It All Ends with a Bang
Ngong Ping 360 Gondola
Today is our last full day in Hong Kong; it’s actually the last full day of the whole trip.
It’s overcast when we leave the hotel at 8:00am. We have a longish train ride to Tung Chung on Lantau Island. From there we take the Ngong Ping 360° Gondola to Ngong Ping village. The gondola is 5.7 km long and takes about 25 minutes to get to the village. The sun is now out.
John bought the tickets in advance and with being there so early, we are able to board right away. We had read about some people waiting over an hour.
John is very interested that we get fabulous views of the international airport from the gondola. We can see planes landing and taking off.
As we get almost to the end of our ride, I spot the purpose of our visit sitting on top of the mountain; the Big Buddha. Tian Tian (the Big Buddha) at 34 metres is one of the largest seated Buddha statues in the world.
The Big Buddha
Once we arrive, we walk through a Ngong Ping village which is really a bunch of expensive tourist shops and restaurants near the base of the Buddha. It is over 270 steps up (of course) to Buddha but he and the surroundings are quite beautiful.
I can’t get over the poses some photo obsessed tourists do. One girl after fixing her hair, pretends to be praying as her boyfriend takes her picture. I doubt she’s even Buddhist.
Po Lin Monastery
Nearby is the Po Lin Monastery with its beautiful temples, more Buddha statues and pavilions. The smell of incense fills the air and there are many worshippers as well as tourists. It is very peaceful and lovely.
We head back to Tung Chung on the gondola. We have the gondola car to ourselves. When we get to the bottom, we see a huge line of people waiting to go up. There is something to say about going early.
Nan Lian Garden
After a quick snack we take the train back into Hong Kong to see Nan Lian Garden. This feels like a Japanese garden with its rock formations, bonsai area, pond, pagoda and manicured trees. My mom would have loved it. It is an area of peace amid the urban jungle.
Sik Sik Yeun Wong Temple
A subway stop away is the important & sacred Sik Sik Yeun Wong Temple dedicated to Wong Tai Sin, a Taoist deity. Probably because of Lunar New Year the temple site is totally packed with worshippers.
John and I get into a line that seems to snake around and around forever but it moves 
quickly. I look around and realize we are the only tourists I can see but at this point we are entrenched amongst the thousands of people so we just go with the flow.
The temple is bright and colourful and the air is heavy with incense. People are worshipping, praying and getting 
their fortunes told. It is a rather wild and totally new experience. Click here for a short video.
We make it through the temple crowds and head back to the subway.
I am hungry and craving yesterday’s dim sum restaurant called “Dim Sum Here”. We arrive there by subway and a short walk. Once again the place is packed with locals. The food is so good.
A Night of Fireworks
Then it’s back to the hotel for a quick break before heading out again to the harbourfront for the Lunar New Year Fireworks. The place is packed but there are a lot of police and city workers directing people so everything runs fairly quick and efficiently.
The twenty minute firework show is spectacular. The fireworks are launched from barges in Victoria Harbour. The Hong Kong tourism website says that 32,000 shells will be used in the display. Click here for a short video. At the end, the massive crowd disperses quickly. With the walk and the one stop subway ride we are back in our hotel in thirty minutes.
What a wonderful way to end the last night of our trip.
