Hong Kong: The Land of SuPRIZEs

A few months ago, I subscribed to Spinnr Live Package to qualify in the Maroon 5 Promo of Spinnr. They were giving away 20 tickets for the M5 concert on September 17, 2015, the concert junkie I am... off course I joined the promo. Though I already have Upper Box tickets for the concert still VIP is VIP! The promo ended on September 9 & I was unfortunately not one of the winners.

I was so busy I forgot unsubscribing from the Live Package for 2 months. So I lurked into the promo page of Spinnr to check out other promos, well I was just there to join since I felt "lugi" (something like having a deficit) I saw some exisiting promos & joined in. One of the promos was the Sun Madonna Fly-Off Promo.

I know that Madonna will be having an Asia leg of her Rebel Heart tour & Manila is also one of their stops & that the ticket prices were sky rocketing high, that I never thought of buying any ticket, though I am a concert junkie I still know when to say no (hey that rhymes!) with my vices. I also am very much aware that my vices, going to concerts & traveling, are two big spenders especially for a minimum wage, degree holder, board passer like me. As soon as I saw the promo I thought of joining, though I am not a fan of Madonna, but I like some of her songs, like Vogue & Crazy For You, it's like my two loves in one stone if I win. So yeah, I decided to hit join after filling up the form.

I also joined other promos during the duration of my Spinnr Live Package subscription. I forgot all about it as I had an illness during the end of November till first week of December, went on a family trip to Jakarta & Bandung Indonesia (which you can read about here) last December also & my recent solo trip to Corregidor (which you can also read about here) just this February 2, 2016. Until just after the later trip, Corregidor, I unexpectedly received a call, it was from someone from Spinnr, he told me that I won the Madonna Fly-Off Promo for Hong Kong. At first it was not sinking in my mind since I just came back from a trip, just attended mass at Don Bosco Church & was indulging in my ice cream cake at Amici. After the call I felt giddy & I also pinched myself, but I was worried if my supervisor & coordinators would allow me to have an early out on Friday for the awarding of the prizes, but still I was delighted & excited!

Friday came & I confirmed that the call was true. As I was walking towards Smart Tower, I was thinking if the prize would be for two or was it just for one, but even so I was excited. As soon as we were inside the Smart Tower I felt glad to meet my fellow winners. We exchanged thoughts & experiences on how we reacted to the call as well as why we joined & how excited we were.

There I met my new little sis, Wannie & as well as our new friend Al. We really had a great time taking pictures till the last minute & promised each other that we will be the buddies for this tour.

The day of the flight came, I met Wannie who was already in the airport. We checked in & saw Al who was also getting excited with the trip. We shared our stories as we waited in the boarding area. Al told us it is his third time in Hong Kong, that made first-timer-tourist Wannie & first-timer-HongKonger me more comfortable. We agreed to stick together for this trip. We also joined the other winners when the seats near them were vacant. Then we received a text message that we have additional pocket money & that the sun representative would hand it out when we get to our hotel.

Me, Wannie, Al, Nia & Julia (the winners)

We had a great flight since it was comfortable, thanks to Philippine Airlines for always setting the standards in flights I have. I was also able to watch their inflight movies via PAL In Air app while eating my hot meal. while Wannie was taking pictures & listening to music.

My IG post (Enjoying the flight & the food & the free movie)

After an hour & a half we perfectly & safely landed in Hong Kong. I was so amazed that their airport is really a barge/island in the sea. Though I already researched I though we would still see some land beside us as we land but no it was the runway along side the sea. As we got out of the plane, we enjoyed the view of mountains & the concrete presence of the airport. It was such a sight to see, industry along side nature.

When the modern meets the mountains

After getting our things & some travel guides, we searched for the way to our hotel which was just connected to the airport. We were booked at Regal Aiport Hotel, which is like an extension of the airport, it's like you can walk in your PJs from your room to the airport for a Mc Donalds midnight snack of some sort.

Us getting thru the airport to our hotel which is seen in the window!

