If yesterday was all about the less talked of side of Hong Kong, today was all about seeing it from the heights. Another girl from the hostel and I started the day off by visiting the Sky City Church, 75 floors up at Central Plaza. From there we rushed over to St Joseph’s Cathedral to meet up with a skip the queue tour on the tram up to Victoria Peak. This was definitely a wise decision as people can wait for over two hours in line to get on the tram otherwise, whereas we waited the five it took for the tram to arrive.
Victoria peak offered impressive views over Hong Kong. We took pleasant stroll around the peak, giving us a chance to appreciate a little of the nature that Hong Kong has to offer. After the compulsory photos up on the Sky Terrace we got the tram back down and rushed across the water and Kowloon to hike up to Lions Rock.
Lion Rock was enthusiastically touted by our guide as a better version of Victoria peak looking down on Kowloon. We had hoped to reach it in time for sunset as this is supposed to be particularly spectacular view, however the best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men gang aft agley and so it was for us. We watched the light fade from the sky as we doggedly continued upwards.
Eventually we were force to resort to torches but still we climbed, and it was most definitely worth it. The view out over a field of city lights was breath-taking (though this could also be attributed to the final upwards stretch). While we may not have been able to see the Lion Rock itself in the dark, the illumination of the city made this my favourite part of the day.
To finish off we climbed back down and got the MTR back to Nathan Road from where we enjoyed a gentle stroll from the Ladies Market down to Temple Street and the Jade Market. This provided a nice opportunity for us to fill out stomachs with a few skewers of dumplings and meat, although I confess to not being adventurous enough to try the pig’s liver or intestine.
So all in all a marvellous day, the only real drawbacks being the view-impeding smog that seems to sit over Hong Kong like a blanket and my very tired feet.
Sounds like a peak to peak race, you certainly covered a lot in one day, no wonder you’ve got sore feet. So glad you are enjoying HK.
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It certainly felt like a race, perhaps a marathon; according to Thais’s step counter, we walked over 34600 steps so I reckon we covered the distance.
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There’s a lovely walk along the Hong Kong trail up the peak too if you wanted to visit again and save the tram ticket/ queue 🙂 Takes the best part of the day to walk up, wander around and then bus back down but definitely worth it if you enjoy relaxed hikes with spectacular views!
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That sounds like a really lovely walk, thank you. I wish I had know about it sooner! Sadly I don’t think I will have time to fit it in this trip but I will definitely bare it in mind for the future!
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That’s a shame – yes, it’s a lovely walk, very peaceful!
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