TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Cheung Chau, Hong Kong's island getaway
Welcoming New Year: Residents at the Flower Market on Yuen Po Street in Mong Kok ahead of the Chinese New Year
Change Size
Welcoming New Year: Residents at the Flower Market on Yuen Po Street in Mong Kok ahead of the Chinese New Year.
As Hong Kong has long been known as a paradise for shopping and eating, an island retreat might not be the first thing to pop into the minds of tourists visiting the former British colony, which has been promoting itself as Asia's world city.
But, Hong Kong offers more than just shopping combined with unique and delicious eateries. It has many out-of-city retreats, including Cheung Chau Island.
Cheung Chau Island looks tiny on the Hong Kong map, but it boasts plenty to see and do in a day, including the joy of pedaling around the island, that you will not be able to experience in any other of Hong Kong's outlying islands.
It took our ferry around 45 minutes from Hong Kong's Central Ferry Pier to arrive at the 2.5-square-kilometer island with a population of 23,000. While the ferry is transferring you to the island it is best not to nap as you don't want to miss the beautiful scenery of Hong Kong's skyscraper forest filling the skyline.
From the ferry, the waterfront of Cheung Chau looks like something out of a European postcard. Quaint-looking buildings line the waterfront, while multi-colored fishing boats sway on gentle waves.
'This island is well-known as a heaven for bicycles, because there are no cars or motorbikes allowed here. Pick any bicycle you like and pedal around the island wherever you want,' our tour guide, Wing Lau, said.
Cars and motorbikes are not allowed on the island because Cheung Chau has narrow alleyways and crowded sidewalks. Only a miniature police car, ambulance and fire engine are allowed for emergency purposes.
Although small in size, Cheng Chau boasts a lot of charms: temples, seafood restaurants, beaches and a pirate's hideout among them. Once a year, the island hosts the Bun Festival, which is slated for May 2 to 7 this year. The main attraction of the festivals are the bun towers, large bamboo structures several stories high, piled with sweet buns.
Outside the festival, however, Cheung Chau is a serene place, hence it is a great place for couples to escape from the noise and crowds of modern-day Hong Kong, especially for those looking for a relaxing day or afternoon drinking a few beers by the beach, wandering or riding bikes along the narrow streets and trails, or sampling the relatively affordable seafood and snacks.
If you are traveling in a group it is fun to rent a three-wheeled pedicab, because if you get tired pedaling your friend can replace you as the driver and you can sit at the back and enjoy the beautiful scenery of the seashore.
Be mindful that weekends are usually pretty packed with tourists, mostly locals, but for those who are able to swing a weekday trip, the island will be less crowded, giving more of a true sense of the nature of the island.
During our visit, we explored a number of places such as the Pak Tai Temple, which was built to honor the island's patron deity, Pak Tai, for saving the village.
Built in the style of a traditional Chinese temple, it has a large main hall where the statue of Pak Tai sits. In front of the statue is an altar where people leave offerings and burn incense.
Don't forget also to visit Cheung Chau's highest vantage point, the North Lookout Pavilion, as well as Tung Wang and Kwun Yam beaches.
For lunch we visited the Hometown Tea House on Tung Wan Road, well-known for its sushi and red-bean pastries and run by a Japanese couple, after that we headed to Kwok Kee Cake Shop located on Pak She Street.
After lunch, to satisfy my curiosity, I cycled southward heading toward a small town called Sai Wan, where the famous Cheung Po Tsai Cave and Reclining Rock are situated.
I parked my bicycle and hiked around 15 minutes to reach the cave, which was the favorite hiding place of the notorious 19th century pirate, Cheung Po Tsai.
The cave is very dark and you need to bring your own torch. Once you get inside you cannot move backward because it is so small, only 50 centimeters wide and 15 meters long. It was challenging and exciting to line up to get into the cave.
Near the cave, you can enjoy the amazing view from Reclining Rock, the location of five giant eroded rocks. The place is reminiscent of the beautiful scenery of Belitung beach portrayed in Indonesia's Laskar Pelangi (Rainbow Troop) movie.
If you are a comic lover, after a day pedaling in Cheung Chau, you can go back to Hong Kong and visit Comix Home Base (CHB) located on Mallory Street in Wanchai.
It has studios for comics and animation artists as well as the 'Comix Salon', which collects print and digital comics.
Wanchai has long been intertwined with segments of local comic history. Prominent comic artists, such as Tony Wong Yuk-long and Seung-gun Siu-bo, grew up in the district.
What is unique about the CHB building is that it still preserves the sense of past times by retaining a number of architectural features of the building in their original forms despite being equipped with modern facilities.
Visitors to CHB can experience urban living in the early 20th century, the time the original four-story building was constructed.
