Another “must see” in Hong Kong is the Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery, perched high up on a mountain on Lantau island. The Big Buddha is a huge 112 foot tall bronze sculpture of The Buddha. Weighing in at over 250 tons, constructed in 1993 it is the world’s ‘tallest outdoor seated bronze Buddha’.

I was fooled by the lack of people on Cheung Chau the day before. The most popular way to reach the monastery is by train from the Hong Kong Central to Tung Chung station, then a beautiful cable car ride on the Ngong Ping 360 up to the top. The queue for the cable car didn’t look too bad until I realised it was a pre-queue. The ticket number I’d been handed was a ticket to join the real queue. I waited with a herd of people in the sun just standing there or sitting on the floor for about an hour before my number was called to join the queue inside.

The ride took about 25 minutes and provided great views over the nearby Hong Kong International Airport, the architectural marvel that is the bridge road to Macau, plus of course the Big Buddha itself. This was definitely worth the queue. I considered hiking back down as it looked like a pretty path.

I was expecting a peaceful, serene monastery experience but I got off the cable car to find a Disneyland feel, with Starbucks, Subway and fast food joints lining the square which was a bit surreal.

The Big Buddha itself sits even higher up a climb of almost 300 steps but what’s the point of coming if you don’t go all the way up? The 360-degree views are amazing if you get a clear day. Inside the Buddha itself is just a shop, not so interesting.

The monastery area is also a beautiful sight as it’s full of flowers and mandarin trees that didn’t look real. It’s positioned through an ornate Japanese-style gate, behind a row of giant incense sticks a few feet high.

Like a lot of Buddhist monasteries, this one offers a vegetarian lunch and usually these are cheap and delicious. I took a ticket to get my lunch and disappointingly was shoved onto a table for one in the corner next to the dirty dishes cart. I hate it when they put single people out of the way somewhere in the worst seats.

I was given a cold pot of tea and some disgusting slimy mushrooms followed by a saucepan of lukewarm rice to serve myself with some bright orange sweet-and-sour vegetables. I left most of it after paying for one of my most expensive meals in Asia at around £15.

With a huge queue to go down by cable car there is another option aside from hiking down. This turned out to be the unexpected highlight of the day. You can take a bus 30 mins down the hill to the small fishing village Tai O. The bus was only running every hour or so but I managed to time it just right.

I arrived around 4pm in Tai O without knowing what to expect. It’s a small village built on the water, with most of the buildings on stilts and boats used to get around. It’s a bit like a fishing village version of Venice!

As soon as I got off the bus I was offered a boat trip for about £7 which was a really nice way to experience the village from the water. We didn’t see any of the pink dolphins that apparently live there but I really enjoyed it.

The village is connected by bridges over the water and there are a few cafes and bars which would be perfect at sunset. The village square had music playing and there were older residents sitting outside, people watching. I’m not sure many people know about visiting place – for me it was just a random tip from someone I met at the hostel.

One thing I loved about Tai O was the music and general atmosphere in the tiny streets – see video of main square below!

Another trick to avoid yet another long queue for the 1.5 hour bus ride back to Tung Chung train station, is to jump on the ferry that runs from Tai O. I just happened to walk past the port and had a look at the timetable, which a child in the queue helped me to understand. There aren’t many departures so it had to be timed with the visit, which again just worked out perfectly.

This boat trip was actually brilliant and another highlight – really cheap (about £1) not crowded at all and the perfect way to see the coastline. Best of all, we followed the Macau bridge. To give it its full name, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge is the world’s longest ‘sea-crossing and bridge-and-tunnel system’, spanning 55km to connect Hong Kong, Macau and Zhuhai.

Seeing this up close was breathtaking, especially with all the planes taking off from the airport and flying right over our heads at sunset. Lots of people were taking videos of the takeoffs.

All in all, the Big Buddha was certainly a sight worth seeing while in Hong Kong but the highlight today was most definitely the journey!