Lantau Island

Yesterday, Liana and I decided to explore Lantau Island and finally see the “Big Buddha.” We got all the way to the Island riding the MTR and then headed right around the corner from the station to get in line for the Ngong Ping Cable Car ride. This was a 25-minute ride over beautiful scenery up into the mountains. (Your computer screen isn't dirty, it was the glass window =)The 85-foot high Tian Tan Buddha statue appeared in the distance and we were soon back on solid ground and ready to explore. After some spaghetti, which was delicious by the way, we followed the crowd and started ascending Buddha’s steps.



My final paper in a “history of architecture” class entailed researching "ascendance" in both the ancient and modern world. I was definitely aware of the effects of such a grand staircase while I was the little tourist climbing up. Besides the function of being stairs, there was aesthetic and religious meaning embedded in the journey.

The view from the platform at the back of the statue was stunning. The South China Sea was in the distance, and little islands appeared in the haze as the horizon faded into the sky. I had one of those moments where everything sort of stops, and I just stood there and took it all in. Truly Beautiful.

We also went to the Po Lin Monastery and checked that out, but I can’t really think of anything to blog about for that stop…









When we were ready to return to Tung Chung on the cable car, the line wrapped through the street and a sign at the end said, “approximate queuing time from here to boarding--60 minutes.” We got in line and pretty soon after a guy walked by with a sign for the express line, where you volunteer to stand up for the whole ride. The wait time was 5-10 minutes!! After a wee bit of coercion I convinced Liana that it would be totally worth it, and it was!

We didn’t get a chance to go to Tai O, on the NW side of the island. This town is famous for being a fishing town with a bunch of stilt houses. So, we have a reason to go back to Lantau Island!

As a small edit to a previous blog...there are no llama's on Lamma Island. I spelled it like the animal =D