That night, we go to the Avenue of Stars (Hong Kong's "walk of fame") to watch "A Symphony of Lights," the nightly show along the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront. The fog that has rolled in adds a bit of drama to the light beams shooting through the sky and the neon swirls on the buildings.

Day Six

PANDAS, DIM SUM, AND LIGHT SHOWS! Amy Koller, 32, is a finance coordinator in Yucaipa, Calif. She was one of the winners of our 10th anniversary reader contest. Here are the family photos from her Hong Kong trip. • Launch the slide show EVER DREAM OF BEING A TRAVEL WRITER? • A Family Trip to Hong Kong • A Treehouse Adventure • The No-Frills African Safari • I Married a Non-Traveler • On Tour in the Emerald Isle

As we walk to the Tsim Sha Tsui terminal to catch the Star Ferry to Hong Kong Island, we come upon kids in matching tracksuits clustered around people who are obviously tourists. The kids are students practicing their English. After we answer their questions, they give us a handmade pamphlet about Hong Kong and their teacher snaps a picture. Our kids love it (which means we help out three groups of students).

For less than $1 total, all four of us take the nearly 10-minute ferry ride. The old boats have a vintage feel: The benches are wooden, with a shared metal backrest that can be moved to face either direction.

In the Central district, we poke into the nearest mall for picnic fare. Then we jump on the ferry back to Kowloon and eat as we watch cruise liners and fishing boats sharing the harbor.

The open-air Jade Market, in the Yau Ma Tei district, is spread out across two blocks, and we're amazed to discover how much cheaper the jade is there than elsewhere. The kids pick out carvings representing their animals from the Chinese 12-year calendar and tie them to their jackets. Christian is then free to shop for a gift for a friend. Vendors present trinkets to him, and he ponders them for a moment before waving them off. Soon he and Cassidy are bartering just like smaller versions of Robert and me.

We decide to spend the rest of the day revisiting the places we loved the most. For the kids, that means returning to the buckets of turtles they wish they could smuggle home. Robert has us go back to the food court for more udon noodles and Korean pork. And that night, I go up to the hotel lounge for one last look at the skyline. The trip is already over? There's still so much to see and do. I steel myself for the brutal flight home. This time I have no plan, just a head full of new memories—and three more pieces of luggage.

Operators

Jetway Express
011-852/2336-6916, jetwayexpress.com, half-day Hong Kong Island tour $22

Transportation

Star Ferry
011-852/2367-7065, starferry.com.hk

Lodging