Weekend Adventures: the peak

The Peak
Victoria's peak is one of the "must see" places of Hong Kong. From the peak, there are amazing views of Victoria Harbor and the surrounding areas. Saturday was set to be a clear day, so I set of to do my tourist duty. The first, and maybe the best thing about going up to the peak is taking the Peak Tram. Built 120 years ago because someone who owned a hotel at the top of the peak wanted to get more business, the peak tram is pretty amazing. It is a funicular railway, which means it operates as a combination of elevator and railroad technology. There are two cars that are used to counterbalance each other. As one goes down, the other goes up. The cars are connected by a large steel cable. The idea is very simple, but I found it fascinating. Apparently there are a few other similar trains in the mountain slopes of Sweeden, Germany and Switzerland (where the HK tram was originally designed). The other fascinating thing about the peak tram is that the railway in cut into the side of the mountain and therefor incredibly narrow. There is only one track up the mountain, except at the mid point where the cars diverge to two tracks for passing. The hill is so steep that at one point it is a 27 degree gradient. It begins to feel more like a roller coaster than a mode of transportation. The ride up the mountain is an attraction in itself, but standing at the top, you can understand why someone went to all of the trouble of building it.


At the top of the peak, you find all the things you would expect in Hong Kong: trails to walk around and enjoy the sights, restaurants, and a shopping mall.
These are some of the views from the peak. Those with all the buildings are of Victoria Harbor. The other pic is of the south side of the island and the other islands to the south.


from the top of the peak, there are a few different hikes that allow many breathtaking views of the city. Here are a few from the trail:












Disneyland?
One thing that I do find funny about Hong Kong, is that there are so many people, that man's influencee is everywhere. Even when you are going on a hike, the hand of man is ever present. The sides of the mountains have all been cemented in to prevent erosion. They put PVC pipes in to aid the drainage. Anywhere you go for a hike on Hong Kong island, there will likely be a paved or brick road. There will likely be stairs built through the wilderness. The hike around the peak is beautiful, but it seems manufactured in many ways. As you hike around, you will walk past a coincidentally placed Indian rubber tree. Thereafter you will see a random growth of Bamboo. On the back side of the trial there is a man-made waterfall （th0ugh this one does have a particular use as it is a routing of water to the reservoir). I feel that is disneyland were to make a "HongKong land" it would possibly be more authentic the the real Hong Kong. I guess I shouldn't complain though. It is not as if the lakes in central park are in any way natural. Perhaps it is a fact of life that in the midst of a dense metropolis, nature will always be manufactured in one form or another. Instead, we should be grateful that some of it has still been preserved to enjoy.

Public works:
There must be an enormous budget for public works projects as you constantly see the results. Sometimes you see the projects in action. This man was laying granite tiles on the outside parameter of the hiking "trail". (does this seem entirely unnecessary to anyone else?)