The picturesque Hong Kong waterfront at night
Jan shopping for fabric with Gayle Carter
In jewelry store with the Kravitz duo
Jan and Bonnie score some dancing shoes...
Dim sum with Cliff and Leslyn Ashdown and Nick Carter...
Jerry hammers Beggar's chicken...
The ship comes alive as we sail away from Hong KongThe Regent Seven Seas Mariner was indeed a welcome site to the tired and dirty nine of us Cruise Specialists’ folks returning, at 9:00 p.m., from our 3-day overland trip into the heart of China. Our arrival was even more special when we saw that several crew awaited our busses with cold towels, a fruity Midori drink, smiles and hugs. If you have never had the experience of returning to your home-away-from-home ship after a few days away…it is very heartwarming! Our fantastic Food & Beverage Manager, Frank Galzy, had arranged for us to have dinner up top in La Veranda, facing the lights of Hong Kong harbor. It was truly a memorable evening. We dropped our carry-ons (the checked luggage was delivered to our suites while we ate dinner), washed our faces and hands, and were off to dinner were everything on the table was recognizable and safe to eat!
The Mariner had arrived in Hong Kong at 2:00 p.m. that afternoon, allowing many guests to be off ship enjoying the city’s night life in our first of three evenings in this glamorous atmosphere. We were also disembarking over 300 the next morning so many were in their staterooms packing like crazy. The ship seemed almost too quiet and empty. But we were all fine with that.
The next two days and nights were fairly non-stop for us. We accompanied many of our Cruise Specialists’ guests on shopping and eating excursions on foot in areas near the cruise terminal. Totally, we ate off the ship four times in two days (two lunches and two dinners). We even enjoyed dim sum at the same restaurant (Jade Garden) twice…once with Cliff and Leslyn Ashdown and Nick and Gayle Carter; and the other time with Bonnie and Lou Kravitz. The Jade Garden’s Char Sui (steamed pork barbeque buns) were the very best we have ever had! Dinners were once with Gloria Gilbert for Beggar’s Chicken at Peking Garden, and the second time at the Intercontinental Hotel with Glenn and Judy Weirick where we had a lovely dinner complete with a window table to enjoy the light and laser show that is provided over the Hong Kong harbor each night.
The Beggar’s Chicken was an interesting and very flavorful meal. It’s an entire chicken baked in a clay casing, then brought out on a trolley where you use a huge hammer to break the clay exposing a succulent chicken that melts in your mouth. Gloria had made the reservations because she arrived on the ship at 2 pm and it needed to be made at least 24 hours in advance. This is because the chicken is placed in banana leaves and then surrounded with clay. It then slowly roasts for 24 hours. Jerry had to hit the clay mound several times in order to break into the chicken, which is baked with onions, mushrooms, and some Chinese 5-spice.
Our days were filled with shopping experiences as only Hong Kong can provide. Jerry bought a very nice sports jacket and pants, thanks to Nick Carter and his local tailor. He also managed to snag a new lens for his already-too-expensive camera. Jan got beautiful earrings from Gayle Carter’s jeweler, dancing shoes with Bonnie Kravitz, and fabric at the Chinese Arts and Crafts store.
As our ship sailed out of Hong Kong at 11:00 p.m., it was dessert and dancing under the stars...and we said goodbye to fabulous Hong Kong.
Now, it’s off to Hanoi, the first of six days in Viet Nam.
The Mariner had arrived in Hong Kong at 2:00 p.m. that afternoon, allowing many guests to be off ship enjoying the city’s night life in our first of three evenings in this glamorous atmosphere. We were also disembarking over 300 the next morning so many were in their staterooms packing like crazy. The ship seemed almost too quiet and empty. But we were all fine with that.
The next two days and nights were fairly non-stop for us. We accompanied many of our Cruise Specialists’ guests on shopping and eating excursions on foot in areas near the cruise terminal. Totally, we ate off the ship four times in two days (two lunches and two dinners). We even enjoyed dim sum at the same restaurant (Jade Garden) twice…once with Cliff and Leslyn Ashdown and Nick and Gayle Carter; and the other time with Bonnie and Lou Kravitz. The Jade Garden’s Char Sui (steamed pork barbeque buns) were the very best we have ever had! Dinners were once with Gloria Gilbert for Beggar’s Chicken at Peking Garden, and the second time at the Intercontinental Hotel with Glenn and Judy Weirick where we had a lovely dinner complete with a window table to enjoy the light and laser show that is provided over the Hong Kong harbor each night.
The Beggar’s Chicken was an interesting and very flavorful meal. It’s an entire chicken baked in a clay casing, then brought out on a trolley where you use a huge hammer to break the clay exposing a succulent chicken that melts in your mouth. Gloria had made the reservations because she arrived on the ship at 2 pm and it needed to be made at least 24 hours in advance. This is because the chicken is placed in banana leaves and then surrounded with clay. It then slowly roasts for 24 hours. Jerry had to hit the clay mound several times in order to break into the chicken, which is baked with onions, mushrooms, and some Chinese 5-spice.
Our days were filled with shopping experiences as only Hong Kong can provide. Jerry bought a very nice sports jacket and pants, thanks to Nick Carter and his local tailor. He also managed to snag a new lens for his already-too-expensive camera. Jan got beautiful earrings from Gayle Carter’s jeweler, dancing shoes with Bonnie Kravitz, and fabric at the Chinese Arts and Crafts store.
As our ship sailed out of Hong Kong at 11:00 p.m., it was dessert and dancing under the stars...and we said goodbye to fabulous Hong Kong.
Now, it’s off to Hanoi, the first of six days in Viet Nam.
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