By Roz
We woke up on Friday morning and felt fear. We had been promised sun and yet there was none. However, we had come to Hong Kong for the hiking and so were determined to get in a few hiking trips. Especially me, since I have a feeling that my autumn is going to be spent looking at photos of Layla in Hong Kong where she is looking smug having been on beautiful hikes and eaten delicious food whilst I weep in Tokyo - so I may as well try and hike and eat all I can whilst here myself!
Consoling ourselves that at least it wasn't raining, we headed out, picking up lunch and coffee en route. We were off to do a hike on Lantau Island, making our way from one tiny port (Discovery Bay) to another on the other side of a mountain (Mui Wo). The ferry trip to the island was brief and cheery, but we felt properly remote as we landed in Discovery Bay, home to rich Hong Kongites. Our initial way took us through the back streets of the area through almost shacks (presumably home to staff working for the rich. It was both fun and felt a bit intrusive (though it was clearly a proper walking path) so we were both relieved when we were through this bit and onto the mountain / large hill we were planning to climb. This relief was obviously only temporary since it then required us to start climbing (never a favourite). We passed by a trappist monastery (and felt bemused they would put themselves at the top of a large hill voluntarily) and then finally headed downhill, with fantastic views across the island and out across the sea and Hong Kong itself. We found ourselves arriving into Mui Wo more quickly than we had expected (It was because I'm so fit - Layla) and so mused on our options over a drink. Unexpectedly, we ended up deciding to do a second hike, this one much smaller and flatter to a waterfall. As we did so we mused on all sorts of things (are our urban biking days over?) though primarily we discussed the great joy of the recent photos we have been receiving from our friend depicting our dog Kaseki in all sorts of countries.
When we got back to port, we had ice creams whilst we awaited our ferry. Back home, we hopped into the shower and at this point we discovered that I was massively and unexpectedly sunburned. Though we hadn't seen the sun, my neck and shoulders had. Layla was as peely walley as ever. Bizarre.
Cleaner and a bit sorer (in my case) we headed out for pre dinner drinks and cheese in our local, Classified, before we went off to dinner at a place called Pawn. This is a bar and restaurant in an old building that doubles as a cool art venue, and has some kind of British connection. Both food and setting were excellent. Though Layla was deeply dismayed when she realised she was so full that she hadn't got room for sticky toffee pudding (and I was almost more sorrowful since I had planned to steal some of her dessert). So we headed off to the delightfully named Jolly Thinkers club, which is a slightly terrifying but adorable board games venue. One of the nice staff selected a range of games for us to play and then patiently taught us the two we selected (Lost Cities, then Jaipur, for the boardgame nerds), and he kindly tried to hide his genuine pain when I made fatal mistakes that lost me all the games. It was a very jolly evening all in all.
Next morning, we awoke to a blazing sun and a blue sky. Hooray (though this was not what my sunburn said). We leapt up early and headed back to the pier, destination Lamma Island: another beautiful island nearby. In an ambitious fashion we were planning on two hikes on the island, one up a mountain and a second "family" trail to another port. The first hike proved to be ambitious (by which I mean super steep) but there were beautiful views of Hong Kong, of the beaches and of the sea. We ate lunch in convenient hut with a bunch of excitable locals - and felt very happy that everyone was so cheery and lively and jolly. (This is probably one of the things that I like most about Hong Kong - people have vim and passion and enthusiasm and express it seemingly at all times.)
The second trail was much more crowded than the first, perhaps unsurprisingly because it was pretty flat and hugged the coastline in a scenic fashion. We felt disconcertingly fit that it was our second hike of the day...until we realised our faces were pinker than everyone else's and we certainly didn't look fit. We stopped for a drink half way along, and a read of our books. Delightful.
