Tai Po's atmospheric Man Mo Temple looks like the kind of place seen in many a Hong Kong movie

The Man Mo Temple in Tai Po

 ...is one of the most incense-filled temples I know in Hong Kong

...and also is home to one of the most impressive 

Tai Sui (60 Year Cycle Gods) displays I've seen around

For a good part of the time that I've lived and worked in Hong Kong, I had to regularly commute between the part of the Big Lychee where I resided to Tai Po.  Since that would take up at least two hours of each day that I did this, I'm sure people can understand when I say that I'm so very glad that those days are now behind me.

At the same time though, this doesn't mean that I've been giving Tai Po a miss since!  For among other things, Tai Po Market MTR station is where the avid hiker can catch buses or -- more often, actaully -- green minibuses to (or from) a number of trail heads.  Also, it's where I get the green mini-bus to Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve.  In addition, nice bike paths can be found in the vicinity of Tai Po that can take one all the way up to Tai Mei Tuk and the Plover Cove Reservoir if one's so inclined or, alternatively, down south to Sha Tin, Tai Wai and Wu Kai Sha.   

In addition, there are area culinary attractions such as Yat Lok's hard-to-resist roast goose (which, ironically, I very rarely got to visit during my lunch breaks when I worked in Tai Po because my office was located too far away from the town center where the eatery is located).  And I've even indulged the inner train spotter in me and paid a visit to the Hong Kong Railway Museum housed in the old Tai Po Market Railway Station that's within easy walking distance from the present one. 

As for Tai Po's markets: these days, there's more than one of them.  I wouldn't go all the way up to Tai Po from, say, Hong Kong Island just for them.  But when coupled with, say, a visit to Fung Yuen, the Hong Kong Railway Station or Yat Lok, I actually think it's worth the trip -- and this especially when you also throw in a visit to the Man Mo Temple in Tai Po located in the vicinity of Tai Po's oldest and most picturesque market, and also a stone's throw away from the Hong Kong Railway Museum.

Built in 1891, around the same time as the nearby market established by a group of area villagers, this particular Man Mo Temple may not be as old as the more famous one over on Hollywood Road -- but I find it a good deal more atmospheric as a result of there being fewer tourists milling about the place and its location close to a genuine working market frequented and patronized by local folk.  And like the far more well known temple dedicated to the gods of war and literature over on Hong Kong Island, it's got its share of faithful devotees -- as can be seen by the numerous offerings, including coiled joss sticks, to be found within it.

As I often tell people: because I came to love Hong Kong by way of my love of Hong Kong cinema, I often find myself viewing Hong Kong not only through rose-colored lens but also in terms of X or Y place looking like it was like a movie set.  In the case of Tai Po's Man Mo Temple: I don't know whether filming ever took place within or around it but I so would not be surprised -- because, truly, my first thought when I saw it was that this place looked like it had popped out of a Hong Kong movie! ;b

Hong Kong's shop cats

A regal looking Hong Kong shop cat

 

Much loved members of this elite group of felines?

 

My recent Malaysia-Indonesia trip series of blog posts finally came to a halt last Thursday -- but it doesn't mean I'm quite done mentioning my German friend (who was my travel companion for much of that time) just yet!  A case in point: these days, pretty much whenever I see Japanese Fortune Cats (Maneki Neko) on sale in a store, I think of her: because on one of her trips back to Hong Kong, she was tasked by two of her German friends to get them Maneki Neko.  

 

When she asked me where she could go about purchasing one, I had to confess to having had no idea where to do so.  One reason why is that it's not at all often that I've bought a Maneki Neko for myself.  And when I've done so, it's been in in their country of origin rather than Hong Kong!  

 

Almost inevitably, I've since got to noticing Japanese Fortune Cats being sold in a variety of stores here in the Big Lychee.  At the same time though, I'd maintain that one is more likely to come across real life cats in Hong Kong shops than Maneki Neko available for sale or placed by the store owners to attract luck, wealth and/or customers!      

