Tian Tan Buddha sitting gracefully at the top of Muyushan Mountain
I returned to the hostel at 11:00 am this morning. Needless to say, there were more than a few raised eyebrows. As I anticipated last night was a long evening. I ended up staying with my friends at the rather posh 5 star Mandarin Oriental. They kindly advised me that I had missed the last ferry back to Kowloon and recommended I stay with them at their luxury accommodation. I thought for all of 2 seconds and then happily accepted their offer.
I quickly changed clothes and hopped on the next ferry to Lantau island. The island is almost twice the size of Hong Kong Island but has a population of only 25,000. When I arrived I walked straight to the bus stop. A makeshift sign read "Tender exact fare or use octopus". I was a little confused. It wasn't until later when I realised that 'Octopus' is the name of the pre-paid transit card system in Hong Kong. A bus took me directly to Po Lin Monastery in Ngong Ping which is a plateau 500m above sea level in the western part of the island. The monastery was interesting but what really impressed me was Tian Tan Buddha - a 34 meter tall outdoor bronze Buddha which is the largest of it's kind in the world! The whole area around Muyushan mountain (upon which the extremely large Buddha sits) is surrounded by unusual flora, emerald green hills and misty clouds which made the whole experience really eerie. The statue was opened to the public in December 1993 after 10 years of construction. It weighs a staggering 250 tons. I climbed the 268 steps which lead to the top and admired the view from such a height. After a milky tea and a spring roll, a local bus took me all the way back to Hong Kong Island over the Tsing Ma bridge. The bridge, which spans 1377 meters across the Ma Wan Channel, is the second longest bridge in the world (after the Humber Bridge in Britain!) and is an award winning structure. It is listed in the Guiness World Records apparently.
I arrived in Tsuen Wan exhausted and decided to have a lazy evening at the movie theatre. I watched Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. Never read the book/s but I really enjoyed the film.
