Day Five - Giant Buddhas, Buses, Ferries and Chopsticks

I awoke at 6.30am. SUCCESS (Well, it's a bit perfect, but it's good enough). I decided to give the poor receptionist some rest and stayed in bed and read my Top Gear magazine until half eight. I then headed out to see if George was up, but hoi hotel was all locked up, so I decided to get breakfast, which was
NOT from McDonald's (OMG!!!) I had a coconut cream bun and a chicken teriyaki sandwich, with a chocolate milk and a malted soyabean drink. I found that the soybean milk was actually very nice, and I tasted (honestly) like Kellogg's All Bran. Perfect for breakfast. I then headed back to my hotel and continued to read my magazine until George came and knocked on the door. We then headed out to go to Lantau, to se the Big Buddha. George suggested that beforehand we should try this really good juice bar, and he was right, it was lovely. I had three different Juices to try, and they were all pretty good (even if they don't all sound appetising). They were strawberry, star fruit and avocado. We then spent quite awhile looking for a post box for my many postcards, and we eventually managed to get directions to the post office (opposite the Sheraton hotel, no less), and I thankfully got rid of them all. We then caught the MTR into Hong Kong, and when we arrived headed for the ferry terminal. On the ferry to Mai Wo (Lantau), we played chess (tie, 1 game each). We headed out to catch the bus up to Ngong Ping, home of the Po Lin  Temple and the Big Buddha. we arrived, and headed into Ngong Ping village, slightly disconcerted at the apparent lack of Buddha. We headed to a small shop just before the village for some shopping. Goerge got some sun specs and I got a proper hat. When we then headed into the village proper (It's all been built and set out properly to look nice, a little bit like sterling mills), we asked a woman in the shop where the Buddha was. She looked at us like a pair of absolute dunces (a fair judgement), and pointed to the hill in the directly opposite direction than we were facing. Believe me, if you see the pictures, you'll see exactly how hard it is to miss. We retreated in shame to the 7 eleven for lunch (chicken teriyaki sandwiches and crisps) befor heading off, this time in the right direction.When we arrived at the Big Buddha, we realised, that it wasn't just big, it was BIG! And it made a great photo (see my facebook). We also visited the little gift shop inside, and I departed with a crystal etched buddha, a tiger's eye brecelet and a patron saint of the goat necklace, and a wallet feeling HK$200 lighter (well, it's only 20 pounds). We then headed for the Po Lin monastery. this was a lovely, peaceful place, with incense burning and just the gentle flow of life. There was one strange thing, though. The size of the incense sticks. They ranged from reasonable to HUGE (as in 3 feet high and 2 inches in diameter). It seems, alas, that the amount of zen in buddhism that can be gined in incense can be measured in the size of your wallet. How unfortunate. We then headed back to the bus, and at the stop were surveyed by a guy about the bus comapany. i don't think he was happy ehwn we complained about everytning from the lack of direction to the bus signs, to the leather seats, the exact fare system and a grumpy bus driver. Upon arrival back in Hong Kong, we saw the Open top bus again, and decided to return to the peak (I needed to take photos) and got there only to see the length of the queue for the tram. We then headed straight back on the return bus to central, and decided to get some grub. We saw Yoshinoya, a Japanese resturant, and headed there. It was surprisingly delicious and filling, all except part of my meal which seemed to be cabbage in hot sauce, which we both decided not to eat. We then decided to leave, and I decided that I like the chopsticks, which were porcelain and obviously meant to be returned. Noink! We then decided to call it a night and headed for the star ferry, which brought us back to Tsim Sha Tsui, and this internet Cafe, where this blog ends. Stay Tuned!