 

Their official role may be that of mouse-catchers rather than good luck charms or store mascots but the way they loll about and stride around the places where they are to be found, and the affection they generate, makes many a Hong Kong shop cat's status come across as significantly more elevated than many of the human staff!  In recent years, a number of them have gained prominence by way of such as a popular photobook entitled -- what else? -- Hong Kong Shop Cats; and until the newspaper shop where he hung out closed down last year, many a cat-lover would make pilgrimages to the East Tsim Sha Tsui store to catch a glimpse of the famous British shorthair known as Brother Cream.   

 

Although my love for a certain Hello Kitty is considerably greater than for any live feline, I must admit to not being immune to the latter's allure.  And yes, I too have been known to stop in my tracks upon glimpsing a particular striking looking Hong Kong shop cat.  Often times, it's to admire a particularly magnificent example of this category of animal.  But there also was the time that I did a double take upon realizing that one of those (admittedly distant) cousins to the likes of lions, panthers and jaguars had been fitted out in an outfit festooned with kawaii heart patterns! ;D      

From Braemar Hill to Wong Nai Chung Gap along Sir Cecil's Ride

Above the city on a hiking trail :)

 

Even though it was located a fair bit away over on 

the western side of Victoria Harbour, Chinese 

aircraft carrier Liaoning's not too difficult to spot!

 

Other interesting sightings on today's hike included

critters like this little well camouflaged bug :b

 

Finally, a day with lots of bright sunshine and no rain!  And so eager was I to go out hiking this afternoon that upon pulling out the Hong Kong Countryside Map out of my backpack, I got to realizing that in my hurry to get out and away, I had packed the wrong area map with me!  (For the record, this was the first time I'd ever done this in some 10 years of hiking in Hong Kong!)

My original plan had been to try out a trail that would take me from near the St. Joan of Arc Secondary School in Braemar Hill up to and through the Mount Butler H. F. Receiving Station over to Siu Ma Shan Bridge and beyond.  Despite the dearth of signage in the area (rare when you're out hiking in Hong Kong but I guess it's Murphy's Law that when you want them, they're not around!) and my lack of the correct map, I managed to find my way to the main entrance of the receiving station -- only to find the way in barred by metal and barbed wire fencing, and warning signs proclaiming that the area's not accessible to the public (at least from that direction!).

 

Loath to return to where I had started, I backtracked just a bit and took the next fork I saw along the way.  Fairly confident of the general direction that I'd be heading, I relaxed all the more upon realizing at some point that I was on Sir Cecil's Ride: more specifically, a section of it that I had actually been on years ago, and knew would lead me eventually to thoroughly familiar territory in the form of Wong Nai Chung Gap.       

 

At a point where the top of Jardine's Lookout came into view, I got to remembering that when I first tramped all those years ago along this trail named for a favored riding route of colonial Hong Kong Governor Sir Cecil Clementi, I had looked up in awe at the hikers I saw going up and down that 433-meter-high mountain. Little did I realize that I too would come to be able to enjoy the views from there in time!  

 

Back then also, I got to recalling too, the only hiking book I owned was Alicia M. Kershaw and Ginger Thrash's Above the City: Hiking Hong Kong Island -- whereas now, I have eight and also am open to finding out about other trails not covered in the books by way of internet browsing, word of mouth and just following trails marked out on one of those truly useful (especially when you remember to bring the right one out on a hike with you) Hong Kong Countryside Maps! ;b 

Hiking on one's own on a cloudy but blessedly rainless day (Photo-essay)

Not only do I love hiking but I find it to be a great way to relieve stress.  So imagine my frustration in recent weeks, when it seems like every time I venture out, I'll get rained on -- and to such an extent that I've actually been disinclined to venture out of the concrete jungle into the nearby country parks. 

Hopefully, looking at some hiking photos will help get rid of some of that frustration.  And while I'm at it, here's also cobbling together a photo-essay of a hike through territory so familiar -- namely, the trail leading up Mount Parker Road from King's Road over to Tai Tam Road by way of the Tai Tam Reservoirs -- that I felt comfortable being out on my own but with enough exploratory detours to make the outing feel like I wasn't entirely repeating myself along with enough pretty much always interesting sights to make for a satisfying excursion into the Hong Kong countryside... :b

See the pavilion that's half obscured by foliage

to the left of the picture?

