Ocean Park, Hongkong

February 05, 2012

Ocean Park, Hongkong

I started the month of February with a bang! After resigning from my job and packing all my things (as in more than 80kgs excess! Kasi pati bulok na sapatos inuwi! Hahahaha), I went back to the Philippines and met up with my parents in Cebu.

I wanted to celebrate my birthday with my parents in Hongkong! I used a travel agent for this trip (although a lot of friends have told me there are a lot of cheap flight tickets nowadays, nothing beats the promo HK package trips from travel agencies) coz I don’t want my parents to be walking back & forth around HK following me and my LP guide! Lol

Here’s my travel buddies for this trip…….hehehehe

We arrived on 5th February (a day prior to my birthday) around 11am and since our hotel check-in is still at 2pm, we decided to head on to Ocean Park instead of just whiling away our time at the hotel lobby. We got our tickets from the tour guide who fetched us from the airport and it includes the return bus transfer from the hotel to Ocean Park.

With my previous HK trip, I did not even bother about going to any theme parks at all so this time around the oldies can play at being kiddies! Hahahaha

The place was full of local families and tourists....it was a Sunday and also fallen on a Chinese New Year weekend. Such a bummer.... but my mom was really keen to go in and keeps on pointing out the "kiat kiat" mandarin oranges that adorn the entrance of the park. Laong pa ni Mama, sus kadabo baja ini kiat kiat dinhi aja ra man pamuyota! Mandarin oranges is a regular staple in Chinese events especially New Year as it symbolizes both long life and prosperity.

FOOD --- There's a dearth of restaurants (na may rice!) at the waterfront area (there are nice restaurants at The Summit, if you can wait that long!). We had to make do with the small food stalls that we passed by.

I Love Siomai ......but accdg to my father, "this is not my type of food"

Korean Grilled squid....definitely my favorite!!!

My father who is a diabetic (and taking tons of medicine) is always hungry so we have to eat wherever we can find food. Even on sidewalks!

CABLE RIDE --- one of the highlights of the park is its 1.5km - long cable car ride to The Summit. We definitely went for this one, although I had to ask my mother if she is ready to get on (umm, she has high blood pressure naman!).

After the initial scare, with my mom holding on to the car's railings as if its going to fall off.....we started to see around and enjoy the cable car experience. The journey takes about 9-10 minutes with 251 other cars criss-crossing the ropeways at the same time. It was really awesome! A must-do!

Took a photo of this sailboat while on the cable car....

MAJOR ATTRACTIONS --- I know there must be at least 30 different rides & attractions in the park but only 2 major ones comes to mind when you talk about OCEAN PARK, the Ocean Theatre and the Grand Aquarium.

After our scenic cable ride, we went for the Ocean Theatre. It was jam-packed. The whole open-air auditorium was full of people. Good thing, we arrived at least 30mins before the show started and was able to get good seats.

There was an introductory performance with a 3-piece mariachi-themed band complete with colorful sombreros and fake Spanish accents, it was a good prelude to the main show. The theatre is currently showing the Sea Dreams, an inspirational narrative about the importance of marine conservation. It also features amazing acrobatic displays from dolphins and other marine mammals.

What bothered me though is the fact that these mammals are so obedient and domesticated. Coming off from a place like the Maldives where you can be greeted by a school of at least 40-50 dolphins dancing in the air while sitting in the jetty at 8:00 o'clock in the morning, the show seems so unnatural to me. I actually felt sorry for these marine creatures.

But my parents were happy to see it....so I'm happy for them na rin....hehehe....with my father saying that we need to bring my nephew and nieces next time so they can watch it.

On our way back to the Waterfront area, my father said he will sit down and watch the Lion Dance near the Sky Fair only to end up...............sleeping on the chair! hahaha

My mother and I, decided to go and finish the park tour with a Grand Aquarium visit as the finale. It was so-so for me coz the marine world in the Maldives even just during a snorkelling trip is way way better than looking at an aquarium, albeit a gigantic one like this.

My mom though was really amazed.....as in mega komentus ever doon na bonggalore daw! hahahaha

The only turn-offs during our park tour were the numbing cold weather....and my equally painfully sore feet! Aba eh, kung bago ba naman ang sapatos mo and the first time you wear it eh naglakad ka kaagad for almost 5 hours!