DEC 30, 14 .. ALL OF MY ROOMS .. NOVEMBER 13th – DECEMBER 28th .. 2014 ..

GOOD LORD did this turn out to be a MONSTER POST that took me a lot of time to work through and to put together.

I do NOT EXPECT many of you to work your way through this extremely lengthy Post. It is a documentary of the many rooms that I have stayed in here in the Kowloon area from November 13th to December 29th 2014. You have seen all or most of these photos previously.

‘ZILLA .. I DO WANT AND I DO HOPE THAT YOU ‘ZILLA WILL TAKE A CLOSE LOOK AT IT.

WHY SO MANY ROOMS!?.. WHY HAVE I MOVED SIXTEEN (16) TIMES?! ..

Why on earth was I in and out of so many hostel rooms from November the 13th to December the 29th? Because I could NOT stay at the YMCA and I could NOT stay at the HOMY INN for protracted lengths of time. I tried and I TRIED AGAIN AND AGAIN to stay longer each stay in the HOMY INN to no avail. They were sold out and 100% full from time to time and I had to move. Or the room I was in at the HOMY INN was reserved on an advanced reservation for someone else and I had to move from room to room within the HOMY INN. I asked them here at the HOMY INN to give my new room to the incoming guest and the answer was always NO we will not to that!

ACCEPTANCE DOES NOT MEAN APPROVAL .. FINALLY I JUST ACCEPTED WHAT IS REALITY AND MORE-OR-LESS RELAXED.

Reality is this .. Each and every single move cost me one full day of my time here. You check out by 11AM but you cannot get into your next room until 3PM so you have to wait it out with your bags and your baggage. It got to be more and more of a hassle. BUT I sure have learned about the hostel scene here in Kowloon. I doubt many of you know any living or dead person who knows more than I now know about the hostel scene here!

I originally began this Post by deciding to post photos of the rooms that Patti and I or simply that I myself have stayed in ONLY at THE HOMY INN located in the UNION MANSION on Chatham Road South and Hart Avenue in Kowloon. Then I expanded this Post to include rooms at the YMCA and at the CHUNGKING MANSION.

The UNION MANSION is the red brick building in the center of the below photos. The area surrounding the UNION MANSION is .. in my opinion .. very pleasant.

In the above photo Hart Avenue is between the two red brick buildings under the white vertical sign.

The address is Chatham Road South and not Hart Avenue. THE actual entrance fronts on Hart Avenue NOT on Chatham Road South.

In my humble opinion .. based upon having actually stayed in several other hostels in the CHUNGKING MANSION on Nathan Road and having seen and investigated more than several other hostels here in Kowloon .. hostels that I chose not to stay in .. the HOMY INN GETS AN A+ RATING from Yours Truly !

Below is a series of photographs of the hallway leading to the main lobby of the HOMY INN. The reception desk is located on the 8th Floor of the Union Mansion in Kowloon in the Greater Hong Kong Metro Area ..

Below is the reception desk and waiting area.

Why on earth am I going to all of this work .. this may well be the longest post that I have ever posted!

I AM DOING THIS BECAUSE ..

I PLAN TO RECOMMEND THE HOMY INN TO OTHER FRIENDS. BY HAVING THESE PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE ROOMS THAT I HAVE STAYED IN A FRIEND WILL BE ABLE TO SAY .. I LIKE THAT ROOM .. AND THEY WILL BE ABLE TO GIVE TO ME THE ROOM NUMBER OF A ROOM THAT LOOKS O.K. TO THEM.

THE COST OF THE ROOMS will vary depending upon the type of room one chooses and upon the customer demand for rooms here in the Greater Hong Kong Metro Area. Room rates SHOT UP for the period encompassing Christmas and now New Years.  Chinese New Year in mid-February will be a high rate season. Major Conventions being held in the HKG Metro Area will raise prices also.

Having made the above DISCLAIMER .. Draw a line-down-the-middle and you can figure on about Seventy ($70) U.S. Dollars (500 HKD) a night here at the HOMY INN. Most Hotels will run well above this rate.

‘ZILLA .. OH ‘Zilla .. are you looking at this post Ol’ Buddy Ol’ Pal ? I KNOW Eryn and Jason are gobbling it up !

