Zoological Park, The Peak and Night Market

Next on our itinerary was The Peak.

We started off the day with a visit to the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Park. This is supposed to be one of the oldest zoological and botanical centers in the world. This is a nice patch of green among the tall sky scrapers of Hong Kong and one can spend some relaxing time over here. There are a number of plant, animal and birds species on view here. 

The peak is the tallest mountain on the island and offers great views of the city skyline and the harbor. The peak tram is the most popular option for reaching the top. The gradient of the route is so high that you actually feel the trees and buildings are inclined. Once at the top, there are a number of shops and restaurants. Make sure to visit the Sky Terrace 428, which is the highest 360 degree viewing gallery in Hong Kong. Tickets to the Sky Terrace can be bought as a combo ticket when buying your Peak Tram tickets. Madam Tussauds is another attraction at the top. The Lion's Pavilion is also a good view point.

Next stop was the Ladies market. There were rows and rows of shops selling all sorts of things like hand bags, T-shirts, watches, toys, footwear, etc. Bargaining is a must. We got a tip from a local that one generally bargain to get items at 50% of the quoted price.

More photos below...

Hong Kong Disney Land

Before travelling to Hong Kong we had read that June is one of the wettest months in Hong Kong. So we were a bit worried on how things would pan out during the stay. Disneyland was the one place that we all were looking forward to. When we saw that the weather forecast for the day was sunny, we changed our itinerary for the day and decided to do Disneyland.

To go to Disneyland, we went to Sunny Bay by Tung Chung line and caught the Disney train from there. We were staying near Tin Hau station on the Island line.

We had to change at Central for the Tung Chung line. Once you get off at Central, its a big distance to get to Tung Chung line. For us a better option was to change at Admiralty for the Tsuen Wan line. Then change at Lai King for the Tung Chung line to Sunny Bay. Though it may take slightly longer time, it reduces a lot of walking. Change of lines is achieved by walking across the platform.
Check MTR map

We bought the Disneyland tickets by paying with VISA card. This gave us a discount of 10% on our tickets. Prams are available on hire near the entrance. This is very useful if you have kids as they would get tired during the day as you move from one zone to another.

I have been to the Tokyo Disneyland and that had set expectations for me for the Hong Kong Disneyland. I would have to say that I was slightly disappointed. It is much smaller than Tokyo Disneyland. The star parade in the afternoon also felt shorter (fewer characters) as compared to what we had seen in Tokyo. The night parade did not happen at all. In its place was a fireworks show at the Disney palace. Having said this, it is still a great place to go. The kids thoroughly loved seeing the different characters, different shows, rides, etc. They particularly loved Philhar Magic which is a 4D show.

We had our dinner at River View Cafe which is in Adventure Land near Tarzan's Treehouse. We were pleased to see Indian fare on their menu. Set meals with Nan, Rice, Sabzi were available. The quality of food was really good. Availability of milk tea made it perfect :)

Some more photos below. Spotted some different birds within the Disneyland. Will love to know their ids.