Here's what it looks like up close :b

 From the pavilion, one can see the section of 

Mount Parker Road that I often jokingly refer to

as the not-so-great wall of Hong Kong ;)

In its vicinity, I also found a more rugged route 

to the pavilion than the one I had taken!

 

Although there was some precipitation in the air,

I happily didn't get rained on that afternoon :)

The threat of rain undoubtedly played a part in there being

fewer people out in Tai Tam Country Park than usual that day

 Amidst all this, I think the reservoirs' water levels

may well have been at the lowest that I've seen to date! 

When you catch sight of the dam atop which is a section

of Tai Tam Road, then you know that you're near hike's end... :)

The highest section of the spread out Kek Lok Si Temple complex

On a hill with grand views of Penang (which can be 

better appreciated upon clicking the above image!)...

...can be found this tall bronze statue 

of Guan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy

 

And in a nearby hall can be found this multi-armed 

manifestation of the same Buddhist deity

 

Many years ago, I took an American friend to the Kek Lok Si Temple in Air Itam, Penang.  As we walked through the main part of this sprawling temple complex that's full of exotic sights (some of which used to scare me when I was a child!), he got to asking me -- not entirely in jest, I'm thinking -- to confirm that it all wasn't just a movie set.       

At the time, the highlight of our visit involved going into the temple's Pagoda of Ten Thousand Buddhas and up along flights of stairs that get progressively narrower the higher you climb to the top of this seven-storey structure.  From there, you'd get a panoramic view of the surrounding area and all the way to George Town over in the distance.  

These days, however, one can venture further up the hill to a highest section of the Kek Lok Si Temple.  And that was what a group of us (including my mother, a friend of hers and my German friend) did on my most recent visit to this Penang landmark whose construction began in 1890 but seems to be still being added to and expanding to this day.

 

Towering above its famous pagoda is an over 30-meter-tall bronze statue of Guan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy, housed in an 83-meter-high pavilion and visible from many kilometers away.  The tallest statue of its kind in the world, it replaced a white plaster-encased fiber glass statue of the same deity which didn't fare too well when exposed to the elements.  While certainly very impressive, this present statue reportedly is a scaled-down version of what had been originally planned, as its height was limited by the authorities so that it wouldn't cast its shadow over the Penang State Mosque located in the area below.     

One structure that this statue does overshadow -- and whose very existence I previously had not been aware of -- is a nearby hall housing a very different version of Guan Yin, one whose multiple arms are extended to help out various people.  Also in the area is a pond filled with fish, into which an artificial waterfall flows along with representations of the Chinese zodiac along with other animal sculptures that are distinctly cutesy in nature!

 

If not for my German friend being around on my most recent visit to Malaysia, I'd not have found out about this place for probably a few more years.  And I have to thank her too for getting me to finally check out Ipoh's Sam Poh Tong (and its award-winning ornamental garden), Nam Thean Tong and Perak Tong.  

 

All in all, as I told her near the end of her visit: especially when you also throw in our visits to Borobudur (including Candi Pawon and Candi Mendut), Prambanan (including Candi Sewu) and those other ancient religious structures on the Prambanan Plain (such as Candi Sambisari, Sari and Plaosan), I think that we've now gone together to at least as many religious places in Malaysia and Indonesia as we've been together to biergartens and brauhauses in Germany! ;b

Batik in Penang

A batik artist drawing the outlines of patterns 

by applying molten wax onto the cloth

 

Colorful dyes being painted onto the fabric by another batik artist

 

Thicker brushes are used to applied the same colorful dyes

into the background sections of the designs

 

On the first day that my German friend and I met up in South East Asia, she told me of her plan to get at least one batik shirt during her visit.  Hearing of this, my mother suggested that she focus on making batik purchases in Yogyakarta since it -- together with nearby Solo (AKA Surakarta) -- are considered to be the major historic centres of this traditional decorative art.  And we did spend time browsing in a few batik shops during our sojourn in that Central Javanese city.

