Hong Kong Fluey, Part 4 (of 4)

Dec. 14: Still felt sick and too weak to even shower and slept poorly on couch mattresses laid on the carpeted floor. No blankets, so in hindsight bringing my sweatshirt was a good call. Felt much better in the morning, thankfully, although last night's bout of stomach flu probably helped. Guess it IS possible to get sick from eating too much Chinese food.

At this point I barely remember packing, much less where we had breakfast, although it was definitely not congee. What I do remember was the train ride to Central Station, where we and our 15 pieces of luggage checked in early. The next two hours were spent going around the IFC Mall.

Again I'm amazed w/ what the Chinese did to make what's in essence a really interesting train stop. Then again I'm not sure if the place was built before or after the train station, but either way the Shangri-La, Trinoma or Gateway Mall stops don't hold a candle to this place. Ultimately it was too high-end priced for my wallet, and getting lost wasn't difficult. There are definitely worse to places to kill time while waiting for your trip to the airport.

Our flight was fully booked. Evett and I were still a little sick, and the sight of a crowded flying bus filled even more coughing and sneezing passengers chilled my germ-phobic heart. Whoo, at least I'm conscious enough to enjoy the in-flight entertainment. (30 Rock rerun or a view from the plane's "belly-cam?")

When I finally got home and removed my socks I was surprised to see my left foot (and not-so-much my right) riddled w/ red spots. I thought What the hell? Am I allergic to my socks now? The spots didn't itch, but were still disconcerting to see. (Be thankful I didn't take pictures.) Online research pointed to sand fleas as the likely suspect. Lesson? Don't sleep on Excelsior Hotel's sofas, at least not w/o bedsheets covering it, or thorough vacuuming.