Explosions by Emma

Yesterday we got the MTR (an underground train) over to Kowloon to go to some of the huge shopping malls that Hong Kong has. Only my Dad had any luck with buying anything. Megan and I had much more luck at the 'ladies market', where we bought some souvenirs and presents. The market was packed full of people. As we walked round, it felt like we were going round in circles, as lots of the stalls had the same things. I have learned to negotiate with the stall holders at markets, which has saved me lots of money. Don't try this at Tesco or Asda....it just won't work!! In the malls, there are lots of decorations for Chinese New Year. This is the start of the year of the horse.

Our friend Avinash said that he thinks I must have been born in the year of the monkey because he says I am like a cheeky monkey.

(The one on the right is the cheeky monkey!!) Later on, we headed to the Indian restaurant which Avinash had organised for us back on Hong Kong island. The man showed us to our table on the outside deck.

The lights from the skyscrapers were glowing and sparkling, and we could see right across to Victoria harbour, where the fireworks were going to be going off.

We had something to eat then went to stand at the edge of the deck to get the best view. At 8 o'clock, the fireworks started. We had to wait 17 hours to see the fireworks in Sydney, but the fireworks for Chinese New Year were much better. Did you know that the Chinese invented fireworks? You could tell they knew what they were doing!!! The fireworks went on for 20 minutes. My favourite ones were the ones that looked like flowers. Others looked like someone had thrown 1000 bags of glitter in the air; it looked like a big fruity burst of colour. Afterwards I closed my eyes, and I could still picture the fireworks.

We thought the fireworks were a great way to end our trip. When it was time to go, we said goodbye to Avinash, and headed back to our hotel. Today was awesome. We are just about to go the the airport to head for home. I feel sad that the trip is over, but I am also happy to be going back to see friends and family. I hope I remember this trip in the future. We have had a brilliant time; had some great adventures, and saw some amazing things- I feel very lucky. I have enjoyed having Megan with me; it wouldn't have been as much fun without her- we have had a 'lol' of a time. This will be my last blog entry.....for now!!!