I love traveling, meeting people and different cultures.

Like to hangout with open minded and curious people, talking about anything!

I work for an international travel site, working 5 days a week. Would love to bring you around! Hong Kong has a lot to offer, from beaches and islands to skyscrapers and nightlife..

Hong Kong is made up of 3 parts
- New Territories (biggest part including all the outlying islands)
- Kowloon (peninsula with busy streets and local culture)
- Hong Kong Island (more expat, business, western / colonial style)

What to expect
- Hong Kong used to be a British colony, our culture is heavily influenced by western culture and is a mix between West and East
- Cantonese (not Mandarin which is spoken in China) and English are two official languages here, so English is mostly everywhere
- We are known for our city but actually over 70% of Hong Kong is green (countryside and outlying islands), don’t miss out on the beautiful nature of Hong Kong if you are staying for longer than a day
- Hong Kong although belongs to China, we very much maintain our own culture and colonial influences, we have our own language, writing, currency, passport, law system, habits, customs, etc, which are completely different from the rest of China
- We celebrate both western holidays like Easter and Christmas, and Chinese holidays like Chinese New Year, Mid Autumn Festival and Dragon Boat Festival
- To some locals, they might be offended if you speak Mandarin to them, call them Chinese or try to compare China to Hong Kong or not aware of the cultural differences
- If you want to get around Hong Kong easier, make sure you get an Octopus card from any metro station service counter. It’s an electronic payment card which you can use to pay for almost everything (bus, tram, train, ferry, convenient stores, some restaurants, but not taxi though) as long as you put money in it by simply depositing cash at the service counter. It saves you a lot of time trying to count the cash or line up for tickets every time. Transportations in Hong Kong are super well connected, convenient and efficient, though can be expensive, I suggest you put at least HKD 100 in your Octopus card daily just to be safe.
- Get all your travel essentials like SIM card, discounted tickets with Klook, If you are first timer using Klook, here is a HKD 25 voucher for you:
https://www.klook.com/en-HK/invite/81F8T?c=HKD
- Download “Citymapper” on your phone, easy to use and find the best transport method in Hong Kong

City - Kowloon (more local culture)
- Ladies market
- Temple street
- Tsim Sha Tsui (Avenue of Stars, Space Museum, Clock Tower, Peninsula Hotel, Hong Kong Cultural Centre, Museum of Art)
- Star ferry (to HK Island)
- Wong Tai Sin Temple (big busy Taoism temple)
- Jockey Club Creative Art Center (studios and shops of local artists)
- Chi Lin Nunnery and Nan Lian Garden (Beautiful Chinese Garden)
- Sky100 Hong Kong Observation Deck
- West Kowloon Cultural District (seafront lawn, chill place)
- Kowloon Park (city park with a bit of nature, Mosque and Islamic Centre)
- Shatin Horse Racing Course (horse racing on Sunday afternoon during season, check schedule on HKJC website before you go)

City - HK Island (more colonial / western culture)
- Tai Kwun (former Central police station, now a hipster spot)
- PMQ (former Police Married Quarters, another hipster spot)
- Antique street
- Tram (slow train on the street which is over 100 years old, good for sightseeing)
- Man Mo Temple (small taoism temple)
- Hong Kong Observation Wheel
- Lan Kwai Fong (most famous bars / clubs street, many expats)
- The Peak (cable car, best night view of the city, short hiking trails)
- Soho (high end restaurants)
- Stanley / Repulse Bay / Shek O (chill beach, bars)
- Ocean Park (marine life theme park)
- Statue Square
- Victoria Park
- Hong Kong Park (city park with zoo and flowers)
- Happy Valley Racecourse (horse racing party night with music and beer on Wednesday night during season, check schedule on HKJC website before you go)

New Territories (Countryside / Islands / Nature / Monastery)
- Lantau Island (Biggest island of HK, Cable car, Big Buddha, Tai O fishing village, Mui Wo, trails, HK Disneyland)
- Cheung Chau (outlying island very local and many unique food)
- Lamma Island (outlying island, more chill with trail, beaches and cafe)
- Sai Kung (located in eastern part of Hong Kong, an area filled with trails and nice beaches)
- Tai Mo Shan (tallest mountain in Hong Kong, trekking)
- Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery
- Tsz Shan Monastery

Must try Hong Kong food
- Dim sum (especially Siu Mai, Ha Gao, Fun Gwo and custard bun / Lau Sa Bao)
- Egg tart
- Egg waffle
- Hong Kong style Milk Tea (silky smooth as it is filtered with stockings!)
- HeyTea (tea with cheese topping)
- Fish ball
- Stinky Tofu (must try!!!! It’s not actually stinky, its fried fermented tofu, very yummy!)
- Congee (kind of like salty rice porridge)
- Wonton /beef brisket noodle
- Tofu Fa
- Bubble tea
- Snake soup
- Herbal tea
- Guilinggao

Note about traveling to Macau
- It’s another special administrative region of China, you might need a different visa for entry
- Macau is pretty small, 39 times smaller than Hong Kong, usually 1 day from is enough to tour around
- Macau used to be a Portuguese colony so there are a lot of Portuguese colonial culture there
- There are many nice hotels and big casinos in Macau, it’s nice to also stay a night or two there
- There are 3 ferry terminals from Hong Kong to Macau, with the main two being in Tsim Sha Tsui (Kowloon side) and Central (Hong Kong Island). Ferries are quite frequent and it takes about 1 hour one way. There are two ferry terminal in Macau, Macau Exterior is closer to old town and major tourist spots, Taipa is closer to all the newer hotels and casinos.
- Macau has its own currency so make sure you exchange for the local currency. HKD is generally accepted but not guaranteed.

Note about traveling to China (Shenzhen is the neighboring Chinese city just right across the border)
- Shenzhen is worth a visit as it is now very modern and spacious, it is also called “The Silicon Valley of China” with many cool tech companies
- It is very very different from Hong Kong and it’s a great cultural experience for you, also you can make comparisons with Hong Kong
- It’s only an hour cross-border bus from Central (Hong Kong Island)
- China and Hong Kong has completely different law and systems, you very likely need a visa to enter China, double check when you plan your trip
- China uses Renminbi (RMB / CNY) as currency, you need to exchange money before you enter
- They also have a different cellular network (get a China SIM before you go)
- Mobile payment is very popular in China, remember to download WeChat (it’s like WhatsApp but it has a mobile wallet function and much more)
- Remember Google (including App Store), Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WhatsApp are blocked in China, make sure you download a VPN app / service if you want to access them
- Download WeChat, Baidu Map and Didi (Chinese Uber) before you enter China

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Meet friends, learn about cultures and break down barriers

Interests

American football, traveling, guitar music, movies, tennis, different cultures, Scuba diving, beach, chill

• nightlife
• movies
• traveling
• socializing
• guitar
• outdoor activities
• scuba diving
• baseball
• american football
• tennis
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

Music:
Salsa
Bachata
Reggaeton
Country
Acoustic
EDM
Progressive rock
Classic rock
Melodic metal

Movies:
The secret life of Walter Mitty
Before Sunrise trilogy
50/50
500 days of summer
Matrix

Books:
Biography
Social/ behavioral Psycology
Leadership
Self help

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Scuba dive with 20 manta rays

What I Can Share with Hosts

I can teach you salsa

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Belgium, Cambodia, Canada, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, England, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Iceland, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Macao, Malaysia, Myanmar, Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Vatican City State, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Hong Kong, United States