It was another day of fortunately/unfortunately waking up early. For only 5 hours of sleep, I actually feel fine, so I took advantage of an early start and enjoyed another delicious breakfast. As was my experience in Japan, I feel like China takes great pride in every job and task. It is just a hotel buffet, but they fold your napkin when you leave to get more food, reset your table setting and silverware, and clear dirty items the second you are done. And it is like this everywhere. The subways and city streets are constantly cleaned by workers, shops are meticulously maintained, they don't just do the work, they do it well, it's impressive. I checked out of my first hotel and walked 10 minutes over to my new hotel to store my luggage (more on this another day), then jumped on the subway for an hour out to Lantau Island. My plan was to take the super long gondola cable car trip up to the peak where there is a giant golden Buddha. I was even going to splurge and get a ticket for the "Crystal Car" where the floor is glass as well. Everything I read and saw about it looked great, but when I arrived, there was a notice that it was closed for maintenance… today only. I don't really have time to come back another day, so I took the bus route instead. It meandered through lush green jungle hills, then along sandy beaches with islands in the distance before making the vertical climb up to the Buddha. Lantau Island is very rural; just like yesterday's Peak hike, it's amazing how quickly the cityscape of Hong Kong can be left behind for tropical forests. You could see the giant Buddha looming in the distance, and by the time we arrived at the bus stop, there was no missing it. Now, I wish I could tell you that the statue is steeped in a long and rich history, but the reality is that it was unveiled in 1993. Still, it is a very impressive bronze statue at almost 70 feet tall, and it sits looking out over the grounds of the Po Lin Monastery. You can respectfully tour the grounds and step inside a few temples, including the largest building known as the "Hall of 10,000 Buddhas." The exterior had the most intricate and colorful wood carving facade, layer after layer of detail. You'd look at a supporting beam and see that it was carved into a design, and then look closer and see that those designs had their own sub-designs. The Hall lives up to its name, although someone lost count because there are actually close to 13,000 Buddhas lining the interior walls. I exited back through the zen gardens and grabbed a snack. I finally got a chance to try something unusual… fish balls on a skewer. They're not what they sound like, I don't think any fish have balls, that would look weird, plus the negative effect on hydrodynamics =) They are fried balls of congealed fish parts as far as I can tell, think SPAM made from seafood. Not bad, but I'm also in the pro-SPAM group of society. Next stop was a bus ride to the fishing village of Tai O. This place is famous for all the homes and shops on stilts along the main canal down the middle of town. The nickname "Venice of China" is generous. I'd liken it more as a Pirates of the Caribbean port town meets Colombian shanty town, but it definitely had some quaint alleyways and visual appeal at times, but Venice is a stretch. I walked all the way to the end of town and caught the trailhead for the Fu Shan hike. If you're ever in Tai O looking for where the trail starts, it's right next to the sewage pumping station. Up up up a lot of steps and then you are on a stone pathway that follows the ridge line with a picturesque pagoda about halfway through. The hike circles back to town and by that point I was ready to head back to Hong Kong, I wasn't sure how far from home I wanted to be after those fish balls. We made it back to the Tung Chung subway station in record time thanks to our bus driver treating our ride like a Formula 1 car; I knew he meant business when he pulled up in his driving gloves and old school Oakleys. I mentally kissed the ground, then subway'd back and got settled in my new room. I had big plans to head back out and explore tonight, but I found myself a very comfy spot in the hotel lobby bar/restaurant with a panoramic view of the illuminated skyline, and I decided to relax and enjoy it. A beer and some wonton noodle soup was perfect, except I've never had that before and these angelhair-thickness noodles had to be three feet long. I had a soup spoon, a fork, and some chopsticks as my tools. I tried using the side of the fork and spoon to cut the noodles, no luck. I literally Googled "how to eat wonton noodle soup," and hoped nobody around me noticed my struggle. By the time I figured it out and finished my meal, I was stuffed, and the Symphony of Lights skyscraper show was almost over…. And my 5 hours of sleep finally caught up to me. Still a few more days to make the most of, so it was time to hopefully get some good rest and be ready in the morning.
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