Happening Hong Kong! Zalina Mohd Som (story and pictures) From showbiz stars and cartoon figures to furry pandas and adrenalin-charged rides, there is always something to do in Hong Kong. But, ZALINA MOHD SOM finds out that the holiday is not complete without the shopping

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Ocean Park amuses the little ones and the young-at-heart too. Trams are a cheap ride when in Hong Kong. At The Peak in Hong Kong, you can pose for pictures with your favourite stars like Bruce Lee and Michelle Yeoh.

Instead, our little group was in bermudas, Capri pants, tee-shirts, sneakers (sandals even!) and baseball caps for the media tour of the world-famous Madame Tussauds wax museum in Hong Kong.

Right in the lobby, we already felt like we were at a red carpet event. Greeting us with a smile was Jackie Chan. And Bruce Lee. Eh, wait a minute. Bruce Lee? The late kung fu hero resurrected?

For a minute, we were fooled by the life-sized wax figures of these famous stars. They were swarmed by curious visitors like us, all posing for pictures as they pretended to be shaking hands with the two stars who didn’t stop smiling, not for a minute.

As we entered the Wax Museum’s exhibition floors, a “horde of paparazzi” startled us with flashing cameras, making us feel like stars ourselves.

Inside, glamorous stars awaited, from Hollywood power couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie to supermodel Naomi Campbell, petite Kylie Minogue, controversial socialite Paris Hilton and handsome Pierce Brosnan.

The Hollywood A-list stars shared space with Asian superstars like Andy Lau, Aaron Kwok, Cecilia Cheung, Twins, Miriam Yeung, Leon Lai, Korean heartthrob Bae Yong Joon and Japanese favourite Ayumi Hamayaki.

But most of all, we were excited to see Malaysian Bond girl Datuk Michelle Yeoh, looking as slim and lovely as ever.

Madame Tussauds Hong Kong is home to over 100 incredible life-size waxed figures of famous celebrities, world leaders and sports heroes on two exhibition floors. This Friday, the museum will unveil the wax likeness of Hollywood heart-throb Johnny Depp.

Visitors are allowed to hold, hug and snap a picture with the stars in themed settings like Hong Kong Glamour, Historical and National Heroes, World Premiere, The Champions and Music Icons.

There are eight Madame Tussauds museums in the world and this one in Hong Kong is the first of two in Asia Pacific. The other is in Shanghai, China.

It is located in Hong Kong’s tourist attraction of The Peak, and visitors can conveniently enjoy two of Hong Kong’s must-visit attractions in one go.

Tip: To get a more realistic picture of the stars, angle your camera to those of the wax figures. With the eyes “staring” into your lens, the figures will look very real in print and you can fool anyone who looks at your picture. Have fun!

Our media group was in Hong Kong courtesy of AirAsia, Hong Kong Tourism Board and Hong Kong-based Uni Asia Tour. The trip, organised in conjunction with the low-cost carrier’s inaugural flight to Hong Kong in June, allowed us to also experience the following for ourselves.

The Peak

Standing at 552m above sea level, The Peak is the highest point in Hong Kong Island. About seven million visitors go there annually for two reasons – to ride on the 120-year-old Peak Tram and to visit the Peak Tower.

Apart from the tower, there’s Madame Tussauds and exciting shopping and food outlets and a 360-degree view of Hong Kong from its rooftop.

Tip: For a double thrill, take the Peak Tram up and a bus ride down. The bus goes through a steep and winding road that makes the journey exhilarating.

Hong Kong Disneyland

If Madame Tussauds put stars in our eyes, Hong Kong Disneyland charged us with youthful enthusiasm. The opportunity to meet, shake hands, mingle and pose with our favourite Disney characters overshadowed everything else in this theme park in Lantau Island.

There was Mickey Mouse and his girlfriend Minnie, Donald Duck and Daisy, Winnie The Pooh, Goofy, the Chipmunks and a line of princesses like Snow White, Cinderella and Ariel.

Though not as big as Disneyland in Japan in terms of size, there was something for young and old.

Inside the charming Disney town, set against the backdrop of the magical Disney Castle, there were rides, rides and more rides – fun rides for little kids and adrenalin-pumping thrillers for the adventurous. We could also shop for Disney merchandise and feast on Disney food.

There was nary a dull moment, not with scheduled pocket shows like parades, brass band shows and the grand finale, a fireworks display.

Tip: Get your hand stamped with the re-entry mark so that you can take the MTR train to Tung Chung Station to shop till you drop at Citygate Outlets, Hong Kong’s first factory outlet mall. Then go back to Disneyland for the grand finale in the evening.

Avenue of Stars

More “stars” awaited us at Avenue Of Stars, the first of its kind in Asia. Like its Hollywood sister, Hong Kong’s Avenue Of Stars has hand prints and plaques of its film industry’s superstars and workers. We saw hand prints of Sammo Hung, Jet Li, Jacky Cheung and the late Anita Mui, to name a few.

