Hong Kong - Lantau Island

On New Year's Day 2010 we were on a plane to Hong Kong. The timing was less than perfect I have to agree, but nonetheless, this trip was for the benefit of attending a wedding of a good friend, and of course is another golden opportunity for me to add in yet another country into my list of visited countries... heheheh

We were definitely kiasu since we were gonna be there only 4 days and 3 nights, so the minute we got off the plane, we bundled off our luggage for our friends to bring to our hotel and we left immediately to Lantau Island since it is the nearest to the airport.

We took a bus and then a cable car. It is worthwhile to take the Crystal Cable car (more expensive than the usual ones), not so much for the view or the horrible feeling of standing and walking on air as it's glass bottomed, but for the convenience of a shorter queue to and from the island... coz people, don't forget, Hong Kong is still a city and PEOPLE ARE EVERYWHERE!!!

What surprised us most was that how nice the trekking trails were laid out on this island and during the cooler months of winter, the treks look extremely inviting. There is also a trekking and nature centre in the middle of the village on Lantau Island that gives really informative nature tours to interested parties all free of charge! Yay!!

The Big Buddha is of course a must see, even if you did not want to see it, it will be visible. The stairs going up to the Buddha is so very packed with people that you hardly have the time to mull over having to walk up so many steps. Thankfully, the steps are not as steep as Batu Caves in KL and also a lot less. (I forgot the actual number of steps)

Of course being hiking buffs and nature enthusiasts, we opted to go for a nature walk that probably lasted 1 and 1/2 to 2 hours, we hiked from the village to the bottom of the Phoenix Hill (you can climb it if you want, but make sure you bring a windbreaker, coz the wind is super chilly there) where the guide left us there with a small gift of a picturesque postcard of Lantau Island attractions.

There are a lot of choices of food in the village: chinese, taiwanese, japanese and even pizza but its really nothing to shout about. Apparently, if you are vegetarian, there are vegetarian food served in the temple of the Buddha.

There are other entertainments as well that you get with the ticket that you purchased to enter the island + cable car. There is the story of Walking with Buddha for a better understanding of Buddhism or just to experience the light show and enjoy the cartoon. There is also the playful Monkey show (no real monkeys are involved) its just lighting cartoon and sound show. So all in all a great place to go to for people like us who thought that Hong Kong is all about shopping, eating and busy city sights.

Here are more pictures:

The scenery of the gigantic Buddha that you will see whilst in the cable car

 The hand of Buddha (just in case you din know)

 The benevolent face of buddha

  The girl and guy scarecrow found along the hiking trail from the village to the bottom of Phoenix hill

This is the bottom of Phoenix hill

 Some wooden planks with wise words on buddhism

 This is my attempt at creative photography, I have to admit the results look more like a tombstone... hehehe

Next post: Our experience of the Hong Kong Disneyland