Tai O - Of Stilt houses & Puffer Fish

There are places that draw you in, nudging you to keep walking through it's narrow streets and on cobbled pathways, fascinating you with the magic of variety and you keep wondering - what's more.

When I reached Tung Chung, Hong Kong, I had a plan. But as soon as I stood in the long snaking queue for Cable-Car Ride, I realized a backup plan was necessary. We were told that it would take 2 hours just to reach the ticketing counter and then another hour for a chance to board the cable car. After standing there for half an hour we decided to take the bus to Ngong Ping, Lantau Island. But since the queue for Tai O village, located near Ngong Ping was shorter, we opted to go there.

Tao O is a quaint fishing village in the south west part of Lantau Island. As soon as I alighted from the bus, a gust of fresh air greeted me. So quiet, so serene - you could sit for hours here, watching the waterfront.

Instead of taking the boat ride, I thought of spending time inside the village. A glimpse of stilt houses, rows of dried fish for sale, puffer fish souvenirs - I was amazed by what the village had to offer.

View from Tung Chung Footbridge

Wanna try some Fish Ball?

The streets of Tai O Village

Fascinated by the dried Star Fish and bird like Puffer Fish!!

As a souvenir I bought a box of beautiful ceramic chopsticks from a small street stall. The shopkeeper was a very aged man who initially priced it at $120 HKD. But then brought it down to $100 HKD. It was later on did we find that the same set was being sold at higher rates ($350 to $400) in bigger popular stores.

Beautiful wooden and ceramic chopsticks

On the way we stopped by Kwan Tai Temple, just few minutes from the foot bridge.

Guess who I met while strolling through the streets - Charcoal Grill Egg Puff Uncle.

He is quite a celebrity I read. With his sunglasses on, he cooly flips the batter filled pan over charcoal fueled oven. Totally loved his style!! The egg puffs were crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. Just for $15 HKD, I got to taste some awesome egg puffs.