happiness and food

If you are visiting Hong Kong, you should keep an entire day aside for a trip to Lantau Island. It is the largest island in Hong Kong and even bigger than the Hong Kong island itself. So, my first Sunday here was spent at the island and the experiences throughout the day made it the most visually appealing one.

Ngong Ping 360: Ngong Ping is a hilly area in Lantau and Ngong Ping 360 is a project venture that connects Tung Chung in North Lantau to Ngong Ping via a cable car. A 5.7 km journey covered in 25 minutes sitting in a naturally ventilated cable car was awesome and first ever for us.

I am not a fan of high altitude rides or any thing similar so just before getting in cable car I did not know how I am going to feel high up in the air in a small box of glass with 4-5 other folks. But trust me, it was a fabulous experience getting to slowly rise up in the air, being able to see Hong Kong below, passing by the airport, over South China sea and reaching another hill and then being up again covering the distance slowly and smoothly. And it was safe!

Tian Tan Buddha: Ngong Ping is home to a lot of tourist attractions and hence planning your day early will help you set the pace. Once you off-board the cable car, you will head to the culturally theme Ngong Ping Village that looks very well planned and gives you a french colony look. This is also the point from where you can get buses to the fishing villages and experience the local life.

The first sight of the Tian Tan Buddha also known as the Big Buddha from the cable car was beautiful. Standing 112 feet tall, we climbed 268 steps to reach the statue. It’s not as hard if you are used to walking. As you take breaks in between, watch the Big Buddha getting closer by each step. Around the Big Buddha, you will also see six devas’ statutes facing the Tian Tan Buddha as if making offerings and praying.

Here there is a mini museum depicting the history and a souvenir shop if you want to buy  something. We bought ice creams to beat the heat and continued on our journey.

Po Lin Monastery: The Tian Tan Buddha is an extension of the Po Lin Monastery that is one of the most famous and important Buddhist sanctums in Hong Kong. This monastery is filled with the aroma of incense sticks and the entire atmosphere is very pleasant.

Wisdom Path: I absolutely loved the walk to Wisdom Path. I am biased towards walking in the woods and set in the hills of Ngong Ping, Wisdom Path gave the most peaceful stroll ever. This place is close to the Po Lin Monastery and with the ample directions provided, you can never be lost.

Wisdom Path consists of upright wooden planks that contain verses in Chinese and are arranged in the pattern of infinity. You can also take another trail at the Wisdom Path if you wish to but we decided to sit back and absorb the beauty.

Tai O Fishing Village: This last leg of the trip was when we had the Sea experience of Ngong Ping 360. We took a bus from the Ngong Ping village and reached Tai O. Tai O is a small fishing village on the west of Lantau island and became historically significant after the Chinese Civil War. Presently it continues to be a fishing village with stilt houses which we had never seen before.

We also entered the Sea to see Chinese White dolphins popularly known as the pink dolphins. Luck was on our side and we saw not one but many. Sad, no pictures but it was beautiful spotting them.

Know that a day in Lantau Island will be an enjoyable one like we had. There are even small temples in Tai O that you can visit if time permits.

The Ngong Village has many food joints so you will not be left hungry. It’s a complete city in itself and wonderful way to spend a day.

Tips for you: Little things to keep in mind for the trip:

• Try leaving early so that you can enjoy the day
• Buy two-way tickets online for Ngong Ping 360. The tickets covered Sky-Land-Sea experience. Ngong Ping Cable car was the Sky experience and having booked online we did not have to wait much to the ride. The ticket ensured some shopping and restaurant vouchers too.
• Land journey is possible if you want to skip the cable car but that will be not as much fast and fun.
• Carry your water, it always helps. But if you don’t you can always buy.
• Carry chocolates – instant energy booster.
• Don’t forget to charge your camera or phone – there will be umpteen opportunities for a click and you don’t want any last-minute downers.
• Keep in mind the timings of the last bus from Tai O and the last cable car from Ngong Ping to Tung Chung.
• Ask people to click pictures for you – they are far better than selfies 🙂

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