OR MAYBE ‘ZILLA WILL SAY .. aaaarrrrrggggghhhh .. I am staying home Captain !

OR .. “Captain I will find my own place .. A place with all of the bells and with all of the whistles .. Something in the range of a two bedroom suite at the top of one of the Hong Kong High Rise Super Luxury Hotels!”

To which I will say .. ‘ZILLA JUST BRING A LARGE BAG-FULL OF LARGE DENOMINATION BANK NOTES MY FRIEND .. OR CALL AMX and advise them you will be spending a lot of money here in Hong Kong. Hong Kong isn’t backpacking on our BMWs back-in-the-day.

BEFORE I BEGIN with the HOMY INN rooms .. I am going to show a MEMORY JOGGER PHOTO of the YMCA DORM ROOMS and one or two photos of my three stays in the CHUNGKING MANSION .. This way this ONE POST will have a photo or more of each room that I stayed in beginning NOVEMBER 13th 2014 though DECEMBER 28th. I moved into a studio apartment in the Sheung Wan District of Hong Kong proper on Monday the 29th of December 2014.

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I was into and out of the YMCA in Kowloon FOUR TIMES .. Twice with Patti (NOV 13 -15 and NOV 20 – 23) .. and twice by myself  (DEC 14 – 16 and DEC 27 – 28) ..

THE YMCA .. NOVEMBER 13 – 15 .. 20 – 23 .. DECEMBER 13 – 16 .. 27 – 28 ..

The YMCA in Kowloon at 41 Salisbury Road is one PHENOMENAL place to stay. NO ifs .. NO ands .. NO buts.

The dorm rooms have four beds.

The Salisbury Road YMCA is considered to be a three-star hotel.

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THE CHUNGKING MANSION on Nathan Road in Kowloon. I was into and I was out of the CHUNGKING MANSION THREE TIMES.

Below are photos of the CHUNGKING MANSION Hostel Directory Boards (one directory is for even numbered floors and the other directory is for odd numbered floors) located in the lobby by the elevators.

There are an absolutely BEWILDERING number of hostels inside of this enormous building!

In the first photo below we have the even numbered floors. At the very top .. are the two hostels (on the 14th Floor A1, A2 and 16th Floor I have NO clue which of the three I stayed in!) that I stayed in here in the CHUNGKING MANSION.

The common hostels (above and below) are the 14th and 12th Floors.

In these two photos .. the 8th floor is common to the two of them.

NOW WE SWITCH TO THE SECOND DIRECTORY BOARD for the odd numbered floors!

In these two photos I nailed it .. each photo has in common the 11th Floor .. The Fortunate Guesthouse!

My Room Number 18 on the 14th Floor of the CHUNGKING MANSION .. December the 6th 2014 ..

And its SPECTACULAR VIEW down upon Nathan Road ..

On December the 7th and 8th I moved up to the 16th floor and stayed in the below room ..

Back I came to the CHUNGKING MANSION for Christmas Eve on December the 24th .. Again I was on the 14th Floor this time in Room 11 ..

Many .. if not most .. of the travelers that I have mixed with here in Hong Kong .. give the CHUNGKING MANSION pretty poor press reviews .. it gets a pretty bad rap.

MAKE NO MISTAKE .. I DO NOT SHARE THIS NEGATIVE VIEW of the CHUNGKING MANSION. Yes it is VERY INTENSE and the downstairs lobby scene off Nathan Road may not appeal to wimps and sissies! But you take it like it is .. All three of my rooms were immaculate and absolutely spotless. I was treated well by all members of the two hostels I stayed in. Yes I would return .. BUT it isn’t the HOMY INN either.

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BECAUSE THE FIRST ROOM THAT PATTI AND I STAYED IN AT THE HOMY INN WAS ON THE 15th FLOOR .. I WILL BEGIN BY SHOWING YOU ALL THE ROOMS THAT I HAVE STAYED IN ON THE 15th FLOOR in the HOMY INN.

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THE HOMY INN .. ROOM 1505 .. NOVEMBER 16th to 20th ..

This was the first room that Patti and I stayed at in the HOMY INN. It remains close-to-the-top in my ranking of rooms at the HOMY INN. It is a standard double.

Notice the WINDOW .. In the world of the hostels in Hong Kong NOT all rooms have windows!

