Destination: Hong Kong, China
Date: June 1st 2004- June 10th, 2004
Airline: Air Canada
Vacation Package: DiscoverHongKong.comVacation Packages
Duration of trip: 10 days
My brother and I left June 1st and spent a week at the Stanford Hillview Hotel in Kowloon. We spent the week walking around and visiting various sights of Kowloon, Hong Kong, and Lantau Island. It was a memorable experience and it is my pleasure sharing it with you.
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong was under British control prior to 1997 when it was returned to China and made a SAR or Special Administrative Region. With a population of over 7 million, it is a bustling Cantonese-speaking city that is a popular destination for tourists. Having been under British rule, you will find a lot of English-speaking people and English signs, making it fairly easy to travel around and communicate.
Hong Kong Island is pretty much the financial and commercial centre. Tall skyscrapers line the harbor front and light up the skyline at night. It is quite a spectacular sight to see. We were fortunate enough to watch the Symphony of Lights, a nightly show lighting up the sky and buildings of the skyline with lasers and vibrant colors.
On Hong Kong Island, we visited Victoria Peak, Repulse Bay, Aberdeen, Ocean Park, Times Square , the Zoological and Botanical Gardens and rode the Star Ferry across the harbor to Kowloon.
Kowloon
Kowloon lies right across Victoria Harbor. It is a peninsula north of Hong Kong Island and it is where our hotel was. The Stanford Hillview Hotel is situated in Tsim Sha Tsui District, a busy tourist area full of hotels, restaurants and shopping malls.
Hong Kong/Kowloon has a fantastic, efficient, and highly modern public transportation system. Buses and frequent metros allow one to travel anywhere. The MTR lines even run under the harbor connecting travellers to Hong Kong Island and even to Lantau Island where the airport is situated. All passengers put money on a magnetic card called the “Octopus Card”. They simply place it on the readert as they enter the metro and place it again as they exit so the proper amount can be deducted from the card. Very fast and efficent.
On the Kowloon side of Hong Kong, we visited many temples, the Avenue of Stars on the Harbor front, and many outdoor markets including the Ladies’ Market, Fa Yuen Street Market, Temple Street Night Market, the Bird Market, and Flower Market.
Temples
After learning about China’s three major philosophical schools: Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism, I made it a point to visit as many temples as possible.
First off, one must be reminded that Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism are not essentially religions. They are teachings that include many things that one might identify with religion, though not specifically religious in nature. The writings of the founding fathers of these schools of thought have become part of the cultural heritage of the Chinese people. These teachings have become so engrained within the psyche of the Chinese people that they have become simply the way of life for the Chinese. Over time, they have evolved into more formal institutions. You can now find temples, monasteries and clergy.
We were fortunate enough to visit 4 temples of which 3 will be featured here: The Tin Hau Temple, the Temple at Repulse Bay, and the Wong Tai Sin Temple.
The fourth, the Po Lin Monastery and Giant Buddha is in a section all its own.
The Tin Hau Temple at Yau Ma Tei
This temple is located on Temple Street in the Yau Ma Tei District of Kowloon. It was erected in 1798 and is dedicated to the Mother Goddess of the Sea named Tin Hau. On the 23rd day of the 3rd month (of the lunar calendar), fishermen make offerings to Tin Hau so that she may bless them with good catches. The Temple is also home to shrines to the God of Earth and the God of Cities.
Inside the main temple, incense spirals and sticks are burning, offerings left by many of the temple’s visitors. A large statue of Tin Hau stands in the main temple as well as images of other Chinese deities. The atmosphere is very serene as a lone worshipper enters, lights her incense, and bows before the statues.
The Wong Tai Sin Temple
The Wong Tai Sin temple is named after a shepherd boy who was said to have miraculous healing powers. He is not only appealed to for health issues, but also on matters concerning business and relationships. It is a celebrated ancestral Taoist temple and is noted for its many fortune tellers. The Temple is also a community center.
There were many visitors to the temple when we visited. As soon as we exited the MTR station, there were many elderly women trying to sell us joss sticks and oranges. Spiritual souvenir shops and fortune-teller cubicles occupied the outer areas of the temple grounds. Inside was the main temple and smaller temples where many people were burning incense, praying and bowing. I noticed that the people were of all walks of life and that there were very few tourists compared to worshippers. The energy in the sacred space was very calm and serene. I did not burn any incense, but I bowed three times to pay my respects.
Behind the temple was a serene garden where people can go and meditate. The ponds were filled with turtles, symbols of longevity and happiness. Chinese-styled pavilions and walkways created a kind of maze in the garden area. It was very peaceful walking through the gardens, stopping to look at the lovely flowers and observing the turtles swimming in the ponds.
The Temple at Repulse Bay
This Temple is dedicated to the Goddess Kwun Yum (Kuan Yin) and is situated on the beach at Repulse Bay. Two large statues flank the Main Temple building: one of Kuan Yin and the other of Tin Hau. Many other statues of deities are scattered all over the grounds. Incense pots can be found in front of the two large statues, allowing visitors to leave offerings to the Goddess of Compassion and Mercy and the Goddess of the Sea.
Another popular statue is that of the God of Prosperity. There is a line up of visitors, hoping to perform the simple ritual asking for the God’s blessings of prosperity: run your hands along the image of the God, over his hands and down his robe to his change purse and finally into your own pocket. It symbolizes the God of Prosperity passing his prosperity onto the worshipper.
Sites of Interest:
Photo Gallery:
Hong Kong – June 2004
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