Hong Kong Pt. 2, or I Went to See the Tian Tan Giant Buddha and All I got Was This Lousy Sense of Enlightenment

Another cloudy day, but no rain. So it's off to see the giant Buddha, on Lantau Island near the airport. It's not the largest Buddha, or the largest seated Buddha, or the largest outdoor Buddha, but it is the Largest Outdoor Seated Buddha. So there. A 30 minute train ride takes you to Tong Chung, where this time it's a REAL cable car, the Ngong Ping 360 Skyrail. Not the only way to get there, but definitely the most popular. After about an hour wait in a Disney maze, you're in, and then you're off. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. I think you can tell when I stopped taking them, and I think you can tell why. . . 

The Buddha is part of the Po Lin Monastery (yes, they have their own site), very deep and symbolic and spiritual. A marked contrast to the village between the cable car and the monastery, which seems to have been ordered from www.genuinechinesevillages.com. and put there to make the walk more interesting. And to sell Buddha souvenirs, which shows Buddha is all for a little capitalism. Or is he? Perhaps the answer lies elsewhere. I did have pizza, though it was representational of the species at best. I don't know why vegetarian always includes corn, nor why pineapple is seemingly not thought of as fruit. Any way, there are 260 steps up to the Buddha who was, unfortunately lost in the clouds, as was everything else. But it was still an impressive experience. And the ride back down? Like being in a perfectly white box. . . But I do think that tips the Scale of Universal Balance slightly in my favor, and I'd say Buddha owes me one. 

I spent the rest of the afternoon/evening on the Harbor, and watched a Battle of the Bands. One 80's cover band was so tragically cliched it was painful. But I taped it anyway.