October 7, 2013
Hong Kong - Day 3
Today was a day of sightseeing followed by a birthday dinner celebration for Wingchi, because today was his birthday. We ate breakfast at Café Grey Deluxe where T.C. Lai joined us. After breakfast, we walked down to the MTR station where we caught the redline to the Prince Edward station, then transferred to the green line and rode until we hit the Diamond Hill station. Diamond Hill is at the north eastern part of Kowloon. It is where we would find the Nan Lian Garden and the Chi Lin Nunnery. The station spills out into a shopping area called Plaza Hollywood. The Garden was on the other side of the Plaza, so it was a walk of only a few city blocks.
The typical noise level of a busy city was very evident when we emerged from the underground subway of the MTR, and was certainly present as we approached the entry way to the Gardens with the raised roadway overhead. When passing through the entry gates and walking a short distance inside the Gardens, an amazing thing happens. The noise almost completely disappears. The design of a garden like this is to create a serene and tranquil place to enjoy. Their design methods created just such a place. Noise barriers shield the gardens from the sound of traffic outside the garden and mounds have been placed around the whole garden with extensive planting of trees to filter exhaust and dust from the surrounding area as well as to deaden sound from the outside.
Wingchi met us at the gates because it was easier for him to drive from his home and then he would drive us back after a few stops along the way.
The first building in the gardens is the Chinese Timber Architecture Gallery. We went inside to see. unfortunately there was no photography allowed inside, but I did manage to snap a few shots as we exited. The Gallery displays depicted numerous Chinese styles of wood architecture. The most amazing thing is a display showing the "no nails" technique. All of the wood in this style is cut to fit like 3 dimensional jig-saw puzzle pieces. The structure is amazingly strong, but in the event it would need to be dismantled and moved, it can be without any damage to the structure. the 4th photo below shows a roof line made in the no nail technique.
All of the stones in the garden as well as the plants and trees came from across China. Large eruptions of basalt lava create deep flows of molten rock. As the rock cools it shrinks. The stresses cause jointing in several different planes, and columns of rock form with a generally hexagonal shape. The hexagonal rocks are put to wonderful landscape use at Nan Lian. Caitao rocks, Heshan rocks, Laibin rocks, Qinghua rocks, petrified trees are also used.
The Pavilion of Absolute of Perfection. This octagonal pavilion sits in the middle of the octagonal lotus-shaped pond. It is a symbol of absolute perfection and fulfillment in all aspects of life, and blessings to all visitors. Access to the pavilion is over the twin vermilion Zi and Wu bridges, which also mark the central meridian of the garden.
Penjing, which translates to "tray scenery" is the Chinese landscaping are which led to the Japanese development of Bonsai. It is also known as penzai, literally "tray plant", tray landscape, potted scenery, potted landscape, or miniature trees and rockery. The Nan Lian Gardens host many Penjing trees and landscaping.
The next building housed an amazing display of jaspilite rocks, also known as Dahua Yantan coloured scholar's rocks from Dahua County in Guangxi Province. This particular type of jaspilite wasn't discovered until 1991. All of the rock formations were beautiful, uniquely formed, and brilliantly smooth.
Breakfast was wearing off quickly, so Wingchi made reservations for lunch at the Chi Lin Vegetarian lunch restaurant on the far east side of the Gardens. Rather than having to wait at the restaurant, Wingchi received a call when our seating was ready. This gave us more time to walk around and take in the beauty. We spent the time overlooking the Blue Pond stocked with Koi. It also has rock formations and water features. The Lunar Reflection Terrace and Pagoda Tree Pavilion on the pond’s edge allow visitors to the opportunity to relax and enjoy the pond and reflections of buildings on the opposite side. We did just that until our lunch call came.
The seating call came and we made our way over to the restaurant. The restaurant sits behind a waterfall and has a panoramic window which allows diners a look through the cascading water into the gardens. The restaurant is managed by the Chi Lin Nunnery and serves high quality vegetarian food with a variety of gourmet meals and set meals for two or four people in a cafeteria like setting. Various Chinese dishes are available including starters and stewed broths, main dishes and hotpots, congee, rice vermicelli, noodles and rice plus a variety of beverages, but most everyone drinks tea.
