Around the World

in Seven Days

HONG KONG, AUCKLAND AND LA

 HELP TO BEAT THE JETLAG OF THE SEVEN DAY GLOBETROTTER

Perhaps the perfect antidote to Heathrow gridlock on a cold, grey early winter's day is a silent glide by cable car to a peaceful monastery on the outskirts of balmy Hong Kong.

The new 3.5 mile Ngong Ping Skyrail - with stomach-churning views to the sea below should you choose to look - deposits passengers at the monastery which until recently was only accessible by a long, winding road. Incense was thick in the air and I couldn't feel further from London.

The stopover was a fine start to a round-the-world journey which took me as far as New Zealand via the East and then back to the UK via the West- Los Angeles. The new route gives travellers the first chance to circumnavigate the globe on the same airline from the UK, and the option of flying out in either direction.

Hong Kong is a new addition to the Air New Zealand route, and for those with only hours to spare the monastery cable car is close to the airport and easily accessible. There is, of course, the rest of the island to explore, a sophisticated city with beautiful restaurants and bars and remarkably good shopping.

The Wan Chai area, the business and entertainment district, is packed on any night with young people and expats. While the quality of the food is well known, it also boasts some truly stylish bars. Dragon-i, the preferred haunt of English footballers when in these parts, is one such place. It's all bamboo and birdcages, with the warm breeze floating into the open area above the busy streets below.

It's worthwhile staying up late in Hong Kong to see the city lit up. The Symphony of Lights, in the Guinness World Records as the world's largest permanent light and sound show, is a must-see. Retail never stops, and the Temple Street night market offers an alternative to bar-hopping.

It is easy to fill at least two days here. The market shopping is justifiably famous, if not necessarily to buy (although it is hard, and probably financially silly, to walk past the electronics) then simply to experience the flower and fish displays.

But it was time to move on. The stopover had not only made the prospect of another 10-hour flight bearable, but it also helped me acclimatise to a southern hemisphere spring. Instead of feeling jetlagged on arrival in Auckland, it was straight down to the city's beautiful waterfront for fresh air and wine.

It's a nice walk or a short bus trip to the viaduct area from Molly's Hotel in the seaside suburb of St Mary's Bay. The hotel, named the best new small hotel in

the world last year by Harper's Hideaway Report, is a luxurious start to the New Zealand leg and is also perfectly placed for the trendy cafe area of Ponsonby.

The possibilities in Auckland, and of course the rest of the country, are limitless, and it is easy to mix city sights with outdoor pursuits without spending hours travelling.

The region boasts three harbours, two mountain ranges, 48 volcanic cones and more than 50 islands. It is also home to more than 80 vineyards, including Waiheke Island's highly-regarded Stonyridge.

For those with more time, Great Barrier Island is an unspoilt haven four-and-a-half hours by ferry or 30 minutes by air from Auckland. A popular destination for boaties in the summer, it has no electricity network, yet manages to provide luxury accommodation and gourmet dining as well as camping, hiking and fishing.

It is very easy, however, to spend time wandering from cafe to cafe, although the fantastic food no longer comes cheap. Despite the favourable exchange rate for visitors travelling on the pound, it is still possible to spend a large chunk of the holiday budget just sitting and sampling the fare.

Fortunately, the wrench of leaving the warmth and fresh air of this beautiful city for cold, dreary London was postponed with the western leg of the jaunt. And splitting the 24-hour flight back with a night in LA can mean the difference between a miserable and a manageable return to the UK.

There's no better place to get an instant dose of Hollywood glamour than the Roosevelt Hotel, which is almost directly over the road from the Kodak Theatre, home of the Oscars. Its front door opens onto the Hollywood Walk of Fame and there are numerous tours departing nearby taking in the neighbourhood of the stars.

But weary travellers needn't leave the hotel for some Hollywood history. The Roosevelt's Blossom Room hosted the first-ever Academy Awards ceremony on May 19, 1929. Sweeping renovations last year have made the hotel and its Tropicana poolside bar a Hollywood hotspot, where the latest young stars go to party.

Marilyn Monroe was a resident at the hotel for two years when her modelling career took off and her first magazine shoot was taken on the recently-removed diving board on the pool. A mirror which one hung in her room, Cabana 246 overlooking the poolside, is now in the lobby. The pool, heated and surrounded by fires at night, contains a mural painted by David Hockney.

It is incredibly easy to settle with a cocktail in the comfortable loungers by the pool and relax for hours on end, but it was time to go home.