There were two statues – a bronze statue of the late Bruce Lee and a 4.5m Hong Kong Film Awards sculpture at the entrance.

In the evenings, this is the perfect spot for watching A Symphony Of Lights, a spectacular light and sound show that starts at 8pm at Victoria Harbour.

Recognised as the world’s Largest Permanent Light and Sound Show by Guinness World Records, the nightly event showcases interactive lights at 44 key buildings in both Hong Kong Island and Kowloon, with musical effects.

Other vantage points to watch the dazzling show are the promenade at Golden Bauhinia Square in Wan Chai and from sightseeing ferries in the harbour.

Tip: Plan your walk through the Avenue Of Stars to get the best seats at the promenade area just in time for the Symphony Of Lights show.

Ocean Park Hong Kong

Ocean Park Hong Kong offered a more exciting and adventurous visit. There were no cartoon figures but we got up close with endangered giant pandas. We watched Ying Ying nibble bamboo shoots while Le Le, An An and Jia Jia took a siesta, oblivious to the curious visitors.

Not that they had anything to worry about as a thick glass wall protected them from us. The Panda House was cooled to replicate the animal’s natural environment of 10-20º Celsius.

Together with Skyfair and Cable Car Station, the Giant Panda Habitat is located at the Lowland Gardens, the only themed zone located at the main entrance side.

Ocean Park is located on two sides of a mountain and visitors can enter via the main entrance or Tai Shue Wan Plaza. Both sides are connected via cable car along the side of the mountain from Lowland Gardens to Marine Land at the peak.

At the other end are Kids’ World, Headland Rides, Adventure Land and Marine Land. The park ends at Bird Paradise, near Tai Shue Wan Plaza. The escalator here is one of the world’s longest.

Tip: Time your journey and rides to coincide with the wonderful animal shows.

Mad About Shopping

What’s a holiday in Hong Kong without the shopping? Despite the fact that shopping was not on our itinerary, we flew back to Kuala Lumpur with more bags than we had when we arrived.

After all, we were taken on walking tours of the Mongkok street markets and busy Nathan Road to visit Kowloon Mosque and halal restaurants there.

None of us could resist buying something – whether it was just a digital camera memory card, a hand-carry luggage or a Chinese bird-cage!

We shopped along the streets and in the fashion street of Granville Road in Kowloon. We didn’t go to any shopping mall except for Citygate Outlet when we sneaked out of Disneyland.

If you don’t have bargaining skills, stick to malls like Citygate Outlet which houses floors of factory outlets for Esprit, Timberland, Nike and many more. On top of the factory-outlet prices, most of the stores also offer great discounts.

Hong Kong’s shopping centres and malls are easily accessible via the subway system. Other top shopping districts are Causeway Bay on Hong Kong Island and Tsim Sha Tsui in Kowloon.

Tip: Bring money, lots of it, for shopping. If you don’t, you’d regret it.

Fast Facts

IF you have the time and budget, plan your trip to include Macau and the China city of Shenzhen. Both are easily accessible via ferry and train respectively.

Anytime is a good time to visit Hong Kong as it enjoys clement climate from mid-September to end of February with temperatures that fall to 10 º Celsius. In summer, the temperature rises to warm and humid, with the rainy season from May to September. Pack accordingly.

Halal Cuisine: Muslim tourists needn’t worry as there are over 100 halal restaurants, mostly in Tsim Sha Tsui, Central and Causeway Bay. For a list of halal restaurants, go to website (www.discoverhongkong.com). Otherwise, just ask the people at the mosques. There are seven in Hong Kong — the two biggest are Kowloon Mosque and Islamic Centre in Kowloon and Masjid Ammar & Osman Ramju Sadick Islamic Centre in Wan Chai.

Where To Stay: There are lots of hotels but they are not cheap. Even rates for YMCA and YWCA hostels are at par with three-to-four-star hotels in Malaysia. Budget travellers however can stay at hostels run by Hong Kong Youth Hostels Association (www.yha.org.hk). There are also registered guest houses (rooms in homes rented out to tourists by house owners).

Getting Around: Using the subway system is a breeze as all MTR lines are inter-connected. If the MTR map isn’t enough, just ask the locals or the station’s customer service officer. English is widely spoken, especially in tourist areas and locals are friendly and helpful.

Get an Octopus Card, an electronic ticketing system that allows users to simply pass the ticket gates with a simple touch-and-go. It can also be used for buses, ferries and at 7-Eleven outlets and participating stores. Available at any MTR station where you also can get a refund of your deposit and the credit balance.

AirAsia Options: With AirAsia, Malaysians can fly direct to Hong Kong or enter via Macau or Shenzen. It has regular flights to these cities, so you can combine your Hong Kong holiday with either one or both cities. Macau and Hong Kong are connected by ferry while Shenzen is connected to Hong Kong by train.