Lantau Island – one of Hong Kong’s larger but less inhabited areas. Lantau boasts the world’s largest outdoor Buddha (now accessible by a scenic 25 minute cable car ride) as well as numerous hiking trails. After much deliberation, you will decide to buy a one-way cable-car ticket. How will you get back down? Who knows. In your cable car you will meet a nice Chinese couple (with his parents). They are originally from the mainland, but they went to college in America (he went to Georgetown – smart guy). They met while working in NYC, moved to Beijing (his hometown) for a few years, and have spent the last five in Hong Kong (his parents are just visiting). They will tell you all about Lantau’s many hiking trails, and suggest a daily plan for you. They will tell you that there is a trail from the Buddha to the top of Lantau Peak, but it is difficult. You will ignore their warning. You plan to see the Buddha, hike to the peak, then take a bus to a harbor town, and then catch a ferry back to Hong Kong. 
After spending slightly too much time at the Buddha (and lunch) you decide in the late afternoon to quickly hike to the peak. At the outset of your journey, you will meet many people on their way down. You will ask each of them how much longer it will take to get to the top. Basic logic dictates that the closer you get to the top, the less time it will take to get there. Basic logic does not exist on the path to Lantau Peak. The first person you meet will tell you “45 minutes – max”. The next person will tell you that you are an hour and a half away. Further up the mountain, a third group inform you that you still have an hour forty-five to go. The path up the mountain consists of a series of steps made of rock that cut, practically, a vertical course up the side of the mountain. Walking up will be unpleasant. “But it will all be worth it when you get to the top and see the amazing view,” you will tell yourself. When you finally get to the top, after almost two hours, there will be no amazing view. Oh, there is potential for an amazing view – but, no amazing view. Freakin China… During the winter months, smog blows from the factories on the mainland and settles over Hong Kong. It would be gorgeous here… The Chinese will destroy their country. Hopefully they won’t take Hong Kong with it. Hiking back down takes a while, and, like going up, is painful (but in a different way). The sun is setting by the time you get back to the Buddha.
On the final day of your trip, you will take a bus through the mountains to the south side of Hong Kong Island. There, there are beaches and markets. It will be a beautiful day.
In the afternoon, your friend will have to leave. His flight will fly out this evening. You will not be leaving until the following morning. You will say goodbye to him – thank him for an amazing trip. Then, you will go back to the harbor to finally see the light-show. It will be a total let-down. But you will meet some nice Korean guys and have a conversation about cameras with them. The next morning, at Hong Kong airport, you will bump into some fellow Yamanashi JETs. You knew they would be in China when you were, but didn’t know that they would be leaving Hong Kong (of all places) on the same flight. You will have traveling companions on the trip back to Japan.
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