On the Road: Tokyo and Hong Kong
Tokyo has been my dream holiday destination for as long as I can remember. Its incredible history, architecture, kawaii subculture (and of course, its food!) have all long fascinated me. I was recently lucky enough to finally have the opportunity to visit, in the middle of a trip to see my uncle in Hong Kong. Hong Kong is by far one of my favourite places in the world and having visited it twice already, I was looking forward to seeing some of its lesser known gems. By contrast, Tokyo promised to be a hectic but incredible 3 days in which I managed to tick some of the biggest ticks off my bucket list. I documented some of my favourite aspects of the trip with my trusty digital camera and here are a few of my favourite pictures! — Harisa Ashraf
Soho - probably my favourite area in Hong Kong. Here you’ll find traditional produce, fruit markets, a lot of live fish, along with the hippest cafes and juice bars.
A popcorn cookie icecream. I very much enjoyed sampling all the novelty desserts Hong Kong had to offer, including one of the best liquid nitrogen mango experiences of my life.
The highlight of my visit to Hong Kong was probably getting to visit some of its lesser known beaches. We reached ‘Ham Tin Wan Beach’ by speedboat and its vivid blue sea and picturesque white sand made it one of the most tranquil (and Instagram friendly) places I’d ever seen.
Another highlight was getting to sample some of the best sushi I’d ever had in my life. My uncle has lived in Hong Kong for almost 8 years and was therefore able to take us to some of his favourite local haunts.
‘Man Mo Temple’ was a beautiful local temple, hidden on the outskirts of bustling Soho. Its dim lighting and heavy use of incense sticks made it incredibly atmospheric and magical.
As a seafood lover, Hong Kong’s fresh produce made me very happy indeed.
The classic Hong Kong skyline, as seen from Victoria Peak. Nothing can beat this view, ever.
Tokyo’s neon city of Shinjuku! It was just as neon as its nickname suggests.
I was more than happy to immerse myself in local culture, even if it meant sampling some of these strawberry and cream Harajuku crepes.
Harajuku was just as amazing as Gwen Stefani assured us it would be. Covered in pink kawaii coolness, it made me genuinely gutted I wasn’t a Japanese schoolgirl.
Exploring some of Harajuku’s coolest and most vibrant vintage shops - I wanted everything!
The most glorious latte art which was hand painted by an incredibly talented barista in front of us. The shop boasted they could create any kind of latte art we wanted, which was proven when my uncle asked for a Michael Jackson portrait.
It was Toyko’s blue hydrangea season when we visited in June, which made for loads of excellent photo opportunities.
Akihabara, the cities gaming district was an overwhelming but unique experience!
I was obsessed by Japan’s beautiful minimalistic wooden architecture, as seen in the Meiji shrine.
One of the things on my bucket list for Tokyo was definitely to do some purikura (Japanese photo booths!). My cousin and I might have got slightly carried away with the stickers…
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