MINE!

So, the thing about Chinese cuisine is...there's not a whole lot of raw veggie action going on. When Pipkin saw this rabbit in Macau he hoped she'd be willing to share some of her carrot.

Nope.

TurboJetsetting to Macau

Feelin' like a gangsta in the lobby of the Grand Lisboa

For the weekend, Pipkin and Domo joined the TurboJetset crowd and sailed to Macau by hydrofoil. Macau is a former Portuguese colony made up of two islands just 60 km southwest of Hong Kong. Pipkin was excited to see the mix of Asian and European architecture. Domo was psyched to do a little gambling. Macau is known as the "Monte Carlo of the Orient", and when the major American hotels and casinos began operations in Macau a few years ago, Macau became bigger for gambling than Las Vegas.

Armed with his lucky labbit's foot (four of them! That's even luckier!) Domo went to Grand Lisboa, easily recognised in Macau as the tallest building. He tried his hand at Pai Gow, Mah Jong and Fan Tan before hitting the blackjack and poker tables. Sorry for the lack of photos, but photography on the casino floor is forbidden. To sum up, let's just say Pipkin's feet are not so lucky, and Macau's economy is in better shape than it was before they arrived on the island.

A little to the right...

Domo was disappointed to lose, but his spirits lifted when Pipkin took him to Fortaleza do Monte, a fort built in the early 1600s by the Jesuits to defend Macau.

A plan started to form in Domo's mind.

Aim...

FIRE!!

But nothing came of his plan. Curses! You just can't trust centuries old ordnance.

DingDing! Upper Deck to Happy Valley

A fun way to see Hong Kong is to ride on one of its famous DingDing* trams. Hong Kong runs double decker trams exclusively on its tramway system, and for a small sum of money, you can climb aboard the upper deck, sit back and watch the city go by.

It's not only a great way to people watch, but getting on a tram will allow you to see the various neighborhoods of Hong Kong, from the modern glass and concrete skyscrapers of the financial district, the ritzy designer shops in the shopping mecca of Causeway Bay, the energy of the race track (you can see the horses race from the tram!) to densely packed residential apartments and street level open air markets.

Trams run frequently during peak hours. You'll only have to wait 90 seconds before the next one comes by. So load up your Octopus Card and give yourself a couple hours to go back and forth from Shau Kei Wan to Kennedy Town. Look! Here comes the next tram...

*Residents of Hong Kong call the trams "DingDing" after the double bell sound that warns pedestrians of a tram's approach.

Set Sail For Treasure Island!

Domo promised Pipkin that today they would head out in search of pirate treasure! Pipkin was really looking forward to a fun day of adventure, but the weather was all grey and rainy.

Domo wasn't too upset. He had just the thing to cheer Pip up.

Sometimes a little southern hip hop and Crunky chocolate is just the thing to turn that frown upside down.

They watched the scenery go by from inside the ferry, and after nearly an hour, they arrived on Cheung Chau island (Cantonese for "Long Island"), where famed pirate Cheung Po Tsai hid his treasures in a cave.

For the most part, Cheung Chau island is a fishing village with residences, and its narrow laneways limit traffic to bicycles, walking, and specially designed little fire trucks and ambulances. The ferry from Central drops you off at a main terminal on Cheung Chau island, and you have to take a smaller boat to the other side of the island to get to the pirate cave. Pipkin and Domo checked out the modern day treasures of Cheung Chau - seafood!

A short water taxi ride later, Pipkin and Domo arrived at Cheung Po Tsai's pirate cave.

Pretty nice view for a pirate cave! You can see how big a bay of water Cheung Po Tsai had near by for his 600+ pirate ships. He had a pirate crew of over 50,000. These islands can hide a lot of booty.

Good thing Pip and Domo are small enough to crawl in here. (Entrance is between the rocks on the left.)

It's pretty dark down there, but cavernous! Lots of treasures could have been held down there. Sadly, it's too dark for pictures, and Pip and Domo aren't going to tell you what things they took out of the cave. You'll just have to visit yourself. You might even find some pirates, hanging out at the other end of the cave.

Temple St Night Market

There's a lot to do in Hong Kong during the day but there is just as much life at night. With cooler temperatures and no space to cook in a small Hong Kong dwelling, most people head out in the evenings to socialize, grab a bite to eat, and get away from their smothers. I mean, mothers. Seriously, Hong Kong living quarters are tight. Labbits in warrens have more space.

So people tend to go out. One of the things people do at night is get their shopping done. Temple St. Night Market is one of the busiest flea markets in Hong Kong. It's found on the Kowloon side, in the Jordan neighborhood. Often referred to as the "Men's Market" you will find all sorts of clothing, belts, shoes, DVDs, powerful laser pointers (banned in the USA!), lighters and food. Expect knock offs and bargains, and don't forget to haggle.

Pipkin wasn't in the market for a fake Gucci bag, off color Rolex or a misspelled Ferrari phone case, but he did enjoy people watching. Hidden in the back of these stalls are shops with antiques, Chinese herbs and other miscellany. Pipkin saw something out of the corner of his eye in this shoe shop. See it?

Keep a sharp eye on those bargains and hidden gems!