Hong Kong

Even though the sky was overcast and hazy, we had a great, if not brief, time exploring Hong Kong.  Our hotel was near the airport and we took the hotel shuttle into town, about an hour away.

Walking along near the harbor, we passed a crafts market.

Wallets and purses made of cork

Craftsman with wooden peanut and animals

We took the Star Ferry to Kowloon which lies in the northern part of Hong Kong, on the mainland across Victoria Harbor. Once a separate city, it was acquired by Britain in 1860 and returned to China with the rest of the colony in 1997. It’s now a shopping, arts and entertainment district. The fleet of twelve ferries currently operates two routes across the harbor, carrying over 70,000 passengers a day or 26 million a year.

Interior of the 100-year old ferry--lots of beautiful polished wood

View of skyline from the ferry 

We then walked (and walked) in and out the city streets.

Nice green area beneath a pedestrian bridge

Trams in Hong Kong have not only been a form of commuter transport for over 110 years, but also a major tourist attraction and one of the most environmentally friendly ways of traveling in Hong Kong.  They have always only used electricity (no fuel or steam). 

"Ding-ding" bus

We went to Victoria Peak.  It was a bit disappointing because of the hazy sky, but still nice.

Old tram on display on Victoria Peak

View of Hong Kong

We returned to the downtown area and passed a veg market.

Incredibly small and beautiful bok choy

Stubby carrots and other root veggies

 Enormous fennel

Pedestrian street teeming with people

Look!  A mah jongg game!

Enjoying a cup of green tea with steamed soy milk--delicious!

On our second day, we took the shuttle bus to a nearby mall to look at the supermarket.  

 

 Fresh fish at the market soon to be on someone's dinner plate

There were products from all over the world, but what really caught my eye was this package of soup fixings:

 Hairy gourd carrot pack, complete with dried octopus

NOW the sabbatical is officially "over".  There are no words (or pictures) that can fully describe the many adventures we had over the last six months in Dublin, Madrid, San Mateo, Auckland and Hong Kong and all the wonderful people we met who broadened our view of the world.

We really missed our kids and especially our grandson, Leo, and are looking forward to our family reunion.  Until next time...

Last shot of New Zealand

I thought we were finished with Auckland, but not so!  Here are the FINAL glimpses:

On our last day, we took a walk around the Domain and visited the Winter Gardens, Victorian hothouses.  There is really an amazing array of plants and flowers.

A fan-like plant

 Water lily that popped through the pad

 Giant pitcher plant

 Giant leaf

And wasn't it nice for Auckland to have one more festival on our last weekend?  This time it was Japan Day.  We saw a few performers who came from Japan for the festival and some interesting food before we had to head to the airport.

These four baton twirlers

 Sweet singer

 Dancers dressed in clothes common in Japanese subculture

Yum!  Fried squid on a stick!

Goodbye, New Zealand!  It's been a FANTASTIC adventure!  Now on to Hong Kong!

Whatipu, Fo Guang Shan Temple and Mt. Wellington

A new destination for us was the southern edge of the Waitakere Ranges Regional Park.  More hiking, more views of the Tasman Sea and more oohs and aahs.

 We had our picnic here near Whatipu Beach at the beginning of our hike up the hill to two lookouts

 On the trail...

View of waves over reefs 

 Aahhhh....

 View from lookout #1

Higher still-view from lookout #2

 This picture and the one above are almost identical taken
a minute apart--notice the change of color

 Thumbs up! Kiwis sure know where to put a bench

Cornwallis Wharf

Empty sea urchin shells

And now for something a little different:

Goldie and Daniel took us to the Fo Guang Shan Temple which is a large temple and community center of the Fo Guang Shan Buddhist movement in Auckland. The temple and complex, opened in 2007, were built over seven years and cost over NZ$ 20 million.   It is the largest Buddhist temple in the country and designed in the architectural style of the Tang Dynasty.  The temple also includes a large Buddha statue and a two-ton bell.

Huge courtyard of the temple

Shrine and donation box

Bas-relief

Prayer session

Statue in the courtyard

There were about 50 different sayings like the one below posted on walls surrounding the courtyard.

This buddha was relaxing on a ball (in the giftshop)
Ahhhhh......

We continued our day to Howick Beach and walked along the boardwalk.  We don't have a picture of the beach, but this is us along the boardwalk with pretty flowers in the background (the flowers were brighter in real life!)

Our last stop of the day was to Mt. Wellington which is a 135-metre volcanic peak.  It is the youngest onshore volcano of the Auckland volcanic field and was  formed by an eruption around 10,000 years ago. It is the largest of Auckland's scoria cones.  What are scoria cones, you ask?  They are also known as cinder cones and are the most common type of volcano. They are the smallest type, with heights generally less than 300 meters. 

View from the top of the mount, looking into the huge crater

Goldie, Daniel and Miles at the top

Us near the crater

Our time in New Zealand is over in a couple of days.  We will spend two days in Hong Kong on the way back to Israel, arriving Feb. 28.  More adventures ahead!