At a batik shop with a factory in the back, my German friend purchased a batik shirt made of cotton and featuring a traditional Javanese print design.  And at another batik shop with a factory in the back, this time in Penang, she bought a very different style batik blouse: this one featuring hand-drawn designs and dyed with far brighter colors than those found over in Indonesia. 

 

Venturing first into the factory part of the Penang Batik Factory, we got to see several batik artists at work on hand-drawn and -painted pieces as well as craftsmen going about block-printing other pieces of batik.  Watching the batik being created, particularly the hand-drawn and-painted versions, seemed rather magical to us even while all that work really did seem pretty run of the mill for the artists we saw going about their business rather nonchalantly as well as surprisingly swiftly.  

 

And for those who think batik's just for tourists: my father actually has a bunch of batik shirts which he happily wears to formal functions.  Especially for those Malaysian men who get all hot and bothered when asked to wear Western-style suits and ties, it's quite the boon that batik lounge shirts qualify as formal wear in the eyes of many and thus are considered suitable attire for such as formal dinners! ;b

On the occasion of Funassyi's 1879th birthday :)

A Pear (Fairy) that moves so fast 

it can look like just a blur in photos...

 A Pear (Fairy) so hyper Ozzy Osbourne felt obliged to 

ask it to calm down at one point during their 

famous meeting at Ozzy's Beverly Hills pad! :O

A Pear (Fairy) that's quite the rock star itself! :)

As Americans gear up to celebrate their country's 241st birthday, the part of the world where I currently reside has just a few minutes to go before it's no longer July 4th -- the day I celebrate more for it being my favorite Pear Fairy's birthday than the USA's Independence Day!

Although Funassyi has only been an actual physical presence since April 2012 (something which is being currently being celebrated in terms of 2017 being the 5th anniversary of it descending to Earth to bring joy and laughter to our lives), it supposedly came into being on July 4th, 138 (which is now known as nashi no hi: i.e., Pear Day (note: 7 can be read in Japanese as "na" and 4 and as "shi")).  So today happens to be the adorable character's 1879th birthday! 

One year on since it celebrated its 1878th birthday, the Pear (as the Pear Fairy is often affectionately referred to) can look back at a number of remarkable milestones in its "career" and life.  Considering how much of a music lover this yellow creature (which some of my friends have mistakenly mistaken for a mango, banana and Twinkie) is, I wouldn't put it past it considering its having headlined a concert at Tokyo's Nippon Budokan to be its greatest achievement this year, maybe ever!

From the astounded reactions of my Japanese friends, for whom the Budokan is akin to a sacred venue, I got to realizing how amazing it is for Funassyi to have performed there.  But what's even more impressive for me is not only that the Pear has since gone on tour with fellow gotouchi chara (which has been memorialized by way of a Ketsugubuo Tour DVD, which I feel so privileged to have a copy of) but also that this incredibly admirable as well as adorable character actually donated his appearance fee and all the royalties he earned from the Budokan and associated Osaka-jo concerts to Kumamoto earthquake relief! 
 
On a personal note, a few days after Funassyi celebrated its previous birthday, the Pear actually came over to Hong Kong -- and not only did I get to see the Pear perform live but I actually got "high fived" by it!  Then, a few months later, I went on a pilgrimage to Funassyi's hometown of Funabashi, during which I -- along with my mother and a fellow Funassyi fan -- went an ate the Pear's favorite sauce ramen at his favorite ramen-ya as well as did some shopping at the flagship Funassyiland branch over at Lala Port-Tokyo Bay.  

Among my acquisitions that day was a replica of a nice-sized Funassyi plush that I had seen at the Harajuku branch of Funassyiland when I visited there some months earlier.  Reluctant to buy it then because I worried that it'd not fit into my luggage, I had consequently been consumed with much regret at not having taking the plunge and acquired it.  So when given a second chance, I didn't hesitate to go for it and take possession of that wonderfully detailed plushie that comes with such as a Funassyi name tag, an "Illusion" (as well as a "Red Hole"), and even large stitches on the soles of its feet -- and some months on, I'm so glad I did as I love this Funassyi plushie as well as the real Funassyi so! :)