I knew I wanted to escape the urban mess, so it was time to try one of the famed trails. There's so many to choose from, but I thought I'd combine my hike with one of the well known tourist attractions, the Tian Tan Buddha, the giant bronze buddha on Lantau Island.
Getting there was half the fun -- after what seemed like an hour standing in line, I climbed into a glass floored cable car for a 6 kilometre ride to Ngong Ping Plateau. The views as we climbed to the 500 metres were spectacular:
The Ngong Ping village itself is a bit of tacky tourist trap; they have managed to Disney-fy the Buddhist religion with themed attractions, a fake Boddhi tree and a Starbucks to quench your latte cravings. But the Buddha itself is impressive:
And then it was time for the hike up Lantau Peak, and at 934 metres, it is the second highest mountain in Hong Kong. It started innocently enough and then quickly because ridiculously steep with stairs that seemed to go on forever. I was bathed in sweat and huffing and puffing the entire way. But the views were unbelievable:
