Hong Kong Day 2: Trying to Blend In

On my second day in Hong Kong I went to the Ani-Com anime convention happening at the seaside Convention and Exhibition Center. I thought it would be fun to see what a Chinese anime con is like and compare it to past cons I've been to. Not surprisingly, Ani-Com was pretty similar to its Korean and American counterparts, which was fine by me as it made me feel right at home. Now, having been to anime conventions in the USA, S. Korea and Hong Kong, I guess all that's left is to check out an anime convention in Japan?

Whereas Comic World in S. Korea is focused on the fan aspect of the anime and manga community, with most of its booths belonging to private individuals attempting to sell their own homemade wares, Ani-Com was all about the commercial side. Big name distributors and companies were on site to get that sweet nerd money, making their presence known with giant expensive booths designed to draw you in with huge displays of the latest video games and amazingly detailed life-like action figures. I'll admit I didn't leave the convention empty handed... But in my defense I had been looking to buy some drink coasters for a long time, so finding some for sale (Gundam-themed, no less) was pretty sweet.

Before leaving the con, I watched a cosplay contest featuring contestants in elaborate costumes performing skits, songs, and in one case, a wicked taiko drum show. The contestants were apparently the ten finalists from a previous competition, and I don't know if it's the style in China or what, but the costumes being shown off were some of the most glittery, borderline gaudy cosplay I have ever seen. I thought it was great.

For lunch I got some dim sum in my belly. This is as good a time as any to confess that I ate as much as I could while in Hong Kong, and most of what I put in my mouth was dim sum and wonton noodles. If you're unfamiliar with dim sum, just picture delicious appetizers sold at affordable prices. I had a lot of great dim sum, but one of my favorites is the steamed barbecue pork bun. I could probably eat those all day, which is really less of an assumption or more like a fact.

In the afternoon I took a ferry across the bay, leaving Hong Kong island to explore Hong Kong mainland. The city on the mainland was even more labyrinthine and congested than what I encountered on the island, and I occupied myself for hours walking up and down narrow streets. On the sidewalks were the most aggressive salesmen I've ever encountered, almost all Indian, almost all trying to lure me into their shops to get a custom suit or to buy a new Rolex, and getting past them was exhausting in of itself. Eventually I stumbled upon the Temple Street Night Market, one of Hong Kong's famous open-air markets. After doing a little shopping there, I took a bus back to the harbor for a ferry tour of the bay.

At 8 pm almost every night, all of the major buildings located along the waterfront light up for a synchronized light show, apparently the biggest of its kind in the entire world. My ferry rode out to the middle of the bay and parked itself in a spot where I could get a perfect 360 degree view of the whole Symphony of Lights. I took pictures of course, but it's definitely one of those things that's better appreciated in person!

When I got off the ferry, I headed back to my hostel. Two days down, three more to go.