Hong Kong & Macau : Part 2 - Ngong Ping 360

I should warn you that my trip to Hong Kong is not exactly considered a budget trip, because I visited lots of places which require paying for the tickets. And the tickets are not exactly cheap! You should know why when you read my posts of Hong Kong. Plus I cheated and stayed in a friend's places, and I shopped a lot. But then again, that is one of the ways to make it a budget! Hah!

15072012 : Good morning Hong Kong! Today, we are going to visit Ngong Ping 360 and the Avenue of Stars! I was all ready, smeared myself with lots of suntan lotion, put on my lightest outfit and with my sunglasses was headed out to the streets!

Little did I know that today was the day I gave myself a slight toast on the shoulders..

For breakfast, we stopped at a random shop, and had what everyone was having. I had coffee and my sister had tea. This costs HKD38.

After breakfast, it was a walk to the tram stop. Our place of stay was very convenient. We were near the public transportation and also near the Dried Seafood Street.

We bought the Octopus Card which is the travel card that can be used for tram, trains and buses and also some shops. The card has a value of HKD100 and comes with a deposit of HKD50 which is refundable at a refund fee of HKD9. So, in the event the usage exceeded HKD100, the deposit will be used too, and only the balance is refunded. As soon as the deposit is used, the card cannot be used although there is a balance in the deposit.

The tram ride, regardless of the number of stops is HKD2.30 per entry.

We descended from the tram somewhere near Hong Kong Train Station. When I said somewhere, it is because we got lost a bit looking for the train station, since the tram does not stop right in front of the train station. In Hong Kong Train Station, we were headed towards Tung Chung line for Ngong Ping.

Here we are, at Ngong Ping cable car!

We bought tickets to Ngong Ping for HKD250 for two of us. It was a twin package for the normal cabin. There are crystal cabins too where you can look from the bottom. 

The reason it's called Ngong Ping 360 because one can see a 360 degree view from the cable car.

There was also a trail for people to hike to Ngong Ping Village.

We could see the Tian Tan Buddha Statue from the cable car.

After close to 25 minutes in the cable car, we reached the stop.

I remembered counting the steps but I do not remember how many steps are there now. I think it's 200.

There was a museum inside where photography was not allowed. There was a souvenir booth inside too where the monk has blessed the souvenirs.

Next up, we walked towards Po Lin Monastery, where photography is allowed.

We had lunch at a restaurant next to Po Lin Monastery. It was part of the ticket package to visit the museum inside the Tian Tan Buddha Statue. It was a payment of HKD28 per person and we opt the dessert instead of the rice.

The dessert consists a choice of 2 types of dessert, tau fu fa (bean curd jelly with syrup) and a plate of noodles. I had no idea it came with glass noodles. It was so filling. Due to the hot weather, the appetite is not there to eat much.

After lunch, we realised we had not gone to Lan Tau Peak. We walked towards the direction of Lan Tau Peak, which was also incidentally the direction towards the Wisdom Path. We were not aware of the Wisdom Path as it was not part of the itinerary but I am glad we found it.

At the end of the trail, we saw a hill in front of us. I was not sure if that was Lan Tau Peak. But neither of us were ready for any hike up a hill.

Instead, we decided to go up the Wisdom Path. There were beautiful writings crafted along the path.

I stopped a passerby and asked him what was the writing about. Was it a story? He said no and explains that it tells a teaching which I do not really understand his explanation. Thankfully, there was a sign that explains. Basically, this is an outdoor replica of the centuries old Heart Sutra, one of the world’s best-known prayers that is revered by Confucians, Buddhists and Taoists. I think people should look up the Heart Sutra and read it. It taught me something new - to not be attached completely, and therefore when things or people leave us, we do not leave together with them. I am not sure how to explain it.

It was about 2.30pm when we took the cable car back down to head to our next destination - The Avenue of Stars!