Gem of Travel

Today’s adventure started by hopping on a longish train ride to the 10,000 Buddhas Monastery in Sha Tin. The train let off in a huge mall, and I followed my phone’s instructions to the path. Now, this is where a bit more research or situational awareness would have come in handy. I had been told by several blogs this wasn’t a “popular” site and was off the beaten path. So when I didn’t see any signs, I didn’t think anything of it.

The path took me up a mountain aka high, steep hill stairs. Picture a winding sidewalk with random staircases on a steep elevation. The further I went, the less populated it was. Just as I began to doubt myself and panic that I was actually lost, I saw an extremely faded yellow sign with an arrow and the temple name. I kept going, even though the thinner air and steep stairs were draining. Eventually, there was a golden statue near the path. I had arrived! The temple was visible, though there was still a climb. There were really cute wild monkeys along the path, close to the temple. They let me get fairly close to them, and I took quite a few pictures and videos. I eventually reached the temple, and I realized I had come in through what was essentially a back door. The path must have been for locals, or maybe monks, but was definitely not intended for tourists.

It’s hard to describe the beauty of any mountain temple, if you haven’t been to one. I have always found mountains to be peaceful and encourage introspection. Add a temple, and it’s otherworldly. There was a large, open courtyard in a circular pattern, with a tall, thin temple as a focal point in the middle. There were statues and temples along the border. One side was an overlook. It was a little foggy when I went, so I couldn’t really see the small town below, but I could see some houses. There was a large main temple with a backdrop of mountain trees behind it. I walked to all of the statues and through the temples I was allowed to access (some are not open to the public). I also went a bit wild in the shop, buying some charms and incense burners. Thankfully, they allowed me to use some US dollars when I ran out of HK dollars. No credit cards. 

After I had explored, and shopped, to my heart’s content, I went out of the clearly marked main entrance, where I was met with the 10,000 golden statues. Everything made a bit more sense. I slowly made my way down the mountain. Every single statue is unique, and highly detailed. I took a lot of pictures near the top, but as I traveled further down, there were crowds of people. Turns out there is some value in being early, sometimes! The way down is a combination of a ramp on one side and stairs on the other. Once I reached the bottom, there was a clearly marked sign and archway. Turns out if I had gone further on the street, insteading of turning when I did, I would have found the official entrance. But I got to meet some monkeys, so in the end it was okay.

I headed back to the mall and decided to eat lunch there. I walked the whole mall twice I think, before choosing a cafe with modern Japanese food. I got a coffee drink I had never heard of, that was served with a spoon and a ton of thick foam, and some salmon and veggies over rice. It was amazing, and I lingered for a bit, planning out the next few days. I realized that while the street stall restaurants may have been cheap, the mall restaurants had western pricing.

I left Sha Tin, and headed toward Victoria harbor and the Golden Bauhinia Square. I ended up spending quite a bit of time at the Victoria harbor. There was a park section with turf grass that had picnic tables and tons of cute, little attractions. There was a large pink heart display for Valentine’s day, a heart tunnel, art displays, and swings for children. There was also a display of rabbit cartoon statues for Lunar New Year. It was chilly, but the sun was out in full force and it felt great. Traveling in a foreign country can make you feel off kilter, or unbalanced, and I always took time during the day to recenter myself. I often needed quiet moments to stay in the present. Sitting in the sun, next to the river, gave me that center after the long train ride and hike of the morning. After a while, I decided to head to the Golden Bauhinia square. I walked there, and the statue only had a few people, but was in direct shade, so it was quite cold. I took a few pictures and then realized there was a walkway along the harbor behind it. There was a gorgeous floral display, and I took the walkway to the ferry. My hostel was on the other side of the river, so I decided to take the ferry, rather than walking back to the train. 

There were SO MANY blogs that listed the ferry as a “Must Do.” Listen, I love a boat ride just like anyone else, but the ferry was just a ferry. A 10 minute ride to the other side of the harbor. It was fun, but I wouldn’t list it as an attraction or go out of my way, unless you have never ridden on a boat. And then I would recommend you go ride on a boat, because why not. You won’t get this price in the US for a boat ride anywhere.

The ferry let out in Kowloon Pier, a popular area near the HK Cultural Center and HK Museum of Art, and there were a ton of statues and displays. I walked along the harbor toward Nathan Street, admiring the scenery. Nathan street is a major street in Kowloon, and my hostel was off of it – its best quality was location. I had a concert the next night, so I went to the venue to pick up my tickets. I took the opportunity to map out my route to the hotel I would be staying in tomorrow night.

Later, I ended up at the Temple Street Night Market again, and this time braved the stalls. Many of the stalls did not have an English menu, so I used Google translate to figure out what I wanted, took a picture of the menu display, and then showed the worker the picture and pointed at the items I wanted. It was probably a 10 minute process to use Google image translate, make my decision, and talk (show a picture I took of their menu and point at food) with the stall. I got spring rolls and dim sum to go, grabbed a hazelnut milk tea boba from another stall, and headed to my hostel to eat, too tired to deal with the crowded tables nearby. Everything ended tasting great, including this egg soufflé cake that I had a few more times in HK. I was moving lodging the next day, so I packed up and went to bed.