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Why the 2-Hour Journey to Tap Mun Island (Grass Island) in Hong Kong Is Totally Worth it

May 4, 2020 //  by Lily Wu//  7 Comments

Tap Mun, also known as Grass Island, is one of Hong Kong's farthest flung outlying islands from the city. But it's also one of the most beautiful! In this post, I tell you exactly why it's worth it and exactly what to do while on Tap Mun Island. #hongkong #tapmun #hongkongdaytrip #hkguide #hkfood #asiatravel
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Tap Mun, also known as Grass Island, is one of Hong Kong's farthest flung outlying islands from the city. But it's also one of the most beautiful! In this post, I tell you exactly why it's worth it and exactly what to do while on Tap Mun Island. #hongkong #tapmun #hongkongdaytrip #hkguide #hkfood #asiatravel
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It’s the end of April here in Hong Kong. The weather is now decidedly sunnier – balmy breezes intersperse with damp air and gently cool nights. People laugh in small groups in front of restaurant shop fronts and share bottles of white wine, plunked in buckets of ice, al fresco.

It’s an idyllic picture of spring in the city – so, not exactly the breezy warm days that countries in the four-season hemispheres get, but not quite the swampy Hades’ hell that we know Hong Kong to be from May to September. The kind where you shower three times a day and sweat collects sexily into puddles under your arms, and when days with hefty cloud cover bless you with pink-red shoulders and peeling skin on your nose the morning after.

You would think that it’s an idyllic picture of spring in Hong Kong – except, of course, that it’s hard to ignore that COVID-19 is still ravaging the world’s health, its economy, and that no one – not our governments, not conspiracy theorists, not Donald Trump – knows what’s going to happen next.

But you wouldn’t really know that, walking around Hong Kong. Yes, there are travel restrictions. Yes, the general populace is heavily encouraged/all but completely mandated to wear masks in public. Yes, the cinemas and bars and schools are closed. But the deserted piazzas of Italy and the lonely traffic lights in Manhattan aren’t scenes that are seen here in Hong Kong right now – as people stay aware and vigilant but the city’s comings and goings tentatively, cautiously, warily – chug on with subdued optimism.

And it’s during this Hong Kong that I visited Tap Mun – known as “Grass Island” colloquially, one of Hong Kong’s most far-flung of outlying islands from Hong Kong Island.

The view of Tap Mun from Tap Mun ferry pier

Table of Contents

  • Getting to Tap Mun Island (Grass Island)
    • Take the Kaito Ferry from Ma Liu Shui Ferry Pier to Tap Mun Island
    • Take the Kaito Ferry from Wong Shek Pier in Sai Kung (黃石碼頭)
  • What to Do on Tap Mun Island 
    • Tap Mun New Fisherman’s Village
    • Balanced Rock
    • Dragon’s View Pavilion (Lung Keng Kan)
  • Hiking on Tap Mun Island  
  • Here Are the Things You Should Eat in Tap Mun
  • Make Sure You Catch the Ferry Back from Tap Mun Pier
  • Did You Like This Post? You Might Also Like:

Getting to Tap Mun Island (Grass Island)

I tried to get to Tap Mun Island one other time and failed. For science, of course. Because “you can’t succeed without failure,” and all that.

It was because of this miraculous failure that I know that there are two popular ways to get to Tap Mun Island – so let’s start with the one that I know works, but that I didn’t personally complete.

Take the Kaito Ferry from Ma Liu Shui Ferry Pier to Tap Mun Island

 Here’s the location of Ma Liu Shui ferry pier on a map.

I’ve taken great pains to circle Tap Mun for you here so you can see exactly how freaking far everything is.

You can get to Ma Liu Shui by taking the MTR to University Station stop, the station that lands you right in the center of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. If you decide to go this way, you’ll find yourself smack dab in the middle of a real live campus – one with wide roads and green sports field and wire fences. Oh, and backpacks. More backpacks than you’ll ever have seen, especially if you’ve spent most of your time on Hong Kong Island. I’ve lived in Hong Kong for three years by this point and have never seen any version of a campus here that bore even a shallow resemblance to the wide lawns of the classic American college quad.

Ma Liu Shui ferry pier can be reached by a 10-15 minute walk from Exit A of University Station. It’s a lonely pier. On a weekday, you won’t come across many other people, but there will be several families fishing and milling about at the ferry pier.

On a weekend, though? Or a public holiday? An entirely different story.

Ferries run less often on the weekdays than on the weekends (like, every 2-3 hours!), so if you’ve only just missed the last boat, you better make yourself damn comfortable while waiting for the next one.

How do I know this, you ask? Just a hunch. No, I definitely didn’t just only miss the ferry, walk for 30 minutes under the sweltering sun in search for a Starbucks, and then slink home.

But say you want to avoid doing that. You’d better check the official timetable.

Take the Kaito Ferry from Wong Shek Pier in Sai Kung (黃石碼頭)

The alternative (and altogether more pleasant way, in my opinion), is to take the ferry from Wong Shek Pier in Sai Kung. Please note that the pier is not actually in Sai Kung town.

