Day 227: Big Ass Buddha

I met my first 'fellow traveller buddy' this morning when I was paying my daily rent for my room. Her name was Lucy and she was from England and on a trip across Asia. She was staying in the same building as me but at a different hostel (there's dozens in my building.) She was super friendly and had the same plans as I did for the day, although hers was on a tour and mine was 'free-style'. Hmmm...I wonder if we'll run into each other there?

My plans for the day were to check out this big ass Buddha statue located at the top of a mountain on an island near the city. This Buddha statue is the largest outdoor seated bronze Buddha in the world and is supposed to be quite spectacular. I had to take a ferry there from Central so off I went to catch my boat. One of the many great things about Hong Kong is how EASY it is to get around - ferries and trains and busses and trams will whisk you anywhere you need to go. I especially dig the ferry system that links Hong Kong harbour with all of its many surrounding neighbourhoods and off-shore islands. They fast, frequent, and the most scenic way to travel around the city.

It was about 30-40 minutes or so on the ferry out to Lantau Island where I would catch a bus upon arriving at Mui Wo - the 'capital' of the island. Mui Wo turned out to be a small town that serves as a mini-suburb to big-city Hong Kong. On the ferry there I ran into Lucy, sure enough, and one of her travelling buddies Marianne from Australia. We were each taking separate busses up the mountain so I went off my own way and enjoyed the pleasant ride up to the Buddha. Lantau is a large, lush, mountainous island that surprisingly feels quite removed from all the hustle and bustle of HK. About 45 minutes later we were waaaaaay up high in elevation and at the foot of the Buddhist complex where Mr. Buddha called home.

At the plateau below the Buddha lies a large Buddhist monastery - and the bottom of the LONG stairway up to the Buddha statue. The statue was enormous and impressive even from down below. It was massive! I hiked up the 260 steps up the statue (quite the workout considering the heat and humidity) and it was well worth all that effort. The statue was so beautiful and serene as it gazed out across the semi-tropical mountain landscapes. And did I mention that the Buddha was HUGE? (check out my pics to have this verified!) I sure enough ran into Lucy and Marianne again later on and we cruised around the statue and the complex below, enjoying the temples, gardens, and small museum in addition to the Big B. My admission ticket included a free vegetarian lunch at one of the restaurants in the monastery so I took advantage of that, and I have to say it was quite yummy!

After lunch I got back on the bus and headed back to Mui Wo. It was about late afternoon at that point and I was still feeling energetic so I decided to go for a little hike. There was a trail not far from the ferry terminal that Lonely Planet said was pretty good so I checked it out. It turned out to be a hike that was 'just alright' but the solitude time on the trail was nice, and I got to check out some nice waterfalls and an abandoned silver mine cave entrance.

By the time I got back into TST I was HOT AND SWEATY and feeling really gross. Whipping out my trust LP - again - I decided to go for a little swim to cool down at the Kowloon Park Swimming Complex just up the street from my guesthouse. There were 2 indoor pools and 3 outdoor ones and it felt sooooo nice and refreshing to relax and swim after a long day out in the hot sun.

It was after swimming that The Mauling took place. I was heading back to Mirador & Chungking Mansions to go and get some dinner to eat. I was in the mood for Indian and both places are known for having a huge selection of awesome Indian food. I had one particular restaurant in mind but decided to just 'go with the flow' and see where I ended up. Once again, before I even got to the doorstep, I was mauled by a swarm of Indian guys all wanting to take me to their restaurant. How did these guys even know I was looking for Indian food? It's like they can read my mind or something! Seriously though, there was like six or seven of them who were all thrusting their flyers in my face and yelling at me to try and convince me to pick THEM over all the others. I had hands and papers all in my face and could barely see where I was going. It was equally hilarious as it was overwhelming. I decided to just go with the guy who had gotten to me first (much to the great disappointment of the other six) and he led me to his restaurant. It turns out that his was the one that I was actually looking for in the first place! What great karma!

I had a really delicious curry chicken dinner and then headed back out to do a little more cruising around the Temple Street Night Market (three nights in a row now for me!) I spent a bit of time there before heading back to Mirador for some sleep. Another awesome day in Hong Kong comes to a close!