Good ol' Mui Wo. I say this because when I first decided to move homes it was Mui Wo my girlfriend…read moreand I searched in. When we arrived we were struck by the amazing feeling that Mui Wo had actually frozen in time, it looked like it was stuck in some place a decade ago! We instantly fell in love with it from then and there. It's charm is not only associated with its back-in-time feel. It has a range of fantastic seafood restaurants along the water front and towards the beach, a handful of extremely tasty western restaurants and quirky, unique stores by the pier. Don't ask me what's behind the beach towards the mountains - mosquitos, spiders, and snakes? As well as a couple of hiking trails and waterfalls... probably...maybe? Now that I live here, by the pier, I eat out at least once a day (great for the taste buds, not so great for the wallet), feel less stressed, and do not miss the city life one bit. Ok, there are times when I miss a ferry by a minute and stomp around like an angry toddler cursing the infrequency of the timetable, or other times when I need to plan my entire day if I'm going to do more than one activity on 'the other side' (Hong Kong Island). But those occasions are few and far between. I'm not the only one who loves this little place. On weekends all the hikers, beach goers, and tourists stream off of ferries and buses to have a chilled out BBQ, visit one of the beaches down at Cheung Sha, or visit Tai O fishing village. Don't forget Lantau is the biggest of all of Hong Kong's islands and Mui Wo is a perfect place to start the Lantau adventure!

I have heard so much about Lam Tei before - The Steak House... The famous Red Seasons Aroma…read moreRestaurant where people have to line up for hours if reservation is not made before... And I am glad to have come here because one of my private tutee lives here. Basically I come here at least once a week and I would say that it is a rather nice and comfy neighborhood. Taking the Light Rail, I would say for first timer, the direction to Lam Tei Village is very difficult to navigate. You can either go over the foot bridge or cross the main road. Anyhow, once you see the narrow road that leads straight to Lam Tei, you just enter this village. And get ready to be wow by this place. At first it looks like one of those countryside streets where people on both sides are selling different products, you may find barber shop, bakery, grocery shops, wine shop for rich guys who live here as well. But then you will soon realize lots of tourists coming here for the restaurants here like the Steak House that denies your access if you do not make reservation before - kind of pricey - around HKD300 to HKD400 for a plate; or the Chinese restaurant, etc. Walk further in and you are surrounded with village houses, three storey or so. You can also see a Lam Tei temple. I guess the traditional side of this place is still well preserved. For outsiders, please be warned about stray dogs. I am so scared of dogs so whenever I finish my class at night, I have to take out my flashlight to make sure I am safe...

Nice acquainted quiet little town with a lot of small or tinny shops and restaurants and markets…read moreand temple. It's more of a fishing village with nice folks and the seafood foods are cheap and fresh. It's a perfect getaway from the big city. Very peaceful and lovely place to be.

It's clearly a tourist trap, but it was a good way to spend a few hours, especially if you're…read morealready making the trek to see Big Buddha. The village has some souvenir shops, some restaurants, and some "attractions". The souvenir shops were cool and probably had stuff that you couldn't find at other landmarks' souvenir shops. I only ate at the more traditional/localized restaurants like a tofu fa (sweet tofu pudding) shop and small stalls selling fish balls and shui mai. Skip the fish balls and shui mai if you see them at small stalls; they tasted so bad. Since I came here a bit after Chinese New Year, I got to see a wishing tree for the first time in person!

One of the must see places in Hong Kong is the Tian Tan Buddha in Lantau. An exceptionally popular…read moreplace for tourists and locals, it quickly gets crowded throughout the day. The Tian Tan Buddha is totally worth seeing and visiting (I'll review that another day) but what is lesser known is that in the area surrounding the Buddha there are many hiking trails. There are short day hikes, to long multi-day hikes that you can do. The mountains and forest are incredibly beautiful and if I had the time I probably would've taken the opportunity to hike all over them. Unfortunately I only had time to do one hike, which lead me to the "Wisdom Path." There are numerous wooden columns propped up along the hillside with verses from the sutra "Prajna-paramita Heart Sutra." I've uploaded a pic of the placard found next to this site. It's a beautiful place to visit and if you're there early enough, there are no people around to disturb the silence of the mountains. Looking out across the forest and hills, I can clearly understand why Hong Kong was settled so long ago and why people still flock to it's shores. My thoughts are interrupted by the song of a bird, and I smile, the wisdom path is a place worth visiting. Technical information: It's about a 10 minute walk from the monastery and there is almost no elevation. The path is semi-well maintained and wide enough for 4 people to walk abreast.

A short hike from the Big Buddha down the Ngong Ping fun walk will lead you to the wisdom path…read morewhich were passages from Heart Sutra inscribed on tall stone planks arranged in an infinity symbol. Kind of like a twisted version of Stonehenge. There was a path that takes you alongside the planks. Some parts were steep, but manageable with sneakers. The whole structure can also be viewed from a viewing platform a bit further down the trail. Here there were some signs describing the significance of the wisdom path and indicating which characters appeared on each plank. The fun walk took us past some abandoned buildings, but it seemed safe enough as the path was heavily used. It was interesting and definitely had a spiritual sense to the area, but can be skipped if short on time.

