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.