Lazy Lamma

February 8, 2009

Today I took a ferry from Central to Lamma Island. Lamma Island is where alot of Westerners and locals live that want to have a life not surrounded by skyscrapers. The island has no cars and I think the tallest building I saw was 3 stories. The cities themselves are very small too. Everyone seems to live a little bit off the beaten path and you can walk from one of the major cities to the other in about an hour.

When you arrive in Yung Shue Wan you are greeted by a pier of flags with railings lined with bikes, trycicles and the occasional scooter. A short walk brings you through the entire market district of town and past the many restaurants selling fresh seafood along the walkway. From there it is a short (5-10 min) walk to the main beach "Power Station Beach" so named because it is right next to the power station which kills the otherwise peaceful and untouched atmosphere of the island.

You can walk to the other side of the island in about an hour - it takes you past beautiful views of the bays and other outlying islands. There is a little villiage on the walk, just before you reach Sok Kwu Wan. This village (Lo So Shing Village) is full of tiny shack-like houses, people sitting outside enjoying the day, and very small crops of land. As you keep walking you go past an old school (it looks a little run-down, but I think it is still the school in use. Next you pass a beach with some beautiful boat wreckage and then some small caves on your right. According to the signs they are called the "Kamikaze Caves" and were used as hiding places for the Japanese in WWII.

As you enter Sok Kwu Wan there is a Temple at the start of town. It is called the Tin Hau temple an it houses this long eel-like fish carcus that must be about 12 feet long. I would not want to run into that creature while swimming. Apparently one of the fishers caught it and it was in a restaurant tank until it died and was preserved for the temple. You then get to the small town which has one main walkway along the waterfront covered in restaurants with tanks of fish in front. Don't be deceived - many of these are built into the sidewalk and only require pulling a slab over them at night to cover them. If you ever go, be mindful of where you step you you might end up in a tank of prawns or crabs that is someones livelyhood & likely your dinner.

I then boarded the ferry back to Aberdeen - a much smaller & open air boat. It was beautiful and they even let you sit on the prow of the boat if you would like. When leaving you weave in & out of the fishing village, complete with little over water outposts that are constructed for fishing but used on the weekends for lions dances and parties amongst the locals. I am sure if you want you can convince a boater to row you out to these outposts. On the way back we stopped at Mo Tat Wan, an even smaller village that looked virtually empty. It was about the length of a city block. I might have to hike there some other time.

Back in Aberdeen I boarded a bus for return to Wanchai. Overall a beautiful day.

Here are some pics. As Laura has informed me of Bri's rule - it doesn't count unless you have a picture of you there - I will try to start including one of those too.

http://picasaweb.google.com/roberra/LammaIslandFebruary82009?authkey=Gv1sRgCN649sqat9zYpAE&feat=directlink