Christmas in Asia

For the first time we’ve spent Christmas in Asia.

Last year we spent our Christmas with exploring Tasmania, which I would highly recommend.  And the year before that on an epic road trip from our home in Queensland down to spend time with family in Victoria.

It is the equivalent of driving from New York City to Miami and as you can imagine a great trip exploring as we went.

Spending Christmas in Asia has been a whole new adventure.

We flew from Brisbane directly to Singapore where we spent two days criss-crossing the city exploring the various neighbourhoods and sites.

Of course, shopping was a part of exploring with Judy picking up some beautiful garments.

I think Chinatown was my favourite neighbourhood given that variety of small stores with an eclectic range of items on offer.

Chinatown is comprised of five smaller neighbourhoods, and each with their own feel and flavour thus highlighting the melting pot of cultures and life in this vibrant part of the city.

From Chinese to Malay to Indian each area was developed at a different era during Singapore’s long history.  You could easily spend a day in each area exploring.

The beauty of Singapore is that if you desire western style shopping then Orchard Road is the place to visit.  All the large designer brands that you’d expect have large retail space along Orchard Road.

So there is definitely something for everyone in Singapore, especially if you also include Merlion (the official mascot of Singapore) on the Bay or the iconic Marina Sands Hotel with its curved ship design connecting three towers or perhaps the adjacent Cloud Forest and botanical gardens.

In terms of accommodation, the hotel I chose for our Christmas in Asia, well at least for the Singapore leg is an architectural masterpiece of design.

The Parkroyal Collection on Upper Pickering Road encapsulates a rainforest into the design of the building.

Each room features natural woods, slate and contoured walls.  This was complimented with open walkways high above the cityscape leading to pods of rooms, which I found rather unique.

Interestingly the air circulates up the sides of the building through the rainforest to provide cooling breezes when walking on these walkways.

A simply stunning building, with friendly and attentive staff and all the amenities you’d expect from a world-class hotel.

We would highly recommend this hotel if you plan on visiting Singapore!

For the second portion of our Christmas in Asia adventure we flew early on the morning of the 25th to Hong Kong.

This easy 3.5-hour flight brought us to another of the world’s most celebrated cities.

If you’ve read any of my previous stories about my adventures in Hong Kong, then you’ll know that it is one of my favourite cities in Asia.

This is Judy’s first time in either city and so lots to see and do.

After we arrived, we took a taxi to our hotel on Hong Kong Island.  We’re staying at the Oasis Aurum 181 Hotel and serviced residences at 181 Connaught Road west.  The reason I picked this hotel is that the rooms are larger, and we have a view of Hong Kong harbour.  Particularly at nighttime you have a tremendous view of the Kowloon skyline across the bay.

We spent the afternoon exploring the Central Districts area of Hong Kong Island, with lunch a delightful French restaurant called the Le Petite Maison on Stanley Street.

Simple, yet delightful lunch over a glass of wine before continuing our exploration.

Being unsure of our dining options on Christmas day I had booked us in for dinner at the Fish Bar.

This restaurant is part of the JW Marriott hotel and wraps around the outdoor pool area of the hotel.

The restaurant itself is situated on the 7th floor and high enough up to not hear the city far below.  This is combined with the steep, forested mountain behind the hotel makes it feel like it’s immersed in nature and not in a city.

Now, you may be thinking that this is a poor choice of places to eat however, Judy and I both agreed that the seared scallops were the best we’d ever eaten as they literally melted on your tongue.

Each of the courses was delicious, but of course we ate too much and literally rolled out of the restaurant and back to our hotel at the other end of the Island.

The weather is in stark contrast to Singapore where it was hot and humid, with the average daily temps in Hong Kong hovering between 18C – 20C under cloudy skies.

Today, we’re planning on taking the ferry across the harbour to explore Kowloon.

As an explorer I’m always excited about the things you may see or experience and this will be no exception even though I’ve visited Hong Kong at least ten times over the course of my life it will be a totally new experience.

Until next week.

Ciao!