It’s all the way on the other side of Sai Kung Country Park. Here’s a map.

I’ve circled both Sai Kung town and Tap Mun here, so you can see how EVEN MORE crazy far everything is.

There are multiple ways to get to Sai Kung town from Central, most of which involve taking the MTR, and then grabbing a bus to take you there.

Once you get to Sai Kung town, take either the 94 or 96R double-decker bus from the Sai Kung bus terminus. Between the two bus time tables, you can expect there to be 15 minutes between each bus, so the wait isn’t likely to be very intimidating. If you have time to kill, stock up on water/juice/bubbletea/delicious Oreo ice creams/all of the above from the many, many small food shops and convenience stores in the area.

The ride through the country park is one of the most pleasant bus rides that I’ve ever had the pleasure of experiencing in Hong Kong, especially if you make a beeline for the upper deck front seats. Greenery on both sides for miles and miles, punctuated by wide expanse of cerulean water on a clear day, boats bobbing merrily on gentle waves.

Once you get to the pier, you have two choices. Take the scheduled ferry or get into one of the tiny motorboats shuttling passengers 20 or so at a time. You’ll know because there will be a frazzled but very busy looking man or woman pointing to you, barking, “Tap Mun? Tap Mun?” to which you can only nod until you snap out of your daze and find yourself in a small boat with a handful of strangers in a wet boat, bobbing up and down.

Tap Mun Island Small Boat at Ma Liu Shui Pier
The small boats at Ma Lui Shui Pier.
The line to the ferry at Ma Lui Shui Pier
The lines at Ma Lui Shui Pier

Should you take the latter option, it’ll cost you about 20 HKD a head and will get you to Tap Mun amidst lots of sea spray and foam and within 15 minutes.

What to Do on Tap Mun Island 

Once you get to Tap Mun, the only thing to do is to start walking. The best way is to do a loop along the bottom half of the island, which will take you less than an hour – more if you, like me, feel the inexplicable urge to take scores of photos of smooth stones and the fascinating ubiquitous urinating cows.

These harmless and adorable bovines are bafflingly referred to as “feral cows” on all over the internet, which made me question the way I’ve been understanding the word “feral” up til now. Is “feral” not synonymous to “rabid”? I have questions.

A urinating cow on Tap Mun Island Grass Island Hong Kong
A urinating (or is it milking?) “feral” cow on Tap Mun Island

Tap Mun New Fisherman’s Village

The population of Tap Mun is tiny (Wikipedia claims it’s about 100!) and made up of Hakka and Tanka people. Its last school closed in 2003 due to a declining population, and you’ll see evidence of this decline in its abandoned school building, deserted basketball courts, and run-down stone houses. It’s altogether not unlike islands of similar sort in Hong Kong, where once-inhabited homes are abandoned for more glittery occupations in the city.

Once a decade, the people of the island put together a Taoist celebration giving thanks to their fishing heritage.

But it’s still not without its charms – Tap Mun, like most of the outlying islands in Hong Kong, has its own Tin Hau temple, at a dignified elevation from sea-level, and several narrow alleyways with locals sitting behind great spreads of seafood, drying slowly in the sun.

A woman deshelling sea urchin on Tap Mun
A local woman deshells sea urchin on Tap Mun
Removing sea urchin meat on Tap Mun.

Balanced Rock

Ask anyone who lives anywhere, and invariably there will be some geological wonder that supposedly looks life-like enough to be given a sage and wise-sounding name, like the Three Sisters in the Blue Mountains near Sydney, or the Queen’s Head in Yehliu, Taiwan. Or Bloody Dick Peak in Montana, USA. Sage. Wise.

This rock in Tap Mun is kind of like that, only it doesn’t resemble an animal or a queen or a bloody dick – it’s named “balanced rock,” because, well, it looks like it’s balancing pretty damn well. It angles towards the sea at justtt a perilous enough angle that an enormous boulder shouldn’t be stacked so neatly on top of it and manage to hold its weight…but it does.

Balanced Rock at Tap Mun Island
The ultra-balanced rock at Tap Mun Island

Beyond the rock is the expansive view of blue, blue, sea, which will hold your gaze for a lot longer than a couple of stones ever will.

Dragon’s View Pavilion (Lung Keng Kan)

5 or 10 minutes’ walk from Balanced Rock and a short ascent up a hill will bring you to this glorious vista – where crashing salty waves meet a stony shore, and a hill peaks gracefully in the distance.

The outlying islands in Hong Kong sort of all look the same after a while – the same gently tamed jungle-like wilderness, abandoned houses with ivy crawling up their walls, branches crunching softly underfoot.

But the view from Dragon’s View Pavilion, especially if you can get lucky with day with sunny skies and wispy white clouds instead of grim fog and gloom, is sweepingly beautiful. For a moment (okay, like a fourth of a second), I could have sworn that I had just ascended one of the many sloping hills on the Italian island of Capri.

