.: MENU goes East - Hong Kong, Cheung Chau Island

We read a lot about them in our newspapers, but have yet to see any in SA. Electric Tesla cars are popular in Hong Kong and one often sees several at a time in the street. The acceleration away from a traffic light is ... electric. And silent

Hong Kong does not only have excellent public transport. It also has great facilities for pedestrians. We took a long walk along this overhead pedestrian walkway

with a view across the harbour to the Convention Centre

past a big wheel - It looks bigger than the V&A wheel

and, at the end of the walkway, reached the ferry terminal at Central Pier

We just made it onto the ferry. Using our Octopus cards (similar to Oyster and Istanbulkart & can be used on all public transport - maybe one day the MyCiti will work the same way) cost us $HK2 each way - about R4; pensioner rate!

The ferry at the pier in Cheung Chau

Thoroughfares are very narrow on the island. Bicycles are very popular and the few motorised vehicles are very narrow

like this

The harbour, filled with large and small boats

fishing or simply watching the water

Junks and more familiar craft

The junks have evolved and one sees very few sails

These pedal trikes are for hire

Western food with a few Chinese influences here

The Black Kite is one of Hong Kong's most familiar birds. One sees them in the air most of the time, searching for food

Pedestrian traffic is quite heavy along the quayside, but one does dodge bikes and the occasional four wheeler

Time for an upgrade?

and it was hot, so we chose a more shaded, quieter route

through the alleys

a relic of colonial times, but it still works

To Tung Wan Beach

This crab was all defensive

and the dogs were playful

This golden retriever kept her owner very busy, throwing her toy into the water for her to fetch

How to hold a shaking dog

Off to find the Catch of the Day

Catch a tan

In 36º heat, thirst quenching became a priority, so we went into this little bar

run by Peter Lee, whose mother is English. He speaks perfect English

It had a wide variety of imported, mostly Belgian, beers

and did a roaring trade in mounds of shaved flavoured ice

and seemed to be popular with the ladies who lunch

but we chose a Tsing Tao, the popular Chinese beer

A banyan tree with its tangle of roots

and the making of a dragon

Joss sticks; all sizes, all aromas

Don't park here, but we're not very busy anyway

Lovely fresh fruit, on ice if necessary

Beautiful plants and good luck ornaments on the door

This house is next to

the Temple

which has some beautiful ceramic decoration

The temple interior

A beautiful moon gate

A shrine inside the temple

protected by fierce warriors

A bell and a gong

The smoke of the joss sticks fills the air with spicy aroma

In the courtyard at the back, a ceremonial fireplace and a small gazebo

and in front, the rather messy remnants of the Cheung Chau Bun Festival, held the previous week

Lots of plastic packaging tape and the occasional rather tired lantern

Then back to the waterfront to see the famed seafood restaurants - not as many as Lynne remembered from her previous visit, twenty years ago, but the fish is alive and waiting to please you: blue crabs

groupers and other unidentified fish

A junk being loaded

with poles

A view over the harbour

with more picturesque junks

and very little activity

Looking into one of the restaurants. Our timing was way off - we would have had to wait for about four hours to be served and that was a bridge too far, sadly