Day 29: Spirituality and Sickness

I went on another heritage walk today, covering the temples and heritage parks in the Wong Tai Sin District.

I have, for many years, claimed that Kowloon is the dark side of Hong Kong, but the more I explore it, the more I realise how many hidden treasures there are in the peninsula and I was glad to have seen some of those today. The first place I went to was the Nan Lian Garden, which is a Tang dynasty garden in Diamond Hill with classical structures, water ponds, rocks, etc that are all designed and arranged to imitate nature and the elements as per Chinese customs and Feng-Shui. The garden was in one word, gorgeous! The structures were colourful, the flowers still in bloom, the bonsai trees standing beautifully and what not...!

The next stop was the Chi Lin Nunnery, which stands next to the Nan Lian Garden. The buildings at the nunnery are also built using the architecture style of the Tang dynasty (i.e. without using any nails, etc) and are the only buildings in Hong Kong to be built with wooden roofs. There's some huge statues of the Buddha in the nunnery which are just as beautiful as the architecture. Loved it! Mind you, I love most monasteries and nunneries I've visited...there's a certain calm there that just relaxes you completely...

Next was the Wong Tai Sin Temple. Unfortunately I didn't take that many photos there because it was all a little too cramped and the light was a little horrible to get a decent shot. Any way, this temple is one of the largest temples in Hong Kong as it caters to three of the most popular Chinese religions in Hong Kong: Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism. There were some gorgeous buildings here as well and maybe if I have time (and patience) during the Wong Tai Sin Festival next year, I'll go and take some proper photos.

Lastly, I went to the Kowloon Walled City Park, which sits over the remains of the village by the same name. It was apparently the only settlement in the Hong Kong territory that remained out of British jurisdiction during the colonial rule. It's also the last place of refuge that the emperor from the Song Dynasty took during the attack from the Mongols before drowning himself. The Japanese destroyed most of the city during the second world war to provide materials for the Kai Tak Airport though and eventually it was agreed by the PRC and British authorities to completely demolish the village and build a park over the location...this park wasn't really as impressive as the Lan Nian Garden, but it was amazing to see some of the architecture that still stood from ages back! Don't get me wrong, it was a beautiful park, but the wear on some of the remaining structures do make it a sad sight, especially with the history connected.

Overall, I had a really good time walking around all these places. I'm always surprised at how little of Hong Kong I've seen despite living here for so many years! And each time I do see something new, I'm always impressed by it! Hopefully I'll have seen most of it by the time I leave.

Oh and after my trip, I got sick. Flu season! Huzzah! But anyway, here are a few more unedited images from the walk. Left to right: Entrance to the Nan Lian Garden, Golden Pagoda at the Garden, Oriental Carp, Chi Lin Nunnery



Today's Flickr Uploads: Peng Chau's Harvest n' Rubbish