Daniel's Microcosm

I went over to Hong Kong for a short while today to do a “visa run”, actually more like a “non-visa run”, since Singaporeans are allowed to stay in mainland China for up to 15 days without a visa. I didn’t really want to travel all the way south to Kowloon and Hong Kong Island, so I decided to take a bus from the border to Yuen Long, with the following four objectives:

1) Test out a cheaper route from the one I’ve been using between Hong Kong airport and Shenzhen, via Yuen Long instead of via Sheung Shui.

I didn’t go all the way to the airport so I don’t really know how much longer the entire journey will take, but the Shenzhen to Yuen Long segment seems convenient enough, and it will reduce the overall transport cost from 50 HKD (~S$8) to 25 HKD (~S$4). Plus Yuen Long feels like a better place to stop over than Sheung Shui, with a lot more shopping and eating options.

2) Buy back a box of Hang Heung Lau Po Bing.

Given that I had stumbled on the Hang Heung bakery in Sheung Shui, I was worried that I would not be able to get my Lau Po Bing fix if I switched over to Yuen Long. But fret not, because there is a Hang Heung bakery in Yuen Long too, right at one of the bus stops I can alight at to switch buses!

3) Eat goose meat.

If my Mandarin is bad, my Cantonese is worse. I couldn’t recall how to say “goose” in Cantonese, and had to end up pointing at the menu to order a plate of goose meat rice. It was at one of those tiny non-aircon shophouse-like places with meats hanging behind a glass window, and the queue was quite long, with majority of people ordering takeaway. The portion was huge though and the meat was yummy, so at 36 HKD (S$6) a plate, I thought it was quite a steal. Goose meat is similar to duck meat, except that it is less oily and more meaty. Mmmm.

4) Try out some Hui Lau Shan mango dessert, which my boss highly recommended.

Taken with my phone, this shot doesn’t do the dessert justice, even after some heavy Photoshop editing. It was indeed refreshingly delicious, but perhaps after a full stomach of goose meat rice, and the fact that I’ve been eating S$2-3 meals in Shenzhen, the price tag of 29 HKD (~S$5) felt a little steep. Oh well, I was on a half-day trip “overseas”, wasn’t I? That should be enough justification to spoil myself a little. :p

All in all, a good short trip across the border with all objectives met!