Solo Traveling in Tai O Village
With the glamorous and cityscape of Hong Kong, people always have an initial perception of modernity with cultural value when thinking about Hong Kong. This is because the most exposure about the Hong Kong is related to urban-centric area, filled with skyscrapers or maybe some local stalls in Mong Kok area. However, what we usually see about this common exposure is only represented a little portion of Hong Kong, probably just 10%.
From this, I want to invite you to experience a part of the other 90% of Hong Kong, a small fishing village in the Western tip of Lantau Island, Tai O Village. This village is already being one of tourist spots, but this will introduce you to different atmosphere from urban life in Hong Kong
The Journey
It was an unfortunate Sunday morning. I encountered the issue that really prevent my navigation on that day, which is SIM card problem. Hoping from one 7 Eleven to other 7 Eleven, I am just hoping someone can solve my problem or selling new SIM card. Thank God, after hoping to several convenience stores, I get a new SIM card, sit on the corner of street and setting the new card.
It was 11.00 AM, I was worried if I late for this trip. To give you a picture, from Wan Chai to Tai O village will take 2 hours of journey. Taking a MTR from Hong Kong station, I arrived in Tung Chung station after almost 1 hour MTR ride.
The station is really packed.
Tung Chung also become a point to take cable car ride to Ngong Ping village. The line was really insane, it was really long, I believe if I join the line, it would take me almost an hour just to get the cable car. But, hey, we will go for another direction that probably less popular compared to Ngong Ping. So, there will be no line needed, right?
No, I was wrong.
It took me around 40 minutes to get a bus to Tai O Village. Guess you need to long queue for almost everything in Hong Kong during weekend.
The line is mostly filled with Chinese-speaking tourist. An old seems-outgoing tourist talk to me with Chinese. But I just reply with the only conversational Chinese word that I know which is 我不知道. But he kept talking to me. I wish I just pay attention when my Mandarin teacher teach me at High School.
Just outside Tung Chung area, you can sense totally different vibe from urban towards more natural landscape. You will be presented with coastal view, reservoir, and forest. The street on that day was really quiet, just a few car passing by.
A Glance Impressions to Fishing Village
I arrived in Tai O at 2 PM, in total almost 3 hours journey from Wan Chai. The scent of sea and seafood is the first thing that I feel once I stepped out from the bus. The sky on that day was really bright with a harsh sunlight but since it was a winter I didn’t feel hot anyway.
You will be presented with a lot of local food stall once you enter the gate of Tai O. Mostly they sell seafood-based street food such as fishball soup, grilled fish, dried seafood, and others. As a fishing village, you can’t avoid your attention to local fish market as it swarms everywhere in Tai O. Despite of everywhere-fish market, Tai O also serve a small centralised market, which called Tai O Market. Not only selling sea produce, but also selling other produces like cured meat, fruit, but it mostly food ingredients.
Locating at the shore, this village is connected with multiple bridges. In the bridge, this is when I realise I don’t expect that Hong Kong have this kind of vibes. Being transfer back in time maybe is an overstatement for me. The structure of the local settlement is supported with wooden stilt structure, remind me with what I saw in Tan Jetty, Penang. A local live closely with each other with the distance between local house is almost no exist, making the population there quite dense. The canal is not one of the cleanest that I’ve ever witness but there is no any garbage floating in their water system.
The canal itself is utilised by local, not only for their transport but also boat excursion for tourist. This boat will across the canal and surrounding sea, giving you multiple perspective of Tai O village. I didn’t take this excursion so I can’t say anything about this. Some people would say Tai O as a Venice of Orient. I was surprised that they have a restaurant with Venice name there.
The only thing that maybe similar to urban Hong Kong for me is the crowd. Indeed, the crowd mostly come from tourist and that was the weekend so can’t deny this gonna be pack. With just a small pavement road, it was really easy to bump with other people especially in particular street food stalls.
Trekking and Golden Hour Mission
My objective in Tai O is not only sightseeing the village but I aim to take a hike to one of the great view point in Hong Kong. This spot is Fu Shan Viewing Point. The navigation in Tai O village is really easy to understand. It really guides me the way to the viewing point.
I started to begin my journey to trek at 4.00 PM after strolling around, eating snack, and relaxing in Tai O Village. Once again, the signpost in Tai O really helps me to navigate my way to Fu Shan, so as a solo traveler I don’t get lost. Reaching the viewpoint, it takes around 20-30 minutes, depends on the fitness level. The path is already paved so once again you can’t lose here because it gives more clarity to which path that you should go through. But for me, the last two stairways is the most challenging, successfully makes my leg sore and almost run out of the breath.
Just before the viewpoint, I saw the statue of 4 white dolphins with 2 facing the other two. Thinking about it right now, I am just conclude that the directions that dolphin face are align with the sunrise and sunset direction. As the sun start to set, the sky change to the orange hue, a soft sun light beams the face of this dolphin statue. I’ve just imagine if this statue is alive, maybe they become one of the luckiest dolphin since they can witness this sunset view everyday.
Near the golden hour, people start to gather around in the viewpoint for sunset. It was not really crowded so I can enjoy strolling around while enjoying the view. This viewpoint is in the form of a stoned-trail bounded by orange-fence, sort of having a same colour palette with tori in Japan, with viewing pavilion in some points. Fu Shan is quite close to Hong Kong International Airport. So at frequent moment, I hear the engine sound of airplane, taking off or landing in the one of the busiest airport in Asia. Apart from that, from this viewpoint, not only I could see the Tai O from height, but also HZM Bridge, which connect Hong Kong with Zuhai and Macau. I spent my moment there enjoying the view and flying my drone to capture the landscape.
Umair Siddiqui
May every sunrise hold more promise and every sunset hold more peace
For me, overall, it is such a personal mission accomplished. When I was thinking about exploring Hong Kong years ago, I never thought to experience natural beauty. Turns out, if you’re doing the research to go outside the urbanscape Hong Kong, there would be a plenty option to enjoy the beauty that Hong Kong offers.
Perhaps, I would like to explore more area in Hong Kong for the future visit.