Top 5 Places to Visit in Hong Kong

Twelve years ago, Hong Kong was for Chinese people and Chinese people only. It was near impossible for a non-speaking or reading person to go anywhere in Hong Kong. Now, there is translated English everywhere and I have been seeing a lot more tourists like a Russian family at Ocean Park or fellow Americans at Ladies Street.
Here is my top five places to visit in Hong Kong.

Ocean Park Hong Kong
Ocean Park Hong Kong is like a Disneyland, water park and a zoo combine. It is very famous for the awesome pandas. I honestly went to the park just to see the pandas and the newborn panda baby. It is definitely worth it to spend a day at Ocean Park Hong Kong. There is a Hong Kong Disneyland but why would you travel half way across the world to visit an equally expensive Disneyland when you could see pandas. There is a water park so make good use of that since Hong Kong is pretty warm during the non-summer season and ridiculously hot during summer.

Ladies' Street / Ladies' Market
This is one of the most well known streets in Hong Kong for tourist because it is basically a 100x version of any outdoor Chinese stops you see in your city's Chinatown. It is also bootleg central but the price is really too good to pass up. This is really where you really want to go on a shopping spree for souvenirs or for yourself. A majority of the items are stuff like accessories, plush toys, shoes, bags, t-shirts and etc. There is little to no electronics. It is located several blocks east of Mong Kok Station.

-Please make sure to watch your own bags as it is really crowded and it is better to be secure and safe with your personal items.
-Everything is done outdoors so if it is best to go on a sunny/non-rain day.
-Make sure to negotiate the price. Anything at Ladies' Street can be bargain. Anything they say is pretty much a lie because they know most tourists do not bargain. You can view my article @ http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2569031/the_art_of_negotiation_buying_stuff.html?cat=46

Nathan Road
Nathan Road is like the Champs-Élysées of Paris, the Regent/Piccadilly Circus of London or the Times Square/Broadway of New York City. It is a street that is filled with all kinds of shops, restaurants and a major tourist attraction. Along the road from Prince Edward station to Tsim Sha Tsui, you can dine in any of the Chinese restaurants which I believe is a thousand times better than any Chinese restaurants you have been outside of Hong Kong. There are multi-level shopping malls that have electronics, DVD, anime, anime figures, manga, jade, jewerly, and other interesting and/or exotic stuff. Along the Nathan Road is a beautiful Kowloon Park where you would see old Chinese people exercising and performing Tai Chi or other forms in the early morning.

At the end of Nathan Road is the Avenue of the Stars, which is like the Hollywood Walk of Fame. There are many famous Chinese actors that have their name and handprint on the street. It is also a great place to see a beautiful panoramic view of Hong Kong's downtown coastline. There are many famous buildings you can spot if you watch a lot of the old Jackie Chan's movies or recent Hollywood movies that take place in Hong Kong such as Push or Tomb Raider: Cradle of Life. At 8pm, there is a light show on top of those buildings across the river. Avenue of the Stars is a great spot to view everything at once.

At the end and to the west of Nathan Road are Ocean Terminal and Star Ferry Pier. Ocean Terminal is one of the biggest shopping mall in Hong Kong that host brand names and authentic stuff. Star Ferry Pier is another way to get across to downtown or Central Hong Kong. It is actually cheaper to take a ferry than the faster but more expensive subway.

Giant Buddha / Po Lin Monastery
You do not have to be a Buddhist to appreciate the world's largest outdoor, seating Buddhist statue. The trip and the walk are quite breath-taking. There are actually monks at the Po Lin Monastery and they welcome all kinds of religion. Once you reached up to the stairs, you will see a spectacular view and also being greeted by an enormous Buddhist statue. It is located on Lantau Island and I usually take either a ferry or the MTR Tung Chung Station. This is more or less a half-day trip.

Causeway Bay
Causeway Bay is a good place to experience a modern feeling of Hong Kong. It is almost like New York with its tall buildings, a lot of billboard/advertisement and massive crowds. One of the popular places I always go to is SOGO. It is a super department store that literally has everything. It is like a better version of Wal-Mart because the price is good and the quality is much, much better. It has an underground eating area that is to die for. You will find all kind of cool stuff to eat and is made right on the spot. Also in the area is the Hong Kong's Times square, tons of shops and there is Victoria Park which is basically a larger, even more beautiful version of Kowloon Park.

Preparing for the Trip
Several years ago, Hong Kong was focus on increasing tourism. They broke the language barrier by adding English to all subway, buses and actually making English standard and necessary to assist tourists. A big step was launching the Hong Kong Tourism Board. There are several areas in Hong Kong where you can find useful booklet and information to plan your trip in Hong Kong. You can also view the information online at
http://www.discoverhongkong.com/eng/index.html