A slower start to the day, with a relaxed breakfast in the hotel and then a mid morning meet up with Christine for one last look around Hong Kong Island.

We met close to Central Station, where all the major stores are represented before taking a short walk up to the botanical garden and a visit to the small zoo.

The heat and the humidity of the day meant that by the time we’d arrived at the small zoo, we already needed a break and a small rest whilst the perspiration eased.

The botanical gardens sit on the lower part of the hill, having been established as far back as the 1860’s, and provide a welcome escape from the hustle & bustle of the rest of the city and nearby skyscrapers.

The zoo whilst small, was free and the inhabitants appeared pleased to see us, those that were awake and weren’t hiding in the shadows to avoid the sun.

We managed to see a range of monkeys, sloths and even apes, who all performed in their little way as we walked on by past their cages.

We did consider looking further around, but the steep gradient and heat put us off, and instead we enjoyed the fountain and park area at the foot of the hill.

After a pleasant hour meandering around the gardens; we headed back to the train station and a short ride to Kennedy Town.

Kennedy Town was only three stops, and on getting out we instantly felt more relaxed with the quieter vibe of this beach suburb. Amusingly we saw a tram with a destination of Happy Valley, coincidentally the same name as one of Michelle’s favourite tv show.

KT has some great independent cafes along the waterfront, so we decided to stop off for a coffee.

After a much needed rest we returned to the sunshine and took in the views across the bay, enjoying our last few hours with Christine before we said our goodbyes.

It’s been lovely to spend time with her, especially for Michelle, and I know we will keep in touch and see her again when we return to the UK.

Returning to the hotel, we enjoyed the bay views from our 36th storey bedroom before Andy went to the gym for a much missed run on the treadmill, and Michelle did the final packing in readiness for our early morning flight to Bali.

This evening we met up with a Chinese guy called Chris, who we kindly shared a taxi cab back with us in Kuala Lumpur airport in mid-April.

Chris travelled all the way from mainland China after finishing work to see us. What a star and so very generous with his time. He was so pleased to hear we’d enjoyed our time in China and that we would be telling others that they should visit.

We had dinner at a nearby pizza restaurant and heard about Chris’s own plans to visit Los Angeles for 2mths in September for his work.

All being well he has a trip to London next year when we plan to meet up again.

We had such a great evening and Chris helped to make our final night in Hong Kong a special one.

We had only a short walk back to our hotel at the end of the night, whereas poor Chris had a 2.5hr train journey. We so appreciated the effort he put in to see us again and to hear about our time in his great country.

Tomorrow we have a full day of travel. Our first flight to Kuala Lumpur is 3.5hrs, with a 2hr layover, before a second flight of 3.5hrs to Denpasar, finishing with a short drive to Kuta, for a few days of rest and relaxation!