After a leisurely hotel breakfast we took the MTR to Diamond Hill, Kowloon so that we could visit the Nan Lian Gardens, a haven of tranquility set amidst a myriad of towering apartment blocks.
The gardens which only opened to the public in 2006 are designed in the Tang style and cover 3.5 hectares. The idea of the gardens was to promote the history and culture of China. Admission is free and the gardens are an absolute delight. We admired the lotus pond and pavilion then looked in the Chinese Timber Architecture Gallery which displays some interesting scale models of existing Tang structures. Adjacent to the gardens lies the Chi Lin Nunnery which is a large Buddhist temple complex featuring elegant wooden architecture.
Returning to the MTR station we paused for morning coffee in the Hollywood Plaza shopping mall then spent some time browsing the shops in this modern, large mall.
Moving on, we rode the MTR to Tsim Sha Tsui to visit Kowloon Park, a pleasant urban park with centrepiece fountain. Some window shopping followed along the bustling Nathan Road and a visit to the Hong Kong China Outlet Mall on Canton Road. This was a real disappointment, over-priced stock in a drab shopping mall so we didn’t linger very long. Fortunately it was only a short walk off route, so we retraced our steps and visited the much smarter malls of Gateway and Harbour City which were more to our liking. After a productive shopping trip we took the Star Ferry across to Central, the first time during the week that we’d crossed in daylight. Thankfully, it wasn’t too busy so we were able to sit by the window and take some photos of beautiful Victoria Harbour.
More shopping followed in the IFC Mall before returning back to our hotel in North Point by tram, laden with our packages. After a cup of tea and some more of the local bakery’s delicious coconut buns we were ready for our final evening in Hong Kong.
A quick MTR ride to Tsim Sha Tsui, a stroll alongside the majestic Peninsula Hotel, then across to the promenade to watch the Symphony of Lights music and laser show which takes place nightly at 8.00 pm. The evening’s commentary and music was in Chinese but some evenings it’s in English with Western choreography. It didn’t really matter that we had chosen to attend on a ‘Chinese’ night except that we couldn’t follow the commentary. I tried to take some photos but it was very difficult as the lasers change constantly. The Light Show draws huge crowds but there are ample vantage points to view the spectacle, we were sitting on some steps where we had an uninterrupted view.
After the show had finished we had a quick look in ‘SOGO’ the largest Japanese style department store in Hong Kong with branches in Tsim Sha Tsui and Causeway Bay before finding somewhere to enjoy our final evening meal of the holiday.
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