The ferry ride home was disappointingly quick (by which I mean we both fell asleep and then awoke to find everyone else getting off the boat). As we caught the metro home we debated our dinner options for our last night. I can't remember a trip where I have had so much lovely food (or perhaps that is just how it feels because Tokyo is such a grim struggle on this front). In the end after we had showered and packed we decided to go to Pico, the delightful Italian we had been to last Saturday, since both food and ambience were so lovely. A second visit can be a risky affair, but on this occasion it was just as good, but with the added bonus for Layla that she managed to find room for her first - and last - dessert of the holiday, a tiramisu. We then had a nightcap and made friends with some adorable poodles (and missed our own dog). Back home, we watched Netflix before going to bed early to allow us to leap up early in order to squeeze in one final hike on our last morning.
As such, we were up unpleasantly early to catch a bus to take us to the starting point for today's hike, known as Sir Cecil's Ride. Sir Cecil was a former governor of Hong Kong and we were unclear on the merits of his taste in horse riding paths when we began the hike - the guidebooks don't mention it, but Google had implied it was awfully convenient. Initially we were anxious as the hike seemed less than delightful. However it turned out that we had got on to the hike through some weird extension, and soon we were on a delightful Country Park path, clearly much beloved by locals. The views were amazing - the Hong Kong skyline in all its glory, as though it were posing for a postcard. And the path was mainly downhill. What could be better?! Well, since I hadn't had coffee because of our early start, one thing could have been better... But all too soon (well 2 and a half hours after we had started) we were finishing the hike, and I swiftly steered us to a delightfully hipster coffeeshop where I drank flat whites with glee (and ate toasted banana bread with even more glee, were that possible).
After this delightful interlude we hopped on the metro and were soon back in our hood. We did a final tidy up of the flat, before having a delicious lunch in Beef and Liberty. And then we were headed to the airport (albeit with one final farewell stop in Marks and Spencers). I cannot express how envious I am of Layla for being about to live here for three months (in the autumn, to do a fellowship). They have the best public transport system I have ever seen, amazing hiking, easily available terrific food, copious flat whites and a population with a passion for life. But I am glad that her fellowship will mean that I will be back if only for a visit.
We woke up on Friday morning and felt fear. We had been promised sun and yet there was none. However, we had come to Hong Kong for the hiking and so were determined to get in a few hiking trips. Especially me, since I have a feeling that my autumn is going to be spent looking at photos of Layla in Hong Kong where she is looking smug having been on beautiful hikes and eaten delicious food whilst I weep in Tokyo - so I may as well try and hike and eat all I can whilst here myself!
Consoling ourselves that at least it wasn't raining, we headed out, picking up lunch and coffee en route. We were off to do a hike on Lantau Island, making our way from one tiny port (Discovery Bay) to another on the other side of a mountain (Mui Wo). The ferry trip to the island was brief and cheery, but we felt properly remote as we landed in Discovery Bay, home to rich Hong Kongites. Our initial way took us through the back streets of the area through almost shacks (presumably home to staff working for the rich. It was both fun and felt a bit intrusive (though it was clearly a proper walking path) so we were both relieved when we were through this bit and onto the mountain / large hill we were planning to climb. This relief was obviously only temporary since it then required us to start climbing (never a favourite). We passed by a trappist monastery (and felt bemused they would put themselves at the top of a large hill voluntarily) and then finally headed downhill, with fantastic views across the island and out across the sea and Hong Kong itself. We found ourselves arriving into Mui Wo more quickly than we had expected (It was because I'm so fit - Layla) and so mused on our options over a drink. Unexpectedly, we ended up deciding to do a second hike, this one much smaller and flatter to a waterfall. As we did so we mused on all sorts of things (are our urban biking days over?) though primarily we discussed the great joy of the recent photos we have been receiving from our friend depicting our dog Kaseki in all sorts of countries.
When we got back to port, we had ice creams whilst we awaited our ferry. Back home, we hopped into the shower and at this point we discovered that I was massively and unexpectedly sunburned. Though we hadn't seen the sun, my neck and shoulders had. Layla was as peely walley as ever. Bizarre.
