Election day hike on Lamma Island

The signal station and trigonometrical station at the top of 

Ling Kok Shan were my main hiking destinations for today

The view of the trigonometrical station and 

signal station from the top of the 250 meter hill

 

 And yes, even with the haze, there were some nice views

to be had -- including of sections of Lamma 

close to Chow Yun-Fat's ancestral village :)

 

Today is election day for Malaysia.  But I didn't vote -- since for the great bulk of my adult life, Malaysians living overseas have been forbidden to vote and I didn't find out that the law has been changed until after the registration date.  So, instead of going and voting in a national election for the first time ever, I went out hiking as per usual on a Sunday. 

 

This afternoon's destination was Lamma Island -- with my specific aim being to go up its second highest hill, Ling Kok Shan, and then hiking along a circuit that take me from Sok Kwu Wan and back again via Tung O, Shek Pai Wan, Yung Shue Ha and Mo Tat that, when my then regular hiking companion and I had gone along it a couple of years back, had been notable for the large amount of large spiders we spotted along the way!

Arachnophobes should feel happy that this time around, I didn't see a single big spider along my hike.  In fact, the only spiders I saw were tiny.  Indeed, as far as critter spottings were concerned, this was an excursion notable for my spotting unusually tiny critters -- including a grasshopper that didn't seem even one inch long as well as a bug I can't identify and a few spiders, some on webs, and others not!

Far more prevalent sights on today's hike though were large granite rocks and boulders on the Southern Lamma hill slopes, many of which were interestingly shaped (including at least one I thought resembled a turtle -- though admittedly not as much as the famous one at Po Toi!).  And yes, the contrast between the rocky upper portions of Ling Kok Shan (and nearby Mount Stenhouse) and the green, thicker foliaged lower portions was quite marked, even startling.

 

Almost needless to say, this hike was yet another that was followed by a nice meal.  Granted that today's wasn't as superb as the one my hiking friend and I had at Tai Wing Wah last Sunday but the dinner (that included razor clams in black bean sauce and scallops with garlic and vermicelli) at the Lamma mainstay that's the Rainbow Seafood Restaurant really wasn't too shabby at all.  And yes, I do like that they throw in a complimentary ferry ride back to Central for the price (on a boat such as the one in the photo at the top of this blog entry)! :)    

Under and Something upside down (This week's Photo Hunt themes)

Pretty much every day that I'm in Hong Kong, I spend some time underwater as well as underground.  This is because my regular work commute involves being on a bus whose route includes the Cross Harbour Tunnel (that goes underneath Victoria Harbour) as well as taking a Mass Transit Railway (MTR) train (whose carriages are far more crowded during rush hour than the one in the picture above!) along an underground route.

Small wonder then that I regularly crave being in the wild outdoors -- or at least somewhere green and scenic -- at least once a week!  While my preference is to get this by way of hiking, quite a few Hong Kongers prefer more sedentary pursuits like birdwatching and fishing.  

I regularly encounter birdwatching enthusiasts and anglers while out hiking in Hong Kong. For example, Luk Keng attracts its share of both since it borders Starling Inlet, a tidal bay that contains the largest egretry in Hong Kong, and also is home to some fish ponds open to the public.  

And it was at scenic Luk Keng where I took the third photo from the top in this entry for Sandi's and Gattina's Photo Hunts this week: one with upside down reflections of some fishing enthusiasts out that day along with such as the nearby colorful umbrellas offering some shelter from the sun. :)

On Tin Hau's Birthday

Tossing paper offerings to the Goddess 

of the Sea on Tin Hau's Birthday

There was a festive air in Joss House Bay that day

Dancing lions and colorful flags are a must 

on such celebratory occasions :)

Three years ago, I took a ferry to Joss House Bay to check out the Tin Hau's Birthday celebrations at Hong Kong's oldest and largest Tin Hau Temple.  Each year since, I've thought about taking a day off from work to visit Joss House Bay on Tin Hau's Birthday again -- only to feel when the day approaches that there's too much to do at the office to do so. 

