Wetland, haircut and history

Today's forecast: Mainly fine and dry. Moderate to fresh northeasterly winds. There will be swells.
My parents both had separate plans this morning, so Flick and I were on our own. We decided to take the MTR West Rail (from Austin Station) to walk around the Hong Kong Wetland Park. After getting off at Tin Shui Wai, we saw a haircutting place in the station. QB House is an import from Japan and I was immediately sold by all of the marketing which promised a 10 minute haircut, latest technology and a pixelboard showing how long the wait was (0 min). I had to buy a TICKET from a VENDING MACHINE (even though the stylists were standing right there). A stylist quickly snipped and buzzed my very long hair while I watched a video about the company and how they train all their stylists in TOKYO! Ten minutes later, the stylist was done and they actually VACUUMED the crumbs off my head, then swept the cut hair into a vacuum hole built into the floor. THEN, I was offered a comb. All for $50 HKD!!! This experience was beyond words.
We switched to the local light rail (Trains 705 and 706 are on a circular route and run in opposite directions). At the Wetland Park stop, we got off, then had to take the very long ramps across the road and walk to the main entrance. Travelling with a baby in a stroller means finding elevators and ramps. Fortunately, Hong Kong is a very accessible city, and staff are always willing to help by opening gates or letting us in through a separate entrance. Amazingly, the main floor of the building has a mother's room with a changing table, sink and chairs for nursing.

 

The park's outdoor reserve was our first stop. We walked through the various ponds, bird hides and fields watching with a mixture of amusement and discomfort at moms berating their children for not learning enough on their walks. When we got back to Kowloon, we had lunch with Flick's family friends, here in Hong Kong for business. Wooloomooloo has a location right next to the harbour in TST East, adjacent to a busy street. It was a nice way to spend the afternoon.

 

As our museum pass was still valid, we went to check out the Hong Kong Museum of History next. It was pretty impressive, with many realistic models, all describing the history of Hong Kong.