My Hong Kong Trip (IV)

Ngong Ping Village

In my last post, I wrote about the cable car ride from Tung Chung to Ngong Ping.

After getting off the cable car, we arrived at Ngong Ping Village. This was a theme village with traditional Chinese architecture. There were shops selling souvenirs and eateries. Ngong Ping Village was very touristy, but I must say that it was quite interesting.

The square...

Bubbles!

Distances to the world, with the Giant Buddha at the background...

Po Lin Monastery

Next to Ngong Ping Village was Po Lin Monastery (寶蓮禪寺). The monastery was famous for the Giant Buddha, the world’s largest outdoor bronze statue. The Giant Buddha sat atop a hill. Surrounding the statue was several smaller statues in the shape of fairies (?) A stair of 268 steps led one to the complex. If you don’t feel like making the climb, you can still appreciate the view from below.

268 steps...

Fairies?

The Buddha & the flags...

Joss sticks...

My Hong Kong Trip (III)

Ngong Ping 360

On the second day of my Hong Kong trip, we went to experience Ngong Ping 360 (昂坪360) at Lantau Island (大嶼山).

Ngong Ping 360 consisted of 2 parts – the first of which was the cable car journey which connects Tung Chung (東湧) to Ngong Ping. When we reached Tung Chung cable car station, there was already a long queue. We waited for half an hour to purchase the tickets, and another half an hour to board the car. Many of the tourists came from Mainland China. Hong Kong was hugely popular among Mainlanders. We would see a lot more Mainland tourists in the subsequent days.

Our patience paid off. The cable car ride was exhilarating. There were two types of cabins – regular and Crystal. Crystal Cabin had glass bottom, which allowed one to see the landscape beneath. As you might have expected, the fare for Crystal Cabin was higher.

We often perceive Hong Kong as a cosmopolitan city, but Lantau Island was heavily forested…

The crowd at Tung Chung…

The ride…

Hong Kong International Airport is at the background…

Crystal Cabin, with glass bottom…

My Hong Kong Trip (II)

Ding Ding

One of the more interesting modes of transport in Hong Kong is tram.

Known as Ding Ding (叮叮) by Hongkongese for the sound they make, trams run only in North Hong Kong Island. Ding Ding is slower than bus, and must stop for traffic light. In a city with highly efficient MTR (Mass Transit Rail) system, it is hard to imagine that Ding Ding survives into 21^st century.

A trip on Ding Ding costs HK$2.30 for adults, or HK$1.20 for children under 12, regardless of distance. Ding Ding fare is really, really cheap. But my complaint is that the air at tram stations is choking...

My Hong Kong Trip (I)

From Singapore to Hong Kong

I joined my parents and sister in Singapore. We flew from the Lion City to the Pearl of the Orient in Singapore Airlines’ double-decker Airbus A380, the largest passenger aircraft in the world.

I often thought Airbus A380 was mainly used for long-distance, trans-continental flights. I was surprised to learn that SIA deployed this plane for its Singapore-to-HK route. Every A380 can seat more than 400 passengers, including those in business class. That is more than double the capacity of A320 used by AirAsia. According to SIA’s magazine, A380 was the most efficient aircraft. Perhaps that’s why we managed to get a relatively cheap airfare. However, due to the large number of passengers, boarding time could be slightly longer. So there are pros and cons with this plane.

We landed in Hong Kong International Airport at Chek Lap Kok (赤鱲角) after 3 hours and 15 minutes in the air.

Changi Airport Terminal 3…

Airbus A380 super jumbo jet…

Interior of the A380…

Hong Kong International Airport…

My Hong Kong Trip - Preview

Shot taken at Causeway Bay (銅鑼灣), Hong Kong...

For high-resolution pictures, please check out my Flickr...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kamera-otoko

Cameras for Sale

I am a shutterbug, but I don’t always understand the mindset of my fellow photographers…

This guy bought a new Canon camera in September 2011 (with 2-year warranty). Barely one month had passed, he was already selling this camera in a forum…

Another guy was selling his 3-year old camera. He described it as LIKE NEW. He had already taken 25,000 pictures with this camera. That is like 8,000 shots per year?

Demise of Steve Jobs, and Apple’s Magic

teve Jobs, the visionary founder of Apple, died on Oct 5, 2011. His death, together with the announcement of iPhone 4S, seem to signal the beginning of Apple’s decline.

No doubt, iPhone 4S is a nice phone. Nonetheless, having been delayed by a few months, people were expecting a major upgrade. It turns out that the new phone’s screen is still 3.5-inch wide; it doesn’t work on 4G LTE networks, and doesn’t support NFC (Near Field Communication).

One theory says that Apple did plan to launch iPhone 5. For some unknown reason, however, iPhone 5 could not come to market in time. Not wanting to miss holidays season, Apple was forced to launch a more modest iPhone 4S instead.

In fact, the combined market of Android phones has already eclipsed iPhone’s. Apple still leads in the tablet computer market with its iPad, but I doubt its dominance will last long. Without Steve Jobs, will Apple be the same again?

P/S Look out for Samsung’s curved Nexus Prime, scheduled to be announced on Oct 11.

The Third Sex

In my recent trip to Bangkok, I went to watch Calypso Cabaret in Asia Hotel.

As some of you already know, Calypso Cabaret is a show by transvestites/transgender. (Though there are male performers too.) The most famous transvestites’ shows, as I understand it, can be found in Pattaya. The show I watched wasn’t top class, but I was satisfied with it.

Transvestites are known as kathoey in Thai. But among English-speaking communities, they are called ‘ladyboys’.

Some people ask, “Why are there so many transvestites in Thailand?” Well, I guess there are many such people in other countries too. In fact, I have come across quite a few in Kuala Lumpur. It is just that in the Land of Smile, transvestites are more visible.

The next question is, “Why are they more invisible in Thailand?” I believe this has to do with the fact that majority of Thais are Buddhists. Buddhism, unlike some other religions, does not view transvestites as sinners.