Round The World and other travels

For some strange reason, I thought it might be a good idea to try to get up a bit earlier. It wasn't to be - I crawled out of bed at about 0830, but what did it matter? A glance outside revealed that weather conditions were very similar indeed to the previous day : very low and threatening-looking cloud, but not actually raining. Once I eventually got outside, I realised that conditions felt the same as well. It wasn't all that hot, but it was desperately humid.

Having given Hong Kong Island, the New Territories and Lantau a good going-over, it was now time to turn my attention to the area I was based in : Kowloon. My outline plan was to see the Temple of the 10,000 Buddhas at Sha Tin, then the Wong Tai Sin temple, then visit the Lantau Link viewpoint and then see how the time was going and how I felt. It can sometimes feel a bit strange when you think you know a place and forget to factor in changes in infrastructure. I assumed I was going to have to leg it to Hung Hom station to catch a KCR train to Sha Tin, until I stumbled across the new Tsim Sha Tsui East station, displaying the correct logo. That's right : the line had been very usefully extended right into the heart of TST in the time since I'd last used it! So in no time at all I was at Sha Tin and I was pleased that I managed to find the temple quite quickly. Unfortunately, although it was undoubtedly an impressive place, the entire site was undergoing major refurbishment works, involving huge cranes and lots of scaffolding. I did have a quick look around, but rapidly came to the conclusion that it would be better to leave a more thorough exploration for next time, when hopefully the work will be completed.

I then made my way, via KCR and MTR, to the temple at Wong Tai Sin - definitely a new one for me. (I'd thought that the Sha Tin temple was new to me as well - only when I arrived did I realise that I'd visited once before, in one of my early trips to Hong Kong.) The Wong Tai Sin temple and gardens proved to be a major attraction for both tourists and worshippers. It really was very busy and the piped warnings about pickpockets were a little unsettling. Nevertheless, my camera went into overdrive, such was the visual appeal of the place. Like so many of these traditional sites in Hong Kong, however, the background to photographs tends to consist of tower blocks.

My next objective was the Tsing Ma Bridge viewpoint, but on arrival at Tsing Yi, I decided it was time for a spot of lunch. I had a look around the thoroughly impressive Maritime Centre and spotted what is certainly the classiest branch of Pizza Hut that I've ever seen. It really was very smart indeed, and I can't recall any other branch of the chain that has even come close. One soup and one lasagne later, I found my way to the bus terminal for yet another personal first - a ride in a Public Light Bus, one of the little minibuses that are a feature of the Hong Kong transport scene. A word of warning to anyone who wants to visit the viewpoint independently : although these little minibuses run every few minutes, only one per hour calls at the viewpoint. I got there and took a few photos, being slightly disappointed that it's practically impossible to photograph the entire span of the bridge. I had to run to catch the little PLB on its way back, thus avoiding a 1-hour wait in the middle of nowhere.

Having completed my planned programme earlier than anticipated, I decided to risk another visit to The Peak, in spite of the low cloud. Although visibility looked quite poor, the cloud cover tended to be intermittent, so that there were moments when the view opened up at least a little. I did one of the circular walks that are available and my efforts were rewarded with a few good views. I then had a farewell dinner at Café Deco again, before heading back to my hotel. When I arrived at the Tsim Sha Tsui Star Ferry terminal, it started to rain quite heavily. By the time I got close to the hotel, it was really pouring down, so I was glad that I hadn't delayed my return any longer.