NOV 25, 14 .. HOMY INN .. UNION MANSION ..

In the Christian Bible .. Jesus of Nazareth said .. “In my father’s house there are many mansions!”

Gullible ! .. Come Back Here!  This is not a God Post! It is a Hong Kong Post and besides! Andrej is the webmaster here on this site not you! Said with a smile!

“What’s that Pastor Earl?  Jesus said ROOMS NOT MANSIONS!” ..

Look Earl .. “Oh forget this! I can’t possibly win any discussion with a Baptist Minister now can I?” ..

“Where was I? It is FAR FAR TOO EARLY IN THIS OR IN ANY POST TO HAVE THE WHEELS COMING OFF ALREADY!” ..

“I am going to do a RESTART!“

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In the Hong Kong Metro Area .. which includes the Cities of Hong Kong and Kowloon which is located on the Kowloon Peninsula of the Chinese Mainland .. There truly ARE MANY MANSIONS! Why they call them Mansions .. I may never know!  The rest of the world just calls them buildings.

All of the below mansions are in the Kowloon area ..

Now I don’t want to tell them how to spell their own name BUT above I believe that it should be three words!  CHUNG KING MANSIONS.

I like the above Seaview Mansion.  Not fair .. I like all of them!

Below I got two-for-the-price-of-one!

Some Mansions are in a state of dis-repair BUT THEY ARE STILL MANSIONS.  Poor Windsor Mansion on Chatham Road South.  “What’s that ‘Zilla? Thanks to me for filling in the missing letters! You are welcome my friend.”

And I am blessed to have the opportunity to live .. for a few days .. inside of a Hong Kong Mansion!  Hot Diggety Dog!

“Oh God of Abraham .. My Creator .. What a thrill.. Why have you so abundantly blessed me?”

I get to see the inside of a Kowloon Mansion .. To meet people who have lived a lifetime in one .. Real Hong Kong Metro Area living!”

“What’s that Pastor Earl?” Well I thought you’d like a little of my dialogue with God!  After all this is my Doxology! My Praise to God!

Now I am going to gently work all of you into my KOWLOON MANSION!  In the below photo .. down the street .. on the left side .. before the new blue and silver High Rise Building is a reddish building.

You can see it a little better in the below photograph.  The furthest of the older buildings on the left.

There it is .. see it? .. On the right below ..

The below photograph REALLY NAILS IT!  My mansion is the reddish building on the right.

It is just a little tricky .. but in the above two photos (notice the vertical white sign with red characters) there are two reddish buildings (both are mansions). In between them is a road .. Hart Avenue off Chatham Road South.

We walk left off Chatham Road South onto Hart Avenue and below we have the entrance to The Union Mansion.

And in a moment we will all walk inside of my Union Mansion here in Kowloon!

But before we walk inside of my UNION MANSION .. let’s all take a look up into the sky and see REAL HONG KONG METRO LIVING !

What’s that you say Ed 02476?  It looks like a cold water walk up New York City Tenement on the lower East Side!  Yes! That too is real life-in-the-raw Ed! I’ll tell you this Ed .. the folks on the lower east side are not paying what these kind folks are paying per month!  On the lower east side I doubt they all have air conditioning units! Maybe they do now-a-days!

In the photo below the Union Mansion is on the left.  The elderly mansion who’s name is missing letters (see above) The Windsor Mansion is on the right. I am standing on Hart Avenue to shoot the photos below.

Looking up into the sky ..

And .. Me Being Me .. I got into the Windsor Mansion across Hart Avenue from the Union Mansion.  Then I got myself up onto the roof of the Windsor Mansion and snapped the below photos of my UNION MANSION. Can any of you tell that I am JAZZED UP about getting to see some Hong Kong life real-and-up-close!

What’s that you say Andrej .. and .. and .. and all of you following along here with me?  Well I think that at least some of you are thinking to yourself .. “Captain .. Just How On Earth Do You Pull Things Like This Off!”Patti was there with me .. a witness to the entire getting-onto-the-roof adventure! Although Patti was warmly invited to join me .. Patti did NOT want to get up on the roof!

OK it is now time to go inside of my Union Mansion.

In we go.  Mail boxes are on the right.  Ahead on the left is the Guard’s Desk.

