Tag Archives: New Territories

The One With Ten Thousands Buddha Monastery – Delightful Vegetarian Cuisine

24 November, 2010 8:00 am | 2 Comments |

As an avid fan of Lonely Planet which preached the spirit of spontaneity, I am always about straying into uncharted (or, in this case, unreviewed) territory as I explore new places. Sometimes, the mere act of hunting down a place to have dine out at a particular area is so exhausting, it took more time then the meal itself.

So during my Sunday’s excursion to Shatin and Taipo, imagine my surprise to discover a vegetarian restaurant right at the top of hill, in the midst of the complex of temples.

Shatin Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery

Then again, why should I be that surprised? With the number of tourists thronging around, someone gotta give them food, especially after the hike up the 400 odd steps. It can be grueling during summer days.

But to my (other) surprise, this place has not been reviewed on OpenRice.com. And not even on vegetarian websites. So here I am to introduce you to the pleasant discovery of Vegetarian Restaurant At The Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery at Shatin.

(Yes, I don’t know the name of the restaurant. I suspect they don’t have one)

Read More →

Posted in: Chinese, Vegetarian | Tagged: , , , ,

Hong Kong for Beginners

10 September, 2009 7:27 am | 1 Comment |

To the uninitiated, Hong Kong could be quite bewildering, even if you are armed with a map. To understand the basic geography of this “country” (effectively, HK is a part of China since the British handover in 1997), you could look at this map:

Hong-Kong-Map

The HK Island forms the main backbone of modern life in HK, where most of It is home to many nightlife spots, commercial buildings and expatriates. Located on this island are some of the more famous Hong Kong districts, including Wan Chai, Causeway Bay and Central.

Kowloon and it’s surrounding districts, when grouped together, can be roughly termed as “Hong Kong”. This is the older part of Hong Kong, where you can see modernity and history clashes badly but not without character. Old buildings jostled for space with new tall skyscrapers in this bewildering maze small side streets and two-way expressways.

And then you can see a big area marked as New Territories. These districts from the biggest land mass of Hong Kong, and actually were part of China but now are under HK jurisdiction. Here you can see how HK was in older times, and some of the less corporate-like activities are still carried out, like farming, fishing, and industrial estates. Western influence has not fully transformed the New Territories, but this is fast changing. One can still see evergreen countryside and mountains, which are a rare sight on HK Island and Hong Kong.

And finally, you see some of the scattered islands such as Lamma, Cheung Chau and Lantau. These islands are not very developed, and populations are sparse. Collectively they are known as the Outlying Island and make perfect spots for a quick getaway from the city.

Wow, I didn’t realise I could describe Hong Kong in so much details, considering that I have just moved here three months ago. I guess I just picked up the knowledge along the way… especially I lost way traveling from one spot to another.

Yes, I am such a klutz.

Posted in: General | Tagged: , , , ,