Thus it was that today, the 23rd day of the third month of the Chinese lunar calendar, found me at work once again on the birthday of the goddess variously known as Mazu, Matsu, Tian Fei and A-Ma as well as Tin Hau.

Looking back at the collection of Tin Hau's Birthday photos I took three years ago, I really hope that next year will see Tin Hau's Birthday falling on a weekend.  Failing that, I am hereby resolving to take the day off to join in the celebrations -- maybe at a different location such as Shap Pat Heung in Yuen Long district, which also sees major celebrating on that festive day.

In the meantime, here's posting up three more photos of Tin Hau's Birthday celebrations from my collection.  And if it weren't already obvious, I really do think it's very cool that there are people in "Asia's World City" who continue to take part in traditional activities that go back many centuries, not just decades. :)  

From near Hau Tong Kai to Cheung Sheung Plateau and down Sai Kung's Jacob's Ladder (Photo-essay)

There are certain Hong Kong geographical landmarks whose names strike fear in the hearts of this hiker.  Among these are Sharp Peak and Tai To Yan (Cantonese for the blade of a knife).  By their name, the Jacob's Ladder on Hong Kong Island and the one on the Sai Kung Peninsula also seemed intimidating too. So it was a while before I finally went on them. 

But while I can personally attest that the Jacob's Ladder on Hong Kong Island really is pretty steep, I actually thought that the Jacob's Ladder on the Sai Kung Peninsula actually isn't even half as sheer as I thought that it'd be!  So, in the end, it felt anti-climactic to finally go on it. 

Indeed, I'd go as far as to state that the Jacob's Ladder section was one of the less interesting segments of the trail that two friends and I hiked along one Sunday afternoon that took us from near Hoi Ha Road close to Hau Tong Kai to Sai Sha Road via the village of Yung Shue O; one that passed by an abandoned village or two, and through a still inhabited -- and seemingly thriving even -- village along with a lovely plateau that cows appear to find very attractive... :)

 Not Jacob's Ladder but the start of the hike

(which included the Cheung Sheung Country Trail)

did involve going up quite a few steps

Disused agricultural terraces in the vicinity

of the abandoned village of Wong Chuk Long

 Yep, this was indeed another Hong Kong hike that saw us 

passing by the ruined buildings of abandoned villages...

A stream runs through Cheung Sheung plateau

A cow grazes on Cheung Sheung plateau

Maybe it was the influence of the cows I saw

earlier on this hike -- but this branch stub 

resembled a calf head to me! :O

One has to descend along -- yep, you guessed it --

Jacob's Ladder to get from Cheung Sheung plateau

westwards and down to Yung Shue O

See what I mean by Jacob's Ladder being way less scary 

in actuality than its name had made me think it'd be? ;b

To be continued!

A fantastic post-hike meal at Yuen Long's Tai Wing Wah

This whole bowl of chicken cost just HK$75 (~US$9.66)

This bowl of pork belly also cost just HK$75 

 

 A plate of broccoli cooked with garlic and some amazing 

claypot rice completed our dinner order for this evening :)

I think I just had the best chicken dish in the world at dinner this evening.  Granted that I was ravenous by the time I got to Tai Wing Wah Restaurant in Yuen Long, seeing that I didn't have breakfast or lunch (only brunch at 11.30am) today, and had completed an approximately 15 kilometer hike in Tai Lam Country Park -- but I truly found the five spice chicken at the dining establishment opened by celebrity chef Hugo Leung Man To to be absolutely delicious.

How delicious can be discerned by my actually eating more pieces of the five spice chicken than the also very tasty "village style pork belly" that I had also ordered; this even though I loooove pork belly and would prefer pork belly to chicken 99 times out of 100 (heck, maybe even 9999 times out of 10,000!).

