Solo Day at Mui Wo

I hopped on a ferry and ended up in part of Lantau Island for the day!

"Don't be scared to walk alone, and don't be scared to like it." --John Mayer

Turns out, I'm actually loving these solo adventure days! I originally planned to go to Peng Chau island, but ended up accidentally taking the ferry to Mui Wo. You know you're on the wrong ferry when you look on the map and in the bottom right there's an arrow pointing off into the ocean ("this way to Peng Chau")😂 I've actually been to Lantau island a few times: to see the Big Buddha, and then to Discovery Bay, and now Mui Wo!

Similar to Cheung Chau island, there are bikes everywhere since it's an island and most people just walk/bike everywhere. I'm sooo glad I ended up in Mui Wo--I spent the day exploring and doing whatever I wanted! I know most of my friends would probably be like BRUH at the amount I wanted to walk😂😂

I followed the limited signs and my instincts to most of the touristy spots here. Honestly ended up taking the long way for literally no other reason than I just like walking and looking around haha. The Man Mo temple was super pretty (the picture when you clicked on this blog post)

I love how beautiful the village is. I saw kids walking around and the cows lazily grazing on the fields while the clouds caressed the mountains.

Also, I love how I planned to "go cafe hopping" and take a "chill day" in Central, then ended up changing my mind and exploring a whole island. OH SHOOT I forgot to mention, getting to the island such a great vibe: reading my Nicholas Sparks book on the MTR for an hour, walking super fast for no reason like I'm in a rush, then sitting in the upstairs part of the ferry with the windows down and feeling the wind whip my hair around while I look at the city skyline. Sooo nice!!

I went to this hidden cave, pretty neat:) I also went to a "scenic waterfall" but it was dried up so it was just rocks😂 There were a bunch of families disappointed with the view so they ended up picnicking on the rocks instead.

I bought a creamy coconut mango drink for like $2 USD then decided to hike the Olympics Trail.

Loved seeing the sports written on the concrete every so often!

Also, I'm at the point now where if something is considered a "hike" but it's paved, I'm like "isssss it a REALLY a hike tho?👀" There were a ton of steps tho and the sun came out, so I definitely got a great workout in! I ended up going back the way I came once I summited the hill because the path led to Discovery Bay, and I just went there a few days prior.

I was on the way to the long hike to the Trappist monastery (the map says it's where some Catholic monks reside, I thought that sounded cool! They're also famous for producing dairy there), when I passed by a sign advertising kayaking. You already know it got me!! I kept walking for about five minutes, stopped, laughed, then turned around and paid the guy working there. He was super nice and even held the boat for his customers while they were getting in. He even taught some guy how who was struggling how to properly stand up paddle board! The golden hour glow was gorgeous! Kayaking right before sunset (they close at 6pm) is the move:)

I ended up kayaking pretty far and was doing it super strong. My mindset was LET'S GOOO for the whole two hours, but I also had a few moments where I'd stop and just let my kayak float on the water. I'd close my eyes and take in the sound of the waves, the wind in my ponytail, and the sunshine on my face. If you asked me to kayak alone in the states I'd maybe reject the idea, but now that I've done it twice in Hong Kong I'm all for it! I'm so used to being go go go with others, but it's been great exploring and relaxing on my own. I'm always up for some self refection time, so this was exactly what I needed! Especially since we only have about a month left!!

Since it was after dark, I was hungry from all that walking and paddling, so I ate at a local restaurant near the pier. I ordered sweet and sour pork and some veggies (called "morning glory in clay pot," they're super hot). I think really the only "Chinese food" Americans got right is anything sweet-and-sour-flavored (pork, shrimp, chicken, etc.) That stuff is sooo good.

Of course, before I even picked up my chopsticks, the waitress came over and was like LET ME GET YOU A FORK. Such a common misconception they have of me;) Like gurrrrl, we've been using chopsticks since we arrived in January🤪Sometimes they assume because we're "westerners" (aka white haha) that we somehow can't use chopsticks. Anyways😂

The ferry ride back was, as usual, a rejuvenating experience. Again, I sat in the top and the back of the ferry to get the windows-down wind-blowing experience. My favorite part is when we're about to pull into the pier (dock?) and the city is all lit up.

Can't wait for more solo journeys!!

xoxo