Ocean Park - crowded

Almost every week there is some type of party here where all of the exchange students go to the same bar and usually pay a fee for an open bar. This week was probably the most successful of these parties so far. The theme was that they were supposed to have a "sexy girl" competition which was completely unsuccessful, but the rest of the night was very fun. It gives everyone a chance to dress up and be in the same place so you can see everyone! Knowing me, I love events like this!

Smokey, but one of the better group pictures

The whole next week, supposedly, is a national holiday. Friday was China's National Day that Hong Kong also celebrates (the aforementioned firework display at the harbor). We decided to take a group to the beach. It was SO crowded. Last time we went to Shek O beach there were maybe 50 people and this day it looked like Wrightsville in July.  The beach which is usually pretty was covered in trash that had washed ashore and trash was floating everywhere in the water. My friend Yvie and I swam out to one of the platforms and trash bags and things would just wrap around your leg during the swim. There was garbage everywhere! The weather was nice though as it was not too hot and a bit cloudy part of the time. It was interesting to see everyone celebrating together and "barbecuing" at the beach. We had to get back to our "conference", but part of the group stayed until almost midnight and had their own barbecue and marshmallows.

Crowded beach

The next morning we went to Ocean Park amusement park which is supposed to be better than HK Disneyland and a must see of Hong Kong.  We left the dorms at 8am (way too early) and headed to the buses. Luckily we got on the bus at the first stop because we soon came to a bus stop that had an outrageously long queue waiting for more buses to come for Ocean Park. We got there and decided to buy Student Season Passes so we could come back whenever we wanted and whenever the other groups decided to come. We had a girls day with just me, Debbie, Yvie, Meli, Christine, and Katy. The park was very packed, but we still managed to ride a few rides, get some food, and see some animals. We have to go back when the lines are shorter because we would wait in line for 45 minutes for a 45 second ride. Not the best, but I really liked the park. They really only have 2 main roller coasters and some other rides that are more like fair rides. We went on the log ride, a spinning fair type ride, the mine train, and that was about all we can stand in line. We ate lunch on the Terrace and had a delicious burger with fresh watermelon juice.

The girls at Ocean Park

Our next stop was the Panda Adventure! There were two giant pandas that were asleep so it was hard to see them, but they had just fed two red pandas so they were running around. They looked like red raccoons and were SO adorable. Although we did not get to go on too many rides, we had a fun time walking around the park. On the way out, we happened to stumble onto an acrobatic performance. They did flips, balancing acts, and propelled people through the air. It was fascinating to see how different the entertainment is here. We decided this is why most people from HK like Ocean Park more than Disneyland, just because of the entertainment value and actually seeing a performance instead of just people dressed up as characters.

The show at the end of the day

We headed home and took a short nap before dinner and going out. We had little sleep this week with waking up for the morning video conferencing, beach, and Ocean Park, but Andrew and I could not pass up the opportunity to head to "Oysters" in Lan Kwai Fung for a bit.