Weekend Day Trip: 龍脊➡大浪灣

Halfway point...enjoying the view.

An unfortunate turn of events turned to be a blessing in disguise! Celeste and I had originally planned to attend one of HKU's club's event to go clamming and barbecuing on an island...however the night before the event we both get notifications that our application was unsuccessful. We were quite discouraged and unhappy with the organization...perhaps lack of organization that they would accept and process our application and money for the event when its not even guaranteed and we weren't notified of that possibility either. But whatever, when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade! And it's always fun to make lemonade with friends...actually for the sake of my inside story joke...let me back track a bit. When life gives you avocado, you make guac! It is most delish especially when made with friends...even if one of you adds too much pepper (hi Luke & Vivian if you're reading this :p). So spur of the moment, Celeste and I decided to tag along with Tatjana and my roommate Jore's Saturday plan to go hiking and hit the beach. Little did we know how much of a work out it would be...but SO WORTH IT!

We hiked the Dragon's Back (龍脊) trail and it was a good ~8.5 km (>5 mi) trek across the sloppy trail. They weren't kidding when they named it after a dragon's back.

This was pretty much our hike itinerary to the beach:

Starting Point – Shek O Road

From MTR Shau Kei Wan Station, Exit A3, take bus 9 from Shau Kei Wan bus terminus to To Tei Wan on Shek O Road. The entrance to the hike is on Shek O Road near To Tei Wan village. Be sure to look out for the sign!

Shek O Peak

At 284m high, the sightseeing platform atop Shek O Peak is the perfect place to catch your breath while taking in the panorama of Shek O, Tai Long Wan and even the island of Tung Lung.

Shek O Country Park

An urban oasis, this country park was established in 1993 and has three hiking routes: Hong Kong Trail Section 7, Section 8 (Dragon’s Back) and Pottinger Peak Country Trail (Pottinger Gap to Cap Collinson Road). Keep your eyes peeled for rare barking deer which roam the forests here.

End Point - Tai Long Wan

In the unobstructed bay of Tai Long Wan, waves reach several metres high in all seasons, making this a popular haunt for surfers. You can also fuel up at nearby outdoor cafes.

Source: http://www.discoverhongkong.com/eng/see-do/great-outdoors/hikes/dragons-back-hiking-tour.jsp#ixzz2eJRROJOa

The weather this weekend was perfect for hiking. The humidity was quite low and the day was sunny shiny with a nice strong breeze...so pretty much like California weather. We hiked from 11-2 pm ish which is the...HOTTEST TIME OF THE DAY! I was going to allude to a video clip of 2 PM...except I can't locate it on Youtube. Anywho, another thing I really appreciated about this day trip was that I forgot my phone in the apartment. As much as it felt like a loss or seemingly naked feeling, it is quite liberating. It is good to disconnect from the electronic devices society has come to live their life through. Here's a PSA video my friend Kevin made awhile back highlighting the significance of unplugging from our devices:

It is hard to simply LIVE life when there is so much information bombarding us, requiring our already limited attention span. Going through the motions of life is not living. The precious moments will pass and never come back even if we are attempting to "Insta"gram it or "Snap"chat. So forgetting my phone was another blessing in disguise. At first it was a bit uncomfortable, that lingering feeling that I was missing something but eventually I transitioned into just enjoying my day without even worrying about my LINE or Whatsapp or Snapchat inbox or where I was on my Google Maps or when the next bus would arrive or even Instagraming that candid shot of an old person buying vegetables on the street. Instead, I was able to be PRESENT. To be in the moment and remember what it is like to be with people and enjoy the company. It is like going back to the days when people actually looked at each other and talked to each other at the dinner table instead of staring at their screens texting or trying to take the best angle of the dish. I liked it. And I definitely need more days of "forgetting" my phone.

About to start our hike! I need to learn from Louis how to take flawless selfies.

We ain't got no shame. We're tourists.

Jore lost in the foliage. I feel like orange trees should be growing here and can just be ripe for the picking.

Me and my speck.

Lol...false hope. It took us a lot longer than that.

Yay, we're not there yet, but we're still alive!

Tatjana's victory pose!

Jumping photo # 8749573059

LAND HO!!!!!!

Lol...Jore's hair! The wind was pretty strong but it felt so good! Whooosh.

Islands in the sun.

It's the climbbbbbbbb!

Are we there yet???

SO MUCH GREEN! Dragon's Back is voted the one of the top urban hiking destinations.

Whut...mountain biking on this terrain?!?!?!

Figuring out which direction to go in...I feel like we're in Alice in Wonderland.

Okay, we ran into like 5 of these abnormally large spiders...it was so funny because we all panicked and ran away screaming. Wish I caught it on video.

Bumped in to this group of girls so many times on the road. Haha, we ended up just exchanging cameras and taking group photos for one another.

So a big surprise to me was that there was ABSOLUTELY NO trash on the trail. I am quite impressed.

Taking a quick snack break. Jore makes the best apple pancakes!

We finally found the beach!

I love seeing the beach towns in different countries. The similarities and the differences...feels like home yet not at the same time.

Time to hit the beach!

Essentials: Backpack, towel, $$$, clothes, beach towel, flip-flops, and that coconut.

HYDRATION...feeling replenished...this is paradise...what is school?

Another jumping photo...Europeans like jumping photos. :p

Original

Postcard version heh.

I am so happy! I love eating coconut meat.

This girl! <3

Shameless advertisements.

Enjoy the view.

Hello, my name is Vivian To and I'm heading to the study rooms. <3 love you roomie.

Legit.

Today was a GOOD GOOD day. Satisfied.

We ended the remainder of the day around the MTR Shau Kei Wan Station doing the traditional Hong Kong outdoor market shopping for vegetables and fruits. We had dinner at a random restaurant...I think I'm starting to find sharing cuisines with people as a past time. I like attempting to describe the dish similar to something they are familiar with and then witness their reaction after trying the dish. It is so fun getting to share my culture with people and I love it when its the other way around too! One of the best things about studying abroad is not that you only learn about the country you're temporarily residing in but you also learn about all the other students' cultures that are studying abroad as well.