefer Thai food over luau food, it's the perfect getaway for a great R&R.


Private honeymoon suite, not. Standard sea view suite at the Arraya Hilltop in Phuket.


The best part of the suite was the fresh fruit welcome basket! Bananas, red apple, and the logans are easily identifiable to all of us. However, the other two are not. I believe the green fruit in the middle is the waterapple. It's softer than a regular apple. My favorite is the Sapodilla. It's very sweet and taste a bit like molasses. I haven't had it in over twenty years! Sooo goooood.


This is Maya Bay, location of Danny Boyle's film, The Beach with Leonardo DiCaprio. It's the smaller of the two Phi Phi islands, about an hour speed boat ride from Phuket. It's Phi Phi islands tour is mandatory if you're in Phuket.


A party cruiser with a few hundred tourists, docked by Monkey Beach near Phi Phi islands.


We snorkeled around Khai island and saw a shark, abate a baby one.


Surin beach, a quick 2min walk from the hotel. A quiet day due to the low season. High season picks up starting in November where people from colder places take it to the warm southeast vacation spots.


The most expensive water sport is jet skiing. Cost about $50 USD for 30 mins. We were happy to lay by the beach and stare at it. What a relaxing time.


The liveliest beach in Phuket.


Two chairs for $160 Bahts. The exchange rate in our Lonely Planet guide is 1 dollar to $40 bahts but nowadays, it's only $33 bahts to a buck! Sadly, the mightly dollar is depreciating all over the world.


The colorful taxi vans are everywhere along the side of Patong Beach.




This Patong street is full of bars and clubs, exuding Phuket's exciting nightlife. Lots of lady boys roam the streets! Be careful when picking up local chicks ;)


This is the view from our hotel room in Chiang Mai. No beach here. Just a beautiful city.


We discovered this Shabu Shabu place while walking around town. It's a Shabu Shabu boat restuarant, where the veggie and meat for your shabu shabu are priced by the plate.


The bazaar night market. Chiang Mai comes to life at night.


Paying for the Tuk Tuk (pronounced took took) ride.


This is the Maesa elephant camp. This is the last time we are riding elephants. We discovered that the trainers use sharp iron hooks to train the elephants. They are such huge animals but I'm sure it still hurts!


You can tell they were happy to be washed down by the trainers after a long day of carrying people up and down the hills.


Thai cookery school. The best thai meal we have ever made: Papaya salad, tom yum goong soup, green curry, penang curry, and mango sticky rice were just a few of the dishes we made.


Zip-lining through the rain forest.


Look, no hand!


Chowing down on a Pad Thai omelet.


We sampled a few local food stands. Luckily, no stomach issues at all! Phew.

Chiang Mai beer is good and cheap. Some late night snacks before bed.