Chupsie Travels: HuTong Club, Hong Kong (Part 1 of 3)

One cold lonely night, I caught myself marching endlessly on the streets of Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong. My feet got weary from the long walks during the day as a virgin traveler in this city. Masaya din naman na magpaka-lost sa malayong lugar paminsan-minsan. Pero habang tumatagal at lumalalim na ang gabi, lalong lumalamig ang kapaligiran.

“I have to find a safe refuge,” sabi ko sa sarili ko.

Pero ayoko pang bumalik sa hotel. The night is still young (and so am I). Halos sarado na ang mga establishments sa paligid. Nang maubusan na ako ng options para manatili sa labas ay naalala ko ang suggestion sa akin ng isang mabuting kaibigan na subukan ko ang HuTong Club.

Ako’y dali daling tumakbo sa MTR station upang abutan ang last train trip. Para akong si Cinderella na nagmamadaling umalis bago maghatinggabi! From TST station ako ay nagtungo sa Mongkok station na ilang minuto lang ang biyahe. I loooove the MTR – often regarded as one of the best public transport systems in the world! Sa sobrang interconnected ng mga lines nila you can go anywhere in HK! But do check their schedules, they are usually operational from 6AM until midnight.

Aside from having the MTR as your best friend, GoogleMaps is your another beshie. I highly advise travelers na kumuha ng HK SIM for a data connection on your smartphone. It will definitely come in handy dahil mahirap mag-ask around for directions sa mga HK locals na hindi marunong mag-Ingles. Gotta be a strong, independent beki!

HuTong Club is located between Shanghai Street and Fife Street. I alighted at the Mong Kok station and walked towards the said intersection. Mukhang may signs na malapit na ako sa HuTong…

Sniff! Sniff! Amoy paminta. Chos!

Konting lakad pa hanggang sa narating ko ang Fife Steet. Pero bakit ganun walang tao sa paligid? Ang nadatnan ko ay isang madilim na eskinita. The kind of setting sa mga thriller films where a man in the shadows will approach me tapos bigla akong hahawakan sa braso, at ako naman ang magsisigaw ng, “Huwag po! Huwag po!” Nakawala ako sa kanyang mga bisig kaya tumakbo ako nang papalayo at nagsisigaw ng “Saklolo! Tulungan niyo ako!”

O diba? Advance lang ako mag-isip. Hahahaha!

Walang signage that says “HuTong.” Natulala ako ng ilang minutes dahil di ko alam paano hanapin ang sauna. I stood in the intersection to think. Then I recalled sa isang review na may steel gate at door communications system sa entry so hinanap ko iyon. Out of nowhere, two guys came out from a building door in front of me. Baka ito na nga yung sinasabi na entry to HuTong!

There were reports of customers not allowed to enter the door. As you use the door communications with a camera baka ni-rereview pa nila kung passable ang looks ng clients. So medyo na-challenge ako na baka ma-deny ako ng entry.

I pressed the button and after a few seconds, the gate unlocked itself. Yes! I went up the stairs on the second level where I found the door to HuTong.

Continue on PART 2