I made the most of my last half-day in Hong Kong and took a Star Ferry from Central to Kowloon, as recommended by my friend Jess and pretty much every travel guide every written. The ferry costs an incredible 30p or so for the 10-minute journey across the bay on an historic boat, with views of Hong Kong on all sides.

When I alighted at Kowloon, I grabbed some lunch and had a picnic in Kowloon Park. The park is an incredible oasis in the middle of the city (I missed seeing trees while in Hong Kong!) and it’s beautifully landscaped in a series of different designs. The areas include a Chinese garden with a perfectly round water feature, a less formal water feature with bridges crossing it, fountains, a sculpture garden and even an aviary. I’m sure most of you already know that I love nature and I rarely pass up the chance to learn more about it. I really enjoyed wandering through the garden before I had to get the train back to the airport.

Round pool in Chinese garden and a suggestive sculpture

I also took the photo below to show the more typical Hong Kong that I experienced over the last few days, with its taste for rather literal shop names, an example of which I hope you can spot (another favourite of mine was “Very Good Seafood Restaurant”!) and the general hustle-and-bustle of the place. I don’t think I’d want to live there – it’s just too busy for me – but I liked the city in moderation and would happily go back.

A 9-hour flight brought me to Nadi, the capital of Fiji. I have to admit that Fiji Airways’ business class isn’t a patch on Cathay Pacific’s (my bed didn’t quite recline fully – a fine #firstworldproblem, I’m sure you’ll agree!) but the staff made up for it by being very attentive and liberal with the champagne. I love that upgraded flight classes still exist, where you can ask for champagne to be brought with your breakfast, at no extra cost, for the sheer hell of it. I find it romantic and I hope it never disappears, like so many other things have, for the sake of making the world more modern, utilitarian and (dare I say it) sober. If you don’t have to get off the plane and go and present to your company’s Board – as a man on my flight from London to Hong Kong was clearly about to do – then all the better!

I was looking at the on-board map again, amazed by the vastness of this part of the world, which barely breaks into our consciousness most of the time. I also reminded myself of the existence of various deep ocean trenches which fascinated me as a small child and probably sparked my interests in marine life and scuba diving. I found myself wondering when the last time I crossed the equator was – surely not since I went to South Africa in 2007. South Africa is currently the furthest south I’ve ever been, but I think that record will be beaten when I get to Australia. This is certainly the furthest east I’ve ever been (I’ve flown over the Pacific before but that doesn’t really count!), and the most easterly point of this trip, too. I’ll double back on myself slightly to get to Vanuatu.

Time zone changes have gobbled up a bit more of my week, and I’m now 13 hours ahead of the UK. Again, I’m pretty sure this is the biggest difference I’ve yet experienced and it’s enough to seriously mess with the mind! One of my friends is currently in Chile, which gives us something like a 16-hour time difference, which is just an 8-hour time difference in the other direction when you think about it. I’ll post about my first impressions of Fiji soon.