Chek Lap Kok Airport, Hong Kong
Recently, Blondie and I were lucky enough to get back to China for a quick ten-day trip. Despite all of the trade wars, real wars, and so-called bad feelings between the US and our friends in the East, we were welcomed into the country as warmly as ever. Click through to read more about our trip and peep a few pretty pictures…
Travelling super long distances by air takes a special kind of patience, so it is surprising that I even leave the house let alone fly halfway around the Earth. However, in the end, travelling to far off places keeps one centered, curious, and, most importantly, Tolerant.
Due to some scheduling issues we had the pleasure of spending a 12-hour layover at the Hong Kong airport before finally flying to Dalian, China. The delay gave us time to make the above time-lapse as well as abuse our lounge privileges (all the finger sandwiches and club soda are ours upon entry). Unfortunately we were unable to go and enjoy a bit of the city during our layover due to a level 3 typhoon warning – regardless, we made the best of our time.
Once we finally did make it to Dalian it was late but friends were waiting for us outside customs and we were whisked away to our hotel where we took our first shower in over a day and a half.
The view from the Grand Hyatt Dalian
This was a working trip for Blondie so I had my days and some of my nights free to roam around Dalian and point cameras at things. Since we were staying near Xing Hai Square I was able to shoot the beach and the little amusement park near the water. Here are a few of my favorites…
The Castle Hotel – One of my favorite subjects.
This lady reminded me of my dear ol’ Ma, who would have been 69 on June 11. If she were still alive she would’ve worried herself sick the entire time we were gone.
Just some guy having a smoke on a fence.
This lady was sitting way up on the top of a sculpture shaped like a huge open book where only a painted warning stripe prevents people from falling off.
There is a pretty wide range of emotions on the faces of the folks riding the Pirate Ship ride.
One of the evenings that Blondie worked late I walked over to the amusement park for some long exposure shots – the park was virtually empty and I shot a metric s__t-ton of photos – here are a few of the keepers.
The Xing Hai Bay Bridge all lit up on a hazy eve.
The Swings were lit up nicely for this shot.
Double Decker Carousel spinning at mach II.
This exposure was almost 20 seconds long – I appreciated the girl standing so still near the green wall.
This one has everything – Starbursts and Light Trails.
There was only one person on this ride – her boyfriend’s blur was waiting patiently for her to get off and throw up.
The best part of visiting Dalian is that we get to see a lot of the friends we met when we lived there a few years back. When we are in Boston, Blondie and I rarely stay out past 23:00 but when we meet up with these folks we sometimes see the sunrise.
The Dalian crew from left to right – Dan, Blondie, Becky, Me, Jessica, Miles, and Alvin after a huge meal of Taiwanese BBQ.
That’s your boy up there representing on the Sake Bomb Challenge.
When one comes across a giant Teddy Bear at the end of a long dark hallway you make time to get a few photos with it – this is, of course, post-Sake bombs.
Jessica and I were lucky enough to visit the Bakels Worldwide factory thanks to our friends Dan and Greg. We got to taste a few samples, tour the plant, see the marketing team work on a photo shoot, and wear these groovy outfits.
It is always sad to leave friends behind but when a long weekend of laziness in Hong Kong is next on the itinerary, well, one gets over the sadness pretty damned quick.
Kowloon side on a beautiful Hong Kong morning.
When Blondie and I were living in China we would often escape to Hong Kong to get a taste of the West and relax amongst 7.4 million of our closest friends. This trip wasn’t any different – we rested, we shopped, we shot photos, and we spent a lot of time at our favorite bar – the Lobster Bar at the Island Shangri La. I bought a new wide-angle lens before we left the states so now you have to look at all my weird-aspect photos – here are a few of my favorites.
Wan Chai on a hot-ass day.
Back streets are the best streets.
Blue skies, pink buildings, red trolleys
The first time I saw this street it was occupied by pro-democracy protesters. It was one of the most beautiful sights I ever saw. Now it’s just a road but the struggle continues.
Summer love knows no borders nor boundaries.
Speaking of love – when you ask someone to go and stick their head in that thing so you can take a pic and then they do it, well, that is true love. Blondie being a good sport, as always.
A bi-angle view of our trip across Victoria Harbour on the Star Ferry. $0.34 per crossing – what a deal.
There you have it, my friends. Besides a bit of shopping, drinking, and shooting we spent our time watching the beginning of the World Cup (Go Germany Mexico Japan England Croatia Shit!) and relaxing in bed – a fine end to a perfect trip abroad. Stay tuned for our next adventure, and, most importantly, be kind, be cool, and go see the world.
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More awesome photos- with added time-lapse, wide angle and long exposure. I spent more time looking then going through all of them a second time.