Sunday, May 23, 2010 – Tian Tan Buddha, Tai O, and Tung Chung

It’s hot, muggy, and rainy today, but the fun cannot stop now. I woke up with three huge (and embarrassing) mosquito bites on my face, and once I got out the door, got bitten two times. Two things I dislike about living in Hong Kong during the summer are the hot, humid weather and the unrelenting mosquitoes that swarm at the presence of delicious humans (especially me). I'm a mosquito magnet. Hopefully Beijing is not horribly hot and mosquito-filled. For breakfast, we went out to eat dim-sum again. Delicious.

We decided to visit the Tian Tan Buddha (天壇大佛) at Ngong Ping, Lantau Island, despite the rainy weather. It will involve a long bus ride and many transfers, but the visit is definitely worth the trek. The bus ride offered some wonderful views of tall buildings and boats on a body of water, as we crossed a bridge to reach Ngong Ping. We rode in a standard cable car, because we were to cheap to buy tickets for the “Crystal cable car”, which gives a 360° view of the landscape leading up to Ngong Ping, with glass windows on all four sides of the cable car.

Despite the lack of the glass floor, the standard car nonetheless offered a breathtaking view of the beaches, grassy peaks, the Lantau hiking trail (which I will definitely trek in the future), and of course, the great Buddha statue and surrounding pagodas and temples. The wind was high, but fortunately, it stopped raining. My ears rang from the pressure of the high altitudes of the cable car. Looking down, I can see nothing but greenery; looking forward and up, beautiful rolling hills line the horizon, as the lone Buddha sits peacefully atop the peak, legs folded, eyes downcast, and hands in a dignified and compassionate gesture.

 view from the bus to Tat Tung Road, where we will walk to the cable cars

view from cable car

watching the other cable cars pass by

HK International Airport

Lantau Hiking Trail that leads up to Lantau Peak

adorable cousin Isaac

Tian Tan Buddha from afar

Many souvenir shops tempt visitors as they reach Ngong Ping, but I was too eager to visit the great Buddha to notice. The steps leading up to the great Buddha statue were somewhat difficult to climb and the air was slightly thin. The statue is so large that one can see most of it below the steps and even far from the steps themselves. The top is truly breathtaking – bronze statues of deities, the devas, making offerings to the Buddha line the circular path around the great statue, and one can see a panoramic view of the surrounding peaks and landscapes. I closed my eyes and took in fresh air, then made offerings at Po Lin monastery.

...and we reach Ngong Ping!

a man in a monkey suit; how amusing

om nom nom

 a stunning view from afar; my favorite shot despite the weather

climbing the 268 steps up to the Tian Tan Buddha

marvelous landscape from atop

 bathing a mini Buddha for good luck

"Mounment of Monk"?

The descent from Ngong Ping to Tai O, the next stop, is both perilous and exciting. Rather than miss out on the fun by taking cable car again, we took a bus ride down the peak. The paths were rocky and had sharp turns everywhere; however, the views were as beautiful, if not better, than those seen by cable car. Small houses made of scrap metal dot the greenery in some random places. During the trip down, I was counting the number of wild cows we encounter – five in total.

Tai O is a fishing town that is unique, and strangely paradoxical – it attracts many tourists, but at the same time, is home to illegal immigrants and the very poor. Houses are built from cheap wood and scrap metal, just as those in the villages of Guangzhou where my father lived his childhood during the Cultural Revolution. The attractions are the boats that take you to dolphin sightseeing, driven mainly by Hakka elderly women, and the open air markets in the cramped alleys and streets. The village is dominated by late middle-aged to elderly poor people, and tourists. I bought two packs of tien quai red tea leaves, the specialty of Tai O. It supposedly is great for cough and phlegm.

 all aboard the bus down to Tai O

 welcome to Tai O! that face is hilarious

houses of Tai O

 lots of fish to buy

two old ladies selling dried seafood

the alleys of Tai O

the famous tien quai red teas - good for cough

lots of fresh seafood, since Tai O is a fishing town

For lunch, we went to Tung Chung to eat at some mall’s food court, which has such an amazing variety of Asian fast food, from Macanese fried noodles to Shanghai dumplings. It’s a fancy mall that depicts the middle to upper-class Hong Kong lifestyle – most of the stores are brand-name and foreign, with names like Guess, Samsonite, Folli Follie, and Tumi.

delicious food from around the world in one mall's food court

I was exhausted and sleepy by the time I came back to Lai Chi Kok. But wait, the fun does not stop here. My uncle just invited me to his wife’s younger sister’s wedding anniversary dinner. They rented out part of a restaurant, and invited a ton of people. It has only been less than an hour and a half before we ate, and now we will eat again. When will we ever stop eating?? I stared at my untouched shark fin soup and nibbled on pieces of suckling pig. It’s quality, fancy food, but my stomach is not a sack bag. When I got back home, I hit the bed and was knocked out like a light. Tomorrow’s a big day, as I will head to Beijing with dad, live in a 5-star hotel (don’t know which one yet), and have non-stop trips to tourist attractions. Wish me luck!