Me Being Me .. I shot the photos when the ever-vigilant always-on-the-job Guard was?  Well .. he was NOT home when I grabbed the below photos!

Me thinks.  NO! .. Me KNOWS that the always-on-the-job ever-vigilant Guard would NOT have wanted me to snap any photos.  He is .. Ah-h-h-h-h .. Well I am ever-so-slowly overwhelming him with my smiles and positive attitude. An elder gentleman who seems to have-known-hard-times .. he IS the unsmiling inscrutable Asian man! By gosh I will ask him to sit for a photo when he is back. What all of you have-to-understand is this: I love and I honor and yes I Salute these people.

I was correct. I actually asked him IF I could snap a photo and he said no.  So walking in the next day .. with my camera down-on-my-right-hip .. as I walked (this is why the photo is blurry) up to him I silently snapped a photo.  I don’t think either of them noticed yet they certainly were looking at me.  I do what I can do with stealth! Poor photo that it is .. he does come across as inscrutable doesn’t he?

OK turning around 180-degrees .. we look up the entryway hall to the elevators as the guard would look.

On the right we have NO not one .. NO not two .. but THREE count them .. elevators.  The center elevator serves all 16 floors.  The left elevator serves the odd numbered floors.  The right elevator serves the even numbered floors.

And luckily for me (because I have to live-with Patti) I get to live-another-day!  And of course luckily for Patti too .. there are elevators in The Union Mansion. I did NOT think to ask about them when I made our reservation for the Union Mansion because I was just so thrilled to get into a real travelers guest house.

And below we look back down the hall.  The three elevators are on our left and the always-on-the-job ever-vigilant Guard is still? Where art thou oh guard?

Now some photos up inside of the Union (MY) Mansion. A photo inside of the elevator.

So each floor has two elevators.  The one servicing all floors and the one servicing its (even numbered or odd numbered)  floor.  It is very basic inside the Union Mansion.

I write that It Is Very Basic BUT there are exceptions OH YES there are exceptions. Below is a normal (basic) entry door.

Ah do you all see the difference below?

Their elevator area is beautiful.

Look at the elevator call buttons in the marble wall.

Their beautiful floor!  I mean check it out!

So we have a real mix of people living their lives here in the Union Mansion.  Some rich and some not so rich and some in the middle.  And there are what appear to be a fair number of businesses housed here in The Union Mansion.

I run the steps when I can do so.  The stair wells are EXTREMELY BASIC!  The stair wells are the REAL DEAL.

Oh Yes!  I can! .. and Oh Yes .. I DO .. closely investigate a place.  Especially IF IT IS MY place!

The stair wells are every bit as dark and every bit as basic as I show here.  Below is a door leading out of the stair well into a floor.  Into MY floor if you must know.

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THE HOMY INN .. UNION MANSION .. ROOM 601 ..

The time has come to show you all an EXTREMELY CLEAN BUT EXTREMELY BASIC back-packers room here in my beloved Union Mansion.  When Patti was here with me .. and OH YES YOU BETCHA you are going to see that penthouse room up on the 15th floor .. we two were living high-on-the-hog.  When Patti left I said to Andy the Power That Is here at the HOMY INN .. Andy I want BASIC!

And I got what I wanted .. BASIC! Below is the small bed Patti feared we would have when I got us into the Union Mansion.

After I moved in!

Some space between my bed and the wall.

I would show you wider views but my back was jammed hard-against-the-wall and I could NOT get further back to shoot these photos.  The small goose-neck light really works well when I have some sewing to do.  The white ‘remote control’ works the air conditioner.

After I moved in!

Do you all see the folding shelf on the left side of the above photos?

After I moved in.

The below photos look back into the room from the head of my bed.  If you study the above photos you can see I could NOT get my back flat against the wall at the head of my bed.

After I moved in.

If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is Thank You .. it will be enough!  Thank You Oh God Of Abraham for an air conditioner in my basic room.  And Yes! That is a television in my room.

In the lower left of the above photo is the door into the necessary room. The coat hangar will orient you.

I can NOT squat.  I MUST have a Western Style Sitter Downer.

Not exactly a shower .. but it will flood water upon you should you wish to bathe.

To get any perspective at all of the necessary room .. I had to go outside the room and look back in.  On the right of the below photo you will see the Desk Top Computer that I am sitting at right-this-instant writing this Post. ROOM 601 is MY room!

