Blogging Break

 

Pacific Place

Taking a stroll through a shopping mall this time, easy access from here to Hong Kong Park so at the end of our walk in the park we headed to Pacific Place for  a coffee break. We have visited the shopping malls or centres as we Brits normally refer to them in Hong Kong before but this is one  I did not recall visiting before.

 

Of course I had to take some photos of this impressive place with its wide variety of stores, just a few days before our visit, a branch of Harvey Nichols had opened there.

I am sure I would never of dreamt of taking such photos before the advent of digital cameras or the fact that I now see things as a blogging opportunity!!!!

The website for Pacific Place describes it as one of Hong Kong's iconic addresses, personified by modern sophistication. In the heart of the city under a single roof,  there are four hotels, luxury serviced apartments,  gourmet dining, designer shopping, a cinema and prestigious offices.

Luxury brands on the upper levels, dining outlets on the lower level and an international supermarket in the basement. From jet-set apparel to ultra-desirable beauty products, you'll shop to your heart's content.

Would you like to be doing your Christmas shopping here I wonder? It is certainly possible to shop in comfort in Hong Kong.

For more information  Wikipedia - Pacific Place  or  Swire - Pacific Place  the malls official website are worth taking a look at.

All photos are my own taken in October 2011. All rights reserved by LindyLouMac Photo Collection

Hong Trip 2010 – Part Six – Lamma Island

 

Originally published on Wednesday, April 21, 2010 on  News From Italy

Hong Kong Trip Part Six - Lamma Island.

Back in Hong Kong there were still lots of places that we wanted to see. One place in particular that I had been looking forward to was a trip to Lamma Island.

My particular interest in visiting Lamma Island was because I enjoy the writing of Christine Coleman and her latest novel 'Paper Lanterns' is partially set on the island.

Her website is definitely worth a visit, just click on her name highlighted in blue and you will be redirected there and can learn more about her by scrolling down the page or clicking on the different ‘categories’ list on the right and generally having a browse around while you are there.  Paper Lanterns Review – LindyLouMac's Book Reviews.

Lamma Island is one of our daughter's favourite places in Hong Kong and I can understand why.  Lamma is the closest island to Hong Kong Island and here it would be possible to live a peaceful lifestyle yet be close enough to the city for work, or just some general hustle and bustle when you felt the need.  A fact very much in evidence by the number of bicycles at the ferry pier of the main settlement of Yung Shu Wan when we docked! Click on the blue  links above and below to learn more about life on the Island

On arrival on the island we sampled a delicious selection of Dim Sum for brunch from the Sampan Seafood Restaurant, one of many as the island is known for its restaurants, beaches and country walks.  An easy way to see a fair amount of the beautiful scenery is to take the 4km walking trail across the island to the other main village of Sok Kwu Wan, which is exactly what we did.

A very late fish lunch in Sok Kwu Wan, then the ferry from there back to Hong Kong Island.

There were hundreds of bicycles on the pier!

Dim Sum Brunch

Beautiful scenery on the walking trail

Sok Kwu Wan

 

More photos of our 2010 trip may be viewed HERE.  This link will take you to my Flickr account where in addition to the photo selection shared here you will find lots more.

Thankyou everyone who has commented on our 2010 China Trip, this is the last of my previously published posts. Over the coming months I have lots of delightful places to share with you from our most recent trip to Asia in 2011.  I have already featured  Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens,  The Peak Hong Kong and  Hong Kong Park.

As you will have realised from the last paragraph this is the last of my previously published posts, so next time I post we will be back in 2011 Hong Kong but I hope you enjoyed the series of flashbacks to our first visit to China.

Hong Kong Trip 2010 - Part Five - Actually In Xian now not HK!

 

Originally posted on  Tuesday, April 13, 2010 on News From Italy

While we were visiting our daughter in Hong Kong during our second week we flew to Xian for a few days, a present from her in fact. She knew how keen my husband in particular was to see The Terracotta Army in situ and not just a few pieces on loan to some museum so she arranged this trip for us.  We had a fabulous time there with so much of interest to us to see, it was however bitterly cold in contrast to Hong Kong.

