Cheung Chau Island

racks of seafood drying in the sun
see all photos »

Okay, by this time you must be thinking that I have a thing for islands (Hong Kong Island, Boracay Island, Lamma Island, Lantau Island, MV Island). Cheung Chau is an island about 7 miles southwest of Hong Kong Island and measures just under a square mile. It is easy to explore on foot. We took a ferry from Central District to get there. The main street on the harbor, Praya Street, was packed with shops, restaurants and apartment blocks. I read somewhere, that despite its size, Cheung Chau has more people living on it than all the other outlying HK islands combined.  There are 2 or 3 temples on the island. Pak Tai Temple is brightly decorated with colorful dragons and birds on the roof, doorways and walls. In front of the temple, they have the Cheung Chau Bun Festival in May. I will have to give you more details about that festival when I come back here in May! Most people use bikes for transportation on the island. They also rent bikes to visitors, as well as bikes with a passenger bench in the back (see photo). You'll also notice in the pictures that the emergency vehicles are small vans and four-wheelers. There are neatly organized racks of drying fish, shrimp, scallops, etc. all along the harbor. Carrie and I are not sure who is buying the endless supply of dried shrimp! We ended our tour of Cheung Chau with lunch at one of the harborside restaurants, then jumped on the next ferry back to Hong Kong Island.

an island....that measures just under a square mile