Horner travels ... Of all the pages in a book, the best stories are found between the pages of a passport...

Although a cold change had come through, we decided to brave heading up towards one of the highest points on the island. At 7:30am we were boarding a tram to Admiralty and then following the well signed streets to the lower tram terminal for The Peak. It was a great time to go - the sky was still clear (pollution-or fog as the locals say- hadn't arisen) and there was few tourists out and about. The ride was a thrill- clanking up the steep terrain like a roller coaster. The views continued to get better and better and were absolutely breathtaking from the top. We perched ourselves indoors on a window seat at The Pacific Coffee Co. and had breakfast while absorbing the vast concrete jungle of both HK Island and mainland. Outdoors, the icy, gale force wind was nearly unbearable and we were glad we had hesitantly decided to put on our thermals this morning. We then went on a 1/2 hr walk around part of the trail above the Peak Tower - it was lovely to be away from the hustle and bustle of downtown and to get some southern, less developed views of the Island. After debarking the hairy tram ride back down the mountain, we visited Flagstaff Museum of Tea Ware in HK Park - it was very interesting and we enjoyed both the ancient displays of tea ware as well as a contemporary display of pots ad cups by local artists. We couldn;t believe the patterns, drawings and colours of some ceramics dating back to the 5thCentury - many pieces could have been made today as they were so 'modern' looking.  The afternoon involved exploration of Central, Soho and surrounds including many boardings on the 800m uphill escalator following Shelley Street as well as many trips up and down steps- there will be different sore muscles tomorrow. It is the largest outdoor escalator in the world and was a great viewing point for being inquisitive - into back alleyways, upper floor businesses and apartments etc. Splurged out on a 3 course Thai lunch in trendy Ergin Street- soup, Pad Thai with prawns wrapped in omelette and coconut dessert. The drink was nearly as exy as the set lunch meal- homemade ginger and lime ale with lemongrass - yum! Took a tram back to Wan Chai area to enter the dinghy computer malls packed with hole in the wall shops. Didn't get the kids a Nintendo - sorry guys!!! I'm sure they'll kick me when the know the starting price was $100 AUD - that's cheap isn't it? WALKED back - again. Skipping dinner and just consuming garlic bread, hot chocolate and a local sweet - egg tart - yum, again!