 

The five spice chicken alone would have made this meal pretty special.  But there also was another dish at this walled village food specialist that tasted absolutely heavenly.  Costing just HK$11 (~US$1.42) per serving, the claypot rice at Tai Wing Wah may not look like much -- but I actually would be pretty happy to eat it just by itself, albeit after it's had some premium soy sauce and pork fat mixed into it, as was the case at dinner this evening!

 

Afterwards, my hiking friend and I were in agreement: today's hike had been pretty good but the post-hike dinner truly was superb!  About the only dish that was fairly ordinary to my mind was the vegetable dish we ordered to balance the two protein dishes we ordered and the decadent claypot rice.  In all honesty, that's not much of a complaint -- and my friend and I also are in agreement that the next time we are in Yuen Long after a hike, we absolutely do intend to dine at Tai Wing Wah again! :)

Zoom and Coffee or tea (This week's Photo Hunt themes)

Besides drinking it in the morning, I hardly ever drink coffee and am more likely to opt for some tea -- hot or cold, with sugar and milk, sugar and lemon or plain -- instead during the rest of the day.  So I guess it stands to reason that when searching through part of my photo archive for today's entry for Sandi's and Gattina's Photo Hunts, I found zero coffee snaps but at least a handful of tea (themed) photos. 

The top-most photo on this blog post was taken at Luk Yu Tea House, one of Hong Kong's oldest dining establishments because I zoomed in on to the cup being suitably shaped for serving Chinese tea in it but designed to be served, English style, on top of a saucer! 

The middle photo is of cakes of Pu-erh, a kind of Chinese tea prized by connoisseurs.  Not having a refined palate when it comes to tea, I really just zoomed in on the prices that cakes of the tea command!

Finally, in the bottom photo, one sees an actual cup of tea of the kind that Hong Kongers like to drink.  Hong Kong-style milk tea is a revved up version of traditional English tea that's super strong tasting and also in its "wiring" effect. 

While walking about in Mongkok earlier this week, I paid a visit to the China Cafe to rest my legs a bit and get a reviving cup of Hong Kong-style milk tea. Truth be told, I also was eager to soak up the atmosphere of one of Hong Kong's most traditional cha chaan teng, one which -- movie buffs, zoom in on this fact! -- was a location for movies including PTU. :)

A crispy Christmas Day hike with three friends (Photo-essay)

December 25th is a special day for many people -- particularly those of the Christian faith but not only them.  The thing is that Western colonialism, cultural and political, has made it so that many people think of Christmas Day is a special time of the year -- if nothing else because it's a public holiday in their home territory.

This is the case in my mainly Muslim native land of Malaysia.  And this also is so in largely Buddhist and Taoist Hong Kong, where I currently reside.  So December 25 has long been a happy day for me -- if nothing else than because it's a day when I'm on holiday, as are many of my friends!

Thus it was that since none of us were working that day, three friends and I went hiking one Christmas Day in the Tai Tam Country Park section of Hong Kong Island. To add to that day feeling special, the air was pretty clear as well as crisp -- and yes, the company that day was very enjoyable too! :)

 Lest there be any doubt, there are indeed parts of 

Hong Kong that are densely populated, and 

some of it was visible early on in the hike!

 Sooner than some might expect, however, we soon 

were closer to nature than the concrete jungle

While still on Mount Parker Road, we spotted a butterfly 

(known as the Common Sailor?) that had 

decided to stop and rest a bit on the tarmac

The man-made structures in the picture don't detract

from the scenic nature of the vista as far as I'm concerned

The hand painted arrow points to the summit of

Boa Vista, from where one can get a view bonanza

A naturally black (and gray) and white view

looking westwards to Parkview!

 Fish galore in the beautiful clear waters of

Tai Tam Upper Reservoir

The obelisk that gave Obelisk Hill, near Tai Tam, 

its name was built during the colonial period by 

the Royal Navy for navigational purposes