Stairway to Buddha...

I decided to make a trip to Hong Kong this morning. I had thought about it last night – figured it’s only a 1-hour ferry-ride from Macau, so might as well visit for a day. I don’t really care much about crowded shopping destinations though – so, I looked up what else HK could offer.

I browsed through lonelyplanet.com, and although they didn’t mention this within their “things to see” list, I somehow found a picture put up by a user: the 10,000 Buddhas’ Monastery. How could I not include that in my trip? Or rather, how could I not ‘revolve’ my trip around that?

I googled the monastery to find out more. All of what I read was on a couple of blogs – and it all sounded like this was one of those “things to see”!

So, I packed my bag this morning, updated my MP3 playlist, quick breakfast, and run run run...

I got at the ferry terminal, boarded the “turbojet” – which can really be quite a thrill for a few minutes. As we were leaving, we’d have other ferries that would be making their way back to Macau, and as a result the waves they’d leave behind would promise a great speedy roller-coaster ride. I mean, seriously, those stomach tickles you get when you go high and suddenly come down – I’ve never experienced it to such an extreme.

Got off at HK. I had heard a lot about the efficiency of HK’s subway system – and it really is, once you get a good sense of where you are and where you’re headed. I checked with the customer service staff, telling them I was trying to get to Sha Tin – New Territories to meet 10,000 old school friends... For some odd reason, she gave me the right direction, but only half way! So, I got off at the half-way station thinking I was already in the Sha Tin area. I checked with the customer service staff there, and the guy told me to take “Exit F murmur murmur”.

So, I took “Exit F”, and to my surprise, someone was there to ‘receive’ me... I was confused for a few seconds, then I figured maybe there has been a misunderstanding. This guy, who was on the phone, was calling me as if saying: “Sushi! Here – I’m here!” So, I walked towards him, very much prepared to find out he thought I was someone else. Turns out the guy is from “Bespoke Tailors” – he’s a tailor / salesperson! And an extremely cheeky one!


He started with his 3 second sales-pitch, which I obviously rejected saying “I’m here only for a day, man, I got no time to get clothes made”
“One day is more than enough time – where you come from?”
Now, I know this trick very well. Almost all Indians do this – they ask other Indians “where you from” and the minute it’s confirmed you’re from India, they’ll talk to you in Hindi as if you’re long lost brothers, and as brothers you should help each other. So, I had to give an immediate answer – but it couldn’t be India. For some odd reason, I ended up saying: “I’m from, uhh, Israel.”

Well, it helped cause he didn’t start trying to convince me in Hindi now – but he still continued in English. So I finally said “no thanks, buddy” and walked. I later realised there were many like him. The worst part is, most of them were Indians, and for some odd reason, I felt they ‘particularly’ approached other Indians!?

Well, so anyways, I walked for 5 minutes, asked directions, and found out I m no where near Sha Tin – it didn’t feel like I was anyways. So, I walked back towards the station from where I was told I would need to catch another train altogether. Just to confirm my directions, I walked into the “Holiday Inn” – pretended to be a hotel guest who needed to travel, and got the directions... and a free map!

So, after a few minutes on the train, I finally arrived. I had read that the monastery had some 400+ steps, which could be tiring. However, the minute I got there I noticed they actually had an escalator! So, I decided to be a bit lazy and take the escalator. I reached the top in less than 4 minutes. I felt like I should by some incense sticks – after all, there were supposed to be 10,000 Buddhas! So, I bought it from a lady near-by – I thanked her, she thanked me, and eventually gave me a piece of paper. I thought it might be some prayer. The paper said:

“I’m sorry, this not 10,000 Buddhas. Please go down, turn left, and follow the construction site,”

I had to read it twice to have it sink in – “oohh, this must be like an entering temple – like a first course. No wonder I had the luxurious escalator.”

As I walked back down the “stairs”, I could only imagine GB going, “foolish mortal – he thought I’d make it ‘that’ simple for him! Ha! All shall walk the 400 steps and bow to me!”

I finally found the entrance to the ‘monastery’ – and yes, it did have the 400+ steps uphill. However, I don’t think I expected to it be even half as tiring as it turned out to be. But, it all felt worth the exhaustion. And it’s not like you’d see the Buddhas only once you reach the peak – they are along with you throughout. The very first Buddha had a Goatie – so, we kind of connected on that. He had this pose, as if saying, “Me?”



On almost every step you take, you find a life-size Buddha to your left and one to your right. This gets even better once you’re “almost there”. At the last few steps, the life-size Buddhas are standing – and very often you feel like they might just move to freak you out and say “got you!” Each and every one had a different look. Some looked mad, some were dreamy, some looked thankful, and some were just trying to make you laugh, I guess.


It took me about 15 minutes to get to the top. By now, my t-shirt and pants had formed artistic sweat patches throughout. My hands had caught the pink colouring from the incense sticks. Made me wonder, why would they add the excessive colour to it? Do they really think people buy it because it looks colourful?

Once at the top, I took a few moments to catch my breath. I lit a few of the incense sticks, until the 3HK$ lighter broke! So, I just decided to let it be. As I walked into the room with thousands of Buddhas on the wall, I noticed a man sitting and meditating. They had a few seats that you could sit and pray on. Now, to make a trip all the way to see 10,000 Buddhas and not meditate for even a brief second seemed senseless. So, I decided to relax...

A few minutes later, I got up, and decided to walk the remaining of the monastery. I still had a small incline to climb to reach to “top”. And the incline was one of the most steep ones ever! My body was literally curved at a 90 degree angle, just so I can balance my walk. At the top, along with a few more Buddhas, right in the centre was GB. I took a few pictures, relaxed in the area for a few minutes and then got ready for the pull of gravity to take me downstairs... I kept skipping and hoping for most of it like Little Red Riding Hood...

Once at the bottom, I first went into a toilet to wash up -- the stickiness was too much. I took a train back to Kowloon in HK – one of the fairly central areas. I walked around searching for something ‘new’ to eat. By now, I was singing “Gone” with Jack Johnson, as most of the locals would give me that look of “crazy guy in the hall-way!” But, I was so tired, it didn’t really matter. I ate at the Hard Rock Café, which was a good change from all the pizza and McDonalds I’ve been having in Macau. I know it isn’t any healthier in comparison, but it was a welcomed change for my taste buds. I really liked the ambience. I always felt that Hard Rock café would be what Cameron Crowe would come up with if he were a chef instead of a filmmaker.

After the meal, I went around Kowloon for a couple of hours, “trying” to shop – but, I just couldn’t find anything that seemed worth buying. Besides, shopping is a strange ‘highlight’ for a trip to a foreign country. Meeting 10,000 Buddhas, however, is something unique...

Enjoy the photos!