Above we are looking at the entrance to the private attached toilet. Some hostels have COMMON toilets.

If you haven’t noticed .. the room is spotlessly clean.

A shower if you like.

One photo of the view from Room 1505.

ALL ROOMS on the 15th floor have a WONDERFUL COMMON AREA .. In the first photo below I show you the hallway leading into the set of rooms on the 15th floor and into the common area.

Now we walk towards the black wooden stool you see above and .. turning to our left .. you see the below view of the common area on the 15th floor.

In the below photo I am looking back at the counter above from the far side. Just to the left of the white cabinets in the below photo is a combination HOT (the water is close to boiling) and freshly pleasant COLD water dispenser.

And a small but nice and very adequate refrigerator.

I repeat myself .. the common area on the 15th Floor is so pleasant.

Patti and I really enjoyed it a lot!

You do NOT own NOR do you control the COMMON AREA!

Is the cup half full? One of the FUN things for me about staying in a hostel is the intermingling with other travelers.

Or perhaps the cup is half empty? Some of you may NOT like nor want to mix and to mingle with other travelers and their various differences.

I am going to continue below to show the other rooms that I stayed in on the 15th FLOOR ..

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THE HOMY INN .. ROOM 1507 .. NOVEMBER 28th to DECEMBER 1st ..

Room 1507 is a Twin Bunk Room.

Nice and airy room with great windows.

No! Not each and not every day here in Hong Kong is sunny and bright.

A standard typical bathroom.

Room 1507 has an enclosed shower (with a door). Most of the showers are not enclosed and the shower water just floods the floor with water and it drains away as it will.

One GREAT ADVANTAGE for me of Room 1507 .. and the other multi-bunk-bed rooms that I stayed in .. was the luxury of being able to spread out my things on the top bunk bed.

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THE HOMY INN .. ROOM 1503 .. DECEMBER 12th ..

Room 1503 is a Triple Bunk Room. LORD GOD IN HEAVEN ABOVE ! When I got into Room 1503 the Bobbsey’s exploded out of their suitcases and in-an-instant occupied all of the surfaces on each of the beds suddenly available to them! ONLY PATTI can even begin to fathom this phenomenon!

Looking through the door into Room 1503 ..

Room 1503 is really a six person dormitory.

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THE HOMY INN .. ROOM 1501 .. DECEMBER 17th – 19th ..

Room 1501 .. I seem to have lost you someplace in the shuffle. I can not find one single photo of you. Maybe I just ran out of gas and did not snap any photos. Maybe I can get a photo or two later this week. We shall see what we shall see.

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NOW I WILL MOVE DOWN TO THE 6th FLOOR AND SHOW YOU ALL OF THE ROOMS ON THE 6th FLOOR THAT I HAVE STAYED IN ..

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THE HOMY INN .. ROOM 601 .. NOVEMBER 24th to 27th .. DECEMBER 9th to 11th ..

In the foreground of the below photo is the computer that I have been using since November the 20th when Patti and I checked into Room 1505 on the 15th Floor at the HOMY INN. Immediately past the computer is Room 601 located on the 6th Floor.

Room 601 is a Single Room. Room 601 has NO WINDOWS .. and thus is it not suitable for everyone.

Room 601 is NOT the smallest room that I have stayed in BUT because it has NO windows it is a tad intense to stay in. I liked the room because the computer is immediately outside the door and thus is so convenient.

In the above photo in the bottom left you can see a fold-up table that proved to be quite handy. It is shown below in its raised position.

The below photo was taken from the head of the bed looking back at the bathroom.

Looking into the bathroom. Notice how the mirror on the right side of the wash basin opens up the small bathroom making it look larger. A nice touch.

The shower head and the towel rack.

To repeat myself and to put it mildly .. Room 601 would NOT BE SUITABLE for everyone. Many of the other small rooms had room under the bed to put luggage to get it out of the way of daily living. Not so in Room 601.

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THE HOMY INN .. ROOM 603 .. DECEMBER 25th and 26th ..

This is a standard double bed room. Yes it is tight but it worked just fine for me. The bath room is on your immediate left as you enter the room. The mirror wall is SO NICE!

Above is the double bed in ROOM 603. Below is the single bed in ROOM 601.