Below are photos of Patti using this computer when she was here with me and we two were living in the High Rent District Penthouse on the 15th floor.

On the floor to Patti’s left is a water dispenser.  Cold Pure Water and SCALDING BOILING HOT water for my Instant Noodles.  The foot of my bed is on the left below.

All the rooms have a very sophisticated security system using digital or magnetic key-cards to assure personal safety and security.

“What is that you ask me ‘Zilla?” .. “Cap where are the windows?” .. “Oh ‘Zilla what on earth do you expect here?” .. “Answer you?” .. “Zilla there are NO WINDOWS!”

And now .. THE REST OF THE STORY.

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THE HOMY INN .. UNION MANSION .. ROOM 1505 ..

THIS WAS OUR FIRST ROOM AT THE HOMY INN HERE IN KOWLOON .. 

LIFE ON THE 15th FLOOR IN THE PENTHOUSE!

So here we go .. living large with Patti with me.

Welcome to the HOMY INN!

We are at-the-door about to walk into the reception area for the HOMY INN.

The HOMY INN comes well recommended!

And in we all go! The photos show you that this is a really FIRST CLASS operation.

Refreshments for road-weary travelers who may be thirsty or perhaps needing a snack.

Now let’s all zip up to the 15th floor for a look see!

Do all of you see the bright yellow jacket in the window up at the top of the UNION MANSION?

The room Patti and I stayed in during her visit to Hong Kong with me was .. in my opinion .. the best-room-in-the-house for short-term visitors.  And our room is the one you see the jacket in.

By The Way .. I believe that ALL ROOMS up in the Penthouse HAVE WINDOWS!

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THE HOMY INN .. UNION MANSON .. 15th FLOOR COMMON AREA ..

Below we are walking into the common area. 

Walking forward and looking left below we have a very nice area to eat in.

In the above photo you can see a really nice small refrigerator for guests to utilize.  We kept yogurt and juice in it.

A nice breakfast living large up in the Penthouse.

Good old Kellogg’s Corn Flakes!

– – – – ROOM 1505 .. THE HOMY INN – – – – UNION MANSION ..

Clean and airy and bright.

I am coming to a new appreciation for a room WITH WINDOWS!

The necessary room is through the window door to the left below.  Notice the air conditioner and the WONDERFUL WINDOW that opens wide!

Clean and bright and open and WONDERFUL!

A nice shower.

Looking out of our window.

Photos taken out of our window.

We really were up in the Penthouse.

GOODNESS .. I feel like running back up to the Penthouse .. as in right NOW!

A night time view!

A room for two with a double bunk bed.  Again NOTICE the window and airy spacious feel to the room.

And a room for three with a triple bunk bed.  MORE WINDOWS!

Well I believe that this will be the big IT to finish off this Post.

As I sign off .. Patti is now home in Anchorage Alaska .. but since Patti was here with me for much of this visit .. I shall sign off for the two of us!

Big Smiles from Patti and from Cap!

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I really feel that .. to some degree .. I got in-over-my-head on this Post because it has seemingly taken on a life of its own.  But I am sincere in saying again how thrilled I am to be living in a real Hong Kong Metro Area Mansion here in the City of Kowloon.  I speak to and mix-in with the people I ride with in the elevators and one told me she had lived here basically her entire life.  That is sobering and touching at the same time.

How about this .. I have put two maps in here below to show you all precisely where I am!  Andrej .. you are the greatest!

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And now .. taa-daa .. Rest In Peace Mister Paul Harvey .. one final ..

THE REST OF THE STORY!

The hands-on manager of the HOMY INN is Andy.  Andy is above and well beyond the level of exceptional excellence. On the famous zero to ten rating scale where ten is the best .. Andy scores about a fifty!  It was Andy who set Patti and I up with the best room in the house up in the Penthouse.  It was Andy who engineered my getting up on the roof of the Windsor Mansion directly across the street from my Union Mansion. It was Andy who accommodated me in my desire to get down-and-dirty with a basic room-with-no-windows because the REAL backpackers stay in such rooms.  I doubt if Andy will ever see .. let alone read .. this Post but I wanted to give Andy his just kudos.

So here’s to you ANDY .. you ARE THE GREATEST!

Just do it now Captain! .. Press Publish and launch this Post!

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