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Hi, Just been granted my WHV and plan to fly out in January 2013. I am thinking of staying a few days to stop off before I get to Perth. Any advice would be great. I am thinking of stopping in either Thailand, malaysia, singapore or hong kong. I am quite flexible about it all and have looked into flights, accommodation etc. cheers, Ian.

Hi, I will be flying to Perth January 2013 and plan on staying in Hong Kong for a few days for 2 reasons. My Dad used to live there as a boy so I've always wanted to go there and plus it will hopefully cushion the blow from the Jetlag. Firstly has anybody out there stayed in Hong Kong and is there any advice you can offer me? Also can anybody tell me about the Jetlag? Cheers, Ian.

This time of year we are deluged with lists involving either last year or the current one, and a new entry that might be of interest to the expat communities has just been released. The Daily Telegraph in the UK (known for its right-wing politics and likely an upscale readership) has announced the results of its survey of the World’s best places to live in 2012. Evidently about 1500 of their readers participated (definitely a small sample for an unscientific poll) and the Top 10 choices are: Hong Kong New York City Auckland, New Zealand Turks and Caicos Islands Tasmania Maui, Hawaii Buenos Aires Barbados Victoria, British Colombia Cape Town, South Africa What I think is especially weird about the survey results is that they are a total mix of places that are barely alike in any way. I’d have thought that many people who choose Paris or Barcelona, or perhaps a long list of islands in the Caribbean, but these people are literally all over the map. Hong Kong and New York City The top two slots are actually very similar in that they have kind of an anything goes reputation, and living well in them is incredibly expensive. Auckland (and its suburbs) This seems an odd pick because travellers to New Zealand generally rate Auckland itself as their least favourite part of the whole country. Evidently this particular suburb is quite nice, but if you are dreaming of moving to New Zealand why move to its biggest city? Turks and Caicos and Barbados These actually make sense, especially if you survey people during the winter months. It’s still a bit odd that these two made the Top 10 and others like the Caymans or Bermuda or the British Virgin Islands didn’t. Tasmania I’ve not been to Tasmania and it sounds quite nice. It’s hard to believe it’s popular enough to make this list, but obviously it did. Maui, Hawaii The survey was done by a UK newspaper and if it were done in the US then Maui would likely be at or near the top. Buenos Aires This seems like an interesting choice because BA really is a fantastic city that also offers very good value to foreigners. Probably voted in by people who had very good holidays there, and I’d be tempted to vote for it myself for the same reason. Victoria, British Columbia Another unusual choice, partly because Vancouver, the large city closest to Victoria, seems to top the “most liveable cities” lists almost every year. Victoria is out on Vancouver Island, and it feels more like England than anywhere outside of the British Isles. The weather isn’t any better either, so you have to wonder the motivation to go all that way. Cape Town Another I haven’t been to yet, but I hear it’s like a nicer version of Los Angeles, with a rather good climate. If the rest of South Africa had fewer problems then this one would probably be higher. The bottom line As fun as these lists can be, I think one like this where each participant is able to create his own definition of a vague question, is hard to take too seriously. And I’d think that if a left-wing newspaper read by the working class was to do one the list might include Spain and Portugal and maybe Florida.

Sorry if this has been asked already but the search isn't working right now. I have a stopover of 10 hours at Hong Kong on the way to Perth. Can I get out of the airport to go into the city? Do I need any extra paperwork, can I leave hand baggage anywhere, and where do I go to get into the city? Any must sees that will fit into an afternoon? Thanks :cute: