amazing race

ive always loved that show... every leg and pit stop; every detour and road block. you get the chance to travel through the seven continents and try to win a million bucks.
always thought that the challenges are not that demanding and all the contestants need is alot of luck.
but not until recently. when i had the chance to experience what the contestants go through in the show.

during our last day in hongkong, we were having last minute shopping.
and we all thought that our flight out was 9pm. but actually it was 8:30pm.
and because shopping took most of our time. we were still at mongkok at 7pm. and the freakin airport is still in another island. gaaaah!
so instead of taking the bus, we decided to just take the airport express which is a train going to the airport which is faster and pricier. ticket is like around 50hkd.
but still we had to take the MTR to the interchange station for the airport express.
and worse it was rush hour. and just like what ive said, rush hour for hongkong is an understatement. we were running and battling with people while carrying all our stuff. and the MTR was jampacked. whew!
and when we reached the interchange, we still have to buy our tickets.
and did i mention that hongkongs airport is so effing big.
theyve got a bajillion floors with bajillion gates and counters. our heads were always up looking for directions towards our gate.
and finally, we reached cebupacs counter. we checked in 30mins before the departure. twas already boarding time but we were still in the freakin counter checking in. so we still had to dash towards the gate. and damn it was still far. we were the last ones to board the plane. we boarded 15mins before departure...final call indeed. wheeeeeeeeeeeew! thank goodness we were still allowed to board.
with no dinner and with our energy depleted, we seated and let the overhead aircondition calm us down.
with my remaining hkd which is supposedly spared for pasalubongs, i bought myself a croissant sandwich and a cola. twas my first time to buy snacks on board.
and after 3 hrs we landed in mactan international airport. twas around 12mn. and our flight for davao is still at 4pm. and so we looked for some benches and took some shuteye.

i definitely experienced alot of first times when i was in hongkong.
and i hope i still get a second time -- for most of them, I mean.
godspeed.