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Old 3 Nov 19, 01:39 PM  
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Melbatb
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Hong Kong 2019 - Day 9 Big Buddha


We didn't set the alarm but as usual I was awake not long after 7am. O managed a bit longer!

We went down to breakfast and I had my usual! O just had pastries and toast - he didn't fancy eggs this morning.

Today has been earmarked for a trip to the Big Buddha. I checked on the website and it seemed there was a promotion for locals with HK id so we thought that was worth a try for O!



It took about an hour to get the metro down to the cable car, with two changes of train. It was straightforward though.

Queues are known to be horrendous here. Thankfully we were early enough to not have to wait long to buy our tickets - though I was happy we hadn't bought through Klook (the local ticketing website) as the queue to exchange the vouchers was very long with just one window open.

We decided we would book the Crystal cable car (with a glass bottom). O could make use of his local id so his ticket was HK$138 whilst mine was HK$315.

There was a short queue for the Crystal cable car - and we got pulled out as a party of two.















The airport!



The bridge and tunnel to Macau (opened last year)



Nearly there.

The cable car is 5.7km in length and takes about 30 minutes!



There are three things to see - the Big Buddha, the Po Lin monastery and the Wisdom Path.

When you arrived there is Ngong Ping Village - basically tourists shops.



We took the opportunity to get a Starbucks!



As we walked towards the Big Buddha it became apparent there was a race on -6km and 18km and the last part was running up and down the steps leading to the statue!



So we had to walk up the road instead.



The Tian Tan Buddha, as it is officially known, sits 34 metres high and faces north to look over the Chinese people.

According to the guide book, the eyes, lips, incline of the head and right hand, which is raised to deliver a blessing to all, combine to bring a humbling depth of character and dignity to the massive Buddha, which took 12 years to complete















We walked around the base (we couldn't go up higher because of the race) and admired both the Buddha and the wonderful views!

This is the monastery that we would visit shortly.



We then walked the 20 minutes to the Wisdom path.












In a figure of 8 (or infinity) the Wisdom Path traces a series of 38 wooden stakes containing verses from the centuries-old Heart Sutra — one of the world's best-known prayers revered by Confucians, Buddhists and Taoists alike.

It was interesting to see - apparently most visitors don't bother!



We may have got a bit lost on the way to the monastery and met this little chap!



We eventually found out way and went past the big buddha again. It really is so impressive!















We found out way to the Po Lin monastery. This is considered to be one of the most important monasteries in Hong Kong. Since the Big Buddha was built it has become a popular tourist attraction.

To be honest it wasn't, in my opinion, as tranquil or calming as others I have visited but I guess that is down to the amount of people there.

We saw half of it and then decided to try the monastery's vegetarian restaurant. Well I did - O decided he was still full from his Frappuccino!



I was very brave - I chose a spring roll, a sesame bean paste dumpling, a tara dumpling (the hairy thing) and another dumpling.

The hairy thing was just wrong - inside was a purple mash which had an awful texture and taste. The spring roll was ok. The bean paste was bearable and the other has turnip in it! O was glad to have abstained! I was glad to have at least tried!






We visited the rest of the monastery before deciding we were hot and tired and a rest back at the hotel would be good. We had been here for about three hours.






We passed by the big buddha again - I couldn't resist more photos!



We walked to the cable car station. There was a very long queue for the normal cable cars but no quiet at all for the Crystal ones. We walked straight on, sharing with just one other person.

Those in the other queue were not out into the glass bottomed cars!



The trip down took 30 minutes again - it was lovely to just take in the surroundings. The cable car is said to be one of the most scenic in the world and I can see why!



After arriving at the bottom we were glad to have come early as the queue just to buy tickets was very long!

We had a quick look in the outlet center but were not really in the shopping mood.

We took the three trains back to the hotel where we rested up. I mopped out to M&S to get O two tubs of bites as snacks over the coming days!



No prizes for guessing where dinner was - a happy boy means a happy mum! Pizza and tomato pasta were had!

