We’ve decided to make today, the last sunny day of the week, an excursion day. No homework day. Just get up and let’s go on an adventure – type day. The rest of the week is supposed to be wet and depressing, with threats of a rain squall Saturday. So today, we make the most out of this warm-ish, cloudy-ish day! But first, I brush and rinse with poison. Bleh!
To get to today’s destination, we have to take a bus for an hour to transfer to another mode of transportation. There’s about 10-15 minute walk between the bus and the transfer point, and it takes us through this mall:
To get to where we’re going, we have to take a cablecar. We follow the stream of people and see the enormous lineup. Joe says “we’re going to be stuck in this line for an hour”. Luckily, he was wrong, and 20 minutes later, we find ourselves in a cable car with four other people.
When we get to the top of our ride, we’re in a commercial modern area, with restaurants, souvenirs and shops all begging for our business. We walk towards the main event, the Tian Tan Buddha, or Big Buddha, and there’s a very clear divide. Suddenly we’re on traditional ground, no big brands, no big posters, no pressure. Small vendors selling incense, snacks and drinks. Once we enter the temple grounds, it shifts again. All stores have big posters about proceeds going to the temple’s chosen charities.
The temple grounds are busy, I guess they always are. We are walking behind a group of people, and they’re all holding various sizes of incense. One man is holding three enormous ones, they’re bigger than me! I wonder what the different sizes mean, are the bigger ones apologies for past mistakes, or prayers for help?
We walk through the temple grounds, and unfortunately have to skip the banquet style restaurant, where Joe and I had the best vegetarian meal I’ve ever had last time we were here, 13 years ago. Directly across the banquet hall, is this gorgeous building:
So instead of a banquet, with a seven course meal ordered per person at our table, we go for the vegetarian café on the premises. We think/hope it’s the same kitchen preparing food for both! The girls order their favourite dim sum pieces, Téa opting for a BBQ pork bun (because of course) and a lo bak go (turnip cake), Maylin wanting a spring roll, a sesame ball and a meat dumpling, and because they came in orders of three, I asked for a taro pudding as well. Joe and I split an order of “vegetarian sampler platter”.
The vegetarian sampler plate was three different vegetarian “textures”, probably at least two soy/tofu based, and I think the one on the bottom, the BBQ sauce covered one, is probably seitan. It’s chewier, has more of a “beefy” texture. The yellow looking one in the middle is in a curry sauce, and the top one, more orange looking one, is in a sweet and sour sauce. These are all very tasty, and remind me of the flavours and textures of the banquet many years ago. The one dish that stands out in my mind from back then though, is the tofu. House made and fresh, it was the smoothest, most delicious tofu I had ever had. I remember it vividly, and secretly (or maybe not so secretly) wish I could have it again.
Once satisfied and ready, we headed back out of the temple grounds, aiming for the Big Buddha and the climb to get up there. But first, Téa needs to pose for a picture:
Directly outside the temple area is a gate, and beyond that, Tian Tan Buddha himself:
We did walk all the stairs on the inside of the Big Buddha as well, and I was shocked when I learned when this statue was built. Then, it’s time to walk back down. The 268 steps take no time whatsoever when you’re walking down!
Last time we were here, Joe and I took the cable car up and the bus back. We probably should have done that this time too, we have all become fans of relaxing on buses, instead of switching several subways along the way to get where we’re going. When we get off the cable car, the bus towards home is a couple of minutes away, so we skip the mall walk and head for home instead.
Except for… when we get closer to our home stop, Joe decides we can stay on an extra couple of stops and go to the next mall for our mall walk. We browse the floors at Plaza Hollywood, and look everywhere for the promised Men Wah Bin Teng, but cannot find it. I ask at the information desk, and am told we have to exit the mall, walk around the corner and up along the outside of the mall to find it. Which we do, but how they can say they’re on the first floor of this mall, is beyond me…
Mall walk and afternoon snack done and over with, it’s now time to find a bus and head home. We still have food in the fridge, so make our own dinner tonight, and watch half a movie before bed. We had a fun day today, I wonder what tomorrow will hold!