dvarmazi
Boston
I don’t know what you’ve seen, but I recommend getting out of the city and exploring some of the fishing villages on the south side of the island. I recall there being one with a big Buddha statue. They represent a totally different, much quieter side of the city than you may be accustomed to.
Steve
London
The big Buddha statue is on Lantau (and worth seeing).
I’d also get the ferry over to one end of Lamma and spend a day wandering across the island finishing with dinner and a drink in Yeung She Wan before gettingtheferry back
Marz K
Shanghai
Really depends on what you’ve already seen. If you’ve already checked out all the touristy places, I’d suggest you go to the New Territories, e.g. Yuen Long for food and a walk. There’s a wetland park (in Tin Shui Wai) and you can take the LRT there if you haven’t tried it. In Ping Shan, there are some historical sites. Another natural site is Mai Po. Check out online.
There’s the original store of Heng Heung Wife Cake. I love that… still find it the best. Plus many other places for street food. Sometimes you can see old women selling Hakka “cakes” on the street. It’s a relatively old/local district… probably not as good for shopping as other places like TST/CWB, but it gives a different view of Hong Kong.
Not sure if this is your cup of tea. Hope can give you more options to choose from.
thenhbushman
Hukou
am_happy,
i wrote a series on Hong Kong and a walking tour you can do by yourself,
of some interesting places. article 1 is here:
http://www.thenhbushman.com/2007/11/27/hong-kong-series-part-i-flower-market-kowloon/
hope this gives you some ideas. HK is a great place for walking around
and taking interesting photographs.
take care.
cjw333
San Jose
On my last trip I didn’t spend much time on HK Island at all and ended up exploring some new areas. You should find lots to do around Kowloon, New Territories and the islands.
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The trip to Lantau is long but fun. If you set out early enough you can hit the big Buddha and get a tasty veggie meal for cheap at the Po Lin monastery. To get to the Buddha you have 2 options – 1) take a boat and then a bus which takes the longest or 2) take the MTR to a gondola which drops you right at the edge of the monastery. The views from the gondola are pretty amazing so I recommend that option.
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From the monastery you can take the bus to Tai O, a small fishing village. Here you can wander through the small streets exploring the shops, getting something to eat and checking out the houses built on stilts. You’ll also find some nice trails to explore if you want to check out a bit of nature.
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Macau is worth the trip even if you’re not into gambling. The casinos are easiest to get to and you’ll find free shuttles from the harbor to the various establishments. I recommend taking one as it’s the easiest way to get into town and it’s free. You should check out at least one casino while you’re there and be sure to look for some of the strange games (at least to me) like Sic Bo. Once you’ve had your fill head into the old town where you’ll really notice the Portuguese influence in the food and architecture and language.
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Heading out to the Ten Thousand Buddha Monastery is worth the trip. It may not be recommended on a really hot day since the trek to the monastery is long enough and steep. You’ll find a small restaurant on top if you need a snack and something to drink but it’s probably best to have a drink with you for the trip. There are a lot of Buddhas to see and tons of photo opportunities but other than that, there’s not much to see in the town below so you should be able to knock out everything that you want to see in a few hours.
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Kowloon City can be interesting to explore. It doesn’t seem to be as crowded as Kowloon and you’ll find lots of shops and some great places to eat. The restaurant that brought me out there is called Islam Foods and they’re well known for their halal beef dumplings. They’re kind of like flat pot stickers with a filling of beef patty and juice. I recommend that and the chicken curry. You’ll find Islam Foods at 1 Lung Kong Rd in Kowloon City and it’s close to the Kowloon Walled City Park which I didn’t get a chance to check out.
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Pictures from my last trip can be found here
Let me know if you have any questions.
