Well I Ain't Never Seen A Dolphin Pink

I like to know the facts. Whether it be the plot of the movie I'm about to see, or the person I'm about to interview. I don't need all the details, but not knowing the key facts leaves me feeling apprehensive. I guess I just don't like to be kept out of the loop.

So today was a big test for me. I wanted to go west along the coast to the end of the New Territories and towards mainland China. However, transport gets a little precautious towards the border, and less English is spoken. I wasn't sure exactly where I would end up but I took the second bus that passed me (instinct told me to take the second). Luckily, the bus carried on along the coast to near where I wanted to go; actually I went too far and had to backtrack about 20 minutes.

Tuen Mun is the last main town before the border (just under an hour by bus from where I am), and as large as it is, it's much more "China" in terms of industry and people, compared to the more developed Hong Kong. There is a large shopping mall - with McDonalds, Pizza Hut and KFC - so don't be misled; it's not that underdeveloped. But I was the only Westerner around.

I walked a few miles back from the town centre to the coast, and passed a few beaches along the way. People were sunbathing. That's right; two days into advent, and people were tanning!

About half way back, I came to Hong Kong's very own Gold Coast; a beach resort for the rich types of Hong Kong, with its own shopping mall and yachts in tow. It was quite luxurious but I couldn't help thinking that it was largely impractical in terms of geographical location; I mean, the people that would be living there would not be the ones working in the factories nearby, rather the finance centre of HK Island.

The Gold Coast is well-known for the residence of the elusive pink dolphins, a rare breed sometimes sighted in the waters. Sadly, I didn't see any - maybe the wrong season - but this statue situated on a spit about half a mile out to sea made it clear that they were real.

Not a bad trip, and I'm glad I got on that bus and let myself be taken along with it; I can't imagine many tourists get out there.