Cleaner and a bit sorer (in my case) we headed out for pre dinner drinks and cheese in our local, Classified, before we went off to dinner at a place called Pawn. This is a bar and restaurant in an old building that doubles as a cool art venue, and has some kind of British connection. Both food and setting were excellent. Though Layla was deeply dismayed when she realised she was so full that she hadn't got room for sticky toffee pudding (and I was almost more sorrowful since I had planned to steal some of her dessert). So we headed off to the delightfully named Jolly Thinkers club, which is a slightly terrifying but adorable board games venue. One of the nice staff selected a range of games for us to play and then patiently taught us the two we selected (Lost Cities, then Jaipur, for the boardgame nerds), and he kindly tried to hide his genuine pain when I made fatal mistakes that lost me all the games. It was a very jolly evening all in all.
Next morning, we awoke to a blazing sun and a blue sky. Hooray (though this was not what my sunburn said). We leapt up early and headed back to the pier, destination Lamma Island: another beautiful island nearby. In an ambitious fashion we were planning on two hikes on the island, one up a mountain and a second "family" trail to another port. The first hike proved to be ambitious (by which I mean super steep) but there were beautiful views of Hong Kong, of the beaches and of the sea. We ate lunch in convenient hut with a bunch of excitable locals - and felt very happy that everyone was so cheery and lively and jolly. (This is probably one of the things that I like most about Hong Kong - people have vim and passion and enthusiasm and express it seemingly at all times.)
The second trail was much more crowded than the first, perhaps unsurprisingly because it was pretty flat and hugged the coastline in a scenic fashion. We felt disconcertingly fit that it was our second hike of the day...until we realised our faces were pinker than everyone else's and we certainly didn't look fit. We stopped for a drink half way along, and a read of our books. Delightful.
The ferry ride home was disappointingly quick (by which I mean we both fell asleep and then awoke to find everyone else getting off the boat). As we caught the metro home we debated our dinner options for our last night. I can't remember a trip where I have had so much lovely food (or perhaps that is just how it feels because Tokyo is such a grim struggle on this front). In the end after we had showered and packed we decided to go to Pico, the delightful Italian we had been to last Saturday, since both food and ambience were so lovely. A second visit can be a risky affair, but on this occasion it was just as good, but with the added bonus for Layla that she managed to find room for her first - and last - dessert of the holiday, a tiramisu. We then had a nightcap and made friends with some adorable poodles (and missed our own dog). Back home, we watched Netflix before going to bed early to allow us to leap up early in order to squeeze in one final hike on our last morning.
As such, we were up unpleasantly early to catch a bus to take us to the starting point for today's hike, known as Sir Cecil's Ride. Sir Cecil was a former governor of Hong Kong and we were unclear on the merits of his taste in horse riding paths when we began the hike - the guidebooks don't mention it, but Google had implied it was awfully convenient. Initially we were anxious as the hike seemed less than delightful. However it turned out that we had got on to the hike through some weird extension, and soon we were on a delightful Country Park path, clearly much beloved by locals. The views were amazing - the Hong Kong skyline in all its glory, as though it were posing for a postcard. And the path was mainly downhill. What could be better?! Well, since I hadn't had coffee because of our early start, one thing could have been better... But all too soon (well 2 and a half hours after we had started) we were finishing the hike, and I swiftly steered us to a delightfully hipster coffeeshop where I drank flat whites with glee (and ate toasted banana bread with even more glee, were that possible).
After this delightful interlude we hopped on the metro and were soon back in our hood. We did a final tidy up of the flat, before having a delicious lunch in Beef and Liberty. And then we were headed to the airport (albeit with one final farewell stop in Marks and Spencers). I cannot express how envious I am of Layla for being about to live here for three months (in the autumn, to do a fellowship). They have the best public transport system I have ever seen, amazing hiking, easily available terrific food, copious flat whites and a population with a passion for life. But I am glad that her fellowship will mean that I will be back if only for a visit.
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