Travelog.net: Hong Kong: Relaxing in South HK Island

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Thursday May 7th, 1998; Relaxing in South Hong Kong Island

When I finally woke up, I decided to take the day to tour around to the south end of Hong Kong Island. It’s a different world from the hustle and bustle of Central and Wanchai.

To get a better idea of Hong Kong Island, try to imagine this: Fill New Jersey up with Chinese people (Kowloon, across Victoria Harbor). Then take New York City (Central, Wanchai etc., the "business end of HK island), smash it against a mountain, on the other side of the mountain, put a mini French Riviera (Shek-O, Stanley, Repulse Bay) complete with sub-tropical beaches. That’s Hong Kong. Sort of.

I had seen the New Jersey and New York side, now I wanted to take a vacation.

I took the Star Ferry across Victoria Harbor and grabbed the number 6 bus that took my up Happy Valley--then the change began. As we approached the top of Mt Nicholson the high-rises abruptly stopped and we suddenly were surrounded by green, brush-covered mountains. The only indication of civilization was the traffic jam on the two lane road.

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Lush hills of the interior of HK Island (DCS-120)

We continued on through the lush scenery, around Violet Hill, down towards the rugged, scenic southern coastline, past Repulse Bay and into Stanley on the far south side of Hong Kong Island.

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Southern HK Island, Near Repulse Bay (DCS-120)

The south side of Hong Kong island seems like a different world. It's still vertically dominated; there are little communities with a few high-rise condos, but they are spread out along a rugged and beautiful coastline. It's far more tranquil and scenic than Hong Kong and surprisingly relaxed and uncrowded given the fact it's less than a half hour bus ride from one of the busiest, most densely populated places in the world.

Stanley is a small community of well-to-do Gweilo (Chinese term for westerners; translates roughly to "foreign devil"). It's well known for it's market, which is big and--lucky for me--had Gwailo sizes. But other than that I was not impressed. I like the hustle and bustle of the Temple Street and Mong Kok markets a lot more.

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Stanley Beach (DCS-120)

But I did learn a bit about Chinese cultural relations while I was wandering through the market in Stanley.

I wanted to take a few pictures. Of the market. I have found that the brazen "Hang on Millie I am gonna snap a picture of all this local color" style of tourist photography where you leap up, pull out the camera and start snapping away wildly doesn’t play well in HK. In the Philippines or Indonesia, if you have a camera you can get crowds to pose and groups will call you over to demand that you take their picture; HK was a little to jaded for that. They tolerate the mobs of tourists with cameras--at best. So I have been taking most of my street shots fairly obscurely, holding the camera low, guessing at the aim and snapping candid shots of my unaware victims.

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The old woman, seconds before
my lecture (DCS-120)

And I had planned on doing that in the Stanley market. But I had accidentally turned on the flash on my Kodak digital camera. Oops. As I attempted to snap a picture of this little old Chinese woman in the market, POP goes the flash. For my carelessness I was dished out a severe lecture in Cantonese by the old woman that involved a fair amount of finger waving directly in front of my nose. (Mental note: triple check camera setting before taking candid photos….)

A couple pairs of shorts (about HK$20 or US$ 2.50 each), a pair of Calvin Klein knock-off khakis and copy Banana Republic shirt later, I was bored. I decided to leave Stanley and head along the coast to some of the other communities.

After just missing the first number 73 bus (the driver, who wouldn’t make change, slammed the door in my face after I had returned, running, from a block long dash to make change myself), I caught the next one over to Aberdeen. My original plan was to stop for a little sun and a dip in the ocean at Repulse bay (there's a very nice, big beach there), but the sun was already creeping low and I decided to skip the beach and see the junks in the harbor at Aberdeen.

Note: what's the difference between a "junk" and a "sampan?" Junk is a general term that refers to any fishing vessel, frequently the term used for the live aboard fishing boats that dot some of Hong Kong's harbors. A sampan is a small motorized boat that serves as harbor ferry; they can often be rented for small group tours. There are also "kaido" a ferry which is like a sampan, just larger.

I hopped off the bus at Aberdeen right next to the harbor and, in the dwindling light started snapping pictures of the junks and sampans plying the water. Little old ladies harassed me. "You want sampan ride, yes, yes? Come, come, you take ride. Hurry!" I politely declined and started taking some pictures of the junks in the harbor.

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Junks in Aberdeen Harbor (DCS-120)

Aberdeen Harbor is filled with fishing junks. They are nice to look at, but they are more modern and less colorful than the junks that filled Hong Kong's harbors years ago. But it was still a pretty sight.

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Top secret, very confidential really...
(DCS-120)

While I was taking pictures I slowly became aware that the man jabbering away behind me wasn’t talking to anybody. I glanced back to see a frenzied looking Chinese man jabbing and pointing at the air directly behind me and carrying on a non-stop monologue with a non-existent second party. After a minute I realized that it wasn’t in Chinese, but thickly accented English; I only caught bits and pieces:

"The order came from White House." "Top secret, very confidential really…." "President Clinton order it himself…"

After he had wandered off and sat down I turned to discretely (camera held low, no flash) take a picture of him. He was eyeing me though, and as I walked by I heard him mutter "Cameras, cameras, cameras. They are always watching now…"

Once I had bagged my sampan pictures, I headed home. Stopped at the Wellcome Supermarket on Nathan Road, just a block and a half north of Mirador Mansions—that’s the place to go for cheap groceries, beer and soda. I stocked for the weekend. If you want to party in HK, you are better off having the first few beers in the room (a budget "Bruck" or a "Star" will set you back only HK$ 3.50 each) and fewer tap beers at your destination (beers are ususally HK$ 40 and up in the bars).

Other Hong Kong Entries

Partying in Hong Kong May 22-23, 1998

Mingling with the Movie Stars May 20, 1998

Travelog.net Goes to the Movies May 18, 1998

Musings on Hong Kong from Victoria Park May 17, 1998

Cheung Chau Island and Weird Dharma at the Temple May 8, 1998

Relaxing in South Hong Kong Island May 7, 1998

Victoria Peak, Night Market and Talking All Night May 6, 1998

Smoke, Panic and Fire in the Middle of the Night May 5, 1998

Arriving in Hong Kong April 26th, 1998

Last updated: Friday, July 24, 1998 05:21 PM

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