Day 15 - 24/3/2012 - China, Hong Kong, Home

Final day of holiday. Up early (not as early as the 5:30am wake-up call we got which was not ours!!). Breakfast in usual place, checked out and our car arrived promptly at 9am to take us back up HK.
Got to the border and the driver told us to get out and follow the large queue of Chinese people through customs and immigration. Apparently, twice a year the residents of Shenzhen can apply for a 7 day visa to go into HK for shopping. They always choose to do this on a Saturday - word of advice to anyone leaving China, don't go Saturday morning!

Toll booth

The queue snaked around for ages and at first it moved ok. They don't know how to queue properly so they are all trying to push past to get 2 people further ahead. Then they shut the doors to allow the queue inside to clear, so we stood packed in like sardines for about 20 mins. Then a fight broke out, amazing really as there was not much room to swing a punch, but they did! A bit of blood and a lot of shouting later we moved forward again. Almost got to the entrance when they shut the doors again, so another 20 mins of standing around. At least I was taller than all of them so I could see over the top and didn't feel so squashed. Once they opened the doors they all swarmed forwards, if you had fallen over you would easily have been trampled! Once inside we were through in 10 mins as we were visitors so didn't have to queue with them all. Found our driver then headed across no man's land to the Hong Kong border. Didn't even have to get out of the car here, you just wind down the window so they can see your face then off you go!
20 mins later we arrived at Kowloon Airport Express Station. This is the best system I have ever seen, as our flight is not until 10:45pm we were still able to check in our bags and get our boarding pass etc... Then we can head off and spend the day doing what we want without worrying about luggage. Every major city should have a city check-in, it encourages the tourists to go shopping and spend more money :-)
Said goodbye to Mike as he is flying home via Singapore, we all arrive home tomorrow at roughly the same time though!
Sean and I got the MTR to Jordan and had a look in the Wing On department store that we didn't get time to look in last week. We then walked up to the ladies market and had a wander through there again. Back on the train Tsim Sha Tsui and into Delaney's Irish Bar. Had lunch and watched the end of the Waratahs v. Stormers then Crusaders v. Cheetahs for 30 mins before they put the Rugby 7's on. Watched for a while then went out for a wander, found a whole street of golf shops that we did not know were there :-) Eventually got the airport express out to airport and was able to sit and have a lovely long black coffee in the Business Lounge waiting for our flight home.
Overall we have had a wonderful trip. Great weather, great fun and some wonderful memories, especially of the beautifully kind hearted and lovely Chinese people. They stole the show for me.
See you on the other side xx