The 2nd floor lobby of Regal Airport Hotel

After leaving our bags in the concierge since it was still early for us to check in. We decided to have a quick meal at McDonalds. We also explored the beauty of the airport & thought of our next destination. We agreed on checking in by 2pm then resting a bit & exploring Hong Kong in the afternoon. We ate our meal & had some getting to know you more while eating.

Spicy Chicken Wings Meal

We went back to our hotel & checked in after which we got into our rooms & made ourselves accustomed with it. We felt like royalty since our rooms are individually booked and are very huge! I loved how our rooms were also having the view of the swimming pool area. The bed was so comfortable & the comfort room was clean & that it has its own bath tub. But then again it was all kept for our selves, that I regretted not bringing my mom with me, well a bit.

Yes guys, Christian Bautista's Live Stream while in HK

The staff were also friendly & we loved the hospitality showed by the Filipino staff there. They gave us hints & a foreword about Hong Kong & its culture as well as where we could go. We also had free wifi which you can connect at least 2 gadgets under your room's name. Since there was wifi, I started being a fan girl & watched my #ForeverCrush 's Mellow guesting via live stream, I was not able to send a tweet or something but at least I tried my best to show that I was still watching despite being away!

After resting & chatting with friends via messenger, I pm-ed Wannie if she was ready to go, we were ready but Al was... sound asleep. So we said maybe we could delay our trip later that afternoon. As soon as Al called us up we got up & got ready for our trip.

My gear... is READY!!!

We rode a bus to  Tsim Sha Tsui & headed out for the Symphony of Lights in Avenue of the Stars. It was a great sight to see. The buildings were filled with different light effects, though I thought of it as a synchronized show of lights, that made me a bit upset. But still I enjoyed it. I just wished the buildings' light effects were in sync with each other & with the music.

After which we decided to roam around the city by feet. Al brought us to the different sights he knew. 

Harbour City

Lost in the City?

On top of 1881 Heritage

1881 Heritage

1881 Heritage: old HQ of maritime police

The Penninsula, where Madonna stayed for the night!

It was really an adventure out there. After a light dinner at Star House Plaza we rode a train to go to Hong Kong Island, since we were in Kowloon.

My Dinner: Peking Duck Rice Toping at Cafe de Coral

I also bought my piece for my collection :)

Then we decided to check out Lan Kwai Fong which was crowned as the food & night district of Hong Kong, but maybe we were just a bit broke & a bit tired from all the walking, we decided to just have pictures taken & went back to out hotel.

Then we waited in the bus stop for 2 hours since we did not expect the bus to the airport would resume back by 12am, it was 10pm when we got there. Still we were all sport & waited. Until, we got tired & felt drained but luckily we were not alone a Korean couple was there with us waiting. They were already heading back to Korea that night, and they were frightened to miss their flight. We told them that according to the bus signage it will be 12am for the next bus, if they want to catch their flight they better ride a taxi. They refused since they said that the taxi fare was 2x the bus fare & they might be harassed since they're foreigners. We just shared our sympathies with one another. Then luckily just when I was about to burst, the bus came.

12am and yet Hong Kong is still awake, my view in the upper deck of the bus

The upper deck was all ours

As soon as we were off to the airport we hurried up to our rooms & called it a morn-night.

All that adventure... retiring my cards for the day

The connecting bridge from the airport to our hotel

The night lights of our hotel was a beauty

We set our alarms at around 8am for our breakfast & planned trip to Disneyland. I actually set my alarm at 6am, still I was so tired that I got the strength to stand up & turn off my alarm & go back to sleep. But as soon as 8am went by, I got up and fixed my things & luckily Wannie also called me up to remind me about breakfast. I fixed myself & headed out too meet her in the elevator & went to Cafe Aficionado for our buffet breakfast. It was a feast not just for the eyes, but for all our senses. We indulged ourselves for about an hour & wondered why Al wasn't around, we contacted him & finally got him up for breakfast. We enjoyed the last hour of breakfast. And we were also cared for by Ms. Thelma, the manager of the restaurant. She was also a Filipina & gave us some hints & tips for our stay. She also shared some stories about her stay in Hong Kong & how envious she is that we were contest winners.