As a change O had a chocolate ice cream as dessert - not cheap but a treat for him!

Back at the hotel, O did some programming. I tried to stay awake as I wanted to check in online at 11.45pm. I just about managed and got one off the last aisle seats upstairs again!

Home tomorrow - not looking forward to leaving O!


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Old 3 Nov 19, 03:11 PM  
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New Photo Added by Melbatb - 3 Nov 19 2:11 PM.
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Old 3 Nov 19, 05:13 PM  
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mick
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Another great day the cable car looks good

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Old 3 Nov 19, 06:01 PM  
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The cable car looks both very scary and very exciting, I can see why they say it’s one of the most scenic in the world. The Buddha is incredible too. The weather was perfect for the views.

I cannot lie about your meal, it did look pretty bad. How sensible of O to skip it and wait until he got back to Pizza Express 😂

I can imagine how difficult it will be to say bye to O, I get upset leaving Georgia and she’s just 45 miles away in Bristol 😀 At least you have great memories of this trip to last you until you see him at Christmas. Hope you have a good journey home xx
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Old 3 Nov 19, 11:26 PM  
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More stunning scenery today Mel. It all looks just beautiful and well worth a visit.

That hairy thing at lunch reminds me of wire wool - think you were brave to even try it!

I’m feeling sad for you that your trip is coming to an end and you’ll have to leave O there.
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Old 5 Nov 19, 09:08 PM  
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WileyCoyote
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Crikey, hairy purple mash. That’s a food first 😳
And the glass bottom cable car. Eeesh, scary.
Worth the trip though. The Buddha is really impressive. Fab that you beat the queues especially with a race going on.
What a lovely day together. I wouldn’t want it to end..
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Old 6 Nov 19, 11:22 AM  
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OB1LukeLucas
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Wow that looks spectacular, more fabulous photos today. The Buddha looks very impressive, nice you beat the queues too.
Your food does sound interesting you were very brave to give them a go, especially the hairy one!
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Old 9 Nov 19, 07:21 AM  
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Melbatb
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Originally Posted by mick View Post
Another great day the cable car looks good

JOAN
The cable car was fab - great views all around!

Originally Posted by DisneyDaffodil View Post
The cable car looks both very scary and very exciting, I can see why they say it’s one of the most scenic in the world. The Buddha is incredible too. The weather was perfect for the views.

I cannot lie about your meal, it did look pretty bad. How sensible of O to skip it and wait until he got back to Pizza Express 😂

I can imagine how difficult it will be to say bye to O, I get upset leaving Georgia and she’s just 45 miles away in Bristol 😀 At least you have great memories of this trip to last you until you see him at Christmas. Hope you have a good journey home xx
The meal was errrrr interesting! The hairy thing was so awful - especially the texture.

Originally Posted by jocat View Post
More stunning scenery today Mel. It all looks just beautiful and well worth a visit.

That hairy thing at lunch reminds me of wire wool - think you were brave to even try it!

I’m feeling sad for you that your trip is coming to an end and you’ll have to leave O there.
I am missing my boy this week I think he is missing the pizza

Originally Posted by WileyCoyote View Post
Crikey, hairy purple mash. That’s a food first 😳
And the glass bottom cable car. Eeesh, scary.
Worth the trip though. The Buddha is really impressive. Fab that you beat the queues especially with a race going on.
What a lovely day together. I wouldn’t want it to end..
It is such an impressive place. Definitely worth a visit!

Originally Posted by OB1LukeLucas View Post
Wow that looks spectacular, more fabulous photos today. The Buddha looks very impressive, nice you beat the queues too.
Your food does sound interesting you were very brave to give them a go, especially the hairy one!
Not sure if brave or stupid! Good job I wasn’t too hungry
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Old 9 Nov 19, 09:18 AM  
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Stunning views and of course Buddha is fab. Well done on being brave with the food, but I don't think anything could have tempted me to try out the hairy purple mash!
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Old 13 Nov 19, 02:18 PM  
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The views look fantastic Mel. What a really lovely day to spend with O before you come home.
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