Dragon's View Pavilion on Tap Mun Island in Hong Kong
Okay, this could TOTALLY be Capri. Right?

On this particular April afternoon, tents dotted the gently undulating hills on soft grass (ha ha, Grass Island – you get it now), from the smallest mini-Pikachu tent to intimidating four-person family structures.

I’m generally not a camping person, as I typically find that I make a particularly delicious feast for critters of all kinds, and possess none of the natural know-how that some of my more outdoorsy acquaintances do. You’ll find me anxiously “trying to be helpful” by flitting around better-abled people and handing them water bottles while they set up tents and inadvertently trodding on someone’s carefully crafted turkey sandwich lunch.

Regardless, if you did want to go camping in Hong Kong and are secure in your ability to be helpful in the great outdoors, Tap Mun (Grass Island) would be the perfect place to do it.

Hiking on Tap Mun Island  

If you have a few hours to spare, you should find the time to explore the island. All of the island’s “attractions” are on the southern part of the map, but I discovered that there’s a way to hike your way to the northern part, too. Here’s a good page with the directions, if you decide that you want a bit more than pissing cows and mountains-to-sea views.

On the day that my friend and I visited, we were distracted by the beauty of the crashing waves against the rocks, and so didn’t go all the way around.

Instead, we trod through dirt pathways and waded through barely-covered trails until we reached what seemingly looked like the end of a cliff. Until we spotted the thick white rope snaking around the branch of a tree.

It looked secure enough.

As I’m not presented with many opportunities to show off my outdoors-prowess (see my mention of the extent of my camping skills above), we pressed on. I gingerly and gently held onto the rope, and began the descent.

I was only a few large strides in when the cute ring that I’d bought a few weeks earlier caught against the rope and smoothly slid off my index finger. Helplessly, I watched it disappear completely from my sight, every clink and clank in slow motion. I then became hyper-aware of a small crowd of onlookers, of the local, umbrella-toting, visor-wearing, head-to-toe jumpsuit-in-blistering-heat-wearing variety looking on. Taking that as my cue to continue on, I mourned the loss of the ring that was almost certainly giving me a skin allergy, tried to remind myself that it hadn’t even cost that much, and finally, my feet met smooth rock.

A rope while hiking on Tap Mun Island
Less treacherous than it looks
Probably exactly where I lost my ring.

I only had very slight rope burn. I hadn’t allowed the rope to violently meet my groin in the middle in an unlucky moment of lost balance. Save for a lost accessory, I was basically Indiana Jones.

A few minutes behind me and my friend, I watched the crew of nine, with their fluorescent coats and vibrant umbrellas and flapping hats descent, with much squawking, after us.

Our intrepid adventurers on our tail

The bottom boasts rocky coastline and views of the ocean stretching as far as the eye can see.

The view from Tap Mun Grass Island in Hong Kong
Stunning sea views
A girl sitting on the beach shore in Tap Mun
Trying to be aesthetic for the gram but only getting partially there

Here Are the Things You Should Eat in Tap Mun

Near the Tap Mun pier, you’ll find a small handful of local restaurants by the water. Not all of them have a wide-open outdoor terrace where you can enjoy bright sunshine and views of bobbing boats (like on Lamma Island), but they all serve classic Cantonese seafood dishes and local Hong Kong fare.

The most popular restaurant here is Sun Hon Kee, but after taking a turn around the narrowly packed seafood restaurants in the vicinity, we’d discovered that the menus of all of them were pretty similar. We were turned away at Sun Hon Kee (or New Hon Kee) 塔門新漢記海鮮酒家 at around 4:30pm in the afternoon, and the next door 新有記 carries a similar menu with identical specialties.

After having lived in Hong Kong for several years and rarely needing to pick a restaurant on feel alone and not by the mighty power of Google Reviews, you come to realize that sometimes, there’s not that much variation in quality if they all sort of serve the same thing. Unless, of course, there are plaques upon plaques of “Michelin Guide” signs propped proudly on the outside. Which you shouldn’t worry about missing, because they will let you know.

Whichever of these restaurants you end up sidling uncertainly into, be sure to order the sea urchin fried rice, which is a specialty in this area. It doesn’t bear much difference from a standard Yang Chow fried rice (which, for the uninitiated, has bits of egg, scallion, and finely chopped vegetables like peas and carrots), and the characteristic savory briney flavour from urchin is all but very faint, but it’s still a must order at between 95 – 100 HKD per plate.

A plate of sea urchin fried rice in Tap Mun Hong Kong
Sea Urchin fried rice at Tap Mun
A bottle of iceless iced milk tea at Tap Mun
The iceless iced milk tea found in Tap Mun.

Another popular order is the ice-less iced milk tea. I saw it being served in bottles here, which is decidedly less glamourous but no less delicious. A cold ice-free milk tea has all of the floral herbaceous bite and slightly-sweet creaminess of condensed milk as a regular milk tea, only amplified. And ever-so-slightly-thicker. The best thing about it is if you can’t finish it (like me!) you can just replace the cap and take it home and refrigerate the bottle, at no compromise of its flavour.

