A GRAND JOURNEY ENDS IN HONG KONG (Part 8 & final in a series on this journey)

Two years in a row, a stop in Hong Kong ended up being for a very short period of time.  Compared to the last year's visit -- just a six-hour plane change en route home from Johannesburg -- this year's 26 hours was a joy!  I wish I could take credit for the stop, but it was Cathay who provided the generous layover en route from Perth to LA. If one could nitpick (for sake of argument), check-through baggage is not allowed with a stop in excess of 24 hours. The path of least resistance was throwing all the luggage into the taxi, with the help of our hotel's airport-based personnel.  After flying from Perth for 8 hours, it was just 9 a.m. when we arrived at our hotel. Where to stay is the other big decision, even for a brief stop.  As one can imagine, every hotel in the world has a presence -- and the high-end ones are abundant.  In the past we've always stayed on the Kowloon side, so I made an executive decision to switch it up and picked The Four Seasons (in the Central District or opposite side). We've enjoyed having many benefits by booking through Amex Platinum Fine Hotels program (upgrade, breakfast, wi-fi, etc) but discovered there is an attendant "risk."  View from the room looking to Kowloon side (above);  Welcome amenity from hotel and a wonderful FS exec I know from home -- love the cookies with the FS logo (below) Technically the program's hotel check-in time is noon (when available). But on so many occasions, we've checked into our room upon arrival -- even quite early in the morning.  It is always such an amazing pleasure, that if the room happens NOT to be available, well ... you get my drift. Arriving after many hours of travel and with no time to spare, we anticipated settling in with a shower and getting on with our one day. That was not to be, at least initially, when we were told the hotel had been full the night before thus no check-outs thus no rooms to be cleaned for the next check-in.  Really?  Every one of the 399 rooms?? Another long story short:  How situations (which always arise) are handled is what makes for a great hotel.  Suffice it to say, after a brief conversation with management, we had a lovely breakfast and were in beautiful accommodations by 10:30.  Thank you to the great people at the Four Seasons for making that happen. The big plan for the day was a trip to Sam's Tailor on Nathan Road. I asked our hotel to recommend some light local fare for lunch as we had a big dinner planned, and left with their recommendation close to Sam's. The hubby wanted to have the folks at Sam's guide us as it is their "hood." Apparently great minds think alike for both sent us to Cuisine Cuisine in the MIra Hotel. With my buddy Roshan Melwani from Sam's -- yes, he's that tall. The restaurant manager could not have been more attentive and the restaurant's cuisine is excellent in a beautiful setting.  We dashed back to Sam's to thank them for the recommendation (not to mention the escort and intro they provided at the restaurant).  From there we took the subway back to our hotel, just two stops as it whisked under Victoria Harbour which separates the Hong Kong and Kowloon sides. Dinner was a repeat of the last night from our 2015 vacation, except that was the London outpost of L'Atelier Joel Robouchon.  And what a spectacular way to end things.  My only regret is getting to the Landmark shopping complex (where the restaurant is located) too late to shop!  It is a shopper's paradise on steroids.  Total eye candy, for sure. Maybe that was the hubby's secret plan .. Back to the dinner, "l'atelier" means "workshop" and is thus called due to the open kitchen visible from the U-shaped bar seating.  We find it totally fascinating.  And then there's the wine list containing 3,400 labels.  The selection is staggering.  All you oenophiles can see what I mean here. It's always amusing to find California Cabs in other parts of the world, and what they sell for!  Looking inside "l'atelier" or workshop from our seats Apples perfectly and precisely arranged.   The main course (veal) is presented prior to the painstaking carving and plating process (at least 10 minutes) ... it was delicious. Desserts presented, shown intact (L) and as they are revealed (R). As the food coma sets in ..  And then it was time to go home.  Three weeks, literally a lot of ground covered, 11 flights, nine hotels, four countries (five if you count the overnight in Sri Lanka), one home stay.  Safari drives, a Wonder of the World, forts and mosques, beaches, shopping, eating and fascinating people met far and wide.  And, still, there's no place like home!

WESTERN AUSTRALIA - THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED (Part 7 of a Recent Journey)

When one is already in an area of the world (in this case, the Indian Ocean southwest of India), adding on another segment in the "area" makes a lot of sense.  At least to me and the hubby... To clarify -- and if you've been "virtually" traveling on this trip with us -- you know we spent 10 days in India and four days in the Maldives.  Why not head southeast to Perth, which is then a straight shot north to Hong Kong, the last stop before heading home?  But that wasn't the only reason for the visit. Having traveled in 2010 to Australia's east coast (Sydney, Cairns & Melbourne), we knew a return trip was inevitable.  What sealed the deal was the gracious invitation to stay at a winery in the Margaret River (Eagle Bay) region of Western Australia.  How did that come about? The hubby's L.A. client hails from Perth and the winery belongs to her parents and, ultimately, our generous hosts. We spent the first night in the country in Perth proper before heading south to the wine area.  Como The Treasury Hotel (which I highly recommend) converted an old building into a multi-level complex in the heart of downtown Perth.  Of course, when in Australia, a koala visit is a must -- this one at Caversham Wildlife Park -- where one could also interact with plenty of kangaroos as well. Breakfast at Como The Treasury in Perth. Clockwise from above: The irresistible koala -- up close; family of sheep -- the one on the right is just 10 days old; kangas in various states of repose.   And then it was on to the raison d'etre.  Wise Wine has been operated by Sandra & Ron Wise since 1992, and is just a gorgeous location.  We arrived in the evening when it was quite dark. While looking for the home, we happened upon wedding festivities (the winery is ideal for this) which garnered more than a few glances. We finally found our way to their spectacular abode where they met us a short time later, got immediately acquainted and settled in for the weekend.   Talk about a "play on words" above; At right a winemaker is crushing Cab Franc grapes at the winery facilities. On the property and for the wedding.  More about Crown later.  In addition to the wine making facilities, there are two wonderful restaurants (Lot 80 -- that is their divine raspberry dessert below -- and Wise Vineyard where we had amazing breakfasts) and some accommodations, not to mention a fair amount of kangaroos.  The hubby encountered large groups during his morning walk!  I nearly collided with one during a (pitch black) night drive -- the thing was the size of "Harvey," Jimmy Stewart's imaginary companion in the movie of the same name -- probably 6' tall. Clockwise from upper left: Entering the property; classic "fish & chips" at Lot 80 along with a fabulous raspberry dessert; stonework along one of the paths on the property. The Wise family home (and our accommodations) left; above is their view of Eagle Bay Sandra showed us around the area while Ron golfed.  We loved seeing galleries, the spectacular beaches (prime surfing spots) and some wineries.  As with Napa/Sonoma, one could easily spend several days absorbing all there is to do. The hubby and I spent a day driving around ourselves, going to the very southwestern tip of the country (below). Amelia Park Wines, Margaret River Magnificent piece of art at the Gunyulup Galleries in Yallingup  (try saying that fast ...) Above, at the very southern tip of WA, where the two oceans meet.    The sun sets over Surfers Point in Prevally.   Lots of folks come with their dogs and wine to this scenic spot. We headed back to Perth for our late evening flight to Hong Kong and saw a bit more of the city before hanging out at the Crown complex -- hotels, restaurants (including Rockpool and Nobu), shops and casino.  The Perth skyline is shown below. Next and last stop of this journey:  Hong Kong.