Lunch was delicious. The dishes were made up of fresh vegetables, mushrooms, tofu, rice, rice starch, bean starch, soy sauce, and seasonings. All of the dishes were prepared so well that anyone who enjoys Chinese food wouldn't likely miss anything non-vegetarian. We left the restaurant very satisfied and made our way back to the north central part of the gardens. Just past the center point are wonderfully placed steps which cross over a city road below and connect the gardens with the Chi Lin Nunnery. One never realizes that they are crossing over a city road as the placement of the steps, over crossing, and landscaping all hide this from view.
The gardeners must work constantly to maintain the perfectly manicured look of all the plants and trees. By the best of our observations, they do just that.
The Chi Lin Nunnery sits adjacent to a hillside, so the view as one approaches makes it look more like it is away from the city, not directly inside it. Once to the main entrance you can see a courtyard inside. When through the entrance, the courtyard begins to impress the eyes as well as the senses.
There are four lotus ponds inside the nunnery's walls placed in symmetrical fashion. The entire courtyard is beautifully designed and breathtakingly serene. We spent some time looking at the various alters, the meticulously crafted architecture, and grounds. Photos were limited to the grounds and some buildings as was video photography.
If you look close, you'll even see some Chinese gargoyles.
After a thoroughly enjoyable visit to the Nan Lian Gardens and the Chi Lin Nunnery, we made our way back to the Plaza Hollywood. Wingchi's car was parked in the basement garage, so down we went. Wingchi then drove us to the Chinese University of Hong Kong to see an exhibit on the history of gold in China. Photography was not allowed. The exhibit was very extensive chronicling much history. The various works of gold were stunning. Everything from ornamental pieces of gold fashioned for clothing and even for horses, to art were represented.
After taking in the exhibit, Wingchi took us to the adjacent Morningside Campus where he said there is a coffee house we could visit for an afternoon coffee. The coffee house sits on the side of a hill overlooking the campus sports field, the Shing Mun River, and the Tiu Shau Ngam mountain range which is popular with extreme hikers.
The afternoon was now almost spent. Wingchi drove us back to the Upperhouse where we freshened up a bit and rested for about an hour. Next up was dinner at L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon in the Landmark building in Central Hong Kong. This 3 Michelin Star restaurant has the same ownership as the L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon in Macau. Darrell, T.C. and I took a cab to the Landmark building. When we went inside, it wasn't a big surprise to see that we were in another shopping area. After a few escalator rides upwards and then an elevator, we made it to the 4f of the Atrium building where L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon is located.
Website - http://robuchon.hk/
Wingchi met us at the restaurant along with Vivid Zhang , a media friend of his who has been working with Lock Cha. We couldn't get reservations inside the restaurant, so we opted for seating around the display kitchen and finishing area. It was actually a better place as we could watch the meticulous cooking and finishing at work. We began the evening with a toast to Wingchi's birthday.
The evening's Menu
Selection of breads & rolls
Wine- Ferreirinha Reserva 1991 (Portugal)
L'Amusse- Bouche (chef selected hors d'oeuvre)
Le Foie Gras ( Foie gras cubes and jelly of beef consomme on chilled daikon "veloute")
Le Homard (Maine Lobster fricassee with spelt risotto and lobster coral emulsion)
Le Poric Iberique (Roasted Iberico pork loin glazed with "teriyaki" sauce, mixed herbs and mushroom condiments)
or
La Piece de Boeuf Kagoshima (Pan seared A4 Kagoshima beef tenderloin with aromatic arugula salad)
Pommes Puree a la Robuchon (perhaps the world's best mashed potatoes, more like rich potato and butter pudding)
La Mangue (black pepper bavaroise with passion fruit cream and mango sorbet)
House chocolates, coffee, tea
Dinner met with the expectations one would reasonably have with a 3 Michelin Star establishment and then some. The best part was celebrating Wingchi's birthday. We made our way down to the street and walked a few blocks until Wingchi, T.C. and Vivid left us for his car. Darrell and I decided it was easier for us to just catch a ride on the old fashioned double decker street trolley, which were passing by at very efficient regularity. They have to be one of the best bargains in Hong Kong. The fare was $2.30 HK which is about .30 cents US. The very colorful Ads on the trolleys may have something to do with the low fare... I'm just guessing.
We waited no more than 10 minutes before climbing on the next trolley headed our way, and of course wnet to the second level to get the best view. We rode just a bit over a mile and got off at the trolley stop just past Pacific Place. It was about a 3 block walk back to the Upperhouse and bedtime.