Make Sure You Catch the Ferry Back from Tap Mun Pier

Make sure you don’t miss the last ferry back at 6:05pm in the evening. I don’t actually know what happens when you miss a ferry back to the mainland, but I hope you’ll have made good friends with some of the locals when you were chowing down on fried rice earlier in the day, so you can beg a one-night stay from there.

Tap Mun, also known as Grass Island, is one of Hong Kong's farthest flung outlying islands from the city. But it's also one of the most beautiful! In this post, I tell you exactly why it's worth it and exactly what to do while on Tap Mun Island. #hongkong #tapmun #hongkongdaytrip #hkguide #hkfood #asiatravel
Pin it!
Tap Mun, also known as Grass Island, is one of Hong Kong's farthest flung outlying islands from the city. But it's also one of the most beautiful! In this post, I tell you exactly why it's worth it and exactly what to do while on Tap Mun Island. #hongkong #tapmun #hongkongdaytrip #hkguide #hkfood #asiatravel
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Did You Like This Post? You Might Also Like:

How to Visit Victoria Peak, Hong Kong’s Most Popular Viewpoint

Day Trip to Lamma Island: The Perfect Easy Hong Kong Excursion 

25 Must-Try Foods in Hong Kong for the Ultimate Eating Experience

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Category: Asia, Hiking, Hong Kong, Travel, Travel Guides and TipsTag: Asia travel, Day Trip, hong kong, Hong Kong Day Trip, hong kong travel, Tap Mun Island

Previous Post: «Food in Hong Kong 25 Must-Try Foods in Hong Kong For the Ultimate Local Eating Experience
Next Post: Dragon’s Back Hike: A Great Introduction to the Hiking Trails of Hong Kong A girl looking at the view from Dragon's Back in Hong Kong»

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kaisa

    May 22, 2020 at 1:43 pm

    I love Hong Kong! Your post made me wanna go back! Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
    • Lily Wu

      May 24, 2020 at 3:42 pm

      Thank YOU so much for reading, Kaisa!

      Reply
  2. Yasmin Ali

    May 22, 2020 at 12:45 am

    I love the pictures!! I didn’t have this place on my list but you make it sound easy to navigate!

    Reply
    • Lily Wu

      May 24, 2020 at 3:42 pm

      Haha it’s so far from central Hong Kong so it’s a bit of a niche spot. It’s actually more accessible than you might think!

      Reply
  3. Emma

    May 21, 2020 at 10:47 pm

    I haven’t been to Hong Kong yet but I’m seeing more and more about it recently that makes me want to make a stop there. This included. A lovely looking day trip

    Reply
  4. Christina

    May 21, 2020 at 9:25 pm

    What a great place. I would love to visit there one day. It seems like a fun island to explore for a day. Although, I don’t need to see the urinating cows!

    Reply
  5. Loise

    May 21, 2020 at 12:54 pm

    the hike looks great! I love travels related to nature <3 Love to visit there one day!

    Reply

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A girl in Boston Common
Boston Common. Boston, MA. November 2019.

Hi, I’m Lily!

I’m a Boston-raised, Hong Kong-based writer, traveler, and content creator.

My site is about sharing stories relating to millennial travel, travel blogging, Asian diasporic identity, and Hong Kong living.

📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (Lion Rock) ⁣ This was t 📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (Lion Rock) ⁣ This was the second time I’ve hiked to Lion Rock in Kowloon (the first time being over 3 years ago), and I still love the little Lego-pieces of HK’s buildings as far as the eye can see! ⁣ I’m not jn Hong Kong at the moment, but I’ve been telling my family here in the US that it isn’t all dense concrete and gray cityscapes, a huge amount of HK is literally just lush tropical wilderness. ⁣ Hope everyone is having a lovely start to their holidays! My family has never been big holiday people (don’t think they place a lot of emphasis or value on atmosphere), but we still got a little cat-proof tree tree at my insistence to spruce it up a bit. ⁣ ⁣ #ilovehongkong #homekong #hongkongphotography #hongkongphotographer #cathaycreators #hikinginhongkong #hongkonghiking #hkhikes #hongkonghikes #sheisfromhk #sheisnotlost #lionrockhike #lionsrock #hk_iger #travelgirlsgo #livetoexplore #hongkonglife #hongkonginsta #hongkongig #explorehongkong #discoverhongkong #awesomehongkong #bostonbloggers #bostonblogger #hongkongblogger #damestravel #traveldames #thedreamytravel #girlsvsglobe #girlsborntravel
📍Massachusetts (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ What’s th 📍Massachusetts (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ What’s the coldest place you’ve ever been to? ⁣ Can you smell how crisp the air is? It was also bone-shatteringly cold - 🥶 30 F (just below 0 C) feels just as fresh and stingy on my face as I remember! There are ZERO “Instagram spots” in the classical sense here - so you’ve got to get creative with Mother Nature! ⁣ Life has been funny lately. I’ve been in the USA for about 2.5 weeks now and I’ve finally settled into a rhythm and a routine. Part of that routine involves 3-4x weekly walks with my parents in a nearby “reservation” - big swathes of land with hiking trails, ponds, and lakes. I’m wearing leggings underneath jeans here, and could STILL feel the sharpness of cold air penetrating all the way through to my skin. ⁣ I’ve traded skyscrapers and haze for lakes and sunsets, and right now, feel super content. ⁣ ⁣ #ilovenengland #houghtonspond #newenglandsunsets #bostonbloggers #bostonblogger #newenglandphotographer #newenglandphotography #newenglandliving #newenglandlife #newengland_igers #newenglandfall #newenglandblogger #sheisnotlost #travelgirlshub #damestravel #dametraveler #sheisfromhk #agameoftones #cathaycreators #newenglandpictures #newenglander #ilovemassachusetts #masachusettsphotographer #massachusettsoutdoors #bluehillsreservation #hikingboston #newenglandhikes #massachusettslife #massachusettsmade #naturalmassachusetts
📍Boston, MA (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ This photo was 📍Boston, MA (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ This photo was taken last year in one of my favorite places in Boston, the Boston Public Library (where my dad still works!). ⁣ If I get my negative COVID result today, I’m finally out of my self-imposed quarantine! It won’t bring me much freedom, but I’m excited to meet the two new cats in the house and to finally be able to make and serve my own meals. Hope everyone is having a good week! ⁣ ⁣ #iloveboston #bostonpubliclibrary #beantown #newenglandphotographer #newenglandphotography #bostonma #bostonblogger #bostonbloggers #lifeofadventure #alwaysgo #wanderfolk #letsgosomewhere #exploreeverywhere #tasteintravel #instatravel #stayandwander #welivetoexplore #neverstopexploring #visualwanderlust #femmetravel #girlslovetravel #dametraveler #wearetravelgirls #ladiesgoneglobal #sheexplores #girlsborntotravel #theglobewanderer #traveldiary #travelphotography #bostonphotography
📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 ⁣ This summer, I met so 📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 ⁣ This summer, I met so many wonderful friends and formed exciting and fun friendships - as a result, I ended up on boats WAY more than any other HK summer, and still took place well into October. Now that I’m in cloudy and rainy and cold New England, I’m absolutely thinking about these sunny days, but being around my family is just as amazing. ⁣ I feel like I have so many books to read, things to write, yoga poses to learn, dishes to cook. My stories won’t be as fun as they are usually (a lot less booze and boats and a lot more books and cats) but I hope you guys will stick with me over these next few months! ⁣ #ilovehongkong #homekong #cathaycreators #outonthewater #imonaboat #sheisfromhk #hk_igers #hongkonginstagram #hongkongphotography #hongkongphotographer #hongkongig #hongkonglife #theprettycities #travelgirldiary #travelgirlsofficial #travelgirlscollective #travelgirlsgetaways #travelgirldiaries #travelgirlsvibe #explorehongkong #discoverhongkong #hongkongcity #hongkongview #hongkongharbour #exploreasia #travelgirlsgo #girlswhotravel #lifeinhongkong #hongkonglife #bostonbloggers
