Before I got on the plane to travel to Hong Kong, I heard about the famous giant Buddha that sat upon a mountain. Tian Tan Buddha is the largest Buddha statue in Hong Kong. Also known as the Big Buddha, this statue stands over 112 feet tall and weighing in around 280 tons. Visitors who want to approach the figure need to climb 268 steps to the top. This Buddha is unique because it faces North, rather than other buddhas that face South. Its right hand raised represents the removal of affliction, while the left (that rests open on his lap) is a gesture of generosity.
Accessing the Big Buddha can be challenging, especially when the rail line is down for maintenance. First, you must get to the Tung Chung metro stop. That can require multiple metro line changes and a hefty amount of time. Coming from the opposite side of the city, I had to change the lines at least three times. Luckily, my friend's girlfriend, who is from and lives in Hong Kong, was showing my friend and I the area and helped us navigate to the statue. She led us to Exit B in the MTR station and led us to the bus stations outside. Unfortunately for us, the cable car up to Big Buddha was not open due to yearly maintenance. If it were, the trek would have been much less problematic. My friend's girlfriend pointed out Bus 11, which was transporting people straight to the Big Buddha. I started to get nervous because I get bus sick very easily, and the ride to the top would be about 50 minutes long. While on the bus, I was so concentrated on not feeling ill that I did not realize the bus came to a complete stop about halfway up the mountain. The width of the road is too thin, which created the issue that two buses cannot pass each other on it, so we had to wait for the other one to come down before we could continue. I looked out the window and noticed that we were not only on a mountain but a cliffside. It was such a drop off that you were able to see straight down the cliff, and you could not help but have your mind wander to what would happen if the bus accidentally drove off the side. Trying not to let my mind wonder about that terrifying thought for too long, I took in the beautiful views of the ocean and mountains, which were very entertaining and incredible to see.
Once we reached where Big Buddha was, I did not expect to see a small little village. There were restaurants, little shops, bakeries, street vendors, then the temple. There were also free-roaming cows! My friend's girlfriend had never actually been up close to a cow before. I was a little taken aback by this and thought it was baffling. As someone who grew up with cows right next to my childhood home, that idea of never being close to one or interacting with one was so interesting to me. I went over to pet the cow, who was very docile and used to people, and she got scared for me! I reassured her they were gentle creatures and even got her to touch one, very briefly. We took a moment to let the entire experience sink in.
Before we started to climb the staircase up to Big Buddha, my friend's girlfriend suggested we should get a lunch ticket beforehand at one of the restaurants because they were likely to sell out. These tickets act as a reservation, but also you are paying for the meal before you eat. Since Big Buddha is an active monastery, the restaurants are vegetarian choices only. After we purchased the tickets, we started the ascent up to the statue.
Oh, the steps, the many, many steps. The path was obstructed by many tourists who were stopping to get their perfect photographs. At first, everyone is polite, but then about halfway up, you see people getting more and more aggravated with exhaustion and with the tourists stopping suddenly for their pictures. It came to the point where it was a necessity to stop being polite and walk right through someone's photo. Otherwise, it will take you hours to get to the top when you would be stopping that much.
We reached the top and turned around to see one spectacular view. The steps at this point were worth it. We turned once again and looked straight up to see how colossal this Buddha was. It stood up to its reputation. This thing was massive. I quickly walked around the statue and realized that there was an inside to the temple. As we all walked inside, we were greeted with more stairs. I thought to myself that my legs better look phenomenal after this excursion. They were burning with exhaustion.
Inside the Buddha, there were two floors, each showing different relics found within the vicinity or used for worship. One level had the names of all the monks that had achieved enlightenment at the temple. That means they were able to become acknowledged Buddhas. All of the signage was in Cantonese, so my friend's girlfriend was translating all the signs for us. Without her, we would not have been able to understand what each relic was used as or why.
After about an hour of learning about relics, our lunch slot time was approaching. We quickly descended the many stairs and arrived at the restaurant. The lunch was my first real authentic experience eating out in Hong Kong. I have never been to Asia before this trip, so I had no experience eating any type of Asian cuisine except for the Americanized version in the United States. My friend, who was also with us, and I looked at the place setting with puzzled eyes. We did not know which dish was for what or how to use them properly. My friend's girlfriend, being the very intuitive person she was, noticed that we had no idea right away, and she went into teaching mode. She taught us everything that had to do with eating. That included how to use chopsticks, how to properly eat noodles, etc. She also taught us that some dishes weren't meant to eat out of, but are used to wash our hands with. I mean, she did not leave anything out, and my friend and I were grateful to her. That helped shape us for the rest of our stay in Hong Kong. Even with her help, it was pretty obvious we weren't experts, and the waitstaff noticed and brought us over some forks. They smirked, amused that we were struggling, and watched us having fun while we did. That meal was full with a lot of laughter and learning, and it is an experience I still cherish to this day.
After lunch, we decided to do a bit of shopping at the vendors and shops. The shops were about to close for the evening, so we had to be quick while looking around. They sold everything from stuffed animals to silk paintings, to even having a kimono shop. We did a quick walkthrough of some shops and focused on the ones we knew we were going to buy something. Everything was brightly colored and caught your eye. It was easy to get sucked into a shop because everything looked so fascinating to me. The village was small, peaceful, and quaint, and after about an hour of looking around, we were yawning from exhaustion. We did not want to leave, but we knew we needed to catch the last bus down the mountain.
It had started to get late, and my friend and I still needed to get home to our apartment. Knowing it would take a bit of time, we said our goodbyes to our friend's girlfriend and jumped on the metro. My friend and I reflected on the day trip, and both agreed that having a local show us around was an advantage. I honestly do not know if my friend and I would have figured out how to get to Big Buddha without her help or understand the signage of the relics.
The trip opened me up to the Hong Kong culture and allowed me to create this new understanding of it. It was also an excursion that allowed me to try new things, experience immersive views, and have such a fun time. The experience will always be a memorable one, and I will be forever grateful to my friend's girlfriend, who was kind and patient enough to show us around.
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