Me & Wannie got ready for our trip, while Al was still deciding if he would join us or not. In the end, he decided to pass on the Disneyland trip. We headed out to the airport to have more money changed & buy tickets for Disneyland, but then Mr. William, the front desk officer called our attention. He asked us how our stay was & when we told him we were off to Disneyland, he taught us the easiest & cheapest way there.

The Hotel Shuttle was all ours

Airport/Tourism Office

We headed then to the lobby to ride the shuttle, but then on our ride to CityGate, we realized we have not yet bought tickets & had our money changed. If we go back it would take some time, so I told Wannie that we'll just buy our tickets there in Disneyland & have our money changed there as well. If we come short on HKD I told her we could use my Credit Card instead & just pay me after.

Finally at CityGate

As we reached City Gate our next challenge was to find the MTR Tung Chung station, good thing there were signages for us to follow. We reached the station & rode the train to Sunny Bay. Then as what Mr. William told us, cross the station to get to the Disney Line. 

On our way to Sunny Bay

So that's why it is called Sunny Bay!

The Disneyland Resort Line is actually a special MTR line which just leads to Hong Kong Disneyland & their hotels, Disney’s Hollywood Hotel & Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel. Its train is actually specialized that the interior design is all Disney related, from windows to hand rails & carpets.

A couple of minutes we reached Disneyland! It was a memorable experience & I was so amazed that I was there already I felt teary eyed. I took some pictures before going thru the entrance. We bought our tickets there, which was a little pricey than the ones sold at the airport.

We got our tickets & headed out to see the wonderful world of Disney!

First Stop: Tomorrowland

VTR reminder before the Space Mountain Ride which is so cool (esp if you love lights & stars)

Storm Troopers just after our dizzy ride in Space Mountain

Chill ride at Autopia

Catching the Afternoon Parade

Off to Fantasyland

Cinderella Carousel

Fairy Tale Forest

Can you read it? Who's Castle it may be?

It's Cinderella's Castle!

Ariel's Castle

With my friend Sebastian (fave character in LM)

Howdy! Welcome to Toy Story Land

Toy Soldier Parachute Drop

The magical images in Garden of Wonders

waiting for our turn in Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars

Aurora's Castle (Sleeping Beuaty Castle)

Fantasyland's Vilage

At Adventureland

Night lights at Main Street, USA

Me (Baymax!) at the Castle gates

Happy 10th Anniversary HK Disneyland!!!

As soon as 6pm strikes we know we should be going since we have to go to Madonna's Rebel Heart Tour concert, but we cannot miss at least the castle light projections. We waited till 7pm & luckily we were able to watch the show. We would love to stay & watch the parade but it would take us long to go to World Asia Expo from our hotel since we left our tickets there. As soon as we rode the shuttle to the hotel, we planned how we will get to our rooms & fix up to head out to the concert. We rode the Airport express which just costs around HKD5 and in a couple of minutes we were in the concert venue. Lucky enough the show haven't started yet. So we were able to find our seats & also had some pictures taken.

Panoramic View of Asia World Expo

The moment has come, the queen appeared. It was really a magical moment to see her, I told myself that she really looks different from all the pictures of her. I was also amazed by how passionate she is with her art despite that age, she still does present even more energetic than other artists.

The crowd singing with the Queen!

She also called out the unapologetic bitch of Hong Kong. Who was I think reserved than the other unapologetic bitches of other countries in her Rebel Heart Tour.

BYE BITCHES!!!

The next day, we decided to do our Pasalubong shopping at CityGate Outlets.

And thank God for free cupons... despite having a delayed flight, since it was raining, we got some boost of Caffeine in our systems.

It was truly an amazing experience for me & my fellow winners. Imagine the first concert I watched abroad is by the Queen of Pop, Madonna & it was an all expense paid trip. I really could not believe myself that moment. I am wholeheartedly thankful to Sun Cellular & Spinnr for this once-in-a-lifetime experience.