📍Boston, MA (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ I flew from Hon 📍Boston, MA (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ I flew from Hong Kong and landed in Boston on Sunday night, after sitting on two very, very, under capacity flights. I posted a lengthy few stories about my flight experience from HK, but the entire thing was wrapped in my bafflement and dumbfoundedness that not a single soul asked me about anything COVID related once I landed in the country. There were no temperature checks. No questions. No requests to see my signed doctor’s form stating that I was negative for the coronavirus. ⁣ At any other time, I would’ve loved to stroll the streets of Boston proper again (like this shot of me in Beacon Hill at exactly this time last year), meeting with childhood friends (miss you all so much and wish I could eat and drink with you), while enjoying my time with family. But today, I’ll be staying away and I really hope that the US gets its shit together soon. ⁣ #bostonbloggers #bostonblogger #iloveboston #newenglandphotos #massachusetts #beantown #beaconhill #acornstreet #bostonpride #bostonliving #bostonian #bostonphotographer #ilovenewengland #newenglandliving #newenglandlife #newenglandphotographer #newengland_igers #newenglandstyle #newenglandfall #massachusetts_igers #massachusettsphotography #massachusettsphotographer #iloveautumn #autumninnewengland #autumninboston #fallfoliage #foliagelove #foliageoutdoors #newenglandpictures #newenglander via @preview.app
📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (Sai Ying Pun) ⁣ Here’ 📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (Sai Ying Pun) ⁣ Here’s a colorful photo of Hong Kong during the best ever weather - breezy and cool - perfect for outdoor activity! ⁣ In other news, I will be going home to Boston soon to see my family for a while and am absolutely terrified. After having lived in Hong Kong, with very few transmissions of COVID a day, I can’t imagine going back to a place (albeit my hometown) where people aren’t taking things seriously. ⁣ Anyone who has been traveling in or through the US, or even living there, your advice is GREATLY appreciated! I would live with my two parents, and can’t take any chances - none at all. ⁣ ⁣ #homekong #ilovehongkong #hongkongers #hongkongig #saiyingpun #artlane #travelbloggers #bostonbloggers #urbanartphotography #urbanartwork #lifeofadventure #alwaysgo #wanderfolk #letsgosomewhere #exploreeverywhere #visualwanderlust #welivetoexplore #adventurethatislife #travelgirlsgo #theprettycities #theprettyplaces #thewanderess #urbanartworld #adventurevisuals #liveauthentic #finditliveit #ilovetravel #aroundtheworldpix #agameoftones #cathaycreators
📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (North Point) ⁣ City vib 📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (North Point) ⁣ City vibes and things ~ plus, I voted this week! 🇺🇸 I read somewhere that Hong Kong’s tourism arrivals have fallen 99.7 % since last September. With the protests and now coronavirus, I’ve almost completely forgotten what the city was like when I moved here for the first time in 2017 at 23, excited and bright-eyes (and scared to go to a local restaurant for fear of being made fun of for my godawful Cantonese). ⁣ I’ve upgraded the Cantonese to reasonably conversational/survival level, but I’m loving the city more and more the longer I stay. ⁣ Have you ever lived abroad? What’s one thing that surprised you about your new city? ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #ilovehongkong #homekong #journeyofgirls #northpoint #hk_igdaily #awesomehongkong #hongkongphotography #discoverhongkong #explorehongkong #hongkongtrams #eggwaffles #urbanphotography #travelgirlsgo #dametravelers #travelgirlsdiary #theprettycities #passportexpress #tasteintravel #instatravel #stayandwander #welivetoexplore #neverstopexploring #visualwanderlust #femmetravel #girlslovetravel #wearetravelgirls #ladiesgoneglobal #sheexplores #girlsborntotravel #theglobewanderer
📍USA 🇺🇸 (Boston, MA) ⁣ Last week, my w 📍USA 🇺🇸 (Boston, MA) ⁣ Last week, my work gave me the option of going home to see my family. I texted my mom, way too excited to tell her the news, only to get a “dont come, it is not safe here now.” I thought about the precautions I’d take as soon as I stepped foot onto an airplane (i am totally a hazmat suit/face shield/sanitize everything kind of girl), and was seized with a kind of uncertain paranoia about it all. I wouldn’t see my friends, probably - just my family. I’d do quarantine for 2 weeks there, and 2 weeks again back in Hong Kong. ⁣ I miss my family so much and can’t believe my last visit to them to my hometown, Boston, was last November. Here in Hong Kong we live in a relatively safe bubble, where life trudges on gingerly but stably. Schools are open, I go into the office, we can dine out. Cases remain in the single digits per day. ⁣ Would you go from a decidedly safer place (from a COVID perspective) to one decidedly not? Have you traveled? Were you nervous and what precautions did you take? ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #bostonmassachusetts #usaroadtrip #beantown #bostonblogger #bostonbloggers #bostonphotographer #boston_igers #bostonpubliclibrary #bostongram #bostoncommon #bostonphotography #exploreboston #iloveboston #journeysofgirls #librariesofinstagram #bostonlife #copleylibrary #newengland_igers #newenglandarchitecture #newenglandliving #wearetravelgirls #damestravel #travelgirlsgo #theprettycities #travelgirldiary #travelgirlsofficial #travelgirlsdiary #hongkongbloggers #hongkonggirl #sheisfromhk
📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (Ma On Shan) ⁣ Hungover 📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (Ma On Shan) ⁣ Hungover as hell, but at least the views are nice! ⁣ On my way to the hike this morning via several throttling and bumpy car rides, I ducked into the bathroom and pondered whether a good little puke would make me feel better. I didn’t end up doing it, but instead felt so much better after getting the blood flow going and sweating out the toxins (but that’s probably a placebo and all in my head - but hey if it works!). ⁣ My go-to fix for hangovers is usually Advil, pho, and exercise. What’s yours? ⁣ ⁣ #maonshan #hongkonghiking #awesomehongkong #ilovehongkong #homekong #saikung #hongkongig #hkigdaily #dametravelers #journeysofgirls #theprettycities #maonshancountrypark #ilovehiking #hongkongviews #cathaycreators #hkviews #lifeinhongkong #lifeofadventure #alwaysgo #wanderfolk #letsgosomewhere #exploreeverywhere #visualwanderlust #welivetoexplore #adventurethatislife #adventurevisuals #finditliveit #aroundtheworldpix #theglobewanderer #travelogue
