Yes, we had a very different holiday. We went back to mother nature and it brought back sweet memories of my childhood days at Changi village!
Mui Wo is a small village in Lantau Island, Hong Kong. We wanted to get away from the maddening crowd of Shanghai and found this place through the internet. We have never been there and it turned out to be a great choice. However, this place is not for everyone although it is indeed a beauty. To get to the village, you have to travel either by the Lantau taxi or the public bus. It is about 30 mintues drive from the Hong Kong International Airport, going through mountains and valleys. If you have motion sickness, it can be a challenge.
After the roller coaster ride, we arrived at our hotel - The Silvermine Beach Hotel. Ok, this is not your idea of a beach resort - five stars hotel, with five swimming pools facing the sea, with white clean deck chairs placed under colourful beach umbrellas and having hunks and beautys serving you with wine cooler. Remember...back to mother nature!. I would give this hotel just three and a half stars. It is like your NTUC chalet but of a higher class. Buffet breakfast is served every morning but it is FULLY self-service. Including getting your own coffee and tea, refilling them! But the friendly staff, beautiful and clean environment are enough to make us talk about our next trip there!
This was the beach in front of the hotel...low tide and the villagers were gathering clams, mussels, oysters and any shell fish they could find. YES!!! expect lots of fresh seafood and YES! we had them. Yum-mo!
The surroundings. Raw and rustic
We went crazy looking at the menu and dh placing the orders. The man taking our order was getting worried. It's heavenly you know, eating fresh seafood just beside the sea. Not now, then when?
Fresh clams stir-fry with black bean sauce. Ooo, sooo good! Even the kids enjoyed the food
You wake up to such beauty, what more could you ask for. This...is heaven on earth!After the many months of never ending winter, the kids finally could enjoy some outdoor fun. With the beach at their doorstep, they wasted no time...
Always enjoy taking pictures of dh with the two kids. He is indeed very good with them
I always find Kai very amazing. He is short-sighted but he always has an eye for small tiny creatures and he loves looking for them and they love finding him too... a hermit crab
Looks like, Ann is going to be quite like him soon
We also took the bus to Tai O. A forty-five minutes ride to a fishing village.
The bus stop
On our way there...up and down the mountains. Isn't life like that, we have our up moments and our down moments
Tai O, the fishing village. Now, what does one expect to see at a fishing village? Seafood galore, yipeee! Nothing to worry about as we tucked in
Wet ones
Dried ones. Have you seen dried puffer fish?
And of course...cooked ones! Delicious!
The market place
Freshly baked almond cookies and homemade silky soft bean curd (tau-fu fa)
It's really the best bean curd I have ever eaten. Sorry kids, your mum and papa just needed to eat this! (Ann took this picture of us)
We decided to do a boat ride to the open sea...
Can you spot the side profile of a man?
Then we spotted something moving near a fish trawler...
No, not shark but PINK dolphins. One was in bright pink but I failed to capture it with my camera. Looking at these pink dolphins, those that are enclosed in Sentosa sure don't look too happy. Really, animals, mammals that are meant for the open space should be left to survive in their natural habitat. However, Kai was right in saying that even if those Sentosa dolphins are released to the ocean, they may not survive because they are now used to an enclosed place with food provided for them
Finally, we took a different kind of boat to mainland Hong Kong to meet up with some good old friends. You see, we are friend-starved in Shanghai or rather, I am! Able to meet-up with them is a great pleasure.
Big and spacious, air-conditioned ferry
When we arrived at Hong Kong island, there was a protest going on...
Amazing, a protest going on and lots of shoppers also going about with their shopping. Kai was asking which was the protest banner and which was the sale banner!?
Triss, our long-time friend. Jimmy and Ailing were professional designers who gave up their jobs to be full-time mission workers. The gathering of friends is a joy to the soul
Call me a nature freak but I get lost in the beauty of God's creation. On the last day, before our departure from this wonderful place, while dh and the kids were still snoozing away, I took some time out to enjoy some 'me' time. I capture some final wonderful moments...
The poetic westlake (Xi Hu) of Hangzhou or the rustic beach of Mui Wo...I choose the rustic beauty...
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