Papa T has visited Hong Kong numerous times on business but understandably has had little time to see many of it's famous sights so in early December we flew over for a long weekend to spend time sightseeing, do some Christmas shopping and to walk the famous Dragon's Back trail.
On our first morning we took the Ngong Ping cable car to visit the Tian Tan Buddha and Po Lin Monastery on Lantau Island.
Earlier that morning we had spent 2 hours in a "virtual queue" online trying (and sadly failing) to buy tickets for the Coldplay concert in Singapore next April. So it was mid morning by the time we arrived at the cable car station and there was another long queue, which did not help our already bad mood! We patiently waited and an hour later, we were in the cable car and enjoying the ride. On the 25 minute journey we had a great views of the countryside and then the Big Buddha
Once there we walked through Ngong Ping village, which was specifically created at the top of the plateau to cater to the influx of tourists now flocking to Big Buddha which had been erected in 1993.The village is a pretty, but rather too perfect example of a traditional village
there were even cows wandering about the village
The Big Buddha sits on top of a hill with a long staircase approach, so you get to exercise as you climb towards spiritual awareness!
It is certainly an impressive statue and well worth the climb
and the views from the top were pretty good too
The Po Lin monastery is also very impressive both inside and out
The monastery walls have beautiful and intricate stone carvings of dragons and other temple effigies.
A short walk from the monastery was a sign pointing to the "Wisdom Path". Always wanting to increase my knowledge I had to follow this path
The path first took me passed some abandoned buildings which nature seems to be reclaiming
The path then took me to the Wisdom Path where a series 38 wooden steles are placed standing tall and arranged in a pattern that represents infinity. Each stele has a verse carved into it from the centuries old Heart Sutra-one of the world's best known prayers revered by Buddhists, Confucians and Taoists.
Feeling oh so much wiser Papa T and I returned to our hotel on Hong Kong Island and later walked along the promenade of Aberdeen harbour. It's fascinating to see the modern buildings as the backdrop to a harbour that still has sampans and traditional fishing boats bobbing about
We planned to also do some Christmas shopping whilst in HK and the next day, which was overcast and drizzly, and set off on the local bus to the delightful seaside village of Stanley and it's market
This was my 3rd time in Stanley but Papa T's first so we walked along the coastal path to visit the tiny but enchanting Pak Tai Temple. The temple was erected over 200 years ago to the Taoist God of the North and protector of fishermen when Stanley was the largest fishing village in HK
We had quite a successful shopping trip and also bought a couple of paintings by local artists which will be a good reminder of our visits to HK
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The following day was a beautifully clear and sunny day and the perfect temperature for our next goal- to walk the Dragon's Back trail, this would be Papa T's first post op 'proper' walk and a test of how his 'new legs' functioned.
Named by Times magazine as " the best urban hike in Asia' and described as an "approx 8.5 km long, moderately difficult trail with an average hiking time of 6 hours", we were a little anxious as to whether Papa T would be fit enough to complete the trail but we were ready to give it a go
We had started the hike at 9.30am and less than an hour later we were at the highest point, Shek O Peak (284m) enjoying fabulous views of HK and it's many islands
By good fortune our trek coincided with the annual HK Round the Island Race and we were in a great spot to watch the many different sailing boats as they raced by
Papa T was walking well and it felt great to be out on the hills again, the walk felt very quite rural but of course we were never far from 'civilisation' and the metropolis of HK city
Within 3 hours we were on Big Wave Bay having completed the trail (we walked at a very relaxed pace so goodness knows how anyone can take 6 hours doing this trek!)
and a short while later on Shek O Beach where we had the most delicious seafood lunch at Cococabana; a Mediterranean restaurant overlooking the sea
we then lazed on the beach enjoying watching the local Surf Rescue teams annual competition
and to finish the day, in fact the whole weekend, off rather perfectly we were treated to a wonderful sunset on the taxi ride back to our hotel
HK has become one of my favourite destinations with it's mix of busy city life, traditional villages, islands and hills and plenty of good walking possibilities, hopefully we will be back again before too long