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📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (Lion Rock) ⁣ This was t 📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (Lion Rock) ⁣ This was the second time I’ve hiked to Lion Rock in Kowloon (the first time being over 3 years ago), and I still love the little Lego-pieces of HK’s buildings as far as the eye can see! ⁣ I’m not jn Hong Kong at the moment, but I’ve been telling my family here in the US that it isn’t all dense concrete and gray cityscapes, a huge amount of HK is literally just lush tropical wilderness. ⁣ Hope everyone is having a lovely start to their holidays! My family has never been big holiday people (don’t think they place a lot of emphasis or value on atmosphere), but we still got a little cat-proof tree tree at my insistence to spruce it up a bit. ⁣ ⁣ #ilovehongkong #homekong #hongkongphotography #hongkongphotographer #cathaycreators #hikinginhongkong #hongkonghiking #hkhikes #hongkonghikes #sheisfromhk #sheisnotlost #lionrockhike #lionsrock #hk_iger #travelgirlsgo #livetoexplore #hongkonglife #hongkonginsta #hongkongig #explorehongkong #discoverhongkong #awesomehongkong #bostonbloggers #bostonblogger #hongkongblogger #damestravel #traveldames #thedreamytravel #girlsvsglobe #girlsborntravel
📍Massachusetts (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ What’s th 📍Massachusetts (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ What’s the coldest place you’ve ever been to? ⁣ Can you smell how crisp the air is? It was also bone-shatteringly cold - 🥶 30 F (just below 0 C) feels just as fresh and stingy on my face as I remember! There are ZERO “Instagram spots” in the classical sense here - so you’ve got to get creative with Mother Nature! ⁣ Life has been funny lately. I’ve been in the USA for about 2.5 weeks now and I’ve finally settled into a rhythm and a routine. Part of that routine involves 3-4x weekly walks with my parents in a nearby “reservation” - big swathes of land with hiking trails, ponds, and lakes. I’m wearing leggings underneath jeans here, and could STILL feel the sharpness of cold air penetrating all the way through to my skin. ⁣ I’ve traded skyscrapers and haze for lakes and sunsets, and right now, feel super content. ⁣ ⁣ #ilovenengland #houghtonspond #newenglandsunsets #bostonbloggers #bostonblogger #newenglandphotographer #newenglandphotography #newenglandliving #newenglandlife #newengland_igers #newenglandfall #newenglandblogger #sheisnotlost #travelgirlshub #damestravel #dametraveler #sheisfromhk #agameoftones #cathaycreators #newenglandpictures #newenglander #ilovemassachusetts #masachusettsphotographer #massachusettsoutdoors #bluehillsreservation #hikingboston #newenglandhikes #massachusettslife #massachusettsmade #naturalmassachusetts
📍Boston, MA (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ This photo was 📍Boston, MA (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ This photo was taken last year in one of my favorite places in Boston, the Boston Public Library (where my dad still works!). ⁣ If I get my negative COVID result today, I’m finally out of my self-imposed quarantine! It won’t bring me much freedom, but I’m excited to meet the two new cats in the house and to finally be able to make and serve my own meals. Hope everyone is having a good week! ⁣ ⁣ #iloveboston #bostonpubliclibrary #beantown #newenglandphotographer #newenglandphotography #bostonma #bostonblogger #bostonbloggers #lifeofadventure #alwaysgo #wanderfolk #letsgosomewhere #exploreeverywhere #tasteintravel #instatravel #stayandwander #welivetoexplore #neverstopexploring #visualwanderlust #femmetravel #girlslovetravel #dametraveler #wearetravelgirls #ladiesgoneglobal #sheexplores #girlsborntotravel #theglobewanderer #traveldiary #travelphotography #bostonphotography
📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 ⁣ This summer, I met so 📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 ⁣ This summer, I met so many wonderful friends and formed exciting and fun friendships - as a result, I ended up on boats WAY more than any other HK summer, and still took place well into October. Now that I’m in cloudy and rainy and cold New England, I’m absolutely thinking about these sunny days, but being around my family is just as amazing. ⁣ I feel like I have so many books to read, things to write, yoga poses to learn, dishes to cook. My stories won’t be as fun as they are usually (a lot less booze and boats and a lot more books and cats) but I hope you guys will stick with me over these next few months! ⁣ #ilovehongkong #homekong #cathaycreators #outonthewater #imonaboat #sheisfromhk #hk_igers #hongkonginstagram #hongkongphotography #hongkongphotographer #hongkongig #hongkonglife #theprettycities #travelgirldiary #travelgirlsofficial #travelgirlscollective #travelgirlsgetaways #travelgirldiaries #travelgirlsvibe #explorehongkong #discoverhongkong #hongkongcity #hongkongview #hongkongharbour #exploreasia #travelgirlsgo #girlswhotravel #lifeinhongkong #hongkonglife #bostonbloggers
