Frannywanny

Knowing that I only have 24 hours to spend in Hong Kong, I quickly made a list of the things that I HAVE to eat and do. Actually I only had 3 things on my list: - eat dimsum! - Eat Dimsum!! - EAT DIMSUM!!! Kidding aside, I actually have added in buying hoarding my favorite candy and to check out the Hong Kong Kiehl's shop too. I've successfully done all three and with that I'm giving myself a pat on the back. When you're in Hong Kong, there are just some things that you can't miss out on. One of those is to have dimsum . No matter where you have it, be it at a swanky fine dining restaurant or at some hole in the wall, chinese-speaking-only dimsum shop, you'll definitely enjoy these hand-created masterpieces which have been perfected through time. As soon as we landed in Hong Kong, S and I quickly headed to Tim Ho Wan which is located right at the Airport Express station. Sadly we got there a minute too late as they close at 8:30PM and we were there at 8:31...

Remember I mentioned that Paul and I coincidentally share a lot of similar Hong Kong memories . One of the most remarkable one was our fondness for this particular Unagi Don at the basement of Sogo Department Store in Causeway Bay. It's so funny how we found out about this shared love for this Japanese eel rice dish. As we were walking around Causeway Bay, Paul suddenly brought up how he would excuse himself from his family shopping routine to be able to head straight to Sogo Department Store to have his Unagi Don box. While my Papa wasn't that lax to allow me to roam free on my own, I told him that we would also go to Sogo to have the same Unagi Don and I can also remember how good it was. A trip was definitely not complete without it. That said, we made sure to include the search for that particular Unagi Don during this trip. A lot of things have changed and to be honest, we had a hard time trying to recall where exactly that Unagi Don was as even the supermarket has a new...

Bonjour! If there's any language in the world that I would like to learn next to mastering my Mandarin, it would be French. Oh how I dream of having the French accent similar to that of Celine in the movie "trilogy" Before Sunrise/Sunset/Midnight . She speaks in such poetic tone that is just so nice to listen to. The same is true for my colleague G who's fluent in French. From him, we learn the proper pronunciation of certain words and while I still struggle to say the word "escargot" properly, I really do enjoy learning a new word each day. Speaking of French, one of the highlights of our trip to Hong Kong last year was when we had the chance to have a very French Afternoon Tea at Joel Robuchon's restaurant. Believe me, I was so giddy while lining up that I couldn't keep still. Joel Robuchon has 3 types of restaurants located all at The Landmark -- Le Jardin ( contemporary fine dining at the roof top garden ), L'Atelier ( the most popul...

Hong Kong remains to be one of my favorite destinations in Asia. Aside from the fact that it's just an hour and 50 minutes away from Manila, entering Hong Kong does not require a visa and while I've been there so many times since I was 7 that I know the country by heart, each visit still surprises me with new discoveries and finds that I get to take home and remember forever. For those who are planning a trip to Hong Kong , here's my easy travel guide to help you make the most of your stay in this amazing Asian food and shopping destination: First and foremost, a little 101 on Hong Kong -- how to get there and how to navigate your way around. When looking for a place to stay, I highly recommend Cosmo Kowloon Hotel for its reasonable rates and strategic location. I also love Butterfly on Prat which is located right at the heart of Tsim Sha Tsui in Kowloon as well. However, if you're traveling with kids, why not spend the night at the enchanting Hong Kong Disn...

If Jollibee is to Manila and In-n-Out is to California, all around Hong Kong you'll see Cafe de Coral or what the locals refer to as CDC . Cafe de Coral is our go to place when we want to enjoy affordable rice toppings. We love it that they change their menu from month to month adding new dishes while retaining the best-selling ones. After killing our legs from all the walking that we did that day and nursing our tired back with the heavy shopping bags that we were lugging around, we decided to have our dinner at Cafe de Coral . This is one of Hong Kong 's popular fast food where you have to choose your order from the menu board, head over to the cashier to order and pay, look for a table and wait for your food to be served at the counter where you have to carry the tray back to the table yourself. Despite being a self-service restaurant, I'm amazed at how organized the process was and people still manage to keep the tables clean and the utensils dispenser sti...

When they say that Hong Kong is the mecca for food lovers in Asia, they surely were not kidding as every corner and alley is filled with eateries and restaurants serving their respective delicious specialties. After having a hearty congee breakfast at Da Shi Fu near our hotel, Paul and I headed to my favorite place in Hong Kong -- Tsim Sha Tsui . This is where I enjoy scouring the streets for more delicious finds and at the same time the place where we would always shop at our favorite outlet stores along Granville and more retail stores at Harbor City (hello Uniqlo!) . I also enjoy staring at the beautiful Superstar cruise ship that docks at the Ocean Terminal and it's also here at TST where we would go to the Avenue of Stars at night to watch the display of lights and to visit the Jackie Chan souvenir store nearby. Since our schedule was quite packed that day, we only felt hungry a little past 2PM and thus decided to look for a place to have lunch. I flew to Hong Kong ...