There is no way I can possibly post all the photos I took during our stay so I am just posting very edited highlights here and once again for those of you that may be interested the full set can be found here. Xian

Xian City Wall - Spring Lantern Exhibition

 

Xian - Forest of Stelae Museum

Xian - The Bell Tower

Xian - The Drum Tower

Xian - Street Vendor

Xian - Terracotta Army

Xian - Silk Factory

Xian - Buddhist Temple Lintong Bowuguan

 

Xian - Great Goose Pagoda Square - Fountain Show

Two rather bad videos I took, but they give you the idea!

Fountain Show in Great Goose Pagoda Square Xian, China

 

Uploaded by LindyLouMac on Apr 13, 2010

 

Uploaded by LindyLouMac on Apr 13, 2010

Xian - Great Goose Pagoda

Xian Opera Gardens - Musical Entertainment

I hope you enjoyed this taster of all there is to explore in Xian, besides The Terracotta Army, which by the way was absolutely awesome!

Hong Kong Trip 2010 – Part Four – Lantau Island – Lei Yue Mun – Chi Lin Nunnery and Nan Lian Gardens.

 

Originally published Tuesday, April 6, 2010 on my blog News From Italy

Hong Kong Trip Part Four

This post brings us to our first weekend in Hong Kong when we were able to have a weekends exploration with our local guides Selina and Chris. On the Saturday we had a very interesting day visiting Lantau Island, the largest outlaying island in Hong Kong, almost twice the size of Hong Kong Island. More than half of it has been designated as Country Park area. Its tranquil and green environment makes it a popular spot for nature's lovers and hikers. We took the MTR out to Tung  Chung and then the Ngong Ping Skyrail, actually a cable car which takes you up to the Lantau Peaks and the Ngong Ping Village in around twenty-five minutes.

The walk through this traditionally built village takes you to visit the amazing Giant Buddha or Tian Tan definitely worth the climb up the 268 steps and the adjacent Po Lin Monastery which is fascinating.

Tian Tan is the world's tallest, outdoor, seated bronze Buddha The eyes, lips, incline of the head and even the right hand (raised to deliver a blessing to all), combine to lend great depth of character and dignity to this extraordinary statue.
The majestic figure of the seated Buddha is 34 metres high, was cast in China and took over 10 years to complete. Weighing 250 tonnes, it was unveiled in 1993 amid deeply religious ceremonies.

I have posted just a small selection of the many photos I took that day, so if you would like to see more please visit my Flickr account. http://www.flickr.com/photos/mctumble/

 

The next day, Sunday we headed out to lunch in Lei Yue Mun a fishing village southeast  of Hong Kong where after a walk through the village and out to the temple we headed for the fish market to choose our lunch! You buy the fish fresh from the market traders and then take it to the restaurant of your choice for cooking.

I took photos of the fish Garoupa, Scallops and Prawns,, they were all still alive at this stage.

and some more when they appeared after cooking on our table in the restaurant.

After lunch we took the MTR to Diamond Hill to visit the Chi Lin Nunnery and Nan Lian Gardens One of the most beautiful and arrestingly built environments in Hong Kong; this large Buddhist complex is built completely of wood without the use of a single nail. It is intended to demonstrate the harmony of humans with nature and is pretty convincing, until you look at the skyline!  The gardens are peaceful and serene in the midst of the urban hustle and bustle.

I took many more photos of these beautiful gardens which if you are interested in seeing you may view at http://www.flickr.com/photos/mctumble/

All rights reserved by LindyLouMac Photo Collection

Hong Kong Trip 2010 – Part Three – Hong Kong Trams

 

Originally posted Wednesday, March 31, 2010 on my other blog News From Italy

Hong Kong Trip Part Three

HONG KONG TRAMS

The next walk that we did involved taking a ride on one of the wonderful Hong Kong Trams to the end of the eastern line, Shau Kei Wan, where I was able to get some interesting photographs of the trams which I am featuring in this post.

 

All rights reserved by LindyLouMac Photo Collection

If you are interested in reading more about the Hong Kong Trams click on the link here which will take you to the Wikepedia page.

This video will take you on a virtual ride on a Hong Kong tram.

 

Uploaded by hongkong on Nov 24, 2008

Hong Kong Attractions