📍Boston, MA (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ I flew from Hon 📍Boston, MA (USA) 🇺🇸 ⁣ I flew from Hong Kong and landed in Boston on Sunday night, after sitting on two very, very, under capacity flights. I posted a lengthy few stories about my flight experience from HK, but the entire thing was wrapped in my bafflement and dumbfoundedness that not a single soul asked me about anything COVID related once I landed in the country. There were no temperature checks. No questions. No requests to see my signed doctor’s form stating that I was negative for the coronavirus. ⁣ At any other time, I would’ve loved to stroll the streets of Boston proper again (like this shot of me in Beacon Hill at exactly this time last year), meeting with childhood friends (miss you all so much and wish I could eat and drink with you), while enjoying my time with family. But today, I’ll be staying away and I really hope that the US gets its shit together soon. ⁣ #bostonbloggers #bostonblogger #iloveboston #newenglandphotos #massachusetts #beantown #beaconhill #acornstreet #bostonpride #bostonliving #bostonian #bostonphotographer #ilovenewengland #newenglandliving #newenglandlife #newenglandphotographer #newengland_igers #newenglandstyle #newenglandfall #massachusetts_igers #massachusettsphotography #massachusettsphotographer #iloveautumn #autumninnewengland #autumninboston #fallfoliage #foliagelove #foliageoutdoors #newenglandpictures #newenglander via @preview.app
📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (Sai Ying Pun) ⁣ Here’ 📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (Sai Ying Pun) ⁣ Here’s a colorful photo of Hong Kong during the best ever weather - breezy and cool - perfect for outdoor activity! ⁣ In other news, I will be going home to Boston soon to see my family for a while and am absolutely terrified. After having lived in Hong Kong, with very few transmissions of COVID a day, I can’t imagine going back to a place (albeit my hometown) where people aren’t taking things seriously. ⁣ Anyone who has been traveling in or through the US, or even living there, your advice is GREATLY appreciated! I would live with my two parents, and can’t take any chances - none at all. ⁣ ⁣ #homekong #ilovehongkong #hongkongers #hongkongig #saiyingpun #artlane #travelbloggers #bostonbloggers #urbanartphotography #urbanartwork #lifeofadventure #alwaysgo #wanderfolk #letsgosomewhere #exploreeverywhere #visualwanderlust #welivetoexplore #adventurethatislife #travelgirlsgo #theprettycities #theprettyplaces #thewanderess #urbanartworld #adventurevisuals #liveauthentic #finditliveit #ilovetravel #aroundtheworldpix #agameoftones #cathaycreators
📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (North Point) ⁣ City vib 📍Hong Kong 🇭🇰 (North Point) ⁣ City vibes and things ~ plus, I voted this week! 🇺🇸 I read somewhere that Hong Kong’s tourism arrivals have fallen 99.7 % since last September. With the protests and now coronavirus, I’ve almost completely forgotten what the city was like when I moved here for the first time in 2017 at 23, excited and bright-eyes (and scared to go to a local restaurant for fear of being made fun of for my godawful Cantonese). ⁣ I’ve upgraded the Cantonese to reasonably conversational/survival level, but I’m loving the city more and more the longer I stay. ⁣ Have you ever lived abroad? What’s one thing that surprised you about your new city? ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #ilovehongkong #homekong #journeyofgirls #northpoint #hk_igdaily #awesomehongkong #hongkongphotography #discoverhongkong #explorehongkong #hongkongtrams #eggwaffles #urbanphotography #travelgirlsgo #dametravelers #travelgirlsdiary #theprettycities #passportexpress #tasteintravel #instatravel #stayandwander #welivetoexplore #neverstopexploring #visualwanderlust #femmetravel #girlslovetravel #wearetravelgirls #ladiesgoneglobal #sheexplores #girlsborntotravel #theglobewanderer
📍USA 🇺🇸 (Boston, MA) ⁣ Last week, my w 📍USA 🇺🇸 (Boston, MA) ⁣ Last week, my work gave me the option of going home to see my family. I texted my mom, way too excited to tell her the news, only to get a “dont come, it is not safe here now.” I thought about the precautions I’d take as soon as I stepped foot onto an airplane (i am totally a hazmat suit/face shield/sanitize everything kind of girl), and was seized with a kind of uncertain paranoia about it all. I wouldn’t see my friends, probably - just my family. I’d do quarantine for 2 weeks there, and 2 weeks again back in Hong Kong. ⁣ I miss my family so much and can’t believe my last visit to them to my hometown, Boston, was last November. Here in Hong Kong we live in a relatively safe bubble, where life trudges on gingerly but stably. Schools are open, I go into the office, we can dine out. Cases remain in the single digits per day. ⁣ Would you go from a decidedly safer place (from a COVID perspective) to one decidedly not? Have you traveled? Were you nervous and what precautions did you take? ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #bostonmassachusetts #usaroadtrip #beantown #bostonblogger #bostonbloggers #bostonphotographer #boston_igers #bostonpubliclibrary #bostongram #bostoncommon #bostonphotography #exploreboston #iloveboston #journeysofgirls #librariesofinstagram #bostonlife #copleylibrary #newengland_igers #newenglandarchitecture #newenglandliving #wearetravelgirls #damestravel #travelgirlsgo #theprettycities #travelgirldiary #travelgirlsofficial #travelgirlsdiary #hongkongbloggers #hongkonggirl #sheisfromhk
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