Below you see a nice fully operational (you can open the window for air) window. Air conditioning is available for the hot season.

A handy fold-up table that lends itself to a variety of uses.

Looking back towards the entryway door. The above fold-up table is partially visible along the left edge of the below photo.

As in the bedroom the bathroom has fully operational windows.

Panning from the top (above) down to the bottom (below) of the bathroom. Any more I am TAKING FOR GRANTED the fact that a room here in Hong Kong is spotless and immaculate. They must be subject to inspections by a governing body.

A shower if you choose and the water is HOT which is something else I now take-for-granted in a Hong Kong hostel room.

And the VIEW(s) you see looking out the window beside the double bed.

Directly straight across.

To the left.

To the left looking upwards to the sky.

And down to Hart street below.

It looks kind of plain and basic. At night Hart Avenue is one JUMPING PLACE! You will see Hart Avenue at night after the below two photos.

And the view to the right is .. in my opinion .. much more attractive. As you sit on the bed however you see the views above that I call looking left.

Now a few photos of Hart Avenue at night.

In the light of day.

Back to the night.

It sure is a different place in the daytime.

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THE HOMY INN .. ROOM 607 .. DECEMBER 2nd to 5th ..

Room 607 is a standard double room and it is right at the top of my list of my favorite rooms at the HOMY INN. In the below photo a curtain is pulled over the WINDOW that I will show you below.

The photo above looks into Room 607 from the entry door. The photo below looks from the bed you see above back into the hallway outside Room 607. What is not clear is the fact that this short hallway between the bed and to door proved an ideal location to store my suitcases.

The double bed. The bathroom is behind the frosted glass at the upper right of the below photo.

Looking from the head of the bed down at the foot of the bed. Notice a storage cabinet to the left and a television to the right.

Below is the window I mentioned above. You can again see the storage cabinet and television at the foot of the double bed.

The below photo looks out through the grating over the window. This is the view you actually see from the bed.

The below photo was snapped with my camera outside of the above window grating. Oddly the reality is that you seem to look past the grating and see a view more like the photo below.

The view looking down from the bed.

Below the window .. between the bed and the wall .. is a NIFTY little shelf area that I put to good use. Can you all tell that I really like Room 607!

Now let’s have a look at the bathroom.

The head of the bed is visible in the lower left corner of the photo below. Behind the translucent window wall is the bathroom. It has a floor to ceiling mirror wall that is wonderful. You are looking directly into the mirror wall in the photo below as you see the cabinet at the foot of the bed reflected back at you. The optical illusion of the mirror wall makes it appear that the bed is in front of you on the other side of the bathroom!

Now do you all believe me when I say the mirror wall is floor to ceiling! The mirror wall really opens up the bathroom.

Something isn’t it!

That will do it for Room 607 !

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THE HOMY INN .. ROOM 605 .. DECEMBER 20th to 24th ..

Room 605 is a Triple Bed Room. It consists of a double bed and a single bed beside the double bed. In the first photo below you are looking at the single bed on the right side of the photo. I slept in this single bed and used the double bed to put some of my things on. I did not put too many things on the double bed because I had storage shelving on the wall that you can see in the below photo (look above and to the right of the single bed).

Below you see more of the double bed on the left of the photo. There was also storage space at the heads of both beds.

Below is the entire double bed. A nice fully functional window provided light and a nice breeze.

This photo looks back across the single bed and shows the double shelving on the wall above the single bed.

The below photo looks back from the double bed towards the entry door on the right edge of the photo.  Note the nice desk with a storage cabinet above the desk.

I put the storage cabinet above the desk to good use!

The storage cabinet doubled as a clothes closet with hangars for shirts and jackets. I could have used an extra shelf instead of the open space to hang clothes!

Another bathroom with a mirror wall that provides an optical illusion that we are looking at the toilet when in reality we are looking at the reflection of the toilet that is on my immediate left as I snapped the photo!

Looking out the window that was beside the double bed.

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THE HOMY INN .. ROOM 603 .. DECEMBER 25th and 26th ..

I showed Room 603 .. above and out of date order ..

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Well That Is That .. What More Can I Say .. What an adventure it has been staying in so many rooms in several different locations.

Now the big adventure at 23 Mercer Street in the Sheung Wan District of Hong Kong begins.

SMILES .. CAP

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