Today I took a trip to Lantau Island, the site of the biggest tourist attraction in Hong Kong: the Tian Tan Buddha. There is a new “SkyRail” cable car system completed last year that brings visitors from the site (which is up in the mountains), however three weeks ago one of the cars fell off and crashed to the ground. So right now it is closed plus I don’t think anyone would feel comfortable riding it right now. I took a bus instead, but I don’t think it was any less scary. The road winded up and down mountains, sometimes it was only one lane wide, sometimes no guard rails next to cliffs, and the drivers were not afraid to go fast. So the bus was like a rollercoaster ride, but no accidents today. On arrival, I got to see Po Lin Monastery, the Tian Tan Buddha, the Wisdom Path, some great views, a claimed Buddha bone relic, and ate a vegetarian meal at the monastery (the fullest I’ve got from any meal so far here).
One more note about Hong Kong, when walking along the sidewalks once in a while you get hit by a drop of water, even when it is not raining. I think this is because most of the air conditioners are in windows surrounding the buildings and the condensation drips down. I found a gas station today on Lantau Island and I think the price is $6.52/GAL.
Last night in Hong Kong and then a night train tomorrow!