Outdoor, public park, free of charge, open spaced, not cramped by Hong Kong highrises, along the…read morewater. Relaxing, cycling, picnicing, busking, dog walking...just being! Absolutely pay the West Kowloon Waterfront Promenade and really the West Kowloon Cultural District Park that is emerging in this area a visit. We had cause to be in this area to attend one of the "Freespace Happenings" that takes place the second and fourth Sunday of each month from September to March in the Nursery Park portion of this emerging cultural district. What a great outdoor, open space for all of Hong Kong to enjoy. This was then how we discovered the walking promenade. Not super easy to get to, we took the MTR from Hong Kong on the orange line to Kowloon Station and kind of followed the signs to the West Kowloon Cultural District, that will also get you to the West Kowloon Waterfront Promenade. It is maybe a 10-15 minute walk, because you have to take the foot bridge up and over the busy tunnel road. Along the promenade itself, it is lovely. Seemed pretty clean and it was a great view of Hong Kong and the harbour. We kind of meandered around and just enjoyed the outdoor space. There were thousands of people out and about enjoying the day. Wedding photos were being taken, graduation commencement gatherings were around, picnics of friends, people signing as buskers to the public. There are some public toilets up near the nursery portion of the park as well. The West Kowloon Cultural District (as this whole area is formerly called) is in the middle of a huge expansion and build out of M+ Pavillion (run-up facility to opening of art museum itself), M+ Building (the actual modern art museum), Xiqu Centre (for traditional xiqu performaces and cantonese opera), Lyric Theatre Complex (dance & theatre) and Freespace (for concerts and events). So although the promenade is a great outdoor space, just wait. It appears it is literally just the start of some cultural greatness for Hong Kong to come in 2017-2020. So why not stroll over there and check it out now.

Lapping waves, an awesome view across to HK Island, and a cool mixed-use space await you here. I've…read morebeen twice - for HK's Freespace Fest and for a random wandering on my own. Once was during the daytime, and once at night. Both were enjoyable times! You could bring snacks and eat outdoors, or use your selfie-stick for some kick-ass photos. There are also bikes to rent, and relatively clean public toilet facilities. The place doesn't earn more stars, for me, for several reasons. One - because it's quite a walk to get there from the nearest bus stop (there's a large depot underneath Elements) or MTR station. Two - because it has so much unmet potential. There are major plans in the works for this area, and with its prime waterfront location and stunning views, it could be so much more, so I await the upcoming arts and culture complex with bated breath. Three - because the way to get to the actual promenade is, quite frankly, pretty ugly and run-down. Again, there is so much potential! But who wants to walk for 7 minutes past barbed-wire fences and multi-lane highways full of exhaust to get to a pleasant picnic spot? I'll be keeping my eye on the Promenade and hopefully it will transform into something amazing, earning many 5-star reviews :)

Really spacious and next to many artworks and displays outside. Has a souvenir shop with…read moreinteresting trinkets and also small business items.

The building's exterior is a major hot spot for Instagram pictures, as is the rest of the…read morepromenade. It really doesn't look like much at first glance, but it looks amazing in photographs. I, personally, have never saw a performance here, but I did go inside to use the restroom. There's also seats in the middle of the lobby, which is absolutely perfect for resting aching feet after strolling around East Tsim Sha Tsui.

For aviation enthusiasts, this is a must visit place in your list when you visit Hong Kong Airport…read more Not only you get to enjoy the museum, you can also catch a movie or do some plane spotting with your DSLR camera at the sky deck. Plane spotting only when runway 25 in used. Depending on the season and wind direction, aircraft can either use runway 07 or 25. If 07 in used, you can forget about taking photos, for 25, most of the traffic would land on runway 25R, just follow the crowd, if you see them moving to the direction of runway 25L, it means something is coming in on that runway and usually the cargo planes land on that runway. For non aviation enthusiasts, do drop by and discover more about aviation, the history of Kai Tak Airport and how the airline operation works, I find it to be very useful and informative. The Hong Kong aviation authorities are very encouraging towards the enthusiasts and I hope more airports can follow this example. Head to terminal 2 departure hall and take the escalator up, you can't miss it. Enjoy your time there!

Sheung wan civil center is definitely one of the more modest looking theaters for shows and…read moreperformances to take place; located right next to the sheung wan wet market, this multiple story complex offers also badminton courts, gym rooms and rehearsal room to the neighborhood. The most vivid memory that i can recall for this place is the experience of lining up for tickets for Inter-varsity dance competition (IVDC) when i was still a executive committee member of the dance society in uni; due to some stupid policy each and every dance society has to go to urbtix to buy tickets for their respective uni. Since I live on the island side, i have to wait here overnight until the box office is open. Aside of that, the rehearsal room on the 10th floor is also a place i visit often. With the mirror and barre installed, it is quite perfect for dance rehearsals to take place. However, since the location is rather convenient and the price is insanely low when compared to studios of similar sort, you have to book in advance and compete against other applicants in speed in order to place your booking. Seriously, can't they just use other rooms for non dancing related activities? Says the selfish me

Highlight of my first Solo travel is my visit at the west of central Hong Kong. Start the walking…read moretour at the Western Market. Medicinal Stores and specialty shops are found at the Stretch of Wing Lok road. More of the quaint stores, art galleries, curious cafe and hip restaurants are located at Upper Lascar Row, Gough Street, and Hollywood road. Interesting street art are everywhere, free for public consumption.