happiness and food

Even before I had taken the flight to Hong Kong and was in the initial stages of planning my travel, a colleague at work insisted that I take the Peak Tram. Even VT had planned this for us, so for our first day out in this vibrant city, we took the Peak Tram to reach the Victoria Peak.

The Peak Tram is one of the world’s most steep funicular railways in the world and in less than 10 mins takes you to an altitude of 1811 feet. While on the tram you get to see the skyline of Hong Kong and beautiful views over the harbor – natural and man-made wonders at the same time. The Peak Tram station is at a walking distance from Hong Kong central and we were advised to go in the morning to avoid the rush. However, we got late and stepped out at noon. Almost at the verge of pushing the plan to next weekend, we just went ahead with the plan.

Be prepared for a wait of approximately 30 mins on a public holiday or weekend but also know that the line of visitors moves pretty fast. Tourist queue up on one side of the road and eventually cross the road to buy tickets. You could buy a discounted ticket for the Peak and Madame Tussauds together but we chose not to. Return tickets via the Tram could be bought but VT and I wanted to walk down from Victoria Peak (very ambitious of us!)

The tram runs every 8 mins and once you have bought the ticket it takes hardly 15 mins to get into the tram. There is a small museum while you wait for the tram and you can look around for some history of this tram. Try to stand on the outer side of the platform so that it’s easy to get into the tram. A lot of people try to get in at the same time and could get a little too crowded while entering. It takes around 100 passengers at one go and you will find a place to sit and appreciate the view without hassles.

Once on the tram, it picks up speed and heads to an incline of 27 degrees and a visual illusion is created where you will be able to see inclined buildings. This is a scientific phenomenon caused by reclined position of the person viewing and the incline on which the tram moves. By the time you notice this unusual phenomenon, you will start reaching the peak.

The tram stops 150 feet below the Peak and then the many escalators take you the Sky Terrace 428. As you go up these escalators, there are many food joints and shopping opportunities. Yes, every thing is priced on the higher side but who said this was charity? So, grab a bite if you are hungry and collect a few souvenirs as you go up.

Pre-recorded audio and head phones are freely available if you want to take a guided tour and understand more about the history of Hong Kong, the nine hills that surround it and the Peak. The view is phenomenal.

Many photo opportunities, scenic view from each corner and in spite of the Sun, we were pretty pumped up to spend time and look out for the skyscrapers we had seen earlier as well. There are binoculars around and you can take a closer look if you wish to.

After spending some really good time, we headed back and took the Peak Trail. This is another marvelous hiking trail around the Victoria Peak and surrounded by bamboos and many trees. The moment you step into this trail, the temperature dips and the entire environment becomes very calm. You see lovely views of the skyline and the harbor all along this trail. VT and I were extremely happy to have discovered this one. Yes, it was a long walk of over 5 kilometers but the weather and beauty made it worth while. There was even a small picnic spot right in the middle of the trail and we took a break there to munch apples, click more pictures and then moved on.

The trail ended at the bus stop and glad we hadn’t bought the return tram tickets so we took the adventure ride on a double-decker bus to Hong Kong Central sitting on the upper deck. It was fun and of course a great experience to end the day on a high note.

So, final words – when in Hong Kong take the tram, get clicked at the Peak and walk that trail. Those are the memories you want to take back home!

Keep visiting for more stories from Hong Kong, and the usual dose of happiness and food for thought!