Fresh back from a trip to visit some factories in Shenzhen and Dongguan, I extended 1 more day to stay in Hong Kong, and catch up with an old friend in the evening.I chanced upon this gem of a park, it is off Queensway, road, just behind the Hong Kong High Courts and at the start of the Mid Levels. Starting from my hotel along Waterfront road, it took me about 20 minutes along first Harcourt, then into Fenwick Street, Hennessy Road, and then Queensway. For a change, I did not indulge in any high end shopping and I was rewarded with a nice little free afternoon mingling amongst orchids,cacti, man made waterfalls, an aviary and even chanced upon a bridal shower taking place !
Hong Kong is best covered by walking, and yesterday's weather was slightly overcast and a cool 23 deg C with some winds. I thoroughly enjoyed the free entry to the floral and fauna consevatory which housed plants grown in arid and semi arid deserts, tropical plants and some temperate plants. The fact that it was free in free wheeling Hong Kong made it all the more surprising to me, so the best things in life after all ARE free.
Air, the warmth of a stranger's nod or smile acknowledging your presence, people being courteous and the helping hand of a stranger makes my day. I too, give back in return my fair share of the material and non-material presents to make the day more sane or palatable for many who have to toil much harder than me.
The waterfall cascades down 10 meters or so.
The park is on uneven ground, so there is a fair bit of climbing and walking up and down of steps. I take this as my daily 10,000 step health workout, so its all in all good for the body and the soul. I also did the 105 steps to the top of the lookout point to get some vantage view and a sliver of a view of the world famous Hong Kong harbour ("Fragrant Harbour' literally translated from Chinese Xiang Hang).
I still do have some relatives who live in Hong Kong, Aunt Betty and Grand Aunt are HK residents who migrated to Ireland but routinely come back as they have a home at the Peak.
So, the park has several highlights. 1.Clock Tower - it looks more like a Cenotaph where the war dead are remembered. 2. Tea Museum 3. Fountain and Waterfall area 4. Registry of Marriages 5. Conservatory for plants 6. Aviary (it is closed till Feb 2019) 7. Tai Chi Garden where the busts of several of the SARS heroes, the healthcare professionals who died trying to contain the horrible 2003 epidemic. 8. Lookout point - 105 steps, I counted !
Contentment
In my next post, I will put up some pictures of the SARS 'fighters', the healthcare professionals who gave their lives on the frontlines during the SARS epidemic of 2003. It shook the world over and thankfully was contained in a matter of 6 months.
May we never make the same mistakes of the past, by eating things which are not meant to be eaten in the first place. People seldom learn and retain, as shown by history.
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