You’ve done The Peak, whizzed up to the Big Buddha and biked around Lamma. What’s next? There are a whole host of great outdoor activities and this first one is full of monkeys.

MONKEY MOUNTAIN

Sure, you could go hiking along the coast or up a regular mountain, but why bother with them when this one is covered in monkeys? Macaques to be specific, and they litter the paths of Monkey Mountain (or Lion Rock Mountain near Kowloon Reservoir if we’re going by what the squares say, i.e. maps and signs).

The walk around the mountain takes 1-2 hours, is easy, clear and littered with man-faced beasts and friendly wild dogs. Not only is there this draw; scaling the mountain provides some of the best views of Hong Kong you’ll ever find, allowing you to take in the whole of Kowloon and Hong Kong Island.

It’s easy to get there too. Take the MTR to Prince Edward, leave out of exit E2, turn left and check the bus stops until you see the number 80. Stand there, hop on the bus and after 5 minutes when you see a big car park on your right scattered with furry friends, ding the bell and hop off. Stroll over the bridge and begin.

TAI LONG WAN BEACH

Hong Kong’s lovely, with its big city buildings and serene beaches within a stone’s throw. Repulse Bay’s not a great beach but is one of the most well know. Shek O’s the nicest of the easy to get to beaches and offers surfing but if you’re looking to go the extra mile, Tai Long Wan beach is the ultimate reward. Secluded, serene and with surfing and an amazing waterfall pool, this perfect getaway lies in the middle of the Maclehose Trail in the New Territories. You can get there via a Sunday-only shuttle bus or a cab from Sai Kung town centre. The $85 cab ride can be shirked if you’re feeling fit and want to make a day of it as it’s about an hour and a half along the trail. Once you’ve soaked up the sun, get away in style by hiking to Chek Keng and taking the $20 boat to Wong Shek pier where you can catch the 94 bus back to Sai Kung town centre or the 96R to Diamond Hill (weekends only). The waterfalls are a detour but worth every minute. Between Tai Long Wan and Sai Wan beaches, take a left before you go uphill and within ten minutes you’ll be staring at a little paradise in Hong Kong.

CHEUNG CHAU

Cheung Chau, one of Hong Kong’s outlying islands, boasts a reputation greater than its unremarkable name might suggest. Cheung Chau translated to English reads “Long Island”, but it might be better to describe Cheung Chau as dumbbell-shaped, the narrowest point being a mere three minute walk from coast to coast.

Famous for its observance to tradition, Cheung Chau is a throwback to older times, with housing bunched bravely together and streets so narrow that even a Mini would have trouble negotiating them. Dotted with small stores replete with some of Hong Kong’s more traditional food items, the abundance of salons is something curious.

The annual Bun Festival, held on the 21st of May, attracts tens of thousands from HK and Kowloon and is a spectacle as hundreds of young men climb 20ft high bun towers; steel structures with bagged buns loosely attached, to tear off the buns and spread them among the crowd.

The Mini Great Wall (!) is somewhat unspectacular but an expensive path with railings was built so it is a must see to gain insight into where the HK Government spends its money. The Human Head Rock is far more remarkable for its resemblance to, well, a human head.

The Cheung Po-tsai pirate cave is, as legend would have it, where the pirate of the same name stashed his worldly treasures. The cave is not much more than a slim tunnel through the rock. Pitch black, claustrophobic and beneath the waterline so you can hear the waves crashing against the rock beside you, it’s a mini-rush and what mobile phone lights were made for.

Finally, like Lamma Island, Cheung Chau boasts great seafood. Cap off a day out with a group seafood dinner – the more the better as you can try more dishes.

SAI KUNG SQUID FISHING

Summer is here and apart from bringing out mosquitos and scantily clad women, it also brings out squids. If you’re up a spot of fishing for your dinner, head to Sai Kung and arrange for a junk (boat) to take you and your friends out to sea (Recommended as it’s pricey otherwise. Also, it’ll get rather lonely out there in the dark on a boat by yourself). Once you’re there, plop your bait-on-hook into the water and wait diligently until you see the squid and luminous cuttlefish wander stupidly towards your set trap. All catch will then be cooked up and served either on the boat or at a seafood restaurant if you so wish. The man to call is Tony, on 2792 4553 to book a yacht and squid fishing session. Bonus points if you catch and cook a mermaid using only a small frying pan.

LONG KWU TAN BEACH BBQ BUFFET

Long Kwu Tan – or Lung Kwu beach – in Tuen Mun is famous for its all-you-can-eat BBQ sites. That’s right – for just a mere $78, you get access to a variety of free-flow meats at a BBQ pit site complete with staff who even light the fire for you. You can cook the night away eating charcoaled spare ribs and too-tough beef steaks as you while away the hours on the beach listening to the chatter of other patrons and the gentle lap of sea and muck against sand. Just take the K52 bus from the Tuen Mun MTR station. A mere 30 minutes later and you’ve arrived at Long Kwu Tan and presented with a few choices of which BBQ service to patronise. Brouhaha recommends Dragon Restaurant and Sunshine Cafe for their repeated and valorous endeavors, going beyond the call of duty to provide better quality meat and friendlier staff.

YUEN PO STREET BIRD GARDEN

Apparently it’s good luck when a bird makes a mess on you. If that’s the case then we should all love birds and thank them for pooping on our nice clothes or fancy hair-dos. In fact, we can thank a whole bunch of them at the Yuen Po Bird Garden. The place is littered with delicate Chinese cages, caging little feathery blobs of colour. It also includes wise old men showing off their favourite beasts of flight and young tourists wandering around, looking to be shat on. You can even buy your own lucky poo blob. There are also bigger birds in bigger cages: the majestic Cockatoo and the intelligent red or green Macaws. To get there, take the MTR to Prince Edward and to exit B1. Just walk east along Prince Edward Road West. The garden isn’t particularly big so once you’re done plucking feathers, why not head to the neighbouring flower market to see if he or she loves you/loves you not.

Hong Kong. A city where you can live in a bubble, doing the same things week in – week out. It’s easy to go to Lan Kwai Fong and Wan Chai. It’s where you were first shown when you arrived and it’s where your colleagues were shown first too. So on a Friday night you head there, again, and spend a small fortune on expensive drinks and retread the same small square footage.

Here’s a short guide that offers alternatives. Alternative places to drink, alternative places to shop, a change of scenery for sightseeing and information on all the Facebook groups you need to sign up to in order to know these things are happening in the first place. Here is A Design for Life.

Words: Brouhaha with Michelle Kwan & Henry Mullins • Illustrations: 1kstyles

Tags: design for life, monkeys, sights
Posted in Features