All Aboard The Panda Express: Holiday snaps from a runaway panda’s quick tour of Hong Kong

Just as 2013 was the year of the giant rubber duck, 2014 is the year of the 1600 pandas. Having just left Hong Kong after their 3-week tenure in the newly renovated (sorry, “upcycled”) PMQ, Hongkongers will no doubt be missing our 1600 black and white friends. However, Coconuts has been in touch with a troupe of cheeky little runaways who decided to explore the city for themselves.

Where it all started: the pandas first got a taste for rebellion when one politically conscious panda attended the historical July 1st march for democracy. Note: the pandas want everyone to know that the outfit was intended to be tongue-in-cheek.

After hearing about the first panda’s exciting day at the protest, a food-loving friend of his decided to indulge in some Peking duck at Empire City Roasted Duck in K-11.

Both pandas had had their fill but they spent the next few weeks telling all of the other pandas about the wonders of Hong Kong.  Coco, the youngest of the pandas, was inspired by the stories like all the others. But she had a youthful recklessness the others did not, and made a break for it while all the other pandas were sleeping.

Our panda pal started off her tour with a visit to the most famous view in Hong Kong: the Peak lookout!

After a taste of tourist-trodden Hong Kong, the twenty-something-year-old Coco felt like finding the hippest spots the city, and after some exploring she found herself in a warehouse in Ngau Tau Kok. She was told that this venue, Hidden Agenda, was one of the best places for local indie music.

By all accounts, the young panda had a great time at the concert and thoroughly enjoyed the music and artsy, grassroots vibe.

Coco started off the next day’s travels with a spot of lunch at Mak’s noodles. The small portions were the perfect size for the little bear, but it turns out her big appetite isn’t just for adventure, so we headed down to the Gage Street market for more snacks.

After seeing how much Coco loved the graffiti at Hidden Agenda, we took her to check out the art at the Central Oasis.

Then we took the Mid-Levels escalator up to Soho…

Posed in front of some more graffiti…

And stopped off for a refreshing mojito and shisha at Sohome! 

It was Coco’s last night in Hong Kong, so naturally, she went to Wanchai for Ladies’ Night.

We started Coco off gently with one of the Blue Goose Tavern’s famous ‘teapots’. Delicious, but lethal.

Pandas gone wild! A night to Wan Chai is not complete with a visit to Carnegie’s for champagne and bar-top dancing. She had some height difficulties at first, but she made some new friends who helped her out!

Coco had a great time in Hong Kong, and Hong Kong will hopefully see her soon if she decides to come back. But for now, here’s a picture of Coco grinning in front of her future vanity plate.

Photos & Text: Annette Chan 



Reader Interactions

Leave A Reply


BECOME A COCO+ MEMBER

Support local news and join a community of like-minded
“Coconauts” across Southeast Asia and Hong Kong.

Join Now
Coconuts TV
Our latest and greatest original videos
Subscribe on