hanging precariously.
hmm.. seems as though writing blogposts wasn’t high on my resolution list for 2012 eh? haha.. okok.. i guess i procrastinated. but i hope this is a start for something good. =) and well, im excited, because (a) my main computer is returning to me on friday repaired so i can leave my macbook air for merely travel/video editing purposes (b) i trawled through my hk photos and realise there’s so much i wanna share!
the above photo was shot from the cable car (normal, not crystal) as we headed toward the po lin temple where the massive buddha statue resides. mind you, its quite the ride, and had the mildly acrophobic me clutching my seat at certain points when the cable car dipped downward. but the view is nothing short of spectacular – beautiful mountain vistas, a peek of the hong kong airport where you get to see planes flying in and taking out and regular intervals, treacherous mountain trials with little human dots along the way and then the glimpse of the massive buddha statue. sweet stuff.
what’s not so sweet? the wait. i mean, it literally took us the ENTIRE AFTERNOON to visit the area, in which 2 hours were spent waiting to get there, 20 mins on the cable car, 1 hour+ dashing around the statue and temple taking my photographs and then another 2 hours wait amidst the setting sun to return. that’s a massive 4 HOURS WAIT. so be warned if you want to take the cable car to set enough time to avoid disappointment. one smart thing might be to take a bus up to the place and then taking a one way cable car.
furthermore, don’t bother about the crystal cable car package, because it neither cuts down on your queueing time, neither does it add much to the experience. the crystal cable car has a glass bottom, so you literally can see through to whats at the bottom – a view that essentially can be duplicated if you peer out of the windows and look down. the hong kong auntie who was sitting in the same carriage jokingly commented that she would take the crystal carriage if it was to see underwater fish or stuff, but this was well kinda redundant. lol.
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and well how can we end the post without talking a little about HK food? let’s bring up the first recommendation…
tai cheong bakery egg tarts
for the quintessentially traditional experience, head to 35 lyndhurst terrace, central (nearest MTR: central) and get one of the egg tarts just as it is freshly baked. can’t exactly remember the price, but this doesn’t remotely put a dent in your wallet unless you buy like a truckload of them. and honestly, you shouldn’t, because this has to be eaten fresh. what sets this egg tart apart is the shortbread-style, slight thicker sweet crust that accompanies the piping hot custard filling and perfectly complements the mild sweetness of the custard.
it’s not difficult to slot tai cheong bakery within your touring itinerary, since the area around is pretty touristy what with the mid levels, hollywood road and the MTR pretty close by. and mind you, the roads around here around lyndhurst/sheung wan hide many a gem of a shopping experience what with antique stores, interesting boutiques and really famous eateries (to be covered soon!). nearby is a pretty quaint shop called goods of desire (G.O.D.) that sells kitschy designer stuff that has been inspired by olden common place items in hong kong – its the perfect blend of east meets west!
view you get whilst munching on a tai cheong bakery egg tart outside the shop =)
