Due to sleeping early the night, I did end up waking up just before 1 AM. I ended up getting out to brush my teeth and headed back to my room. I couldn't go back to sleep, so I turned on my iPad and continued watching the drama I was watching for a few hours. When it was around 4:00, I got out of my room to head to my luggage against the side wall. I had a flight at 8 AM to catch, so I got changed and checked out by around 4:45 AM.
There was a long line of individuals in front of me, waiting for the shuttle to take us back to Terminal 2. I was one of the last few to make it onto the crowded bus. After arriving at the airport, I headed to security to see if I could go through since my girlfriend checked me into my HK Express flight. Security wouldn't be open for about another two hours. With time to spare, I explored the airport some more, since I've never been to Terminal 2 before. If I'm not mistaken, I believe we stopped at Terminal 3 to Okinawa back in 2017. After exploring for a while, I headed to the 7-11 on the 4th floor to grab a quick breakfast. Since it was quite early, there was no one waiting at 7-11. I got a rice ball, a salad, a mandarin & whip cream sandwich, and a fibre juice. There were some chairs nearby the convenience store, so I ended up sitting there to eat breakfast. Once I was done eating, I headed back to 7-11 to grab a few snacks to bring to Hong Kong. With about an hour to go still, I decided to explore other sections of Terminal 2.
By around 6:40, I decided to go back to security to line up. There was a relatively long line, so I joined at the back of the line. I was told that HK Express was extremely strict with their carry-on weight policy - no more than 7 kg. I was wondering at this time, since I already checked in online, how they were going to check the weight of my bag (I checked it at the airport on a scale, with my bag coming in at 5ish kg). With a bunch of other travelers having a luggage tag stated it was "Cabin Approved" from HK Express, I decided to head back to the check-in desk myself to ask. It was relatively quick, and when I managed to get my luggage tag, I asked my question about checking in online and going straight to security. The answer I pretty much got was that I could do that, but if I'm interpreting this correctly, they will check my luggage at the gate.
I went back to wait at the ever increasing line. Japan is ever so punctual with time; the security gates opened exactly at 7 AM. It took probably around 5 minutes to go through security, but with boarding apparently starting at 7:10, I hurried to the gate. I was blessed with a seat close to the front ($20 fee for sitting that close), which meant that I didn't have to travel too far down the Airbus Neo 321 when we boarded. There was no one sitting behind me for around 6 rows, but I couldn't recline my seat at all. However, the seats were quite comfortable, and better yet, there was no one sitting in the middle seat. I had the window seat while there was another traveler sitting at the aisle seat.
We took off on time. Fatigue was starting to kick in, but I wanted to stay up. My girlfriend had it planned out so I would be sitting on the right side of the plane. In about 30-40 minutes, Mount Fuji would be in view for me to see and take pictures. I haven't seen the volcano covered in snow for years, so it was a sight to behold. The flight attendants took pictures themselves of the volcano as we passed by. Soon after, I dozed off for about an hour. After waking up, and with 3 hours left, I ended up watching more dramas and playing BloonsTD6. It's been a while, but it's an addicting game.
Nearing HKG, I swapped out my physical sim for a HK sim that I got from my girlfriend (in retrospect, I should have converted my Canadian physical sim into an e-sim). I saw the entrance to the underwater tunnel leading to Macau (I believe that's what it was), before we landed at the airport. I got off, went through immigrations relatively quickly, despite the line being extremely long. Unlike going to Japan, there was no online form to fill out. As I was making my way to the exit, I got stopped by security. The security guard asked, in Cantonese, where I was heading back. I only understand a bit of Cantonese, but I definitely cannot answer back. I just mentioned that my girlfriend was here to pick me up, as I handed him my passport to see. Once satisfied, he wished me a good day and I headed off. After some time, I finally found my girlfriend waiting for me. We headed outside to a section of the airport where her dad was waiting to drive us. It's been a while since I last saw him, but he looked exactly the same. They bought me lunch, a sandwich with some eggs. I munched away, while sipping lemon tea.
After 20-30 minutes, we finally made it back to their place. I was enthusiastically greeted by her two dogs. Her younger male looked the exact same, while her senior female dog shed weight! After the greetings, I headed over to her room to do some minor cleaning, setting up my foldable bed for the week, and taking a shower. Afterwards, I ended up taking a nap. I don't recall how long I really napped, but after getting up, my girlfriend and I took a minibus to a commercial district near her place to grab a bite to eat.
We ended up going to Tam Jai Sam Gor, a chain restaurant that specializes in Yunnan-style rice noodles. For those of you familiar with Yunshang Rice Noodle or Dagu, I believe they're the exact same style. There was a dinner set: a bowl of noodles, two chicken wings and a drink. I can't recall the price, but it was quite a bit cheaper than what you can get in Canada. Feeling full, we headed to a nearby bakery to grab some bread before heading back to her place.
Upon arrival, I was feeling tired again, so I went to bed at around 7-8 PM.
A day to relax, but much needed!
Not sure what island this is, but it was close to Hong Kong International Airport.
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