My plans in Hong Kong weren’t as extensive as they were in the other cities I had visited. There were the couple tourist attractions here and there, but for the most part I was there just to familiarize myself with HK and it’s delicious food! The morning in HK was the first lazy start that I had up so far in my trip, so just lay in bed attempting to catch up with my delayed blogs. By the time I left the hotel, it was already an hour into the afternoon. I was heading to Ngong Ping 360 for the gondola ride, but I got distracted by the markets outside the Mong Kok subway terminal.
When I arrived at the base of Ngong Ping’s gondola ride, I was informed that the entrance to the large Tian Tan Buddha had already closed and the last gondola was leaving in 30 minutes, while the last bus departed in 60 minutes. Well since I already paid to get here, and I knew I wasn’t returning here tomorrow, so I just decided to go ahead and pay for the one way gondola there. The gondola was an enjoyable experience, and the view of Hong Kong was alright, nothing spectacular. As I was the only one on board, I was able to move freely through the tram and capture some neat effects with how the gondolas were moving. The day was already coming to an end as the light diminished over Hong Kong. When I came back down, a lot of the shops were starting to close. I managed to quickly drop into one of them to buy myself a souvenir fridge magnet. To some of you that don’t know me all that well, I’m trying to cover the fridge with magnets from every place I go to. I’ll take a photo of it one day and write a quick entry. Night drew over Hong Kong and not only did the temperature drop, but it was also coupled by a frigid, cold wind that blew across the top of the mountain. I wasn’t properly prepared for the cold, so when a draft came by I couldn’t help but shake throughout. The grand solitary statue known as the Tian Tan Buddha was an ominous figure portrayed as a shadow in the distant dim background.
“The statue is named Tian Tan Buddha because its base is a model of the Altar of Heaven or Earthly Mount of Tian Tan, the Temple of Heaven in Beijing. It is one of the five large Buddha statues in China. The Buddha statue sits on a lotus throne on top of a three-platform altar. It is surrounded by eight smaller bronze statues representing gods or immortals. Like the Daibutsu in Kamakura, Japan, the Tian Tan Buddha is an image of Amitabha Buddha. The Tian Tan Buddha was constructed beginning in 1990, and was finished on December 29, 1993, the birthday of Gautama Buddha, the historic Buddha. The construction costs of the giant Buddha were estimated to be up to $68 million. It was formed out of 202 separate pieces of bronze. In addition to the exterior components, there is a strong steel framework inside the statue to support the heavy load and wind pressure.” – Wiki
